Page 32 of Ace of Spades (Hidden Creek Ranch #1)

HAILEY

Casino dances beneath me, my mare amped up and ready to run as I hold steady on the reins. The air inside the arena hums with restless energy, thick with the scent of dirt, popcorn, and horses.

I adjust my cowboy hat on my head, taking in a breath and holding it in for a few seconds as I feel the adrenaline building up in my veins, the pair of us in sync. Slowly exhaling, I push my reins forward, squeezing my legs as we take flight.

My eyes lock on the first barrel as we reach the arena, the crowd a distant roar as I set Casino up for the barrel, pushing her with my inside leg and leaving just the right amount of distance before swinging the reins, grabbing onto the saddlehorn as we swing around the turn, my knee centimeters away from the barrel.

My eyes lock on the second one before we even make it through, my brain thinking ten steps ahead as we shoot out of the turn and race to the second barrel.

We make a clean turn, the third barrel straight ahead and calling our name. I grab onto the saddlehorn, swinging her around as the crowd goes wild, the two of us sprinting to the finish with the wind in our hair.

I hear the announcer call out my time as I cross the threshold, cheers breaking out as I bump Lisa Hart out of first, taking the winning spot.

“Yes!” I exclaim, sitting up in my seat and pulling Casino back as we jog back down the alley. I had placed third in breakaway this morning, and after placing at the top of the leaderboard for barrels, I was practically set on getting to the Western Rodeo Summit at the end of the year.

“Hailey!”

I catch sight of Dakota jogging towards me in her little denim shorts and boots, one of my cowboy hats atop her head.

“That was amazing, holy cow! You two were flying, I can’t believe how close you came to that first barrel. I literally held my breath the entire time, I was so nervous, you completely crushed Lisa Hart!”

I giggle, unable to stop smiling as she runs up to greet Casino with a kiss on the muzzle, my mare giving her a snort as the three of us walk out into the warm evening.

“What are you doing here, silly?” I ask. “Shouldn’t your brother be riding any second?”

Beau and Rafe had placed second in team roping earlier this afternoon, and bull riding was the event directly after bronc riding, which was happening right now.

Weston was likely competing any moment, and Chance wouldn’t be competing for another hour or so.

This was a large enough rodeo that they had divided the events into two different arenas, Weston and I set to ride at the same time.

“He’s got all of the others, I wanted to make sure you had someone too,” she tells me. “Somebody’s gotta be here to cheer you on! Besides, I’ve seen Weston ride plenty of times. Barrel racing is so much cooler, anyways.”

I can’t help but come down from my high as I realize how right she is—that if she wasn’t here to watch me, nobody would be.

My parents hadn’t come to see me at a rodeo since high school, and I doubted they would be any time soon since I had continued to ignore their texts and calls.

Brad hadn’t spoken to me since the dance, not that I wanted him to.

And Ava had been distant lately. She’d been one of the first to go today, but had texted me directly after to wish me good luck and let me know she would meet me at the bar.

Dakota truly was the only person that had shown up for me today. Her, and her brother, I suppose. He hadn’t been able to come watch me since he was up at the same time, but receiving a text from him earlier had made my heart leap in my chest.

WESTON: Care for a friendly bet, Sorrels?

ME: Let’s hear it.

WESTON: How about whoever places the lowest tonight owes the other one an orgasm ?

ME: Bring it on, cowboy.

WESTON: Good luck. Turn and burn, cowgirl. You’ve got this.

ME: Shouldn’t you be wanting to win this little bet of ours?

WESTON: First of all, I would never wish for you to do poorly, bets on the table or not. And second, what makes you think that giving you a mind-blowing orgasm would be a loss for me? Maybe I want to hear you scream my name while I feast on your pussy like it’s my last goddam meal.

“Earth to Hailey,” Dakota teases as I realize that I’d zoned out with the thought of her brother going down on me.

“Sorry, I was just—replaying my run in my head!”

“Shoot, I would be too! I got it all on video, I’ll show you later if you want. You’ll have to ignore the screaming, I was pretty dang excited and got a bit carried away.”

A laugh escapes me.

“Thank you,” I tell her, and I truly mean it.

“Any time, you know I’ve got you.”

“Want to come help me rinse off Casino?”

“Of course!” she says, walking alongside me as we head towards the wash racks and stables on the premises.

“You know, once I teach you how to ride, you’ll be able to walk around on Blackjack instead of having to walk everywhere on foot .

“Next week, I promise! As long as you promise we can practice somewhere where nobody can see me. I would be mortified if I fell off in front of anybody at the ranch.”

“I think we can make that happen,” I chuckle.

“Soooo… I heard through the grapevine that you had a good time last night,” she says, a cheeky smile on her face.

My heart rate picks up pace.

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, don’t play dumb with me, Hailey Sorrels! You know I’ve been rooting for you two from the start.”

“How did you find out?” I ask, messing with the reins in my hand as I swallow the guilt of her finding out about me and her brother through other people.

“Well, Beau called Chance last night asking if he knew where you were since he stopped by your camper to apologize, and you weren’t there.

And then he bumped into us this morning while Chance and I were driving down to the stables, saying that you were wearing boxers and Weston’s T-shirt.

You two really need to be sneakier if you didn’t plan on getting caught, the ranch has eyes everywhere,” she winks.

“Kota, I’m so sorry, I know I should’ve told you, I just—”

“Why are you apologizing? Girl, I’ve known from the start. The spark between you two is hot enough to light a dang bonfire. And just for the record, I’m a hundred percent here for it. Just don’t be giving me any details about my brother, because yuck.”

“You’re really fine with it?”

“Fine with it? I’m beyond excited! I’ve always wanted a sister, but instead, I got stuck with Weston. And don’t get me wrong, I love him to death! But I love having you around. You’re like the sister I’ve never had, and you two are perfect for each other.”

I let my shoulders relax, swallowing a lungful of air.

“It’s not… like that with him. We’re just messing around, it’s not anything more,” I tell her.

“I don’t believe that one bit,” she argues. “You might be telling yourselves that, but I know my brother better than I know myself. The way he looks at you? You’re blind if you don’t realize how head over heels he is, I don’t even think he realizes it.”

My heart thumps wildly in my chest.

“It’s not like that,” I repeat, not sure if I’m trying to convince her or myself. “I’m sure you’re aware of this, but your brother has quite the reputation. I’m just a challenge for him, that’s all there is to it.”

“That’s so not true,” she states. “I mean, has he had his go around with a bunch of buckle bunnies? Sure, I’m not stupid. But I’ve known him my whole life, and I’ve never seen him the way he is with you.”

“I don’t know, Kota,” I sigh. “I’m just—I just don’t want to get my hopes up.”

Because everybody always leaves.

She seems to understand, her expression sympathetic.

“Just promise me that you won’t be so quick to dismiss it if something does happen between the two of you? You’re both so headstrong, but something’s gotta give at some point. I would hate for you guys to miss out on something amazing because you’re both too goddam stubborn to admit it. ”

“I promise,” I chuckle, hoping that I don’t make a liar out of myself.

Kota talks my ear off as I wash off Casino, the sun officially retired for the night as we feed the horses and begin the walk back to the trailer.

We’re nearly to the trailer when something twists in my stomach, a gut feeling of sorts telling me that something is off.

I scan our surroundings, the rows of trucks and trailers devoid of anybody in sight.

The far parking is reserved for rodeo contestants, most of which are out at the bars celebrating by this point, explaining the lack of people.

Something still doesn’t feel right, though.

Then I hear them.

Raucous laughter cuts through the silence, a group of three guys stumbling from between two of the trucks, my spine stiffening on instinct as we prepare to cross paths with them.

“Come to this side,” I tell Dakota, moving her over so that I’m between her and the group.

The guy in the center notices us first, letting out a low whistle as he makes a show of looking us up and down.

His friends’ heads swivel towards us, and I keep my eyes straight ahead as my mind races to figure out if we could possibly take a different path, my fight or flight instincts kicking in as I try to decide whether or not running would be an overreaction.

I grew up around animals, and I knew well enough that making ourselves known as prey would only encourage predators.

“Well, North Dakota sure seems to have some lovely ladies,” the one on the end slurs. “Either of you wanna see what it’s like to ride a real cowboy? ”

“Not interested,” I tell them firmly.

“Oh, come on, not even going to say hi?”

We continue to ignore them, walking faster as we make our way past them and approach where the trailer is parked.

Dakota lets out a yelp beside me, the sound of a smack ringing in my ears.

“Come on, tiny little shorts like those are just begging for attention,” the guy directly behind us says, their laughter grating on my bones as I spin around before I even realize what I’m doing.