Page 4 of Fires Creek

My head hit the dirt with an almighty thud as my wrist gave out and I tumbled down from the back of Terror.

He was a good bull, young and fit; but so was I.

I was in my fucking prime. Apparently, that didn’t mean shit tonight.

He was out for blood, and I was the unlucky bastard who drew his card. Next time, boy.

I felt the air leave my lungs as my body slammed into the cold, hard floor of the arena. My third championship was slipping away, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it. I would be out for the season, maybe more, after a fall like this. My first fall.

“Someone call a fucking ambulance, he’s down!” A panicked scream came from somewhere in the arena.

Voices echoed all around me, a sharp ringing radiated through my ears. My eyes were gritty and heavy as my vision blurred, and my surroundings became nothing but dimly lit shadows.

“Teddy! TEDDY! Talk to me!”

Link?

“Is he okay?” Another familiar voice cut through my fucking ears.

Hannah?

“Fuck knows, he’s breathing though!”

“Get the nurse! Where’s Maggie?” A panicked reply came from someone in the crowd.

Maggie?

Who the hell is Maggie?

Why wasn’t anyone coming for me?

Feeling myself weaving in and out of consciousness, I let my eyes close as tears welled in my ducts and threatened to escape down my cheeks.

No, you fucking don’t. The ringing sound grew louder and louder; it was starting to hurt.

Everything was starting to hurt. I had no idea who was gathered around me, but I could make out voices arguing over what had just happened.

I tried to open my eyes, but they refused.

So, I just lay there, waiting to die. I mean, I don’t exactly know if I was going to die, but I sure as hell wanted to.

My ribs were on fire, my heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest, and the fucking incessant ringing noise was giving me a violent headache.

I felt a sudden, sharp prick inside the crook of my left elbow as a soft hand found my cheek.

“It’s okay, Theodore, you’re safe,” a gentle, feminine voice echoed through the ringing. Her hands stroked my face slowly, and everything faded to black.

“Good morning, Mr James,” that same, gentle voice chimed through my ears.

My tired eyes slowly fluttered open, allowing me to take in my surroundings. I was in the fucking hospital. I was hooked up to several obnoxiously loud machines and had cannulas inserted into my wrist and elbow. Great.

The nurse gracefully entered my room, carrying a tray of medicine and a bottle of water.She had little pink ponies on her scrubs, and her grey hair was pulled neatly off her face.

“What happened?” I asked, wondering how I ended up here.

“Here, son. Take these, they’ll help with the pain.” She handed me the pills, which I downed instantly with the water. Everything. Fucking. Hurt.

“Thank you, ma’am.”

“Oh, please, it’s Maggie. Maggie Carter,” she said, smiling at me and taking my empty glass.“You had quite the tumble, dear. Had the whole town worried.” She said, her voice soft and kind.

“Yeah, feels that way. What happened to Terror?”

“He’s back at the Jensen’s, ready to buck another day.

Unfortunately, my dear, I don’t think we can say the same for you.

Your surgery went well, but the damage to your wrist is undeniable.

You also fractured multiple ribs, tore some ligaments in your shoulder, and had quite a nasty concussion,” she explained.

Maggie checked my cannulas and topped up the bags of whatever shit was in the IV’s as she answered my question.

Her eyes narrowed as she checked my blood pressure.

She shook her head and retested before taking her notes.

I watched her eyes scan over my injuries, her hands scribbling more notes onto my chart .

“So, what does that mean?” I asked, my mind racing in a panic.

She stopped prodding around and sat on the shitty hospital chair next to my bed. Taking my hand in hers, she murmured. “You may need to rethink your career prospects, my dear.” Her soothing voice did nothing to lessen the blow of her words.

I lay there, swollen, sore, and absolutely fucking furious as I absorbed the information Maggie just divulged. It felt like a fuck tonne of cement had been dumped on my chest to slowly suffocate me. I felt my lungs heave as I desperately tried to inhale oxygen.

“Woah now, easy honey,” she murmured, her soft hands meeting my face. She gently stroked my cheek and guided me back to reality.

“They said you had no next of kin to call when you were admitted,” she commented, although it was really more of a question.

“Nope. I’m emancipated,” I offered in reply, trying to steady my breath.

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Yeah, me too.”

I told her about my parents. How they dumped me at school one day when I was 12 and never came back. I was in and out of foster homes from then until my 15th birthday. At that point, the school’s social worker helped me find a lawyer, and file for emancipation.

My parents didn’t even bother attending the hearing, although the judge told me they’d received the summons. Fuck knows where they went or why they left me, but I didn’t need them. I didn’t need anyone. Until now.

I started bull-riding at 14, joined the rodeo circuit and hit the ground running.

After my second title belt, I had made enough money to buy a house and get my shit together.

But despite being emancipated, I was 15 at the time, so I couldn’t do shit.

I had rented a house off one of the blokes from the circuit, bought a beat-up Ford the moment I could and never looked back.

Sure, I couldn’t legally drive, but like that ever stopped me.

Maggie rose from her seat on my bed and placed her hand gently on top of mine.

The simple gesture gave me a sense of hope, of comfort.

She told me she’d be back in an hour to check on me, encouraging me to get some rest.I wondered what it must be like to have a mother. What would it feel like to be loved?

“Mrs Carter?”

“Yes, Theodore?”

“Thank you. For being so kind.”

“You’re welcome, dear.” She turned on her heels and left me alone with my thoughts.

The sharp beeping of my heart-rate monitor snapped me out of my sleep, and I pried my eyes open.

I squinted as the harsh, fluorescent lights assaulted my weary eyes.

I looked down to inspect myself. This was the first time since that night I had really taken a moment to assess my surroundings and process what had happened.

I had been here for a fucking week and was still in a state of shock. Get over it, Teddy.

Flashbacks of the fall invaded my head as my eyes trailed over my bruised legs and the lacerations coating my skin.

I had a gauze wrapped over my left calf; I assumed that was from the fence that almost impaled me as I tumbled from the bull.

I took in the plaster cast that adorned my right wrist. I tried, and failed, to grip the frame of my hospital bed and sit up.

Pain shot through my arm, and it felt like a thousand stinging needles embedding into me.

Fuck this. I pressed the call button and Maggie appeared within a few minutes, more pills and water in tow.

“Morning, sunshine,” she cooed, taking a seat on the bed beside me and handing me the tray.

“Don’t you ever get a day off, Mrs Carter?” I gave her a bashful smile and cocked my eyebrow at her playfully, then downed the pills with a large gulp of water.

“I go home from time to time,” she laughed. “In fact, my son, Jonas, is only a few years older than you. I have asked him to come in today to keep you company.”

“You didn’t have to do that, Mrs Carter,” I replied, taking another sip of water, feeling like she just ordered me a babysitter. At least the cool rush of liquid instantly eased the pain in my ribs.

“He’s a lovely boy; he helps us around the farm. I thought you may have some things in common. He rides too horses mostly. He said he knew of you from the rodeo circuit,” she announced proudly.

The door to my hospital room creaked open, and a tall, stocky teenager appeared in the door frame. He stood there, looking rough with a sheepish expression plastered on his face, before he shuffled into the room.

“Uh, hey. I’m Jonas,” came his deep, gravelly voice.Deeper than you’d expect from a teenager.

I don’t know what the fuck was happening, but that voice and his smile sent shivers down my spine and straight to my dick. This man was fucking gorgeous.

Jonas stayed with me for most of the day, telling me stories about his time on the farm.

His eyes danced when he spoke of the horses, and his lips quivered when he laughed.

Although he was only a few years older than me, he looked like a man despite only being 19.

His tanned skin was slightly withered, his body toned and muscular from the hours spent working in the sun.

Subtle smile lines creeped across his face, almost hidden beneath his beard.

I found myself thinking about him long after he’d left, wondering if he’d come back and visit me again. Although, I hadn’t really asked him to. Maybe I was overthinking things. Shit.

Maggie quietly creeped back into my room holding a thick manilla folder. She took her usual spot next to me on the bed, and with a cheeky smile, she asked, “Theodore James, how would you like to become a Carter?”

Age 19

We’d been home for an hour, and I was still completely shocked that Mum brought Teddy home to live with us.

He seemed cool, but I wasn’t used to having another person here.

Aside from the farm hands that came in to help during peak season, it was just me, Mum, and Dad.

We’d lived in Ashwood Manor my whole life.

Dad was the foreman, and someday, I would follow in his footsteps.

I had grown up on the back of a horse, learning to ride as soon as I could walk.

Riding was second nature to me. Dad spent my childhood teaching me everything I needed to know and then some.

By the age of 12, I was able to fix any machinery just as well as I could tie my damn shoelaces. Not that Ariats had shoelaces…

I knew of Teddy from the rodeo circuit. Where he rode bulls, I rode horses.

He was new to the scene, clocking his second win last year at only 15.

I was a few years older so we mixed in different crowds, but his reputation was undeniable.

A young, upcoming rider with a fearless outlook and an unstoppable spirit.

It really was a damn shame his career ended the way it did.

He was a bloody good rider. But all it took was one bad fall and you were totally fucked.

“Do you need some help unpacking?” I asked.

“Ummm, nah. I should be a’right. My wrist feels pretty good today, thanks.”

“Uh, yeah, okay. See you later then,” I said, chewing the inside of my cheek.

I walked back down through the hallway, scuffing my boots along the floorboards. I couldn’t stop thinking about him. The way his thick eyebrows cocked when he smiled. How his Wranglers fit perfectly on his hips. His shaggy, blond hair. That fucking smile.

I shook my head, descending the staircase as the intrusive thoughts invaded my head. I found myself thinking about him more than I cared to admit, and I couldn’t help but wonder if he was thinking about me too.