Extended Epilogue
The July sun is hot, the air muggy around us as we lean against the metal bars wrapped around the Calgary Stampede dirt arena. My shirt may be loose, but the band of my jean shorts is sticking to my sweat-slicked stomach in a very uncomfortable way. If I didn’t have my hat on, I’d be half-blinded from the glare of the sun to our left.
The stands are packed around us, not a seat empty as the current bull rider attempts not to get flown into the dirt before he hits the eight-second mark. I don’t know shit about bull riding, but Wade gave the majority of us here with him today a bit of a summary so we didn’t make fools out of everyone at Steele Ranch. The ranch is a major sponsor for the Stampede this year, and while usually I’m not a rodeo girl, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get an up close and personal experience. Not to mention, miss Brody Steele’s first Stampede-headlining performance.
Garrison is completely out of his element here, but he’s been such a good sport. I even managed to get him into a pair of Wrangler jeans and a white T-shirt that does things to his arms that makes me absolutely weak before we left our house this morning. He doesn’t mind the jeans so much after working at the ranch, but out in public at an event of this size, it’s a big change for him. The dark brown boots and hat he’s added to his outfit are downright sinful, and I’ve had a blast warding the women away from him all day.
The entire group of us is dressed fairly similarly, all with Steele Ranch–branded tees and Wranglers of some variation. I’ve been missing this sort of time together as a group since Garrison and I moved to Calgary officially two weeks ago.
It was a stressful move. There was so much to do in so little time, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I didn’t want to wait a minute longer than I had to before moving in with him. I’d have done it the day he came back to Cherry Peak.
We found our home the week after we started looking. It’s a cute, newly built bungalow in a cul-de-sac on the lower south side of Calgary. The new-development area is as close to Cherry Peak as Calgary offers, cutting the drive time down by a few minutes. It turns out that buying a house in cash speeds up the process quite quickly. Small miracles, I suppose.
Every weekend since, we’ve driven back to Cherry Peak. The Steeles unsurprisingly agreed to let us stay in the guest house every weekend we’re in town, and those moments there are some of my favourites. Being so close to Anna and Brody, as well as my family, is something I’ll never take for granted.
Kip and Honey are as attached at the hip as ever, and while they miss us when we’re gone, we spend hours in the stables and riding out in the fields together while we’re home.
Brunches with my family have moved to Sundays now, and with Abbie starting kindergarten in the fall, it’s worked out perfectly. I think my niece may even like my boyfriend more than I do.
“I can picture Wade on a bull,” Garrison says into my ear, his body a hot, stable weight at my side.
My palms are sweaty around the thick metal pole in front of me as I lean against the fence and try not to crinkle my nose at the dirt and scent of manure floating in the air around us. Garrison rests his hand on the exposed sliver of skin above my waistband, and I grin.
“Now? Or when he was younger?”
“Both. The old man isn’t scared of anything.”
Anna leans into my opposite side, her cheeks flushed from the heat. “He’s the fittest old guy I’ve ever seen.”
“Total GILF status,” I reply, my smirk heavy in my voice.
Garrison pinches my back. “Don’t call him a GILF.”
I stare up at him beneath the brim of my cowboy hat and bat my lashes. “Don’t go getting a complex. You’ll be one too, I’m sure of it.”
“I knew you were only with me for my good looks,” he grunts.
“That and your huge dick.”
Anna bursts into laughter. “And your thick wallet.”
“You two are the worst,” Brody mutters from behind her, his tall body wrapped around her back in a protective, reassuring way.
He holds the top bar of the fence, staring down at his girlfriend. Or soon-to-be fiancée, from what I hear.
“I don’t know how we put up with them,” Garrison replies.
Brody lifts Anna’s hat from her head and kisses her temple before setting it back. “Been wonderin’ that a long while now.”
I roll my eyes. “Say you’re jealous and move on, boys. It’s not like we’re about to leave you for Wade.”
Speaking of, the man himself stalks over to us with Johnny in tow, the latter looking every part the cowboy he is. The only thing he’s missing is a piece of straw hanging from his mouth.
“You thinkin’ of hoppin’ on a bull this weekend?” Brody asks him.
“You’re not getting on a damn bull, Johnny,” Garrison says sternly.
Johnny looks between the two guys with a casual grin. “Nah. I can’t risk breaking the goods just yet. I’ve got a woman to try and convince to go on a date with me first. Can’t exactly accomplish that if I get myself all jacked up.”
He’s not much for a bull riding, anyway. It’s a hobby he sometimes dabbles in, but that’s it. Thank. God. The thought of him getting hurt makes me wanna burst into tears. He’s too damn adorable to wind up a bull’s punching bag.
“Aurora ain’t interested in you, boy,” Wade grumbles.
The oldest Steele claps a hand to Garrison’s shoulder, the two of them speaking a silent language that I’ve come to learn is unique to them. It’s not the same one that Wade and Brody speak, but it’s something close.
Johnny shrugs Wade’s comment off. “She will be.”
“Were you planning on winning her over by raiding the back of a Lammles?” Brody teases.
Anna offers Johnny a sweet smile. “Ignore him. He’s just jealous because he couldn’t find his favourite belt buckle this morning and now has to perform tonight without it.”
“Rory isn’t here, anyway. Wish she was—I’d love to show her a damn good time out here,” Johnny says.
Anna flashes a sympathetic smile. “I don’t really think this kind of thing is her style. Before I got to know all of you, I’d have avoided a place like this.”
I shift closer to Garrison and step into the space between him and the fence. Almost on instinct, he wraps his arm around me and holds me there, his hand branding my hip.
“Garrison was excited to come today. Weren’t you?” I ask, tilting my head to meet his waiting stare.
“More intrigued than excited.”
“Bullshit. You’ve been textin’ me askin’ all sorts of questions all week. You were excited,” Brody calls my man out.
Garrison glares at him. “You’re a tattletale, Brody Steele.”
“Guilty as charged.”
“A bunch’a children,” Wade scolds, but there’s no weight behind it. “At least you look good in those shirts.”
Someone catches Johnny’s attention from a crowd over, and he darts in their direction. The social butterfly knows someone everywhere.
“You’re a sweetie, Wade,” I sing, blowing him a kiss. “Where’s Eliza? I’ve been wanting a hug.”
At the mention of his wife, Wade’s eyes light up. My chest warms at the love there.
“I have a gut feelin’ Bryce has convinced her to get a tattoo at one of those pop-ups.”
Garrison breathes a laugh while I snort.
“Yeah, that tracks,” I muse.
“At least a tattoo is better than you three convincin’ her to try out one of your damn pole classes.” He shakes his head at me. “She’s damn excited, and I expect y’all to take care of her.”
I lift a hand to my heart. “You’ve got my word, Papa Steele. Your woman is safe with us.”
“Speaking of pole,” Anna says, leaning her head back against Brody’s shoulder. I spot her soft brown hat in his hand and smile. “Have you heard from that studio you were interested in?”
The first studio space for my hopeful Beautifully Bold expansion. My stomach explodes in a fit of excitement.
“Yes. I meet with the bank on Wednesday about the loan,” I answer giddily.
“There’s still time to cancel it. I was serious about helping,” Garrison murmurs, quiet enough that only I can hear him.
Keeping my voice at the same volume, I say, “You’re still not going to win this argument, babe.”
He was adamant on helping financially when I first brought up the studio space I found, but I want to do this on my own. Just like I did the first time. If I ever need help down the line, I know he’d be there to catch me, but right now, I want to do it alone. It’s not a pride thing so much as it is a confidence thing.
I know I can do it. I have complete faith in myself, and even though he’s offering to help, I know he has that same faith in me.
Anna’s grin is infectious, and I find myself returning it. My best friends have done so much for me over the past month, many things I’ll never be able to repay them for.
Beautifully Bold was closed for the first week while I was gone and looking for someone to take over the instructor position left empty in my absence. But as I was preparing to keep it closed for far longer than a week, I had one of the women from class reach out, and from there, I learned that she was interested in potentially filling that spot.
She comes to Calgary next week for training—hopefully in my new studio—and I’m feeling incredibly hopeful. Everything is falling into place, and it’s like something out of a dream.
“You’re really killing the whole boss bitch thing, Pops,” Anna says.
“Both of you are,” Brody adds.
I wink at him and relax into Garrison’s hold. “Thanks, Brody. You boys aren’t doing too bad either.”
Brody nods at his boss and, now, his friend. “Tour starts soon. I heard things have been goin’ well? Reggie called me last week and said you asked him to sit down with me to talk about the set list?”
“Yeah. He’s been going stir-crazy,” Garrison says.
“Cynthia has been keeping him busy enough, but he’s far too used to working all day every day,” I add. “He needs a bit of something.”
He and Garrison have spent more time together recently than I think we ever did while Garrison was growing up, and it’s been a beautiful thing to watch. I’ve kept Cynthia more than busy whenever I can, whether that be with me asking her to teach me to bake all the Beckett family recipes or taking her to meet Banana the fluffy cow at Steele Ranch with Eliza.
Life has been really damn good.
Brody nods. “Alright. I’ll let him know I’m up for the company. You got any specific songs you want included?”
“You’re asking me about your set list?” Garrison asks, taken aback.
Brody gives him a “no shit” expression. “Don’t be an ass about it.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Do we get to know the set list for tonight’s show?” I ask Brody.
“No.”
I blow out a whistled breath. “Tough crowd.”
“Just enjoy the surprise, Poppy,” Garrison murmurs, leaning down so the words caress the back of my ear.
Considering I’ve had great luck with surprises as of late, I probably should.
“Y’all payin’ attention to the show right now, or have I brought a group of gossipers with me today?” Wade asks, chastising us with his sarcastic question.
He lifts his brows and then jerks his chin at the dirt ahead of us. There’s a new rider setting up in the pen now, and I twist against Garrison’s body to get a better view. The score clock is up, a timer set with eight seconds locked and loaded.
“Sorry, Wade,” Anna sings, hiding a smile as we stare at each other.
A look passes between us that speaks a million words. She flicks her gaze behind me to Garrison, and I do the same with Brody. It’s a feeling of comfort that snuggles deep in my chest. Of contentment.
I’ve found the love that I’ve been looking for, and as Garrison ducks his head to brush his lips over my cheek, our hats bumping, I know that I’m going to carry this feeling with me for the rest of my life.