He nodded, completely unfazed by the disbelief coating my words. “I’ve made a lot over the years, and you’ve seen this place. My parents didn’t need the money. They helped me invest it. If your dad wants to sell the ranch, I’ve got the money to buy it.”
Holy God. He was that wealthy? I couldn’t help but wonder why he would even choose to work, but the thought was so painfully obvious I could have slapped myself. He didn’t work for the money, he worked because it made him feel useful. It gave him a purpose. But then a bigger, heavier realization struck me square in the chest. He was willing to buy my dad’s place for me. Just because. My heart clenched tightly in my chest to the point I couldn’t breathe.
“You…you can’t do that for me,” I whispered.
“Yeah, but it wouldn’t just be for you, darlin’. I’ve worked there since after the accident. That place means something to me too.”
How was he real? How did he exist?
“You’d really buy it? What would you do with it?”
“We.”
That made my heart skip a beat. Two. Three, maybe.We. I mean, I knew we were together. Knew that what we shared went so much deeper than the short amount of time we'd been together, but still. Hearing him so casually talk about us as a pair, it hit me on a whole new level.
“I liked your dad’s idea to do events at the ranch, but I have another idea as well. A bigger one.”
“Like…”
“Like makin’ it an in-patient therapy center focused around equine therapy. Ridin’s helped me more than I could ever explain. I know the healin' effects it can have on a person’s soul. We could convert the main house into a therapy center, but I’d rather build a new structure on the property somewhere. That way you’d still have the main house to use for whatever you want. Us, events, retreats. Whatever.”
The plan was… It was brilliant. There was so much thought and care already put into it, and just looking into his eyes made me realize how much he wanted this. Needed this.
“You thought this all up today?”
He nodded.
I sat up, chewing my lip as I thought of the possibilities. I still couldn’t believe he’d come up with such a brilliant idea, but…. “It’ll be a lot of money to expand building, not to mention hiring more employees to upkeep the ranch, buying horses for the program, and getting all the permits and licenses and all that. Can you…can you afford all that?”
“Well, that’s what got me thinkin’ about the party too.”
“What about it?”
“I know your dad said to throw a party, but…I don’t know. That just seems like a waste of money to me. Why not have something good come out of an ugly situation? I was thinkin’, let’s put on an event to help with some of those funds? Between me, my dad, and the Mooneys, we have an awful lot ofconnections in the rodeo and horse world. When people find out I’m hosting an event, especially after announcing my comeback, everyone'll wanna be there. We could have an auction—my dad would probably throw in, like, some lessons, or, hell, maybe even a stud service from one of his roping horses. Mr. Mooney would probably throw in something as well. Hell, Cash would probably auction off himself if we let him.”
I snorted. “That’s honestly not a bad idea. He’d probably fund the entire damn thing all on his own.”
Hux chuckled. “Fuck, never mind, we’d never hear the end of it. He’d think he was god’s gift to the damn earth or something.”
“Doesn’t he already?”
He laughed once more before turning more serious. “And if we raised enough money, I’ll ride my last ride.”
My brow furrowed. “Last ride?”
He nodded, and I watched in silence as a myriad of emotions rippled across his face, the strongest of them all being the resolve shining brightly in his eyes. “I realized today that I don’t need to ride bulls the rest of my life. I just want the chance to face my fear, get on its back, and ride the hell out of it one more time before walkin’ away.”
My heart squeezed at that. With a hint of sadness, but mostly heaps and heaps of pride. What he’d just said couldn’t have been easy. Giving up that part of himself. But I was so, so proud of him. “Are you sure?” I asked, the words little more than a whisper drowned out by the crickets.
He chewed his lip a moment before nodding, reaching out to touch me, like he needed the reassurance. I grabbed his hand and held it in both of mine, kissing his scarred knuckles as he said, “You know, for the last three years I’ve been strugglin’ to find my place, my reason for livin’. I didn’t know what the hell I was doin’ other than just existin’. I couldn’t understand why I was spared that day, while still losin’ so much of myself. Icouldn't see, couldn’t ride bulls. What was the point of livin’? Then you came here and you made me feel good. Alive. You made me wanna be better. And after the rodeo…well, it’s all I’ve known my whole life. I felt like ridin’ again was my purpose.” He blew out a breath. “But I don’t think it’s my purpose anymore. Not in the long run, anyway. The more I get on bulls, the more of a chance I don’t make it out of the arena back to you. And I don’t wanna—no, Ican’tlose you, darlin'.”
My breath caught, tears springing to life in my eyes before slipping down my cheeks. I held his hand like it was a life preserver and I was lost at sea. There were so many things I wanted to say flowing through my head, but it’s like the connection between my mind and my mouth had been severed. “Hux…” I choked out, my voice wobbly and weak with emotion.
Hux reached out a hesitant hand, searching for my face before wiping at the tears on my cheeks. “So, that got me to thinkin’—”
“Lot’s of thinking today,” I managed to say past the lump in my throat, earning a chuckle from him.
He kissed the tip of my nose. “I was thinkin’ of how far I’ve come since the accident. How much therapy I’ve been through—both physically and mentally… And I don’t know, I like the idea of creatin’ a place for people like me to come and heal. I’d get to ride and work still, and I’d come home to you every evening and not have to worry about dyin’ and never seein’ you again. I think… I think this can be my new purpose.”
