“What’s the Bill Pickett rodeo?”
Rusty grins. “Only the longest running Black rodeo in the country. Started back in the ’80s to celebrate Black cowboys and cowgirls. Bill Pickett was a legend. Invented bulldogging.”
“Really?”
“Yep. It’s more than a rodeo—it’s a celebration of Black cowboy heritage,” he adds. “Most folks don’t realize the West was full of Black ranchers, ropers, and rodeo stars. Stedman and Millie tour every year. They’ve got a whole box of ribbons and belt buckles between ‘em.”
“That’s amazing,” I say quietly. “But I have to be quite honest, I have no idea what bulldogging is.”
“Most city folks don’t. Stedman and Millie will be back next week. You’ll meet them then and they can share more of their experiences. I bet Stedman will show you what bulldogging is by providing a demonstration.”
“As long as I don’t have to rope an animal, I can’t wait.”
There’s a knock on the door frame and Rusty and I turn in unison.
“Rusty, need to speak with you,” Duke says. “There’s a problem in group. Garrett’s raisin’ Cain again.”
Rusty tips his hat to me while Duke nods. “If you’ll excuse us.”
Part of me wishes I could follow as I’m intrigued by who Garrett is and exactly what they mean by “raisin’ Cain”, but once Duke and Rusty leave, I remain in the library checking out the other portraits and scanning the book spines for anything interesting.
The worn fabric spine ofEast of Edencatches my eye. One of my favorite Steinbeck novels. I flip through the pages when a scratch of handwriting catches my eye.
D,
Don’t forget, people can be more than their worst days.
Love you,
Mom
office space
DUKE
I triedto play it cool when Rusty was showing Roxanne around, but I’m not thrilled about having her in the house. This house, meant to be a massive guest house on the property, never stopped feeling like someone else’s dream until I started to make it my own. The bones are still Hollywood: grand sweeping staircases, ridiculous chandeliers, balconies built for champagne toasts. But I carved something of my own into it. I gutted the theater room and built out a space for my own yoga studio. I filled the solarium with native plants and a good sound system so I could play vinyls while working. I even turned the wine cellar into another damn library. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and a leather reading chair I picked up in Durango.
After the long days of running the ranch and helping the other vets, I need the solitude to recharge. This house is the only place where my thoughts don’t feel like they’re ricocheting around my skull.
Now, Roxanne is going to be here morning and night. It’s not just that she’s invading my space. It’s that she’s going to be pokingaround with those sharp eyes, and she’s going to stumble onto something I’m not ready for her to see.
Back in thesupport room at Emerald Lodge, Rusty and I defuse another tense moment with Garrett Miller—a vet who’s been hard to reach. He tends to lose his temper in group, but we keep nudging him to show up anyway. After a few quiet minutes, he cools down, and I get him to agree to another one-on-one session with his therapist this week.
Rusty eventually heads back to the house to finalize our weekly deposit, but I’m a little too keyed up from Garrett’s blow up. I decide to listen to music and chop firewood. I toss my shirt to the side, already sweating from the heat of the early morning. Jameson’s paw dangles off the top step of the lodge’s side porch as he soaks up the sun.
With each crack of wood, there’s some relief as the tension flows out of my arms and into the block.
I set the ax down and take out my earbuds just as Topper, Allie, and Leo emerge from the lodge. Allie stops and sits on the porch to pet Jameson, and I’m not sure what’s more intense, the way Allie is looking at me or the way Leo is.
“Hey, Duke,” Topper says, grabbing my shoulder. “Thought we could interrupt you since you’re chopping firewood we don’t need.”
I resist the urge to flip Topper off and just smile instead. “What can I do for y’all?”
Allie glances at Leo and then back to me. “We were hoping to go rafting tomorrow.”
My eyes narrow. “I think it’s a bit too soon for that. Don’tyou, Topper?”
“Uh—” Topper stammers.
