“Yes. Too much to want him to be miserable. Which he would be if he retired anytime soon. Chase deserves someone who can get behind him and his choice of career. I don’t think I’m that woman.”
“I hate to hear that. You seem so good together.”
“That’s what makes it even harder. We are.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know. I’m supposed to go to the Fort Worth rodeo with him this coming weekend. Maybe that will give me some answers.”
“I hope you work it out. He’s as crazy about you as you are about him.”
“He says he loves me.”
And she loved him. But would that be enough?
*
The weekend startedoff well. Ella rode up to Fort Worth with Chase rather than meeting him later. They even reached their hotel in time to have a little fun before Chase needed to go check on which horse he drew. His rides weren’t scheduled until the following day, which should give him plenty of time to be with Ella.
They walked into the room—he’d sprung for a nicer hotel than the usual—and they were in each other’s arms immediately. He kissed her, slipped his hand beneath her shirt to squeeze her breasts. Ella had started on his shirt buttons when his phone rang. He ignored it, turning it on silent and tossing it onto a chair.
Whoever was calling didn’t give up. And even though he’d silenced it, every time it rang it buzzed.
“You’d better get it,” Ella said, pulling back. “Unless we want to hear it buzz continuously. And that kind of spoils the mood.”
He picked up his phone, prepared to yell at whoever the hell was trying to drive him crazy. He checked the number. “Shit.”
“What is it?”
“It’s my Kelly Boots advertising liaison.” He looked at Ella apologetically. “I have to call her back.”
“That’s fine. I hope there’s nothing wrong.”
“No, there—” That’s when it hit him. “Damn it, I forgot they scheduled a shoot for this afternoon. They changed the time and I forgot to change my calendar.”
“Where are you?” Melanie, his Kelly Boots liaison, asked when she picked up. “You’re late. Is something wrong?”
“No, I’m sorry. I ran into some traffic,” he improvised. That was certainly possible given the highways between Whiskey River and Fort Worth. “It put me here later than I planned. I’ll be right over.”
“Sorry,” he said to Ella when he hung up. “I don’t know how long I’ll be. Want to come with me?”
“No, but thanks. There’s a big farm and ranch store I’ve heard is good. I’ll go shopping.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
“Do you want to drop me off so you can have the truck?”
She shook her head. “You might need it. I’ll call an Uber. Go on, have fun.”
“I’d have more fun with you.” He kissed her and left.
Two hours later Chase wondered why he’d ever said yes to this endorsement deal.
Money, dumbass. Sure money, unlike rodeo winnings. Lots of money, and you need it for the ranch.Marshall and Damaris were totally behind his rodeo career. They both knew that most of his winnings went to entry fees, tack, and a million other things. So to pull his weight when he couldn’t pitch in on the physical work, he needed more money. That’s where the Kelly Boots deal came in.
When he finally finished the shoot, Melanie reminded him that he had another the next day, after his rides. Crap, there went that time he had planned to spend with Ella. When he got back that evening, he took Ella to a well-known barbecue joint in Fort Worth, known for having some of the best ribs in Texas. Or at least that was their claim.
