The Bull Rider's Cowgirl. April Arrington
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matter what he says. Too much has happened for him to let me go back—” She bit her lip and waved a hand in the air. “There’s no way he’ll bend on letting me go, but he will for you.” She stepped forward, hugged Jen and whispered, “No matter what went down between you two, I know you care about him as much as I do. Colt and I are lucky we found you. You’re not just a friend to us. You’ve become family. I know you’ll take care of Colt and I know he needs you. It’s only for the weekend. So, please, do this for me.”
Something wet tickled Jen’s cheek. She rubbed it off on Tammy’s shoulder and huffed out a breath.
Tammy laughed and released her, brushing a new flood of tears from her face, too. “I may love you like a sister but that doesn’t mean you can use my shirt as a hanky.”
“That’s what you get for being so sappy.” Jen smiled, blinking hard to clear her vision. “I’ll go. But only if he agrees to it.”
“He will.” Tammy headed after Colt, calling over her shoulder, “I’ll be back in a few minutes to help load up, Karla.”
Jen watched Tammy leave and felt the weight of Karla’s stare, her cheeks heating under her scrutiny. Jen glanced away and stood still as fellow racers laughed and climbed into their vehicles. Engines turned over and trucks began lining up on the paved road leading to the exit. No doubt once the night’s fun was had, they’d rise early tomorrow morning, hook up their trailers and head to the next event. Davie, most likely.
Jen looked down at the soggy beer label and picked at the corners. If she went with Colt, she’d miss the Davie Pro Rodeo. Lose an opportunity to gain a better advantage over her competitors. And she’d have to work that much harder to earn a ticket to Vegas when she returned.
Only, seeing Colt in pain had tied a knot in her chest that she didn’t think would disappear when she hit the alley at Davie.
“Tammy’s right.” Karla dragged the toe of her boot over the grass and shoved her hands in her pockets. “I’ve never seen Colt clam up like that before. It’s good you’re going with him.”
“Yeah,” Jen whispered. “It’s a good thing.”
She hoped it was. A couple days. That was all. She’d help Colt through this, then she’d plan a new schedule, get back on the road and hit the circuit again.
Aside from their recent falling out, Colt had always been a good friend to her. It was time for her to be a good friend to him. Just as long as she remembered being friends was all he wanted. And all she could afford to be.
Colt rubbed a hand over his gritty eyes and sat up straight in the driver’s seat. The entrance was close, about three blocks ahead. He’d know it as soon as he saw it. There’d be a broad metal gate, security checkpoint and endless paved driveway.
He glanced in the rearview mirror, cocking his head and straining for any abnormal sounds from the white trailer hitched to his truck. Diamond was quiet. Just as he had been the entire eight-hour drive from Kissimmee to Atlanta. It seemed he’d taken full advantage of the quiet night drive to sleep and wasn’t ready to start his Saturday morning yet.
“Where are we?”
Jen pushed up from her slumped position in the passenger’s seat, blinking slowly. The soft glow of the dashboard instruments was the only light in the dark stillness of the truck’s cab.
Colt managed a small smile before looking away. Jen had been quiet, too. She’d stopped her gentle attempts at conversation and gone to sleep six hours ago, after he’d refused her offer to drive. Desperate for a distraction, he’d held on to his position behind the wheel, focusing on the road instead of the burning ache in his throat.
He’d fought against Jen coming. Had argued with Tammy for a good ten minutes and made it clear that he preferred to make the trip alone. The fear of breaking down in front of Jen was as unsettling as the challenge he already faced. But Tammy had refused to budge, and he had to admit that traveling the dark stretch of the interstate had been less grueling with someone at his side.
Even if that someone had every right to be angry with him and every reason not to offer her support.
“Colt?” Jen thumbed her hat higher on her forehead, her brown eyes searching his face. “Where are we?”
His smile fell. “Tuxedo Park.”
Colt looked out the window at the streetlights underscoring the lush greenery lining the road. The urge to hit the brakes, swing the truck in the opposite direction and drive for days was strong. He wanted nothing more than to forget. To pretend last night hadn’t happened and return to the status quo. Imagine that he’d never gotten the call and learned—
He clutched the steering wheel tighter. That was one thing he couldn’t do. No amount of distractions could change the fact that his father and stepmother were gone. Or that Meg was now the only remaining member of his immediate family.
The entrance appeared. Tall trees and shrubs lined each side of it.
Colt slowed the truck, maneuvered the sharp turn and stopped at the gate. A guard leaned out of the security office’s entrance and waited for Colt to let down the window.
“Good morning, sir.” He swept a flashlight briefly through the interior of the cab, then over the trailer. “May I ask who you’re visiting?”
Colt didn’t recognize him. Not that he would recognize any of the staff after a seven-year absence. His father had consumed them like water, always finding fault with even the best employees and promptly trading them out for new ones.
Colt leaned to the side and dug in his back pocket for his wallet. “Meg Mead.”
“Is she expecting you?”
He winced. “Probably not.”
“May I see your identifi—” The guard stopped as Colt pressed his ID into his hand, then flicked his flashlight over it. “Thank you, Mr....” He glanced up, eyes widening. “Mr. Mead?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, sir.”
Colt nodded.
“I apologize, Mr. Mead, but...” The guard motioned toward the inside of the cab. “I’ll need to see—”
“Of course.” Colt glanced at Jen. “He needs your license, Red.”
Her brows raised but she murmured an assent, bending over to the floorboard and fishing her ID out of her purse. Colt took it and handed it over, watching as the man examined it, then flashed his light into the cab.
“Could you remove the hat, please, miss?”
Colt’s jaw tightened. Procedures. His father had insisted on them being followed to the letter. So much so that his expectations were still met despite the fact that he was as good as in the ground.
Jen removed the leather cowgirl hat, tucking it between her knees and brushing her red bangs back. The guard tipped the flashlight up, flooding Jen’s face. She squinted and shrank back against the door.
Colt hissed in a breath and threw up a hand to block the glare. “It’s fine. Open the gate.”
“Yes, sir.”
The guard handed him the license, stepped back and buzzed the gates open, which swung out in wide arcs. Colt shifted gears, accelerating through them and heading down the winding, paved path ahead. They drove in silence for a few minutes, the headlights illuminating clusters of trees and healthy plants with bright, bountiful blooms on either side of the wide driveway.
Jen tossed her hat in the back of the extended cab and rubbed her palms over her jean-clad thighs. “Pretty intense security for a subdivision.”
“This