Page 19 of Beau
My eyes widened and then I laughed. Humor crinkled the corner of his eyes. “Okay, Pops. I’ll give him a couple more days.”
Pops checked his watch. “You’ve got a few more minutes.”
“I’ll run to the bathroom,” I told him. This was my normal routine and he knew it. While I wasn’t nervous, I liked to step away from the insanity for a minute. Look myself in the mirror–even if it was a cracked, old one in an aging arena–and give myself a little pep talk.
He patted Junior on the head, then ducked under his lead and went to check my saddle again as I made my way inside. When I came out of the bathroom two minutes later, Beau was leaning against the wall, Stetson on his head, competitor number affixed to his protective vest, waiting.
God, he was hot. And the way his gaze heated and raked over me, I had a pretty good feeling I was his.
“Hey, love.”
I smiled and I took his offered hand. He pulled me close, leaned down and kissed me.
It was ridiculously chaste in comparison to what we’d done in his hotel room earlier.
“Let’s get you back to your daddy and Junior.”
He knew my routine, gave me and my father the time we often shared before events. I appreciated the sweetness of that. While he was so possessive, he was willing to share me with the ones I loved.
“Then I’m gonna watch you from the chutes and think about how I’m gonna fuck you later.”
We walked with our fingers linked back to the trailer.
“I’d like that and I’ve been thinking about–”
My words died when we rounded the back and found Junior wild eyed and skittish, tugging against his lead, my father on the trailer floor, unconscious.
“Pops!”
11
BEAU
I stood beside Colt,Molly, Trig, and Ellie as we watched the ambulance pull away and head to the hospital. Lainey was riding in the back beside her father, who hadn’t regained consciousness.
Molly tugged off her rubber gloves and wadded them in her fist.
Colt was on his cell, pacing in a circle. Cam was in the back of the trailer tending to Junior. Trig had Ellie tucked beneath his arm.
I ran a hand over my hair. My father had been a deadbeat, nothing more than an alcoholic, abusive sperm donor. Fortunately–depending onhow one saw the situation–he was dissatisfied and too pinned down with a new baby and wife and walked out on us. There was no doubt my mother had it tough, working and raising me all alone. But if I ever ran across the bastard, I wanted to buy him a beer and thank him for fucking off and leaving us. We were better off without him. Mom proved that when, years later, she found Hank and married a good one. A solid, protective, caring man. Just like Mr. Wilder.
“Right. Yes.” Colt ended his call and turned to us. The crowd that had circled dissipated, thankfully. “The others are riding with Ma to the hospital.”
“I can’t believe Junior would kick Pops like that,” Trig said, tipping his hat back. “He’s always been so–”
“Junior’s been drugged,” Cam said, coming down the metal ramp.
Everyone stilled and stared. “What?” Trig asked, finally.
Cam nodded. He was a vet and ran a clinic in town. “No question. Suddenly aggressive. Sweating. Agitated.” He held up a filled blood vial. “I’ll take this in and test it. Not sure if it’ll do any good though.”
“Why?” Colt asked, using his cop voice.
“Because often times multiple drugs are mixed together so it can’t be exactly identified what an animal was doped with.”
“Will Junior be okay?” Ellie asked, tucking her dark hair behind her ear.
Cam looked to her. “I think so. The only positive in all this was that it kept Lainey from racing. Because of the drugs, Junior probably wouldn’t have recognized pain.”
