Four. Five. Six.
“LOOK AT THIS OKLAHOMA KID GO! GIVE HIM THE BOOST HE NEEDS TO FINISH THIS RIDE!”
The horse gave one final frantic lunge, twisting its body mid-air, but Colton met the movement with raw perfection.
Seven.
The whistle screamed.
“EIGHT SECONDS! LET’S GIVE IT UP FOR THE NEW KING OF THE DIRT!”
Colton didn’t wait for the pickup men to reach him. He pulled his hand from the rigging and vaulted off the back of the horse.
His boots hit the dirt with a solidthudthat made relief flood my body.
I’m sure I was shaking almost as badly as Colton was.
He stood tall, dust swirling around his boots.
He didn’t look at the scoreboard as the “96” flashed ingiant glowing LEDs.
He didn’t look at his screaming parents in the stands.
He turned his head and found me in the gap in the fence.
His chest was heaving with his heavy breaths, a huge smile breaking through the sweat and dirt.
I locked eyes with him.
He tapped his hat twice and threw it to my chest, giving me a single slow nod.
The crowd was screaming.
The music was deafening.
It all faded away as I stared at him, my hand on my chest as I tried to control my own erratic breaths.
Colton had done it.
Not only that, he hadshattered records. He had blown the rest of the cowboys out of the water entirely.
He ran to the fence, vaulting over it like a track star.
I barely stepped back in time before he landed right in front of me.
He threw his arms around me and spun me around again and again.
I could feel his body trembling against mine.
Colton leaned back to look at me.
I could barely see between the thousands of flashes from the cameras–all aimed at us.
He was grinning so hard, and he had never looked so beautiful. He was full of pure joy and well-earned satisfaction.
He pulled me close and kissed me, hard and passionately.
His gloved hand wiped a tear from my cheek before I realized I was crying. “Youokay?” He yelled over the roar of the crowd and booming music.
