Page 28 of Rough Ride

“Are you fuckingkiddingme?” I blurted out. “His horse was twice as violent as Appleton’s!”

“It’s bullshit,” one of the suited men agreed. “That was the best performance all night.”

“Rigged,” another fan said, shaking his head.

Sawyer came out a few riders later. He held his saddle smoothly the entire time, but his horse was on the tamer side, so it wasn’t a surprise when he only received 71 points. As he walked out of the arena, back facing me, I imagined him wearing a scowl strong enough to peel paint.

When I glanced up, I found Liz looking at me from two rows down. “They ripped your boyfriend off. He should be in the lead if the judges were fair.”

“His horse was too tame,” I replied. “And he’s not my boyfriend.”

She grinned at me. “I was talking about the brunette pretty boy. The one who’s always smiling like he just heard a funny joke.”

“Elijah,” I said. “He’s not my boyfriend either.”

The loudspeaker boomed: “Now competing in Saddle Bronc Riding… Johnny Armstrong!”

Liz glanced down at the arena floor, then whipped her head back to me and opened her mouth.

“He’s not my boyfriend either!” I quickly said.

But as he prepared for his round, I couldn’t look away. Johnny’s horse seemed restless in the chute, and the cowboy was swaying in the saddle in a way that didn’t look intentional. A customer behind me was calling for a beer, but I ignored her as I waited for the round to begin.

The chute banged open and the bronco bucked its way into the arena. Johnny survived the first violent motion, but didn’t time the second one right, and was thrown sideways off the horse, drawing disappointed noises from the crowd. It was practically over before it began; since he couldn’t last the required eight seconds, he was awarded zero points.

Johnny slowly got up and walked back to the starting block, gripping the metal railing to steady himself. Then he grabbed a nearby bucket and bent over. Fortunately, since I was in the upper deck, I couldn’t hear the sound of him vomiting.

Liz was shaking her head at me. “I think that’s your fault, babe.”

13

Sophie

My guilt about Johnny’s performance didn’t end when the rodeo lights came on and the fans slowly exited the arena. It remained as I walked to my car, and persisted for the first hour of my shift at Billy Bob’s. Liz was working the same bar as me tonight, but she was kind enough not to mention Johnny’s performance again.

Fortunately, it was slightly less crowded than it had been on opening night. And I wasn’t closing today—I was getting off at ten.

“Got any plans for our night off tomorrow?” she asked.

Thankful to take my mind off the rodeo, I said, “Yes! I mean, no, I don’t have plans. You don’t want to spend your night off with Travis?”

“He’s got game night with the guys,” Liz waved a hand. “How about we go somewhere away from the rodeo crowd? Like on Magnolia Boulevard?”

“Let’s do The Usual,” I said, referencing a bar that we liked. “The worst we’ll have to deal with are TCU students.”

“I’ll take them overthiscrowd any night,” Liz said.

I didn’t expect to see Johnny tonight, so it was a surprise when I looked up from the martini shaker and saw him and Eli leaning across the bar to get my attention. His face wasn’t as green as it had been earlier, and he was wearing a rueful smile.

“Didn’t think you’d be back so soon,” I admitted, hefting the bottle of TX whiskey. “Shots?”

Johnny’s face twisted like he had been punched in the gut. “Please get that bottle out of my sight.”

“Sorry. Couldn’t resist.”

Eli clapped him on the back. “I, for one, think it’s mighty hilarious.” He grinned at Johnny. “Come on, pal. You’ve always been able to laugh at yourself.”

“I’ll be ready to laugh at myself after two more showers or three more nights of sleep, whichever comes first,” Johnny replied. “I’ll take a soda water with ice.”

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