Chapter Eight
“You’re joking!?” Martha practically screamed.
I pulled the phone away from my ear, trying to protect my hearing, and smiled. “Not even. It was ridiculous.”
I was in a small office below the announcer’s tower. The rodeo was going to start in ten minutes, and I needed to talk to someone about what had happened yesterday before it started.
The music was blasting outside, getting the crowd excited for the show. I leaned against the dusty wall.
“Okay, I’m sorry you have to start over. Jeff just walked in, and he’ll never believe me.” She paused. “Jeff, come here. Allegra has the craziest story! I’ll take my shirt off later, just listen!”
I rolled my eyes. They were disgustingly cute.
“Hey Allegra!” Jeff greeted me.
“Okay, go,” Martha commanded.
“So, I had to interview this cowboy for a promotional video-”
“Not just any cowboy, Jeff, the most gorgeous cowboy Allegra has ever seen,” she interrupted.
“I never said that!”
“Anyway, go on.”
“Anyway,” I continued, “the videographer and I make our way over to where he and his girlfriend are. As soon as she sees me coming, she practically starts marking her territory with him. She is tiny, so she pulls him down, spins him so he can’t see us, and starts sucking on his neck!”
“Oh, what?” Jeff’s voice chimed in.
“Yes! So, Billy, the videographer, and I are just standing there, and finally, I clear my throat. He turns his head and sees us, and his face is as red as a tomato with a hickey as big as a quarter! She peers over her shoulder and glares, and says, ‘Press isn’t allowed in the arena today. ’ Before I can say anything, she grabs him and drags him away. ”
Jeff laughed as Martha chortled. She had the ugliest laugh that could make anyone smile and join her. “Did you get your interview?”
I wiped away a tear from laughing so hard. “No! Not even close. I’m sticking behind the chutes. As soon as his event is over, I can snag him before he disappears. Mr. Sterling needs this interview done by Saturday morning, so this could be my only chance.”
“Well, as soon as you do get a video, we request it so we can see if he is as hot as you claim,” Martha said, still laughing.
From across the arena, I saw Dennis and his wife take a seat in the front row, carrying corn dogs and drinks. “I literally never said he was hot. I am engaged, Marty!”
“Not yet!”
“Okay, it’s about to start, I gotta go. Talk later?”
“Call anytime, sweetie. I miss you!”
My heartstrings tugged as I thought about being in Chicago with Martha. “I miss you too. Sorry for interrupting your night. She’s all yours, Jeff!”
“Finally,” he said sarcastically. “Just kidding, see you, Allegra!”
I made my way out of the tiny office just as the announcer cut the music. I was drained and jazzed all at the same time. Right before the rodeo, I had scheduled a meeting with the board to go over all my progress thus far.
It went about how I expected. Thompson grumbled and groaned, Micky didn’t say a word, and Dennis was smiley and enthusiastic the whole time.
I went over the vests with the Agri-Corp logo that all the riders would wear at the next show.
I showed them a mockup of the chute banners I had made at two in the morning in the hotel room.
I showed the little footage I had of Jimmy Nash and a few other riders praising Agri-Corp.
The social media posts I had been working on had piqued Micky’s interest at least a little. I had taken the blurry, boring pictures into real-life shots of the rodeo in action. The engagement numbers spoke for themselves.
In only a week, their pages had gained three hundred followers, and counting.
Thompson and Micky left in a hurry, only stopping to take one of the cookies I had brought for them. Dennis shook my hand, praised what he had seen so far, and asked again to go to dinner with his family sometime. I agreed, and he gave me a high five.
I couldn’t remember the last time I had gotten a high five. I laughed as he left.
Billy waved as she caught my eye. “Sorry! I had some car trouble. Am I late?”
“And with that, ladies and gentlemen, THE NATIONAL RODEO TOUR IS LIVE! Get ready to ride!”
I shook my head. They had a teenager sing the National Anthem, said another beautiful prayer, and it was finally time to get into the action.
“We’re just about to start. How are you feeling?
” After she sent me her footage from Jimmy Nash’s interview, I hired her full-time.
She was incredible, and her editing skills made the interview seem a lot more casual than it was in real life.
She squealed when I offered her the job.
Billy and I were going to get to know each other well in the next few months, and I was excited to have someone so positive around me.
She was wearing a college t-shirt, confirming my suspicions about her age, another baseball cap, and her big, round glasses. Her grin was even wider than yesterday. “I could not be more excited. How are you?”
The announcer was introducing the first bareback bronc rider.
“Good, thank you,” I said professionally, grateful I got to have my childish conversation with Martha. “So, I looked at the program. Colton Nash is the last rider in this event, so be ready. We’re gonna video his ride and snag him for the interview as soon as it’s over.”
“Got it!” She bounced on her tennis shoes. “I wore lip gloss!”
Not sure what that had to do with anything, but sure enough, her lips were coated in a cotton candy pink.
Noticing my confused gaze, she laughed. “Because he’s cute! Don’t tell me you didn’t dress up for him!”
I looked down at my outfit. I was wearing a brown plaid button-down dress with brown heels. My hair was curled ever so slightly. And yes, I was wearing lip gloss. “Oh, no. I was just trying to find something in my suitcase that wouldn’t look so bad covered in dust.”
She nudged me. “Sure, Miss Ford, sure.”
I wanted to throw my hands up. I literally had never said anything about how hot any of these men were. It was all I could do not to shout, “I am practically engaged,” as loud as I could, so everyone could get the message.
“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, if you want to see pure athletic violence, you are in the right place!” The announcer was roaring so loudly that it was echoing through the stadium.
“We are down to the last rider in the Bareback event. The only thing standin’ between this cowboy and the dirt is eight seconds of hell! ”
It was Colton’s turn. I rushed to the fence, making sure Billy was following me with her massive camera raised.
“His horse is a veteran of the circuit, notorious for his explosive speed and relentless spin! Give a massive salute for: BONE CRUSHER!”
These stock handlers and their terrible names for the animals.
Colton Nash slid on his straw hat and straightened his back. Taking long, deep breaths and squeezing his hand under the strap, he was silent. Jimmy was beside him, giving pointers and talking to the stock handlers.
“And cinched onto the back of Bone Crusher is the cowboy everyone has their eyes on! He has the fire, the spur stroke, the stamina to take this thing all the way to Vegas! GET ON YOUR FEET, FLORIDA! On the back of Bone Crusher is your bareback champion in the making, COLTON NASH! He’s set!
He’s locked in! The riggin’ is tight! Give us the nod, cowboy, and let the fight begin! ”
I glanced at him one more time. He was closing his eyes and muttering something to himself. Finally, he opened his eyes, a focused look in his bright green eyes, and he nodded confidently.
The chute was thrown open, and the horse launched out.
Colton’s left hand was raised confidently, and his body was fluid.
The horse was spinning like crazy, bucking as much as it could.
Throwing dirt and Colton’s hat again, it did everything it possibly could to get him off.
At one point, it even tried ramming its body into the fence, but Colton held on tight.
The buzzer sounded right as the horse gave one final jump. Colton caught the pickup man’s hand and slid off the wild horse.
He came to a dead stop in the center of the arena, letting the dust settle around his boots as he took in the roar of the stands.
Again, with practiced precision, he tapped the top of his head with two fingers, a crisp, silent salute, before flicking the gesture toward the front row with an effortless grace that sent the crowd into a frenzy.
Another ride so flawless he made it look easy. I reached awkwardly through the fence until my fingers brushed his hat again. He waved to the crowd as they cheered him on, clearly enjoying every second.
“Excuse me, Mr. Nash?”
Colton looked up immediately, locking eyes with me, and I was trapped. His bright eyes were stuck on mine. He had stopped walking.
I waved his hat.
He waved back, a small smile on his face.
The announcer cleared his throat, the noise echoing in the almost silent arena. “Eighty-Seven points! Let’s see that replay and give our record-breaking cowboy the recognition he deserves.”
The audience obliged and erupted into a loud cheer.
Finally, Colton jogged to the fence and ducked under it as easily as breathing. “We’ve gotta stop meetin’ like this,” he joked, his accent making my knees weak. He was sweating from his ride, a few stray strands of hair clinging to his forehead.
I handed him his hat.
“Thank you,” he said as he took it. My heart was pounding in my chest as I watched him pull off a single glove with his teeth, run his dirty fingers through his hair, and slide the hat over his chestnut hair.
I bit my lip.
Billy nudged me, still holding her camera over her shoulder.
I shook my head and blinked hard. “Mr. Nash, I’m a marketing specialist with Agri-Corp. I was wondering if we could quickly interview you?”
He put his thumbs in his pockets. “You tried to talk to me yesterday, didn’t you?”