Page 13 of Ace of Spades (Hidden Creek Ranch #1)

HAILEY

“Come on, Casino,” I groan, pushing my leg as hard as I can into the mare as I try to get her around the second barrel without knocking it over. She throws her head up, as if she was trying to talk back to me.

I struggle to pull her back down to a walk, quitting the pattern completely and turning her back around to the perimeter of the arena, fighting her with everything I have until we reach the gate.

“You want to let it out,” I whisper, fighting to keep her still long enough for me to bend down and unlatch the arena gate. “Then let it out.”

I push my hands forward against her neck, giving her the free reign to take off.

She doesn’t waste a second, her hooves kicking off of the track as we take off, veering off of the drive and through the grassy field.

I don’t hold back, my hand holding her reins reaching between her ears, my whole body leaning forward in encouragement.

“Come on, girl. Show me what you’ve got,” I tell her, the wind whipping through my hair as she kicks it up another notch, racing through the grounds like a bat out of hell.

A smile spreads across my face, the adrenaline giving me the thrill that I had been needing to get out of my own head. I relinquish all control, letting her take me where she chooses, my thighs squeezing tight across her middle to keep myself steady.

I let her run as far as she wants, letting her cool down on a walk back to the stables, speaking softly to her the entire time. It isn’t until we get back near the stables that a figure steps out from the shadows, blocking our path and spooking my mare.

“Dad!” I squeal, hanging on for dear life as Casino lunges to the side.

“Sorry, sweetheart—I didn’t mean to startle you, I just wanted to personally invite you to dinner tonight,” he tells me.

“Since when do I need to be invited to family dinner?” I pant, fighting to regain control over my horse.

“Well, honey, Bradley and his parents will be joining us. I don’t know what’s going on between you two, but I need you to be the good host that I know you are. His father and I are working on a deal together, and I really need you on your best behavior. Just promise me that you’ll play nice, okay?”

My stomach sinks, the thought of seeing Brad again after nearly a month of completely avoiding him making me borderline nauseous .

“Dad,” I start, considering telling him. If only my father knew just how awful of a person Brad was, maybe he wouldn’t put so much pressure on me to pursue him.

“What is it, honey?”

I sit back in my seat, pulling Casino back as she begins to prance from anticipation.

“Nothing,” I lie. “I’ll be there.”

I spend the rest of the afternoon dreading dinner, waiting until the last minute to pick out a cherry red summer dress and adopt my best behavior, taking my seat at the table and keeping my mouth shut.

I greet the Eastons as they arrive, plastering the best smile I can muster as I watch our parents exchange pleasantries.

I outright ignore Brad as he joins them, making himself at home as he leans back in the high-backed chair, a shiver skating down my spine as he offers me an infuriating wink from across the table.

I thank Grace as she deposits a plate in front of me, silently eating my meal as I let the others around the table keep the conversation going. In situations like these, I know my role is to follow my mom’s lead—sit back, and let the men do the talking. We were merely here for appearances.

“So, William,” Brad’s father says. “The project for the resort is moving fairly well. I heard you were able to land that trailer park—how long until we can get it torn down?”

“Just a few complications regarding the current residents, but nothing we can’t handle. Give it a few weeks and we’ll be ready to go. ”

“Wait,” I say without thinking. All eyes around the table to me, my dad’s teeth clenching behind his smile at the interruption.

“Did you have something to say, sweetheart?” he asks, a warning in his eyes.

“It’s just that—” I gulp, realizing that I need to either shut up or commit.

“There’s a ton of people that still live there, and they don’t want to see it torn down.

Some, from my understanding, have grown up there through multiple generations.

It seems like Cedar Creek is quite fond of the place, do you really think it would be in your best interest to just tear it down and piss off the town even more? ”

“The town doesn’t know what they need. Sometimes, they need to be shown.”

“But do we really think that’s the smart thing to do? I mean, why can’t we just find another place for the private airport?”

“Because this has already been settled, and it’s the best option for us.”

“But what about the best option for them? Don’t you think this is a mistake? We’re starting to look like money-hungry tyrants over here, no wonder everyone in town hates us.”

I realize my mistake as soon as the words leave my lips.

“Hailey, that’s enough,” my dad warns, my mom giving me a pleading look from across the table.

“But—”

“I said enough,” my dad yells, slamming his fist on the table and effectively shutting me up. The room goes silent, a lump forming in my throat as embarrassment washes over me .

“Sorry,” I whisper, looking across the table to find an amused smile across Brad’s face. He was loving watching me get put in my place, and I had to fight back the urge to jump across the table and strangle him with my bare hands.

“Why don’t we take this conversation upstairs,” my dad suggests, rising from his seat and placing his napkin on the table. I keep my head down as the three of them make their way upstairs, leaving me along with my mother.

“Sweetheart—” Mom begins, but I push from my seat and leave the room before she can reprimand me, or coddle me, or do whatever it is she plans on doing.

She didn’t follow as I made my way out to the guesthouse and threw myself on my bed, Gypsy coming to offer me kisses as I let tears of frustration roll down my face.

I felt caught in the middle—between my family, and the friends I had grown fond of.

They didn’t deserve any of this. Worst of all, I had no idea what was the right thing to do.

Did I warn them? Did I try to talk my dad out of it?

Did I sit back and let it all play out? I wasn’t on speaking terms with Weston, and I wasn’t very close with Beau, but I could tell either Chance or Rafe.

I took a shower to clear my head, settling in bed with a book for the night. It wasn't until the next morning that my dad came to find me as I was doing my morning feeding for the horses.

“Hey sweetheart, can we talk?”

“About what,” I play dumb, moving past him to grab a bucket of grain as Gypsy runs up to greet him.

“Hailey, I’m sorry about last night,” he admits .

“Sorry for what? For essentially telling me to shut up? Or for stealing my friends’ business idea? Or for stepping all over the small towns in the area and making us one of the most hated families in the area?”

“Enough with the attitude, Hailey. This is business we’re talking about, which you know nothing about.”

“Oh yeah?” I dump the bucket of grain into Casino’s feeding trough, turning to face my dad. “Then please, explain it to me. Explain to me how it’s good business to essentially step all over everybody else to get what you want. To fuck everyone over just for another dollar in your pocket.”

“I’m not stepping over anybody,” he argues.

“But you are!” I yell, getting fed up with all of his deceptions.

“Everything you’re doing in Cedar Creek is making life harder for everybody who currently lives there.

People are losing their businesses, cost of living is going up, it sounds like it’s all just going downhill over there for the locals. ”

“Making Cedar Creek the newest tourist destination will only help the locals. It will bring in some much-needed business. Besides, the plans are already drawn up, Hails. Scott and I are finalizing everything in the next few days. I didn’t want to bring this up last night because of how we left things at dinner, but I figured you should know that Scott is going to formally ask you and Bradley to be the faces of the new venture.

You’re a young, good-looking couple, and would make great spokespeople for the brand. ”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I spit, completely dumbfounded. “Not a chance, Dad. Not only because Brad is a trash human being, but because I don’t stand by any of this. ”

“Then what do you suggest I do, then? Huh? What’s your bright idea?”

“I don’t know, dad! For starters—why do you insist on bringing in all of these chain businesses? Don’t the mom-and-pop places add to the small-town charm that you’re advertising?”

“Because I have to keep the investors happy, Hailey—that’s how we’re able to make all of this happen. I can’t help that a lot of the family-owned businesses around here are bleeding money, I’m just trying to step in and help in any way that I can.”

“But you’re not helping, Dad. You’re making everything worse for them.”

“Listen, Hailey—as much as I admire the passion, why don’t you let me worry about these things, and you just focus on rodeo.

Keep in mind that it’s my money from these business ventures that make it possible for you to do so.

So how about you just say thank you and let it go, and stop being so ungrateful for everything I’ve done for you”

He turns to walk away, but I call after him.

“When was the last time you came to watch me compete?” I ask.

He turns to face me.

“What are you getting at, Hailey?”

“When?” I ask.

“I don’t—I don’t know,” he admits.

“Do you know my horses’ names?”

“Of course I do, I bought them.”

“Not their registered names, Dad. Not the names on their papers, the names that I gave them. What do I call them? ”

He looks over at my horses in their stalls. I feel my heart sinking to the ground as he sticks his hands in the pockets of his trousers, looking down at his shoes in defeat. I didn’t think it would hurt this much, finally admitting the truth to myself after all of this time.

“I don’t want your money anymore, Dad,” I whisper, fighting to keep the tears at bay.

“You can have your house back, the one you bought for me. I don’t want to stay here under your roof anymore, not when I know where that money came from.

It’s not worth it to me when all I can think about are all of the people struggling because of you. ”

“Don’t be dramatic, Hailey,” my dad pushes. “Where will you go, then? And how will you rodeo without the horses? Not sure if you realize this, but I’m the one who bought them for you, remember?”

I purse my lips.

“I’ll live in my trailer. I bought it myself, so you can take it away from me. And I’ll buy the horses back from you,” I tell him.

“You’ll buy them from me? Sweetheart, do you have any idea how much they cost?” he scoffs, making my cheeks heat.

“I do,” I tell him. “I’ve been able to save up money from brand deals, sponsorships, and winnings over the last couple of years, and I have a decent amount sitting in the bank. I’ll have the money wired to your account by the end of the day.”

It wasn’t a lie that I had been making great money, especially now that I was competing in the pro circuit, where the winnings were generous.

What I refused to admit to him is that it would take every last penny I had to buy back all three of the horses.

I would have to find a way to make up for it, maybe taking up some barrel racing lessons again during the week.

“Fine. Go ahead and throw your little temper tantrum. Come back when you’ve calmed down and are ready to be logical.”

I walk past him, Gypsy running past me as my boots stomp the ground.

I reach the guest house, throwing the door open to my bedroom and heading straight for the closet.

I pull out my suitcase, packing as many clothes as I can before frantically dumping the rest of my closet into my laundry basket, using anything I can find lying around to pack up all of my stuff.

I leave all of my buckles, decorations, and anything else that would take up too much space, focusing only on the necessities.

I didn’t have a plan. I didn’t even have the semblance of a plan. But I knew that I couldn’t stay here anymore, at least not right now.

It took me a few trips, but I got everything loaded up into my travel trailer, my dad long gone by the time I came back out to the stables to grab the horses.

I made sure to transfer the money to my dad before loading them up, making sure to tie up all loose ends.

I wanted to make sure that there was nothing left that he could hold over my head.

Once I had the trailer hooked up and everything ready to go, I picked Gypsy up and placed her in her little passenger princess seat in the front seat of my truck, heading inside the main house to do one last thing.

The kitchen is empty as I slip inside, neither my mom nor Grace in sight.

I pull the keys out of my pocket—the one to the house that my dad had bought me, and the one to the guest house.

Taking a deep breath, I place both on the counter, before walking back to my truck and pulling off of the estate.