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He smirked and tugged playfully on a lock of my hair. “In the flesh, Char Char. Guess you’ll have to get used to having me around again.”
“That was the longest year of my life. Thank goodness for cell phones or I would’ve been convinced you’d dropped off the edge of the world.”
He chuckled, his laughter a lot deeper than before he’d left. “Widow, Texas might just be the edge of the world. People go there and never come back. I was one of the lucky ones to escape.”
I stared at him in wonder, hardly able to contain my happiness. How many nights had I wished he’d come back? That he could be there as I trudged through my second year of high school, pathetic and all alone? But all of that had changed. I was determined to put things right again. Starting now, my life would go back to normal. It would be as if he’d never left.
“I can’t believe you’re finally back. And I really can’t believe you just rode that big horrible bull,” I said, glaring up at him. The adrenaline from watching that scene was still coursing through my veins, but at least I wasn’t shaking now. “My best friend moves back into town only to be trampled by a bull? What were you thinking with a surprise like that?”
I smacked him lightly on the shoulder and he grunted, faking a wince and rubbing it as if I’d injured him. His reaction only made me laugh. Standing this close, I could now see the hint of new scruff coming in on his chin. That definitely hadn’t been there before.
“Come on, Char. You’re going to hurt Marshmallow's feelings,” he said glancing over at the bull loitering in the opposite side of the arena.
“Marshmallow?” I narrowed my eyes at him. “That monster’s name is Marshmallow? You’ve got to be kidding. I’d say Man-Killer would fit him better.”
“Nah, he’s as soft as a teddy bear,” Hunter said, his eyes fixing me with a teasing glint.
“That thing is not a teddy bear,” I said firmly.
Hunter shrugged and glanced over his shoulder at the arena. “Marshmallow’s about the size of the bulls I’ll be riding at the junior 4H rodeo next weekend. This was just a taste. I wanted to surprise you.”
I gaped at him, dread sprouting through my chest like thorny vines. “You’re kidding me. You’re actually going to do that again?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Why?”
“The thrill of the ride, Char,” he said, frowning at me. Shadows danced in his eyes. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed this, but a lots changed in the last year. I’m not the weak little kid that moved away. I can handle this bull and anything else that comes my way. You’ll see. Everything’s changed for the better.”
Since when had Hunter McNally become so serious? I’d never considered him a weak little kid. He was one of the strongest, most kind-hearted people I knew. I didn’t want him to change.
“Wait — you’re riding in the rodeo during the fair?” Sarah asked from behind me.
I hadn’t noticed her and the girls coming to join us. The slow way Sarah scanned Hunter over with her approving brown eyes gave me the sudden and powerful desire to jump in front of him and tell her to back off. I inhaled sharply at the sensation, unused to such a strange reaction around my best friend.
“Yes, ma’am. I’ll be in
the junior bull riding rounds on Friday night,” Hunter said, leaning his elbow on the arena fence and returning her smile.
“That’s awesome,” she said with a toss of her hair. “I’m running for the Junior Rodeo Queen. We’ll have lots of time to catch up during the fair.”
Hunter nodded at her and I couldn’t help but wonder if he was being pulled in by Sarah’s fake smiles. Guys automatically seemed to like her. She knew how to turn on the sugar sweet charm around them. It was a strategy she’d used on me, too. It had taken me a while to see through the act.
Lexi elbowed me in the ribs. “We’ll be sure to be there to cheer Hunter on, won’t we, Charlotte?”
I shot her a thin-lipped smile. Seeing Hunter gored by a bull wasn’t on the top of my to-do list, but I supposed this was best friend territory. “Yeah...I guess. But I’m going to cover my eyes when Hunter’s turn comes up. I don’t think I can watch.”
“It’s a deal.” Hunter pinned me with a steady look, his frown deepening slightly, as my gut warmed. “I’m glad you’ll be there, Char. It really means a lot.”
“It does?” I asked, chewing nervously on my thumbnail.
But all of my worries faded away as Hunter took a step closer to me and gently grabbed the hand I was chewing on and pulled it away from my mouth. He leaned down slightly to look me in the eye and gave me one last, heart-galloping crooked grin.
“You’re my girl, Char. I need you there.”
I knew he was just talking big when he called me his girl, but still, my girly hormones weren’t immune to the power those words held. My head spun just enough to make me dizzy. Somehow, I managed to nod my acceptance at him, earning another wide hazel-eyed smile. And I didn’t miss the narrowing of Sarah’s eyes as she glared at me from behind Hunter.
“Fine. We’ll be there,” I said firmly. “But when you fall and bump that pretty head of yours, don’t make me say I told you so.”
