Hunter Bradley is one of those pricks I’ve been training. He’s cocky, rich, and insanely talented.
Flinging a towel over his shoulder, Roy looks at me. “You just came from your father’s house, didn’t ya?” he asks, walking across the room.
“How can you tell?”
“You always have this wild look in your eye after you leave his place. I take it the visit didn’t go well.”
“Does it ever?”
Roy frowns and pats my back. “You’re a good son, Linc. A much better one than he deserves.”
“Tell him that.”
“My guess is he already knows; he’s just too stubborn to swallow his pride and admit to it. Oh, your sister is here. She’s at the front desk waiting to talk to ya.”
“What’s Chloe doing here?”
“Don’t know. Didn’t ask. But she’s been out there about twenty minutes or so. I reckon you better get out there before she leaves.”
I toss my gym bag onto the bench and walk across the muggy room. Roy stops me before I make it to the door.
“She looks happy. Happier than I’ve ever seen her. Said she has one more final and she’ll be done with school.” I nod, and he continues. “You should be proud.”
“I am, but Chloe did all the work.”
Chloe worked hard for her teaching degree. It took a little longer than expected because money was tight, but we got her there.
“Nah.” He looks down and shakes his head before bringing his eyes back to mine. “She might’ve put in the work, but you made it possible.”
“Yeah, illegally.” I laugh, although it isn’t at all funny.
At the beginning of Chloe’s senior year of high school, I asked her what she wanted to do with her life. Her answer pissed me off.
“What life?” she’d said. “Dad can’t afford to put me through school. I’ll probably end up knocked up and cleaning hotel rooms like Mom.”
I told her to try again, to imagine what she’d like to do if she had the money for college.
She shrugged her shoulders and looked off in the distance. “A teacher. I’v
e always wanted to be a teacher. But it’s just a dream, Linc.”
It was a dream I was determined to make come true.
That was the year fellow bull rider Carlos Romero introduced me to the world of illegal, unsanctioned bull riding. Turns out rich men like to gamble on the lives of men like me, men crazy enough or desperate enough to mount a pissed-off bull in a run-down barn in the middle of a forgotten field.
I made enough money at the first ride to pay for Chloe’s first semester of college, and I kept showing up until I had enough to get her through the first two years.
When Roy found out what I was doing, he was pissed. It took a forceful slap upside the head for me to realize illegal bull riding wasn’t the answer to my problems, even though it sure did help ease the burden. Truth be told, I was risking my career and my freedom.
Now that my career is shot, it’s an option if times get tough.
Roy clears his throat. “Rose and I were talkin’, and we’d like to throw Chloe a little party. Nothing fancy, just something here at the gym. A few close friends and some cake. Somethin’ to celebrate her graduation.”
“She’d like that. Let me know what you decide, and I’ll help out however I can.”
“This one’s on me. All you have to do is show up.”
Roy smiles and walks out of the locker room. I follow close behind. I don’t immediately see Chloe, so I walk toward the front door, hoping she didn’t already leave.