3. AVA
AVA
Ella took no time in arranging my flight from LA to Wrangler Creek, Texas. I’m still unsure if this is the right move for me, but I’m already in the car headed to the airfield, Ella is waiting for me on the other end, and I basically have nowhere else to go.
“Are you sure about this? There’s a reason you don’t even perform in Texas,” Lou, who insisted on accompanying me to the airport, asks.
I turn to her with a sad smile. “No, I’m not, but it’s been long enough, don’t you think?”
“That’s true, but he won’t be the only thing waiting for you. Your mother moved back there after the mansion was repossessed,” she informs me.
Before I lived in the penthouse, I lived in a 13,000-square-foot mansion upon my mother’s insistence. I moved out when we parted ways, and when I cut her off financially, she lost the means to keep up with the payments and eventually lost it.
“I know, but I don’t really plan on leaving Iron Stallion, so I probably won’t run into her.”
My plan is to lay low for the next three months, enjoy some peace and quiet, and hopefully try to mend things with Zane.
“What if she catches wind that you’re there?” Lou counters.
“I’ll talk to the Morgans and ask them to keep her away.”
“I don’t mean to get in the middle of family issues, but don’t you think you should at least talk to her? She seems to have changed,” she suggests.
“Lou, the day that woman changes, it’ll rain candy. Why haven’t you blocked her at this point?”
“She is my former boss. I owe her my career,” she defends.
“You owe her nothing. You earned the spot of my manager all on your own. She was the one who messed up,” I assure her.
Her face lights up. “Thank you for saying that.”
I bump her shoulder, giving her an encouraging smile. Without Lou, I would have crumbled long ago, so I’m glad she stepped up when I cut ties with my mom.
She relents and lets the mother topic die. I haven’t had breakfast yet, so I reach for a water bottle and a pack of crackers from the basket in front of me with an assortment of drinks and snacks. All of a sudden, the smile on Lou’s face drops, and I brace myself for the incoming lecture.
“I know I agreed to ease up and not check up on you every day, but you have to promise me to eat,” she asserts.
“I eat,” I defend with an eye roll.
“Water, crackers, coffee, and chips do not count,” she scolds.
I look at the water bottle in hand, my fist tightening around it. “I’m trying.”
A gentle hand squeezes my arm comfortingly. “I know you are, but I don’t want a repeat of what happened in Miami.”
“It was one time,” I defend, recalling that dark moment from two months ago with a pinch in my heart.
I didn’t mean for it to happen. I relapsed, and before I realized it, I was too far gone. Thankfully, Lou was there as she always is, picked me up, and helped me get better.
“One time too many. Eat, please, and take better care of yourself,” she pleads.
“I will, Lou. I promise,” I assure her.
“Thank you,” she nods and opens the water bottle for me, replacing the crackers with an energy bar.
“I had plans to have meals delivered to the penthouse three times a day and demand before and after pictures of all completed meals, but since you will no longer be in my care, I expect you to take better care of yourself,” she insists.
Her threats are serious, but they make me laugh nonetheless. “Calm down, Lou. I hear you—I’ll eat.”
“You better.”
The car falls silent as I drink my water and munch on the energy bar. I roll down the window, which earns me a disapproving look from Lou, but all I want is some wind on my face.
The chauffeur drops me off at a private airfield, where one of the Morgan family’s private jets—a sleek black Gulfstream III—awaits me.
Lou whistles, impressed, as we get out of the car. “You know, when they said they were sending you a private jet, I had no idea what I was expecting, but it was definitely not this.”
“The Morgans own one of the biggest ranches in Texas. It’s been in the family for generations, so they’re pretty well off,” I explain, still amazed how a rich girl like Ella became friends with a poor immigrant girl like me.
The chauffeur retrieves my bags from the trunk, and the flight attendants are quick to help me with them. I turn to Lou, who’s already teary.
“Have a safe flight, take care of yourself, eat, and please keep me updated. I’ll worry. This will be the longest we’ve been apart,” she says, pulling me in for a hug.
“You could come with me,” I suggest.
“I would love to—it sounds like a dream—but someone has to hold down the fort.”
She’s right. Just because I’m not on active tour doesn’t mean my career is on hold, and there’s also the stalker issue to deal with.
“I’ll miss you. Take care of yourself too.”
“I definitely will.”
We share one more goodbye before I detach myself from her and board the jet.
I meet the crew: Captain Tucker, his co-pilot Carson, and the two flight attendants, Sadie and Becca.
A crew of four for only one person and a three-hour flight is overkill if you ask me, but I’m in no position to complain.
The jet is a thirteen-seater, so I’m spoiled for choice, but I pick one of the middle window seats to allow me a nice view.
Three hours fly by—pun intended—and faster than I’d like, we’re touching down at the private airfield owned by the Morgans.
LA weather is humid, so I’m used to the heat, but it holds no candle to the sweltering weather that welcomes me to my home state. I regret wearing jeans and a hoodie the moment I step out of the plane.
Sadie and Becca help bring down my bags, and I’m wondering where Ella is, since she promised she would be the one to pick me up, when I see a black Chevy truck barreling toward us. We’re parked on the tarmac, but somehow it’s still billowing dust in its wake.
It’s barely parked when the front passenger door opens and Ella rushes out, making a beeline for me.
“Ava!” she screams just as she jumps into my arms.
I stagger back but manage to stabilize myself before we fall.
Ella refused to let the accident get between us no matter how much I tried to pull away, so we’ve seen each other consistently over the past few years.
I haven’t been back here, so it’s been her flying out to see me, which I’m extremely grateful for.
I haven’t seen her in close to a year though, so this bear hug is warranted.
When we pull apart, we’re both in hysterics and wiping away each other’s tears.
“I missed you so much,” Ella cries.
“I missed you too,” I whisper, caressing her cute chubby cheeks.
Ella is a bit on the fuller side. Compared to me, she has more meat on her bones, which I love about her.
Her dark brown hair, that runs in the Morgan family, falls over her shoulders in waves.
The short, halter-neck dress she’s wearing hugs her D-cups perfectly and exposes her thick tan legs that I’ve always been jealous of.
Even though I’m from Texas and Hispanic, I’ve always had pale skin, which is why when I blush, my whole face turns pink.
“Have you gotten thinner? I thought I was imagining things during FaceTime, but you’re nothing but skin and bones. Haven’t they been feeding you in LA?” she exclaims.
I’m about to defend myself when the driver’s side door opens and out steps the last person I expect to see.
He looks just as dazzling as I remember, if not more.
His hair is longer, he seems to have gotten buffer, and if possible, even taller.
His steel eyes find mine but only for a fleeting second, although that’s enough to have me freaking the fuck out.
Oh no, no, no... I thought I would have more time before I have to deal with him.
I turn to my best friend, who is the only one to blame. “El, what is the meaning of this? You promised I wouldn’t see him. Why is he the first one I see?”
She grins sheepishly at me. “You know I don’t drive, and he was the only one available.”
I roll my eyes at her poor excuse. “I highly doubt that.”
I notice Zane walking toward us, so I brace myself even though I’m freaking out inside.
“Hi, Zane,” I wave at him with what I hope is a smile and not a grimace.
I wasn’t expecting him to welcome me back with open arms, but he barely acknowledges me as he brushes past me like I don’t exist. My heart cracks wide open with pain as I watch him get my bags and load them up in the truck.
“Don’t take it personally. He basically went non-verbal ever since the accident,” Ella explains.
“Oh,” I mutter, wondering what else I’m supposed to say.
I did that. I broke this magnificent man. I knew it was a bad idea coming back here.
“But don’t mind him. It was no one’s fault, so let’s move on and make sure you have an incredible three months with us,” she asserts.
How can she say that? Of course there’s someone to blame, and that person is me.
It’s been five years, and even though I tried to forget it, I failed, and it seems Zane hasn’t either.
Of course he still hates me, and I don’t blame him.
Because of me, he lost his career, which to a bull rider of pride like him was equivalent to taking his life away.
He honks at us, which makes Ella and me jump.
Ella flips him off before turning to me with a smile and pulling me to the truck. I hesitate to get in the backseat next to her, but I don’t have much of a choice. I’m already here, so I might as well get this show on the road.
Now that I’m sure Zane still hates me, I have the next three months to mend things between us. May the heavens be on my side.