Chapter 25 #2
“Bodie! Hey! Wait up.” That was Chris’s voice, and he turned to see both Chris and his husband jogging in their direction.
“Hey, man, how goes?” Bodie grinned and waved, tickled as all get-out. It was good to see his friends, and other champs.
“Good, good.” He and Bodie got handshakes and bro-hugs from Chris and Mitch. “You rode like a monster this weekend. I just wanted to say congrats.”
“I was in a good space, thanks. It felt great.” It had felt amazing, in fact.
“Where y’all headed?” Mitch smiled warmly at him. “You want to join us for dinner?”
“We were going to go get shrimp. Cole?” He didn’t want to say yes without Cole being into it.
“If you’re having shrimp for dinner, I’m game.” Cole shrugged. “We have a craving.”
“Oh, I think we can manage that.” Chris pointed to a sign across the street. “How about there?”
“Works for me. Do you know Mitch? This is Chris’s husband.” He grinned at Mitch. “Mitch, this is my lover, Cole.”
“Oh!” Mitch’s eyes went wide as he smiled happily. “Agent, I knew. Lover, I didn’t. Wonderful!”
Cole shook Mitch’s hand. “It’s good to meet you. I figured Chris knew…”
Chris shrugged. “We don’t out people, especially in this business. You have to know what you’re getting into.”
“He’s my agent too. We’re trying to make enough to retire.” And that was the goal. Money. Future.
“As soon as possible.” Cole bumped shoulders with him.
“Well, come on, let’s go get some food and talk about retirement.” Chris headed across the street and they all followed. “I have a little experience with the subject.”
“Me too!” Mitch hooted. “Although I wasn’t near as famous as someone I’m married to.”
“Close enough.” Chris took Mitch’s arm. “Like it mattered anyway.”
“Not to you. It didn’t matter to you at all.” Mitch beamed at him. “You didn’t care.”
God, that was adorable. Utterly adorable.
“Nope. You were hot as hell and funny too. Who in their right mind would have cared?”
“They’re sweet,” Cole whispered as they followed.
“Not as bad as Sky and Beck…” They were saccharine.
“Aw. I love what they have. I always looked at them as the lucky ones.”
He shook his head. No, Sky damn near died. Sky hurt himself pretty bad and had almost lost his man. That wasn’t lucky.
Cole squinted. “I mean their relationship, cowboy. They fell apart but look at them now. Bad things can turn into good things.”
“True. True, but I’d rather have good things that turn into amazing things.”
“Well, me too. Obviously.”
“Are you two coming in, or are you just going to make moony eyes at each other?” Mitch laughed, holding the door.
“Moony eyes? I like that. It’s better than showing my ass, right?”
“Nope. Ass is better,” Cole said under his breath.
“I heard that,” Chris singsonged.
Cole laughed. “Damn. I know they rebuilt your shoulder, but did they give you bionic hearing too?”
“You know it. I’m Super Bull Rider!”
They all cracked up, all four of them howling with it.
“Y’all looking for the bar or a table?” A young man in very short shorts gave them a flirty smile.
Mitch stepped right up. He wasn’t at all surprised. “Table, please. We’re hungry.”
The waiter looked them all up and down. “I sure hope you are.”
The urge to roll his eyes was huge.
They were seated in a big booth and brought water and chips and menus. Cole slid in right next to him, sitting close. “I don’t care if this place is awful. Air-conditioning is a beautiful thing.”
“Right? We’ll just sit here and have a long, lazy meal in the refrigerated air.” They couldn’t have a swamp cooler in this wild humidity.
“Do you guys always come to the NOLA event? I see you in the stands now and then, but I’m never sure what the reason is.” Cole picked up his water and drank half of it down in one gulp.
“We love it here. We always try to hit Vermont, New Orleans, Nashville. We love those events.”
Bodie nodded. He got that. He liked Anaheim too.
“It’s neat that you’re still so involved with the show. And you’re so… out.” Cole seemed interested in that part.
“That was me.” Mitch grinned and rested a hand on Chris’s arm. “I made him promise we could after he retired.”
“It wasn’t a hard promise to make.” Chris shrugged. “It’s what I wanted too. And honestly, all the guys knew anyway. People mostly leave you alone at this level.”
“And if they don’t, we let our position be obvious.” Bodie wasn’t going to put up with bigoted bullshit.
“Yessir.” Chris nodded to him and pushed a menu over to Cole. “Shrimp?”
“Right.” Cole chuckled and opened the menu.
His belly snarled. “I love that I can eat as many shrimp as I want.”
Mitch and Chris both nodded sympathetically.
Cole handed the menu to him. “You pick, babe. I can eat anything. I’m just hungry. You want a light beer?”
“I do. Light beer and a double order of barbecue shrimp for me.” He winked at Cole. “We’re heading out; I need to get my fill.”
“We’ve had such a good week. Bodie knows this place really well, and we got here early so he could show me everything. It was fun.”
“It’s a great city. I love it here.” Mitch winked over. “I keep trying to convince Chris to move, but he loves his place in east Texas.”
“I love the town, but I don’t think I could live here. It’s too hot, too crowded for every day. Do you have a ranch, Chris?”
“I do. It’s not big, but I have about a hundred head of cattle, some horses, you know?”
Bodie wasn’t aching for a ranch. He wanted the mountains. Camping. Freedom.
“Do you love it? I’ve never lived on a ranch. I don’t think I’m cut out for it.”
“We do, but I’ve never not lived on a ranch, Mitch either. It’s who we are.” Chris winked at Bodie. “Unlike Mr. Man here.”
“Mr. Man?” Cole laughed. “That’s quite a nickname.”
Bodie rolled his eyes, but Chris cackled like a giant bird. “He’s a stud in a fight, man. Absolutely the man you want on your side. One hundred percent.”
Cole leaned away and sized him up, grinning. “You haven’t told me about these fighting chops…”
He shrugged. He didn’t know what to say, he was a cowboy, balls to bones, and he didn’t give any shit, but he wasn’t going to take any either.
Mitch laughed. “Just trust us.”
Cole gave his thigh a squeeze. “Sounds right. I do. And him too.”
Bodie’s cheeks were going to set on fire, he was so pleased. “Good deal, ‘cause I got your back.”
“I’m told there is no one better.” Cole winked at him.
He shrugged. He guessed that was fair to say. He was willing to fight for what he believed in.
Mitch ordered drinks for all of them—light beers all around. “I want to know what you’re going to do with the money when you win the championship. Travel? Buy land?”
“Have Cole invest it, I think. He knows about that stuff.”
“I know people who know about that stuff.”
“And? And then what? It’s a lot of dough, man. Take a vacation.” Mitch’s eyes lit up as the beers arrived. “Ooh. So thirsty.”
“I’m going to go up to the mountains for a camping trip.” He had simple needs, really. He wanted Cole and privacy and a hamburger.
“I’m going with him. A little Mother Nature, a great view, and better company. Count me in.” Cole smiled at him. “Cheers, babe.”
“Cheers, darlin’.” He lifted his glass to clink them together.
“They’re cute.”
Chris nodded. “They’re hot.”
“Yeah, that too.” Mitch chuckled. “Lucky bastards.”
“Hey now!” Chris’s arm moved under the table.
Mitch flinched, laughing. “Ow!”
They all cracked up, and this was new for him—being one of two couples, being one of two champs. It was wild.
They drank their beers and enjoyed a lazy evening together, and when the shrimp was gone and they were all feeling good, they all shuffled out of the restaurant together.
Cole shook hands with Chris and Mitch. “This was fun. I’m glad you stopped us.”
“Of course. Next time we are in the same space, we’ll do it again.” Chris winked at him. “Keep riding like you did today, you’ll win again.”
“From your mouth to God’s ears, buddy.” Bodie was all over that.
“Goodnight, boys. See you at finals.” Mitch gave them a goofy little salute.
“Night!” Cole took his hand as Chris and Mitch headed out. “That was nice, huh?”
“It was. It felt… weird and normal, all at the same time.”
“Yeah, exactly. I’m looking forward to that just being normal and not weird.” The evening felt a little cooler than when they’d sat down for dinner, and the street a little quieter.
“Me too. I really am looking forward to going home. This has been fun. I’ve had a blast, and I can’t wait to come back, but it’s time to be home.” They had two weeks for it this time, and he thought maybe they’d just be home, take walks, buy groceries, answer emails, be normal people.
“Your turn to scout out the next camping spot.” Cole leaned into him a little.
“Oh totally. I’m thinking about investing in an RV—something comfortable so we could drive, be relaxed, not have to sleep on the ground. Be able to cook if we wanted to. Shower if we wanted to.”
Was that a spoiled thing to want?
“That sounds like a retired cowboy thing to do.” Cole’s tone was teasing. “I kind of like the whole roughing it in a tent thing. Maybe we could do both. RV somewhere and hike out for a night now and then. We wouldn’t have to worry about weather, or distance. It’s not a bad idea.”
“Well, that’s it. We could keep the camping stuff in the RV if we want to camp rough and spend the night somewhere and then come back. I think it’d be fun.” Also, he wanted a dog. He hadn’t brought that part up to Cole yet, but he really needed a dog.
Cowboys had dogs.
“Okay.” Cole nodded like he was thinking it over. “Yeah. I’m in. No hotels when we stop at events either. That’s a good look for your retirement fund.”
“Excellent.” He tilted his head. “So… how do you feel about dogs?”
It was so subtle and delicate. He was proud of himself.
Cole shrugged. “The only reason I don’t have one is the traveling. Doesn’t seem fair.”
He nodded. “Yeah, but if we had an RV, we could get a dog—something that liked hiking and had recall, like a border collie. It would be fun. I really like dogs.”
Cole grinned at him. “You are adorable.”
He just felt like his world was starting to open up and become something bigger than what it had been. He was excited.
Retirement had always been something that he knew he was going to work for and that he needed, but it was more of a necessity. He needed to retire before he got really hurt. He needed to make money.
Now retirement, leaving bull riding, was less about something he needed to do and something he was interested in and eager to try.
“We can call him something masculine, like Jed, and he can herd us around. You want a black one or a brown one?” Cole was right there daydreaming with him.
“I’ll let you pick. I just want him to be happy in the car and someone to take with us on long walks, hikes, swimming, fishing. You know, doesn’t it sound like fun?”
“It does.” Cole laughed softly. “Are we planning something big here?”
“Are we? Is it… too much?” He found himself a little worried.
“No. It feels like dinner did. Weird and normal at the same time.” Cole squeezed his fingers. “I’m totally relaxed, babe. It’s good.”
“Oh good, and yeah, weird and normal. That might be our new motto. ‘How are you?’ ‘Weird but normal?’” He started chuckling. He tickled the shit out of himself sometimes.
Cole laughed with him. “Sounds absolutely appropriate for all occasions. How was your ride? Weird but normal.”
“How was supper?” Weird, but normal. They were both laughing hard now.
They made it to the hotel, having decided to drive out in the morning. It’d be one more night in the swimming pool, in the heat, listening to the late-night jazz music.
And then home. They were both ready to go home.