13. Caitlin
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
caitlin
PRESENT DAY
Awarm breeze blew across the fairgrounds in Goldfinch, the temperature rising more and more as the day went on. The sun beat down on the metal bleachers, and I was glad I’d brought sunscreen for Whitley.
The strong scents of livestock, fried food, and dust wafted through the air as the rodeo announcer boomed over the loud speaker, introducing and cheering on the cowboys participating in today’s competition.
Ellison sat on my left, and Juniper—Mikey’s girlfriend—was to my right with Whitley standing on her thighs, bouncing with excitement as she watched the arena.
She loved all the animals, but especially the horses. A girl after my own heart.
“How are you liking Jake’s guest house?” Juniper asked, holding Whitley so she wouldn’t topple over.
“It’s nice,” I replied, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear. “It’s a two bedroom cottage, but it’s honestly the perfect size for us. Whit gets her own space and everything. I’ve been working on painting a few different rooms and adding some personal touches, too.”
Both Ellison and Juniper exchanged sly glances, almost like they didn’t think I would notice.
I looked back and forth between them. “What?”
Ellison just laughed. “Oh, nothing. It’s just sweet he’s letting you make the house your own.”
Juniper nodded, adding, “Yeah, you don’t hear very often of landlords letting their tenants change the inside of the house. Especially if he was planning on using it for an Airbnb.”
“Do you think that’s weird?” I wrung my hands together, suddenly very aware of myself. “I guess I didn’t really think much of it when he told me to decorate the house…”
Juniper shook her head, quick to alleviate my concerns. “Don’t overthink it. He wouldn’t let you do it if he didn’t want you to.”
Despite her reassurances, doubt crept in. “If you’re sure.”
Ellison rolled her eyes at my lack of confidence, but there was a smile on her face. “Honestly, I think that man would let you do anything if you asked. He’d probably do anything for you if you wanted him to.”
“What does that—”
The crackle of the loud speaker cut me off. “Folks, we’re moving on to our next event. We’ve got a great lineup of team ropers coming soon.”
Whitley squealed as she pointed toward Reid and Colter when they mounted their horses near the roping boxes at the end of the arena where our seats were.
“Is that Uncle Colt?” All of my thoughts about Jake vanished when I looked at the beaming grin on my daughter’s face. “Do you think he’s going to win today?”
She shook her head. “No.”
The three of us adults burst into laughter, unable to help ourselves.
“No?” Ellison asked. “Why not?”
“Uncle Colt can’t win because he told me…
he, uh, he told me his arm hurts too bad from carrying really heavy things like furniture, and his leg hurts because he had to run a lot after horses and cows, and his head hurts, and his butt hurts because he was…
he, he, he was sticking stuff up it.” She sucked in a deep breath at the end of her sentence, her mouth wide open as she tilted her head toward the sky and made some kind of breathing noise before breaking into a fit of giggles. “Butt! Butt! Butt!”
Juniper, who had been in the middle of drinking water, almost did a spit take when the words came out of my daughter’s mouth.
Wiping her mouth, she swallowed then let out a nervous laugh.
“Dang. I didn’t realize Colter had so many ailments.
” She looked over at Ellison. “By the sounds of it, you’d think he was the one who’s pregnant.
Also, I can’t decide if I want to know what he’s been up to lately. ”
“Sometimes he acts like it.” Ellison rolled her eyes. “Also, that butt thing is news to me. Maybe we should have Whitley ask him what kind of things he’s been doing when I’m not around.” She chuckled, shaking her head. “She can give Colter a hard time for me.”
“Don’t encourage that,” I groaned. “She absolutely will, and then that attitude will continue for the next week.”
Juniper and Ellison found it humorous, but until they had kids of their own, they wouldn’t understand what having a four-year-old going on fourteen was like.
“Pay attention, bug. Uncle Colt and Reid are about to rope.” I pointed to the arena where Colter and Reid were backing their horses into the boxes next to the chute.
“This pair of cowboys are five-time NFR qualifiers and your reigning team roping world champions! Let them hear you, folks!” the rodeo announcer called out, prompting Whitley to scream at the top of her lungs while clapping.
Only a few people around gave us weird looks. I offered them apologetic smiles to make up for my daughter’s ear-splitting cheers.
The event moved so fast that if you blinked, you’d miss it. One second, Colter and Reid’s horses were charging out of the boxes, and the next, Colter already had the steer’s horns roped. Their run was over in an instant, and the announcer read off their time of four-point-six seconds.
“That’ll put Colter Carson and Reid Lawson at the top of our leaderboard, proving once again why they are among the best of the best.”
“I guess you were wrong, Whit.” Ellison laughed. “Colter must not have been hurting too bad, because they just won.”
Whitley just giggled, nodding erratically.
The rodeo announcer wrapped up the saddle bronc riding event then called out over the speakers, “Folks, you’re going to want to direct your attention to the east end of the arena as we begin our lineup of tie-down ropers.”
Even though they were far away, I could still make out Jake standing in the row of cowboys, his tall stature standing out among the rest. Taking off his cowboy hat, he ran his fingers through his hair before fixing it back on his head and engaging in conversation with another one of the ropers.
I rolled my lips between my teeth, completely zoned out to the fact that Ellison was trying to say something.
“Earth to Caitlin.” She waved her hand in front of my face, blocking my view.
“Huh?” I snapped out of it. “Sorry, were you talking to me?”
Her lips curled up in a mischievous grin. “Yes, but I could tell you were a bit preoccupied. Perhaps watching a certain cowboy at the end of the arena?”
“Trust me, I’m not staring at your husband. In case you forgot, he’s also my brother.” I teasingly rolled my eyes, despite knowing exactly who she was referring to.
“Ha ha, very funny. You’ve got jokes, Cait.” She nudged me with her elbow. “You know who I’m talking about.”
“I actually have no idea,” I lied, letting my hands fall into my lap just as the announcer called out, “Get loud for our next cowboy, Jake Flynn!”
Heat rushed into my cheeks as Ellison raised her brows.
“Sure, you don’t. Well, I won’t distract you.” She reached over me to tap Whitley on the arm, pointing out to the arena. “Look, it’s Jake! He’s going to rope now.”
“That’s Mommy’s friend!” She nodded with vigor.
“Yeah, Mommy’s special friend.” Juniper grinned, adding emphasis.
“Knock it off!” I hissed at them. The last thing I needed was for Whitley to repeat that around Jake.
All three of them started giggling, and I let out a heavy sigh.
In the arena, Jake mounted his horse. Sitting tall in the saddle, he swung his rope over his head a couple times before riding his horse into the roping box next to the chute the calf would be released from.
A familiar country rock song played out of the speakers, and the rodeo clown was getting everyone in the audience to dance and sing while they waited.
My eyes, however, were glued on Jake.
I was never going to get past the allegations that I had been staring at my brother’s best friend. Allegations that were one hundred percent true, I might add.
Across the arena on a big screen, a zoomed-in image of Jake in the roping box appeared.
His eyes flared with determination, and his mouth had set into a hard, focused line.
Dust floated in the air behind him, but the camera didn’t focus on the flecks, making it look like glitter shimmering in the light.
If you weren’t paying rapt attention to what was going on, you would have missed the swift, subtle nod of Jake’s head before the calf was released from the chute.
The animal sprinted across the dirt for a few feet before his horse took off right behind it.
Both Jake’s and the horse’s muscles rippled in a show of pure athleticism, the animal charging forward with maximum effort and the rider swinging his rope through the air with ease.
In one smooth movement, Jake released the rope from his hand, letting the loop float through the air before it settled over the calf’s neck.
I hadn’t realized I was holding my breath until I sucked in a gasp when the rope tightened and the calf jerked backward.
All while Jake had dismounted his horse and was running over to the calf.
He picked up the animal with the kind of ease only a man who had worked with cattle for years would have, turning it onto its side before kneeling on the ground and wrapping the string once held between his teeth around three of the calf’s legs.
When the rope was secure, he threw his arms in the air and sat back on his heels.
“How about that run, folks! Now, the calf must stay tied for six seconds to count as a legal run,” the announcer explained, his voice mere background noise to my pounding heart in my ears.
Jake ran back to his horse, mounting it and riding slightly forward to loosen the slack in the rope, one end still attached around the calf’s neck and the other wrapped around his saddle horn.
“Seven-point-two seconds for Jake Flynn!” As his time was called out, the rodeo officials ran forward to untie the calf.
After it was free, the animal ran happily down to the other end of the arena, as if it had already forgotten about the time it was restrained.
“He looks good out there,” Ellison said.
I nodded, voice coming out a bit breathy when I said, “Yeah. Yeah, he does.”