This summer was going to be the best one yet.
Chapter Three
Nothing got the small town of Rock Valley as excited as the 4H county fair. It was the summer event, so it wasn’t surprising to see the arena at the fairgrounds already half-full when I got there. A couple hundred people had shown up, and from the look of them, they were mostly the young competitors and their families. One quick glance at the crowd and it didn’t take long to pick out the two rows of boys sitting on the bleachers front and center, all dressed in their flannel shirts of various colors and jeans. More cowboys. Lexi would be ecstatic.
And in the middle of them sat Hunter.
Exhilaration pulsed in my chest as he waved at me. I thought I would’ve calmed down after that scene on the bull this morning, but seeing Hunter again made me as nervous as ever. I swallowed hard and walked toward him, forcing myself to try and smile naturally.
It was a definite fail.
“Char, saved you a seat,” he said, patting a spot beside him on the metal bench.
I sat down and grasped my knees, willing my nerves to go away. “Hey.”
He gave me a shy kind of smile. It was strange to see such an unsure expression on a face that very much resembled a man. “Missed you,” he said softly.
“Missed you, too.”
His smile faded as his gaze searched my face. I wondered if he noticed all the ways I’d changed in the last year as well. My brown hair was still long and curly. I was still waiting on that last growth spurt my mom swore would come any day now. But I’d finally mastered the concept of the mascara wand and I’d splurged on some Chanel perfume with my Christmas money.
I’d matured a lot, too. A brush with death tended to do that to a person. My sister might have had to save me from drowning at the Cascades, but the girl she’d pulled out of the water was forever a different person. Could he see any of that?
Finally, with a low sigh, he raked his hands over his head and squinted at me. “This is kind of awkward, right? I mean, with me coming back and everything.”
That was so like him—to call it like he saw it. I’d missed his honesty. The tension in my back loosened as I laughed and turned fully toward him. “I’m glad you said that. I thought it was just me.”
It made me feel so much better to realize that I hadn’t been the only one worrying about the changes between us. Hunter had felt them, too. It made sense, after a year apart, that things would be bumpy at the start.
“It definitely wasn’t just you.” He let out a low breath and grinned. “Don’t worry, everything will work itself out. I’m sure after you make me watch Easy A for the millionth time tonight, we’ll feel like I never left.”
I laughed and bumped against his shoulder with mine. “That’s exactly what I had planned for tonight. You still know me so well. That’s why we’re best friends.”
“And always will be,” he said, capturing my gaze with a serious frown. “Those are the rules, right? And we never break the rules.”
I nodded solemnly, unable to look away from him.
We’d invented the rules the year Hunter’s parents had surprised everyone by announcing their decision to get a divorce. We had all thought they were going to be together forever. The moment the papers were signed, his dad had hitched a flight to California where he was now remarried and working on a vineyard tending grapes or something.
To say the least, the split had been rough on Hunter. They’d seemed like such a happy family before then. He hadn’t seen it coming. So after all of that heartache, we swore an oath to never let anything come between us.
And nothing ever would.
“Well, what do we have here?” The cowboy sitting on my other side leaned forward to flash a shark-like smile at me. He was about our age, with jet black hair and a heavy brow. His brown eyes traveled slowly down my t-shirt and jeans, as if he were deciding where to bite me first.
It made me feel totally exposed, even after his gaze flicked back up to my face.
“What’s your name? Are you a barrel racer? I like a woman that moves fast,” he added with a dry laugh.
Hunter draped his arm over my shoulder and glared at him. “Take it easy, Graham. This is Charlotte and no, she’s not a barrel racer. She’s just a friend.”
My lips twitched with a smile, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit of whiplash from Hunter’s protective stance and the fact that he’d felt the need to label me specifically as just a friend. For some reason, that stung.
“Nice to meet you, Charlotte.” Graham shot me another smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “If you ever want to learn how to race barrels, I’d be happy to show you. I’m a great teacher.”
“If she ever wanted to learn, I’d be the one to teach her,” Hunter shot back, the air thick with static around the three of us.
I laughed nervously as Hunter’s arm around my shoulders tightened. No need to start a fight. “Thanks for the offer, Graham, but I’m good.”
“Your loss, sweetheart.”
I wasn’t sure what had gone down between these two guys, but it was clear they didn’t like each other. From the way Hunter glared at him until Graham turned his attention to the guys on his other side, I had a feeling they weren’t going to be friends any time soon.
“I see you’re playing nice with the other boys,” I said in a low voice, quirking an eyebrow at him.
Hunter’s cheeks were red and splotchy. He pursed his lips and huffed as he removed his arm from around my shoulders. “Graham’s an Oakie.” He must’ve seen the confusion in my eyes because he went on. “You know? One of those troubled kids that live on the Sweet Oak Boys Ranch, where I board my horse. He’s a total jerk. I’m not going to sit here and watch him hit on my best friend. You could do a million times better than him.”
I couldn’t help but smile down at my lap. Any stinging sensation left over from Hunter’s earlier friend comment had been soothed by this new protective side of him. It was kind of nice to have him standing guard.
There was no time left to be hit on by any of Hunter’s other cowboy friends. The crowd had swelled around us and the ceremony was about to start. A short man wearing a bowler hat strolled to the middle of the arena and tapped on the microphone. He then cleared his throat and the arena went quiet. I glanced over my shoulder, looking for Beth and Lexi. Whatever errand they’d had to run was going to make them miss sitting with all the cowboys. Lexi was going to freak when she found out.
“Welcome to the ninety-first annual Rock Valley 4H County Fair,” the man said in a voice that rumbled like thunder. The audience applauded and whistled. Some stomped their boots on the metal bleachers. When the noise died down again, he stepped back up to the mic and gave us an appreciative glance. “Thank you all for coming. We’ve got a great lineup of events this week. From mutton busting to tractor pulls, pie eating contests to craft shows, I think everyone will find something to their taste. We’ve got all the talented young folks of Rock Valley on display here.”
I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of frustration. This was yet another reminder of my utter lack of skills and talents and passions. Every kid here, from the tiny little elementary school aged ones to the high schoolers had a skill they were presenting at the fair. I had nothing. It was really pathetic.
Still, now wasn’t the time to dwell on the things I couldn’t change. As the guy droned on about events this week and how the judging was going to work, my gaze landed on Beth and Lexi finally arriving at the arena. It was about time. They crouched down low as they walked toward us in an attempt to stay out of people’s views. I scooched closer to Hunter so they could squeeze in on the bleacher and put a little more space between me and Graham.
“What were you doing?” I whispered out of the side of my mouth. “You almost missed it.”
Lexi’s eyes grew wide as she twisted her torso to stare at the guys surrounding us. “Um...obviously we died because this is exactly what I imagined heaven to look like. Hellooooo, boys.”
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There was no taking her anywhere.
I groaned in embarrassment and massaged my forehead with my fingertips but didn’t miss the amused glint in Hunter’s gaze as we made eye contact. He bumped me playfully with his shoulder and immediately my frustration with Lexi’s obsession went away.
He was good like that.
“Now that you all are aware of the rules,” the bowler hat man said from the mic, recapturing my attention, “I’d like to invite Ms. Rebecca Gentry up to announce this year’s Junior Rodeo Queen competitors.”
A spattering of applause welcomed the tall, thin woman who strolled through the dirt-covered arena with a clipboard in hand as if she were gracing the courts of England. Her long, full-length black dress swished around her ankles and her dark gray hair was pulled back in a severe bun at the base of her neck. She looked completely out of place in an arena full of denim and leather and rhinestones. And when she stepped in front of the microphone, her dark eyes swept over the crowd in a disapproving way that made me want to sit up a bit straighter.
“The Junior Rodeo Queen competition has always maintained a prestige that cannot be matched in any other youth event,” she said in a honeyed voice that was smooth and low. “Thanks to our generous local sponsors, the prize that awaits the winner is a scholarship and an internship in any government office of the winner’s choosing. The lady who is crowned Junior Rodeo Queen will be well-deserving of the title. She will be poised with unparalleled character and depth. She is devoted to her town and the people in it.”
Hunter elbowed me. “Hey, sounds like you.”
I snorted, elbowing him back. “Which part? The unparalleled character or depth? Or maybe you’re talking about the poise. I did manage to trip over my own feet at the diner yesterday.”
“All of the above.” He grinned at me. “You’d look good wearing a crown.”
“Yeah, well I’m not interested in a cowgirl rendition of Game of Thrones,” I said, wrinkling my nose. “Beauty queens are bad enough. Beauty queens that know how to work a shot gun and use a hunting knife are downright terrifying.”
He shuddered and ran a hand over his head. “When you put it that way...”
“Best stay away. Stay far, far away,” I said in a deadpanned tone.
The grin that tugged at his lips as he shot me an amused look made warmth explode inside of me. I’d missed this so much.
“And now, I’d like to introduce this year’s competitors of the Junior Rodeo Queen competition,” Ms. Gentry announced, looking down at her clipboard. “Please come up as I state your name and form an orderly line. Hold the applause until the end. No need to stir up a commotion.”
“Ms. Gentry seems like a barrel of fun,” I whispered to Lexi beside me. “Are you sure you don’t want to enter the competition?”
She laughed nervously, grasping the bottom hem of her shirt in her hands. “No, I think I’m good. I’m more of a behind-the-scenes kind of gal. You know—hair and makeup and stuff.”
“What about Beth?” I leaned forward to look at her slouching on the other side of Lexi. “Sure you don’t want to trade in your headphones for a cowgirl hat?”
The guilty smile she gave me and the way she squirmed in her seat was definitely curious. She could be so odd at times. But I had the feeling Beth spent more time on a computer playing her games than face-to-face with other humans, so I had to cut her some slack.
“I think I’ll stick to Fortnite,” she grumbled, turning her head to stare at the girls already starting a line on the arena as Ms. Gentry called off their names.
Sarah Claiborne was announced next and she marched out onto the arena in her little yellow dress smiling like she’d already won. I could feel the cowboys around us shift, as their attention latched onto her. Nobody could blame them. She was showing off the right combination of long, slender legs and bare, sun-kissed shoulders. Even I felt a little blip of jealousy that someone could look so gorgeous standing in the middle of a dirt arena.
For some reason, I couldn’t help but worry about Hunter. Was he as taken in by Sarah as the rest of the boys? I really hoped he could see through that act of hers.
When I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye, I found him looking at me. Our gazes met and he quirked a little grin, as if he knew I’d been checking up on him. My cheeks heated and I immediately redirected my attention back to the arena and the half dozen girls posing next to Ms. Gentry.
“And our last competitor for this season...” Ms. Gentry licked the pad of her finger and turned the page on her clipboard.
I bounced my knee, ready to get this whole ceremony over with. We had movies to watch. Candy to binge. Lost time to make up for. I didn’t want to be here, watching Sarah Claiborne bask in the limelight. I wanted my best friend to myself tonight and to lose myself in a perfect romantic comedy. Was that too much to ask?
Ms. Gentry squinted at the paper before clearing her throat into the microphone. “We had a last-minute entry into the Junior Rodeo Queen competition, but I’m sure she is just as qualified as the rest. The last competitor is Charlotte Hale.”
And with that announcement—all of my fabulous plans for the evening seemed to go up in smoke.
Chapter Four
So this was what a stroke felt like.
Every drop of blood rushed from my face to pool in my feet. Numbness spread throughout my body. I stared wide-eyed at Ms. Gentry standing in front of a microphone in the middle of the arena. She hadn’t just said my name. That was impossible. I was definitely having a medical crisis.
“Charlotte Hale?” she repeated again, raising one thin black eyebrow as she scanned the crowd.
“You signed up for the competition?” Hunter turned to me, his hazel eyes scanning me over with excitement. “You’re going to be the Dragon Queen of the Junior Rodeo. This is so great. You totally had me convinced that you hated the idea.”
I laughed nervously and ran a shaking hand up and down my arm, attempting to get some feeling back in my skin. Hunter might have thought it was great, but this had to be a mistake. Or a prank. Either way, I was getting out of it—just as soon as I could get my legs to work.
“I think I’ll just stay here,” I said with a breathless laugh. “I’m not good with crowds.”
Hunter bared his teeth nervously and nodded toward the arena. “No way. You’d better get down there. I have the feeling Ms. Gentry will hunt you down and have you publicly whipped if you don’t follow her every order.”
“I think he’s right.” Lexi elbowed me on my other side. “Do what the man says. That lady is seriously scary.”
Ms. Gentry’s thin lips formed a scowl that grew more intimidating the longer she stood there waiting for me. It seemed there was no avoiding it. I rose to my shaking legs and trudged toward the five metal steps that descended to the arena. The weight of a few hundred pairs of eyes on my back was nothing compared to the scorching gaze of the woman in front of me. Her dark eyes looked me over as I approached, and she lifted her chin and sniffed.
“Nice of you to finally join us, Ms. Hale. I hope you won’t form a habit of making people wait for you.”
“No, ma’am,” I said, picking up the pace to take my spot at the end of the line, stare at the ground, and wait for my chance to tell everyone this was one giant mistake.
Normally, I wasn’t the violent type, but in that moment I would’ve kicked the shins of whoever signed me up for this competition. This had to be a practical joke. Someone had wanted to see me sweat. There was only one person I could think of with that big of a chip on their shoulder who preferred public humiliation as her weapon of choice.
That innocent yellow dress couldn’t fool me.
Lifting my chin slightly, I hazarded a glance over at Sarah. She stood next to me, looking exactly like a beauty queen should with her perfectly contoured cheeks, bright pink lipstick, and long slender neck. I’d only meant to study her briefly for any sign of amusement or maybe even guilt, but our gazes met and the anger rag
ing in her eyes nearly seared me to the bone.
In total, she looked at me for only a second, but it was enough. She redirected her attention to the audience with a dazzling, winning smile and I was left with the skin on my face melted off.
Okay...so no amusement or guilt there. Judging from Sarah’s reaction, she wasn’t the one who’d signed me up for the competition. That left only a few suspects remaining.
But there was no time to investigate. Ms. Gentry was thanking the audience and shooing us off the arena floor as they clapped and whistled. I was pretty sure I heard my name being shouted somewhere in the noise, but I couldn’t look for the source. They had us marching like a herd of sheep through a side gate and into a picnic shelter nearby, where Ms. Gentry ordered us to take seats. A sweaty, nervous man handed us each a thick, padded envelope.
“Welcome, ladies,” Ms. Gentry said, standing straight as a board in the middle of the shelter. It was as if her spine didn’t bend. I couldn’t help but wonder if she was wearing a corset under her black gown. “My son, Henry, has just handed you your itinerary for the next week. Please study it and be prompt to each appointment. Lateness is akin to rudeness. I will not disrespect the fine people of Rock Valley with your tardiness.”
There was a stark difference from this stiff woman and the people in jeans and t-shirts strolling past as the arena began to empty. I honestly couldn’t understand why Ms. Gentry would step within a hundred feet of a place like a 4H county fair. She looked like she belonged in a museum, next to the paintings of women wearing stiff lace collars and white powdered faces.
“Now, does anyone have any questions?” Ms. Gentry asked, her gaze sweeping over the girls sitting around me.
Part of me wanted to raise my hand and ask if she was in on the joke, but I kept my lips sealed. She didn’t look like the joking type. And besides, most of the girls were hanging onto her every word. For some reason, they actually wanted to be here. When Ms. Gentry turned to answer one of the gal’s questions about the rodeo procession, the redhead next to me leaned closer.
Dare You to Resist the Bull Rider (Rock Valley High Book 4) Page 3
