I pause at the door. “You’re welcome.”
As I walk toward the supply room, I already know exactly what’s going to happen.
Tomorrow, he’ll be back in that arena, around the bulls.
Because he thinks he’s indestructible.
Damn stubborn cowboys.
Especially this one.
Axle
Ilean my forearms on the fence surrounding the outdoor arena, watching Royce work with a pair of saddle bronc riders.
The afternoon sun hangs high over Wildhaven, baking the dirt and filling the air with the familiar smells of leather, sweat, and horses. One of the students breaks from the chute, his bronc hopping hard to the left.
Royce starts shouting corrections before the kid is even finished with the ride. “Lift. Lift. Lift. Spur. Spur. Lift. Keep your feet up!”
The teenager hits the dirt.
“Not that damn high!”
A few laughs ripple through the arena.
I grin.
Royce has always been a better teacher than he gives himself credit for, and the students love him.
The kid climbs to his feet, dusting himself off. Then Royce gestures for him to bring his horse around and try again.
“You enjoying yourself?”
I glance over my shoulder.
Bryce steps up beside me and hooks his arms over the top rail. “Thought you weren’t supposed to be anywhere near an arena for a few weeks.”
I smirk. “It’s a bruised rib. Pretty sure you know better than anybody that ain’t bad enough to keep me from riding.”
“I heard it was a broken rib.”
I roll my eyes. “Geezus. If a bull tagged me at a PBR event, I’d still be getting back on my next draw unless I was unconscious.”
Bryce snorts. “True enough.”
He studies me for a moment.
“Jovie’s young. Still new. Still playing by the book.” His eyes move toward the arena. “Give it a few years. She’ll be slapping Band-Aids on reckless cowboys and shooting cortisone into bad knees before sending them back into the chute.”
I bark out a laugh. “I don’t know. I think she might be a tough one.”
“Good.” Bryce scratches his jaw. “That’s what the boys on the circuit need so they aren’t forced into early retirement.”
That gets another laugh out of me.
The kid in the arena takes another ride on the bronc and does better this time.
Royce nods approvingly.
