Chapter 3 Nash
nash
The camera flashed as I give my best smile, another flash and I smoldered at the camera, another flash I looked directly at the camera like I wanted to fuck it. A few more minutes of pictures at different angles and poses, then I was free.
“I think we got it,” the photographer said, giving me a thumbs up. “Tanya will show you the proofs in a few days!”
“Great, thanks,” I said, walking off the platform to the dressing room, which was really a closet.
“Nash!”
I turned around to see Tanya walking to me.
“Hey,” I said, reminding myself to smile.
“You can keep these sunglasses and a few other pairs I left in your room,” she said with a faint blush on her face. “If we could have a shout out, maybe a few Instagram posts and—”
“They need to be worn out in public.” I finished her sentence. “I gotcha.”
“Great, and if you need anything else, please don’t hesitate to call me,” she said, biting her plush bottom lip.
“Jo has your number, thanks,” I said, tipping my hat at her, walking back to my broom closet.
It was supposed to be my day off, but a last-minute brand deal had me bending over backwards. I needed all the money I could get for the upcoming rodeo season and further on. Anything would help to secure my future apart from my family and finally do things on my own.
My phone rang when I arrived at my hole in the wall to change. “Hello, Jo.”
“How did it go?” she asked.
“Good, not bad, I got to keep the glasses, and she went over my part again at the end,” I said, undressing.
“Great, I had hoped it would be smooth,” she said. “Do you like puppies?”
“Who doesn’t?” I scoffed.
“A lot of people,” she deadpanned.
“Oh god, Jo, please tell me you’re not one of those people,” I said grimacing.
“And if I am?”
“I don’t know if we can continue working together,” I said, wondering how serious I was about our working relationship. “People who don’t like puppies are probably serial killers.”
“Well, no one wanted to take your ass as a client. Puppies are like babies, cute from afar,” she said, and I couldn’t blame her for that line of thought. “Plus, how would it look if I didn’t help my pathetic best friend out?”
“Ouch, that was fucking harsh, Jo, and your fee still hurts too,” I said, putting my shirt on.
“Hey, you said to still charge you, and that isn’t even my full fee,” she said as the sound of traffic grew louder in the background.
I flinched, not wanting to find out what her regular fee was.
“And I love you for that,” I said, packing my things, keeping my shades on.
“Yeah, yeah, well if you can, there is a fundraiser here sponsored by Love4All in two months, and it’s laid back with puppies that I think would do wonders for your image,” she said. “Love4All is also a nonprofit for the LGBTQ—”
“So, we think that this is the route we want to go?” I bristled, hating that my sexuality was always the first topic that came up anywhere.
When I was caught drinking and driving, pieces of my life were dug up and lo and behold, photos of me kissing men and women circulated.
Apparently, that was more scandalous than my DWI.
Now Jo wanted to lean into my ambiguous sexuality, but it wasn’t only that that worried me.
I might have left out that I had gotten married last year.
Thankfully, I had kept that quiet. Getting married in Lubbock had helped and that my wife was some mousy woman who lived and worked in a small town, god only knows where.
“Everyone already knows, so why hide it?” she said. “The gays, theys, bis and women love you, and at this point you might as well get all the people you can in your corner.”
“Ok, I trust you—” My phone beeped, alerting me to another call. When I saw my father’s name, I rolled my eyes. “You know I trust you. I’m just hesitant about my sexuality, especially how I got outed.”
“I know, it was shitty. I wished you had let me help you out,” she said.
“I couldn’t afford you,” I sighed. “Especially after the brand deals I had had to pull out of.”
“You know—”
“No sense in rehashing the past, darling,” I said, leaving my room, not needing a reminder.
“Fine, but please think about that charity event, and I think I might have Carp Pro willing to do a sponsorship.”
“Seriously?!” I almost squealed. “How the hell did you manage that?”
“I’m fabulous, that’s how,” she said. “We might have to sell a little of the family, but nothing they will have to be involved with.”
My stomach soured.
“Josephina,” I growled.
“Nash,” she said, condescendingly.
“I don’t want any ties with them,” I snapped.
“I know, but if I can sell a family man image, then maybe we can secure this very generous offer. If the son of the owner of a very large store chain just came out as gay, I think this is the father’s way of showing his support for his son,” she said, her heels clicking in the background notifying him she was on the move. “They are very big on family values.”
Telling her I was married was on the tip of my tongue because now I was wondering if being married was a plus and not a hindrance like I had assumed.
It would make Jo furious that I hadn’t told her, but that meant I would have to talk to my wife.
With how much I dodged her calls, I didn’t see that going well.
“Trust me,” Jo sighed. “I know how much tension y’all have and how much you need to do this without them.”
“Ok, thank you,” I said, relieved to get into my truck.
“I’ll call you if I find anything else, but if you need me or anything happens, call me first,” she demanded.
“You got it, Jo,” I said as she ended the call without a goodbye.
My phone rang immediately. I answered it, thinking it was Jo, cringing when I realized it was my older brother, Brooks.
“Yeah?” I said. I started my truck.
“So, you don’t answer me, but you’ll answer your brother?” My father’s sharp voice came through.
Fuck. Just my fucking luck.
“I just got out of a photoshoot,” I said, grimacing at my excuse.
“That was only ten minutes ago,” he snapped.
“Exactly, I just got out,” I sighed. “I barely got into my car.”
“When I call, I expect a fucking answer, Nash,” he clipped.
I clenched my jaw, biting my tongue from the response I really wanted to give him.
“If I’m not busy, father, I will always answer,” I said. “Rodeo season is about to start and I’m always busy—”
“I need to talk to your wife,” he growled. “She hasn’t been answering my calls and I need her to sign a few things that weren’t filed properly. There is also a piece of land that I need the deed for.”
“Ok, I’m not with her right now, but I’ll get in touch with her and have her call you,” I said, ready to end this fucking call.
“You do that. I need for this to happen as soon as possible,” he sighed. “I hope I don’t need to remind you who sponsors your little bull riding hobby.”
I scoffed. “Oh, no sir, you make sure I never forget.”
“Get your wife in order,” he said angrily. “I need that paperwork.”
“I’ll have her call you,” I said, ending the call before I said something I would regret and end up with less sponsorship money and an even tighter fund for the season.
I looked for my wife’s number, finding it immediately and hitting call as I put my car into drive.
The phone rang and rang, and just when I thought she was going to pick up, I got her voicemail.
I left a message; It was the first of many calls and texts that I would leave.
By the end of the week, my father was livid with me and Iris was on my shitlist, but a part of me couldn’t blame her either.
It’s not like I had ever answered her calls.
My father threatened to pull my funding if I didn’t get what he needed, and even though I had no fucking time to take care of this, I had to go looking for my wife in some small-ass town in Colorado.
It was a quick in-and-out errand and then I could be back in Texas in less than a week, back to preparing for the Rodeo season.
Iris Malone would not get in between me and my dream of the Championship. She was this timid woman I had to tie myself to, just to get there, and once I was financially free from my parents, our divorce would be the first thing mailed out. She was just a means to an end.