It’s Frowned Upon To Kill Your Family
IT’S FROWNED UPON TO KILL YOUR FAMILY
PAIGE
“No.” I crossed my arms and stared into my father’s eyes.
“Paige, this is an amazing opportunity for you,” he pleaded gently.
“No.”
“You can practice what you love while promoting Cash and the ranch on social media.”
“No.”
“It’s only for the summer. It’ll be fun.”
“No.”
“You’ll get to shoot the rodeo events on the media staff. I know you’ll love it.”
“Not a chance.”
My dad let out a breath and rubbed his temples. “I’m not asking, Paige. You’re going tomorrow.”
My jaw dropped as my eyes darted between my mom and siblings who were all casually looking around the room, avoiding my eye contact.
Fucking wimps.
He simply could not be serious. My father had the bright idea that I should accompany Cash and the two ranch hands going with him this summer, as they drove around the state on their dumb rodeo circuit.
I would be stuck traveling the entire summer with the one person who made my life a living hell on a daily basis.
“You all suck.” I pushed my chair back and stood abruptly before storming out the back door, leaving my half-eaten breakfast abandoned on the table.
“Where are you going?” Axle yelled after me.
“To pack for my funeral!” I shouted back, slamming the door behind me.
Was I being dramatic? Probably. But my father just dropped an absolute bomb on me that was going to ruin my summer plans of doing anything to avoid Cash Leonard. On top of that, I had less than twenty-four hours to pack for a trip that I hadn’t prepared for at all.
I walked down the hill, past the stables, and marched up the stairs to my apartment.
I lived above the old barn my mother had repurposed to occasionally host events on the ranch.
The apartment was small, but it was perfect for me.
The living room barely fit my tiny sectional couch and the kitchen was basically non-existent, but it had charm.
I had begged my dad to let me move in here after college.
It was a space I could call my own and an escape from the chaos of my family.
A few days of bleach and some paint slapped on the walls, and the place was as good as new—er, well, lightly used.
When I closed the door behind me, I leaned against it and screamed at the top of my lungs. This was simply a disaster. It felt like my autonomy was being ripped out from under me once again.
I stomped into my bedroom and threw my suitcase onto my bed. Ripping hangers out of my closet without even looking at them, I started throwing them over my shoulder in a rage.
I heard a soft knock on my bedroom door which made me pause in my tracks.
“Now, what did those dresses do to deserve that kind of abuse?” Reid chuckled.
“Don’t start with me,” I snapped.
Reid was two years younger than me and was usually the one tasked with talking me down when Lottie wasn’t around. Apparently I was scary when I was mad—a fact I happened to love about myself.
“Come on, P. This is something you would literally die for if Cash wasn’t involved.”
“So?”
“So…” He took a deep breath and pinched his nose. “Don’t let him ruin a great opportunity for you. Keep your head down and do what you love. You don’t even have to interact with him if you don’t want to.”
“We’ll be in the car for hours. How am I supposed to avoid him?”
“Put earbuds in and ignore him. You need to get off this ranch and get out into the world a little. I think this will be really good for you.”
I tipped my chin up at the ceiling, willing the tears building behind my eyes to not fall. Cash didn’t deserve my tears. I’d already wasted too many of them crying into my pillow at night, just hoping he’d finally see me.
In my head, I knew Reid was right. This was an opportunity I’d be excited about if it was with anyone else, but I wasn’t sure my heart was going to survive this.
Seeing Cash in the wild was fine when I could go back to my own quiet space and then ignore him for years.
What was going to happen when he brought a girl home in front of me? It was unavoidable.
I took a deep breath and started picking my clothes up off the floor, sorting through them and placing them neatly on the bed.
Reid disappeared out of my bedroom only to return a minute later with my portable speaker in hand. He connected it to his phone and hit me with his dopey, charming smile.
“I know exactly what will cheer you up.”
“Taylor Swift dance party?” I laughed.
“Taylor Swift fucking dance party,” he said as he pressed play.
“Bad Blood” started blasting through the speakers, and Reid started belting the lyrics at the top of his lungs. He stepped into my closet and started grabbing dresses off hangers and folding them before placing them in my suitcase.
By the time we had listened to the entire Reputation album and packed my suitcase, I was much calmer. I was going to make the most out of this summer, and there was no way that Cash Leonard was going to ruin it.
I was summoned to my dad’s office the next morning and plopped into the old leather chair that was opposite of his desk.
“How are you feeling this morning?” my dad asked, dropping his newspaper onto the smooth oak.
“I’ve decided I am finished being dramatic.” I smiled at him.
“Glad to hear it, sweet pea.”
“If I just ignore the morons I’m traveling with, then I can almost see how this would be a fun opportunity.”
My father looked exasperated. I was positive that dealing with my antics aged him far past his years, but it was his fault—he raised me. My sass and attitude were a direct result of him teaching me to always speak my mind. I wasn’t sorry it was backfiring on him.
“Give the guys a chance, Paige. You might not hate Cash if you got to know him.”
I scoffed. There was a time when I knew Cash very well, and I had no intentions of getting to know him any better this summer just for it to blow up in my face again.
My plan was to ignore him, take my cute little pictures, drink at some rustic country bars, and maybe even have myself a fleeting summer romance. The possibilities were truly endless.
“Not likely,” I mumbled, causing my dad to chuckle and shake his head.
“Before you go, I have a little something for you.” He stood with a bag in his hands and rounded his desk. “I know you have your real camera equipment packed, but I thought this might be something you’d like to help you document the summer. Just for fun.”
He handed me the bag and I gasped when I saw its contents. I reached inside and pulled out a new top-of-the-line digital camera. It was the one I always kept open on my website browser, but had never committed to buying. I’d convinced myself that vlogging or video journals were a waste of time.
“Thank you, Dad. This is amazing.” I stood, and he wrapped his arms around me. I sighed into his warm embrace, not ready to accept that I would miss him while I was gone.
“Come on, sweet pea. Let’s get you loaded up.”