"Which means we're fucked no matter what we try," I told the room. "Guys, I'm only suspended for the rest ofthisseason. Let's get Jorge and Isaac to work with one of those idiots - because we all know the two of them will be enough. I'll still be chasing my girl around, so I'm not leaving you high and dry, and this way I can come back next year."
"No." I turned, trying to follow the voice and spotted Wes Gilbert. He was curled over his beer, but watching me much too intently. "We all know this isn't really about you. It's about your girlfriend. They want her gone, and suspending you means the chances of her getting hurt go up. Well, same for the rest of us, but the PBR thinks we won't break as easily. They're also wrong."
"Fuck yeah, they are," Ty agreed. "And the fact that Mr. Merrill came to yell at us? Jake, tell me that doesn't mean something."
"Means he's pissed," Jake said. "Pretty sure we all noticed that."
"And went at Cody!" Jackson yelled, shoving to his feet. "Ty and Renato started this, but Cody got the blame!"
"Because I raised my fist," she pointed out.
But J.D. said, "Nope. It's because you talked to the press. Rookie, that's the way to hit the PBR the hardest."
And a smile began to twist Cody's lips. Not a happy one, but the devious kind. Slowly, she turned in her chair so she could see the rest of the bull riders a little better.
"Y'all, to me that sounds like we all need to start talking to reporters."
"And then?" Wes asked.
Her damned smile was starting to look a lot like the one J.D. always wore. "Then we double down. No riding tomorrow. LetAustin, Eli, and Derek do their thing. Letthemget hit by the bulls and see how long they keep coming back!"
And that? Oh, those words made everyone in this place cheer. Somehow, she'd found the exact rallying cry they needed, but she wasn't done yet. Easing herself to her feet, she patted the air to make them pay attention.
"Mr. Merrill is coming at me because it's easy. So sure, I'll keep dealing with him."
"Not alone, you won't," Ty insisted.
"I'm with Ty on this," Renato said, then he looked over at Jake.
"What?" Jake asked.
"You're the top American rider right now," Cody told him.
But Jake just pointed at J.D. "Am not!"
"And I ain't riding," J.D. reminded him. "So this weekend, ya are. Because if you don't step up, boy, then my rookie's gonna do my talkin' for me."
Jake simply gestured to Cody with both hands as if passing something over. "And I think that settles it. This woman right here? She's gonna take the hits anyway, so maybe she deserves a little of the respect too, hm? Canada, America, and Brazil all have a clear leader now. And speaking of that..." He waved Cody back to her seat.
But what the fuck was he doing? I'd been sure these people had just come to a decision, and now it felt like Jake was changing the subject. Around the room, guys looked over at their friends, clearly thinking the same thing.
"Last night, a few of you were worried about how we can keep doing this, right? Collective bargaining, someone said."
"That was Ty," Jackson told him.
"And I'm the one worried about money," Sonny said.
Jake nodded. "Well, these three told me to figure out a plan. I've got one. We're going to help each other. Think of it like thebuddy system, but bigger. All of you have a few buddies already. Well, make more. Make sure everyone has the gas to get to the next place. Share hotels if you have to. And if you can't make it work, text me. I'll ask around for you, but all of you need to think about what you can actually give. If we work this as a stair step system, going from groups to country leadership, to all of the PBR riders? Yeah, we can make it work. Because no, I'm not going to hang on to everyone's money and try to remember who gave what, but I will be the one to do the begging for you if any of you need help. Is that good enough?"
"Don't want fucking charity," one of the new guys grumbled.
"But it's not charity," Cody told him. "This? It's called cooperation. I know my sponsors aren't penalizing me, so I'm willing to chip in for the ones who aren't that lucky. It's my way of making sure my power isn't lost because of money. You're helping me, so I'm helping you back. It's called teamwork, people."
"This isn't a team sport," Wes reminded her.
"Oh, but that's where you're wrong," Cody told him. "What are the bullfighters if not our team? Aren't the bulls our partners? Thisisa team sport, just not like all those other sports you think of. No, we're good enough to mix and match our teams second by second, and you know what? It will never be us against each other. It willalwaysbe us against the bulls, so we're on the same fucking side!"
And when the cowboys in the room began to cheer again, I realized my girl was even better at this than I'd realized. Cody was good. She wasterrifyinglygood. Even better, she was on my side.
