A Bull Rider to Depend On
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Jeannie Watt
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15
Chapter One
Skye Larkin hated thinking ill of the dead, but as she pushed through the bank doors for the fourth time in two weeks, she was very, very angry with her late husband. And beyond being angry, she was, for the first time since learning the true state of her finances, afraid.
Itâd been a shock, yes, to discover that the money she thought she had socked away to see the ranch through lean times was no longer thereâthat her husband had drained the accounts during his road trips, despite his assurances that heâd given up gamblingâbut for the first six months after Mason has passed away, sheâd told herself it would be all right. Sheâd squeak through somehow. Make the payments, start to pull ahead.
At the six-month mark she had to face the reality that she wasnât pulling ahead. In fact, after a couple of disasters, she was falling further behind, and the money sheâd counted on to see her through these rough spells was now in the coffers of some high-rise Vegas casino.
Damn Masonâs gambling.
And not to mention all of his buddies who encouraged him to go out when he shouldnât have. If Mason had stayed in his hotel room as he wantedâas heâd promisedâthen he wouldnât have gambled. But no. His buddies would have none of that. One buddy in particular. And Mason had never been one to say no to a friendâeven if that friend was nudging him along on the path to self-destruction.
Skyeâs mouth tightened as she jerked open the truck door. She was behind one payment on the ranch and two payments on the truck. The first of the monthâpayment timeâwas inching closer, and she was rapidly running out of options. She climbed inside and rested her forehead on the steering.
She couldnât operate the ranch without the yearly cow loanâthe money that saw her through until she sold cattle. Having very few paydays during the year was the reason for the ranch account. Mason had no doubt planned to pay the account back with his next big win, either in the bull-riding arena or at the tables.
Mason always had big plans and every intention of carrying them out. He was young and no doubt thought heâd have lots of time to accomplish what he wanted, to rebuild Skyeâs small family ranch, to start breeding bulls. An inattentive driver on the Vegas strip had put an end to all of that. And an end to Skyeâs inherent belief that everything would work out if she was patient enough.
Things were nowhere close to working out.
Skye pressed her lips together and put the truck in gear. The now-familiar grinding sound came from the rear as she backed up, but, as usual, it disappeared when she put the truck in a forward gear. She ignored it. Worrying wouldnât help anything. If it did, then the ranch would be solvent.
And now, plan B. The one sheâd hoped to avoid. But after Masonâs funeral, her friend Jess Hayward had told her to call if she needed help. Made her promise to call. And she was going to make that call, regardless of whom he was related to. Now. Before she talked herself out of it.
Pulling over to the side of the road, Skye searched through her contacts and found Jessâs number. As luck would have it, he was in town. That was a good sign. Right?
âSure,â he said when she asked if he had a few minutes to meet. âIâll buy you a meal.â
âNo, thank you.â She wouldnât be able to eat while she was all worked up. âBut Iâll have a Coke while you eat.â
âMaybe we can both have a Coke at the Shamrock and you can tell me whatâs up.â
âYes. That sounds good.â Ten minutes later she walked in the door of Gavin, Montanaâs favorite drinking establishment and crossed the room to where Jess was already waiting at a table with two large Cokes in front of him.
Skye sat down and attempted a casual smile, which was harder than it should have been, due to the butterflies battling it out in her midsection. âItâs been a while.â
âYeah. It has.â There was a touch of irony in his voice. Well deserved, since it had been over six months since sheâd seen him.
âIâm sorry about that. Work and the ranch.â She made a small gesture. âYou know.â
The expression in his eyes told her he understood what she was trying to say. Sheâd holed up physically as well as emotionally.
âThis is really hard, Jess, so Iâm just going to spit it out. Would you be able to float me a loan? Short term?â
âHow much?â He made a move for his wallet, and Skye put up a hand, stopping him.
âA lot.â She took a steadying breath. âIâm behind on the truck payments. Itâs close to paid off, and I donât want it to go back to the bank.â
Jessâs expression clouded, and Skye continued before she lost her nerve. âIâm a little behind on the ranch, too.â
âWow, Skye.â He spoke softly.
âNot a lot there. One payment, and Iâm going to make a double payment this month and catch up. But those two things together have made it so that I canât get a cow loan. And if I canât get a cow loan, then I canât operate, and what I make at the day job is a pittance compared to what I need.â She leaned back, feeling drained after the blurted confession. âI should have never agreed to mortgage the place, but obviously, I hadnât expected Mason to die.â
Jess shifted in his chair. âIâm not in a good place right now.â
âOh. I thought...â Skyeâs voice trailed off. Rumor had it that when Jessâs parents sold the family ranch, theyâd given each of their twin sons a healthy portion of the profits. If it hadnât been for that much-repeated story, she would never have asked. âI apologize.â
âNo.â He looked affronted. âI know why you asked, but Ty and I pretty much insisted that the folks invest the profit from the ranch into their own futures.â One corner of his mouth tightened a little. âThey didnât make a lot of money on the sale. Just enough to get out from under the debt and get started again in Texas.â
âThatâs what I get for listening to rumors,â Skye said, still feeling embarrassed. âAccording to some of the old boys, you and Ty are rolling in dough.â
âThatâs why Iâm living in a crappy camp trailer.â
Skye started to smile in spite of herself. âI guess I should tell you that rumor has it youâre just biding your time until you start building your âbig house.â Youâre in the process of looking for the right piece of property.â
Jess laughed and then reached for his untouched drink. Skye did the same. She still had the problems she had when she walked in, but somehow, talking to Jess made her feel better. As if she werenât all alone.
âYou know, Skye...â She looked up from her glass in time to see an uncertain expression play across his features. âTylerâs doing well. Heâs had a couple big paydays. The last one was huge.â
It felt as if a barrier had slammed into place at the sound of his twinâs name. âAnd Iâm certain he wants to share his money with me. If I talked to him, heâd probably loan you the money.â
âCanât do it,â Skye said. Because Tyler Hayward had been a big part of Masonâs problem and she didnât see how she could live with herself if she tried to make him part of the solution.
Jess didnât try to argue with her. He knew better. When theyâd been kids growing up within a few miles of one another, she and Jess had become good friends. His twin, not so much. Tyler had been brash and loud and kind of mean. To her anyway. Snakes, spiders, smart-aleck remarks. Heâd never shown any mercy.
Childhood issues she could have forgiven, but heâd also been instrumental in causing her current situationâthat she couldnât forgive. Tyler and Mason had been good friends. Great friendsâthe kind who gambled and drank together. Mason had tried so hard to give up the gambling, but, as heâd told her so often, the only way he could do that was to not go out. Tyler Hayward was all about the party, and he wanted his good buddy with him. The thing that really got to her was that sheâd specifically asked Tyler to stop encouraging Mason to go out, and heâd blatantly ignored that request, which was why she wasnât about to humble herself before him now and ask for money. Sheâd find a way.
âI assume youâve had no luck with the banks.â
Skye shook her head. âNot for lack of trying. I owe too much on the mortgage to use the place as collateral. If I can get the cow loan, catch up on the truck...I think Iâll be okay. Iâll have to live really tightly for a year or two...â Her voice trailed off as she watched the expression shifting on Jessâs face. This was killing him almost as much as it was killing her. âBut hey,â she said, forcing a smile that didnât fool either of them. âIâve been through worse. You know I have.â
Jess let out a breath. âIf itâs okay, Iâll make some inquiriesâno namesâjust to see if anyone can float a cow loan.â
âIâd appreciate it,â Skye said softly.
âI know how hard it is for you to ask.â
Indeed, Skye was not a good askerânot after having self-sufficiency hammered into her for her entire life.
âThatâs why I came to you,â Skye said. âYou get it.â Unlike his brother. Why couldnât he have understood Masonâs problem? Played ball? If he had...well, she couldnât say Mason would be alive today, because heâd been on his way to the casino resort to check into a room when he got hit, but sheâd be a lot better off.
âAnd now that I know how Tyâs doing with his bull riding, how are you doing with yours?â
âStalled out at the moment. Iâm living lean, still doing contract construction and trying to save enough money to follow Ty onto the circuit. You know, while Iâm still young enough to get beat into the ground and bounce back.â
âYouâre good, Jess. You should give it a shot.â
He lowered his gaze to study the table, as if this wasnât a topic he was comfortable with. When he looked up at her, his expression was serious. âIf I had the money, you know Iâd give it to you.â
âLoan it to me.â
âThatâs what I meant. Right now, living in the camp trailer, sharing it with Ty when heâs back in town...the prospect of hitting the road next year is one of the only things keeping me sane.â
* * *
SKYE DROVE HOME telling herself not to worry. She still had options, and sheâd worked extra shifts to catch up on the ranch loan. She just needed to do the same with the truck. And the cow loan...sheâd figure something out.
The porch squeaked under her feet as she mounted the stairsâa noise sheâd long equated with her husband coming home from a bull-riding event, or back from the barn after chores. A good noise still, even though it made her feel lonely. She and Mason had had good times.
She pulled out her keys and unlocked the door, holding it open so that Jinx could shoot out as usual. The big gray cat disappeared into the lilac bushes without so much as a backward glance, but come morning, after heâd done his best to decimate the mouse population in the sheds and barns, heâd be back, wanting attention and lots of it.
Skye walked inside and hung her purse on the coat rack near the door. Her house was spotless. When she couldnât sleep, she cleaned. And cleaned and cleaned. It cost very little money to clean a house, and it wore her out and thus made it possible to get at least a few hours of rest before heading to work in the morning.
But tonight she hoped she could simply fall asleep the way she used to be able to. Mason had once teased her that when ten oâclock came around, her eyes automatically shut regardless of where she was. It was for the most part true. Skye was a morning person, which was why the morning shift at the cafĂŠ had seemed so perfectâright up until sleep started to escape her, around the same time that the bills started stacking up.
Partial payment was now the name of the game. She hadnât been turned over to collection, but if she missed one more truck payment...
Her stomach tightened, and she hugged her arms around herself. Looked like another night of heavy cleaning and organizing.
