I’ll see you in Estes, sweetheart.
- Knox
I feel tears welling up, but I take a deep breath, holding them back. I feel like an idiot. Why did I wait so long to give him a chance? We could’ve had weeks together, but I was too afraid to open myself up. I won’t make that mistake again,we willmake it through the summer and get our chance to be together.
I press the start button on my coffee maker, then pull out my phone and send him a text.
Kacey
Go kick their asses out there. I’ll be here waiting for you and cheering you on.
Chapter 31
Kacey
“Yep, he’s definitely unconscious,” Chet says from the chair across the room.
We’re all at my dad’s for family dinner, but instead of eating at the table, we’re in the living room watching the Livingston, Montana rodeo on TV. I haven’t missed a single rodeo that was aired. Knox has been gone for a couple weeks, but we’ve been able to keep in touch pretty well until the last few days. He’s in the middle of the Fourth of July run now, which I learned they call Cowboy Christmas because there are so many rodeos with a ton of money to win.
When he told me about their schedule, my jaw dropped. They started in Saint Paul, Oregon, then went to Basin City, Washington. After tonight they’ll go to Red Lodge, Montana and Cody, Wyoming on the same day. Then drive all the way to West Jordan and Oakley, Utah. They’re not getting much sleep and riding a bull or two a day for eight days straight. Sounds more like hell week than Christmas, if you ask me.
“I don’t think it stepped on his head. I think he got kicked on the way down,” Carson analyzes the replay from his seat on the couch next to me. I look away, not wanting to watch it again.
“I agree. He’s waking up, though,” Jessie says as the man in the arena gets to his feet with the help of the sports medicine team. He makes his way out of the gate as the next bull rider climbs in the chute.
Jessie and I leave for Estes Park in five days. Saying I’m excited to see him is an understatement. Knox tried to enter the rodeos so they would have one night off in Estes, but the association put them out differently, so he has to leave shortly after the rodeo is over. I tried to hide how disappointed I was. I’ll only get a few hours with him, but he warned me about this, and I can handle it. A few hours are better than nothing, and I’ll get to watch him ride in person for the first time.
“Looks like Knox is next,” Dad says, as he slides up in his chair, propping his elbows on his knees. He was a rodeo fan before Knox, but now he’s obsessed. He’s even been keeping up on the standings.
I take a sip of my drink and try to breathe normally. I get nervous when Knox rides. I know he takes all the precautions he can, but it’s still so dangerous. Look at the dude who was just unconscious—he’ll probably get on another bull tomorrow like it never happened.
They’re crazy.
The rider gets bucked off and they move the camera to Knox. He’s already in the chute warming his rope up. Now I’m sliding to the edge of my seat, wringing my hands together.
Carson pats me on the back. “He’s got this.”
Carson has come around more to the idea of Knox and me. I think Knox showing up on his way to Vernal spoke volumes to him and my dad. Now Carson ends up at my dad’s most nights watching the rodeos.
The announcer’s booming voice comes over the TV. “Y’all are going to like this match up. We have four-time national finals qualifier Knox Ward on 608 Prime Time. This bull has only been ridden a handful of times, but they’ve never been under 88 on him. Knox has been riding phenomenally this year. The man is thirty years old, but like fine wine, he just gets better with age.”
Knox takes his wrap and slides up.
“Come on, Knox. Show ‘em how it’s done,” the announcer calls over the mic.
He nods and the gate flies open. Until Knox, I didn’t really know much about bull riding, and I still don’t, but I can see this bullbucks. He is jumping higher than any bull I’ve seen, with his back feet kicking all the way out. He throws his head back and makes another round, but Knox is matching him jump for jump.
“He’s got him,” I hear Dad yell.
At 6.5 seconds, we all suck in a breath as we see Knox come too far off his rope. He gets back into position enough to make it to the whistle, but it’s not enough to let him pull the tail of his bull rope and make a good get off.
I see him reach down for his rope right as the bull makes another big move, yanking the rope out of his hand. He ends up flying backwards, almost onto the bull’s ass. When the bull kicks, Knox goes flying right into the bucking chutes. He slams into the chutes completely sideways, you can hear the gates rattle, even on TV. He falls to the ground like a sack of bricks and the camera pans away to show the bullfighters going to work, getting the bull away from him and out the gate. I clasp my hands together as they start to shake.
“Ouch. He rode him, though,” Chet says.
Jessie angrily yells at the TV, “What the hell? Put the camera back on Knox!”
It seems even camera crews in Montana are terrified of her, because they pan back over to Knox and he’s already up on hisfeet and inside the chute. Someone swung the gate around to protect him in case the bull came back. He’s got his hands on his knees; it looks like he’s trying to catch his breath.
