Preston raises an eyebrow, looking thoroughly unimpressed. “Then what’s the plan, big brother? We can’t just bleed money until the place is worthless.”
“Can you just keep your mouth shut for a minute? Where’s your heart?” Caleb says.
“This is business. No room for heart.” Preston folds his hands together, face an emotionless mask.
“We’ve had another offer too.” Our sister looks ready to jump out of her seat again, and Caleb hurries to clarify. “Not to sell. Sort of a lease, you might say.”
“Like a land lease? Is it going to affect our current herds?” I ask.
“If you all would just give me a minute to get this out, I’d explain it all and you wouldn’t have to keep asking questions. So if you could all kindly shut the fuck up, I’ll tell you.”
Silence falls immediately. Caleb rarely raises his voice, so when he does, it’s enough to let us know he’s serious.
“Now, we’ve had an offer from a television production company. Five-month lease with an option to renew if the show goes well.”
Preston finally looks up from his phone, a gleam of interest in his eyes. Shayla, on the other hand, has deep grooves etched between her eyebrows. I’m not sure what to think yet. If this is going to save the ranch, then I’m all in. Plus, it sounds pretty exciting to have a TV show filmed here. “Can we spare the space?”
One of Caleb’s dark brows lifts, and it’s enough of a warning to halt any further questions. “They’ll be using the small south barn for any filming. We can shift a few of the horses if we need to. They’ll be bringing along a handful with their animal handlers but will also use some of ours as needed.”
My excitement is rising again. “So some of our horses are going to be stars? That’s so cool.”
My sister’s earlier anger is still simmering just under the surface. “It’s not cool, Quint. It’s disruptive. They’re going to be parking trucks and trailers all over the place. Take over the barn. Think of all those Hollywood people. No, no, we can’t do this. There’s gotta be another way.”
I sit back, trying to tamp down my enthusiasm before Shayla punches me. It wouldn’t be the first time. She doesn’t care that I can’t fight back—I would never.
“There’s not another way.” There’s resignation in Caleb’s voice this time. Who knows how long he’s been going through this, not sharing, not asking for our help. “I’ve tried everything I can think of. This is our best option. I’ve gone over every other possibility. The money will get us through the year. It’ll give us time to rebuild the breeding program. We can buy another one or even two studs. Get back into some competitions. This is the best possible scenario. And they’ll only be on site for five months. If it works out, they could renew for another year, but honestly, I don’t really see that happening. But it gives us time.”
Preston scoffs. “Yeah, there’s no way it’ll get renewed. Who wants to watch some show on a ranch? Cowboys and shit. That’s over.” He clicks his phone off, sliding it into the pocket of his dress pants. “I think it’s a great idea, but is there room for negotiation on their fee? Let me take a look at the contract.”
Caleb looks from me to Shayla. Her arms are crossed over her chest, lips pressed tightly together. She turns to glare at me, but I’m not caving this time. We have to do what’s best for the ranch. Plus, it sounds like it could be kind of fun. “I’m in. Just think, Shay-Shay, we’ll get some real-life celebrities here. That’s freaking cool.” My sister might love to act like she’s above it all, but she loves TV and movies. She could have even ended up in Hollywood one way or another if she hadn’t been born into the rodeo life.
She scoffs. “Probably some unknowns. There’s no way they’ve got big-name celebrities coming out here to rural Alberta. Nothing interesting happens here.”
“Well, I’m in. I think it’ll be a cool experience.” I turn to Caleb, unable to contain my eagerness. “Maybe we’ll evenget cameos on the show. Do you know what it’s about? When are they starting?”
“Ease up,” he tells me, swiping a hand down his face and shaking his head. “Let’s get this thing signed first. All I know is they’re starting in about six weeks. No more details until we sign. And there are confidentiality clauses, so don’t go flapping your mouths around.” He directs the comment at all of us, but I can feel his gaze lock on me.
He slides the laptop toward Preston first. “Can you review this and flag anything that seems off before we officially commit?”
Preston tilts his head to study the screen. “We should really hire a lawyer to go over this.”
“Come on, Pres,” Caleb says. “We don’t have the funds, and I know you’ve read more than your share of boring contracts in your life. I’m sure you can handle it.”
“This is crazy.” Shayla looks over at me. “Come on, Quint, you’ve gotta see that. You’re the one with the fancy agriculture degree. Don’t you see how this is going to disrupt the entire ranch?”
While I appreciate that someone in this family is finally acknowledging my education, I don’t love that she’s using it to try to manipulate me over to her side. “Shay-Shay, you know I love you, but there’s no way we’re turning this down. I think we can handle a little disruption to save the farm. It’ll be good for us.”
Preston looks up over the laptop he’s been studying intently. “I’m already thinking of the ways we can leverage this. It probably won’t last, but even a little publicity isbetter than lingering in obscurity. We’ll get our name out there and regain some relevance.”
Even when he’s supporting the issue, my second brother is being kind of an asshole about it. Typical.
He slides the computer back over to Caleb. “Everything looks to be in order. That guarantee to renew is the only clause that hits me as an issue, but I think if they get picked up, we’ll welcome them back, anyway. My concern is more about the fact that this is a Band-Aid on a stab wound. Once it’s ripped off, we’ll be back in the same place we were before.”
Caleb nods. “I did ask about that, and it’s a deal-breaker. They’ll find somewhere else if we don’t commit to future seasons.” He slides the laptop over to me. “And for the record, it’s not a Band-Aid. We’re going to take this money to keep the ranch going, make some improvements, and build back better. We got this.”
I pull the laptop closer and start reading through the mess of complicated legal terms in the contract. Preston is right. It all looks to be pretty straightforward. I add my initials and digital signature and pass the computer to my sister.
Shayla is the last one up. This place belongs to all of us. We all need to be on board. I hold my breath while she scrutinizes the laptop for what feels like forever but is probably just a few seconds. Then she finally sighs and starts reading through the thing, clicking on the keyboard to add her initials and signature to the document. She hands it back to Caleb, who gives it a quick scan, hits a few more keys, and shuts the computer with a click.
