Page 40 of Never Left You
I shook my head. “Eight seconds.”
“You ready?” Lachlan asked, stepping away from the horse.
I nodded, exhaled through my rounded lips, and used all my strength to hoist myself over the gate and land on the horse’s back. Instantly he moved, grunting as I pressed my knees into his side. He was not happy we woke him up for this.Good. He’ll buck more.
“What the hell are you doing?” Abi’s loud voice echoed through the arena before she even came into view. I looked up, catching her as she pursed her lips. Her hair was up in a messy bun, she wore black sweat and tennis shoes, and a large sweater covering her torso. Obviously—she crawled out of bed for this—yet she was still beautiful in every sense. And she was going to see me ride.
Nerves ran through my chest. No one answered her. They all just stared, stunned, as if they had just been caught by their mom.
“Taking my own advice.” I finally broke the silence.
“Now?” Abi approached the chute. “At ten o’clock at night? You think now is a good idea?”
“Yeah, I do.”
She took one deep breath, then dropped her arms to her side. “You’re crazy.”
“You told me to get back on the horse.”
“I didn’t mean today. I meant later. In a different arena,” she argued back.
“What better place than here, Abs?” I bore into her, silently telling her I needed this, that she told me I needed this. It was because of her I was on this horse in the first place, and it was because of her I wasn’t getting off. She knew I could do this. I just had to show myself I could. “Lachlan’s on Onyx, Rhett’s at the chute, Kyla is timing…”
“Kyla.” Abi looked around, her eyes landing on the stand where Kyla sat. She gave Abi a soft wave.
“Don’t worry, Rhett is making sure I stay here.” Kyla said loud enough for her to hear.
“You need someone else on the chute.” She dropped her arms.
“You volunteering?” I asked, gripping my hand on the rope, not even bothering to look at her.
I heard her groan. “Yes. Fine. I’m volunteering.”
The moment she reached the back of the chute, she placed her hand on the horse’s neck, pulling and moving him back and forth, only gearing him up more.
“Again…” Abi sighed, speaking loud enough only I could hear. “You sure about this?”
I answered her by giving Rhett the nod.
The chute opened, and I used my spurs to move the horse, giving him a good kick, and the minute he was out of the chute, he bucked. And bucked. And bucked. The sounds of the metal gate and Rhett’s cheers vanished as the only thing that I could hear was the harsh ‘thump’ of the hooves hitting the dirt. As if instinct was taking over, my body began to move with the motions. My right hand in the air, my left holding on to the cinch as tight as I could. I tried to focus on the count instead of the massive beast under me that was giving me the ride of my life. He bucked harder than I remember, or maybe it had been that long since I had done this, but he was ruthless.One…two…three.He spun, his entire body going to the left.Four….five…he spun again, this time flinging my entire body with him to the right, bucking higher than anticipated, and I lost all control and grip on the horse, flying off.
“Oh shit.” I heard Rhett’s voice and saw a flash of black to my left.
Adrenaline pumped through my veins as I tumbled through the air. I had to land on my feet. If I didn't, this newfound courage to try again was going to disappear before I had a chanceto fully embrace it. I hit the ground, both boots digging into the dirt, and pain shot through my left leg. But I was on my feet. At least I didn't land on my ass. I kept my body moving, my legs flying in a full jog as I watched Lachlan grab the cinch and pull the horse back through the arena gates, slowing him down. Once the horse was running in a circle, moving to trot, my pace slowed—but my heart was still racing.
“Cash!” Abi’s voice got louder. I turned and saw her running through the dirt towards me.
“Six point eight seconds,” Kyla shouted, but her voice was dull, because my entire focus was on the woman running towards me.
“Are you ok?” she screamed as she forced her body to stop, her breath heavy. She grabbed onto my arms and looked at my legs, taking in my body with worried eyes. “You flew and I…damnit Cash.” She used her entire body strength to punch my shoulder. She could definitely throw a punch. My shoulder ached, but all of her attention was on me.
“I’m fine Abs, I mean…” I lifted my left leg. “I can feel it but…”
“But what?” She met my gaze. “Do you need to sit, do we need to—”
“No Abi.” I grabbed her shoulders, taking her by surprise. “That felt…” I smiled. “Amazing.” I swallowed, feeling my heart beat through my chest. I could feel my body shaking, everything was moving so fast and I…loved it. “Absolutely amazing.” I said softly before wrapping my arms around her, pulling her to me in an all-consuming hug.
She was stiff, but soon, her arms wrapped around my waist, and she relaxed. She buried her face in my chest and she inhaled, then exhaled a shaky pattern that matched my own. I wasn’t sure what was making my heart race more. The almost seven secondsI lasted on a bucking horse…or finally having Abi in my arms again.
