Dead leaned into his microphone. “That’s what she said.” His grin was obnoxious.
Quickdraw’s frown deepened, if that was possible. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“Your mom doesn’t make any sense,” Dead said into the microphone.
Quickdraw sat up straight, finally dragging his dirty boot off the table, leaned over Dead and told Cheyenne, “I’m going to kill him on camera.”
“Just be normal for ten minutes, and then you can go back to being the heathen brutes you are.”
“Did you hear me?” asked Rhonda, the main interviewer for the circuit.
Cheyenne pursed her lips into a tight smile. “What’s that?”
“I asked you how your first week as a bull agent went.”
Cheyenne looked from the expectant faces to the three cameras aimed at them to the dead-silent organizers in the back who happened to be in charge of her paycheck and the travel funds for the boys.
Two Shots leaned over and murmured, “Honesty is best.”
“We didn’t catch what Two Shots Down just said,” Rhonda informed her.
Cheyenne cleared her throat and straightened her spine, clasped her hands on the table formally. “He said, ‘honesty is best.’ So here goes. I came into this thinking ‘How hard can this be?’ and I was dumped on my ass day one. These three are monsters, there’s no wrangling them, I’m on my toes at all times, there is always some crisis to fix, I have a crush on one of them, the other two call me ‘heifer’ on the regular, I’ve been made fun of, booed at, and chewed up and spat out. All of my organization has been put to the test, and they won’t stop bleeding. As you can see. I came into this terrified that I wouldn’t be good enough at this job because no one else had tried it, so I had no foundation. I figured if I didn’t get them enough positive attention, didn’t skyrocket them into fame in the circuit and fix their—I’ll say it—disastrous reputations, then I would be fired. And, hell, after this interview, I might be. But then I think, ‘Who the heck is dumb enough to take on this job but me?’ Look at them.” She gestured to the bleeding, swollen, standoffish bull shifters. “They’re a mess.”
Two Shots nodded like he agreed, Dead scoffed, and Quickdraw picked something out of his teeth with a pocketknife and looked bored.
“But…” She smiled at them. “They’re my mess. They won’t give me a single easy day as their agent, but look what they did? Look at the reward? These boys are the best in the world. And they’re doing something no bull shifter has tried in this circuit before.”
“And what’s that?” Rhonda asked into a microphone.
Two Shots leaned forward and spoke into his mic. “We’re trying not to kill each other.”
Cheyenne snorted a giggle and then pursed her lips because Rhonda didn’t look impressed. A couple of the good ol’ boys in the back chuckled, though.
The man beside Rhonda raised his hand. “You said you have a crush on one of your bulls, and I wanted to hit on that statement. You and Two Shots Down have been the topic of conversation behind the scenes. It’s being talked about online in blogs, and it’s trending on social media as ‘murderercrush.’ How is the hype around you affecting your personal lives?”
“It’s not,” Two Shots Down growled. “Next question.”
“How does it affect your reputation in the industry as one of the top rider agents, and how does that translate into your profession as a bull agent?” Rhonda asked.
“You don’t have to answer,” Two Shots murmured.
“Do you agree that the hype around your sordid relationship takes away from the valiant effort he’s giving as he reaches for that top rank in the world?” Rhonda pushed.
“Why is this such a big deal?” Two Shots yelled, slamming his hand on the table. “Huh? Can anyone tell me why you’re so curious about who she does and does not hang out with?”
“Because you were awful in interviews about her late husband’s death—”
“Because I got sick of talking about it. Can you understand that? I was sick of talking about it. Sick of feeling awful. Sick of hurting, sick of mourning, sick of my entire life being at the mercy of the media and what you made me out to be. I just wanted to buck. Ask your questions and let’s get this done.”
Rhonda looked shaken and parted her lips, but nothing came out.
“Go on,” Two Shots told her. “Ask what you want. Take what you want from us. We aren’t allowed to have feelings, right? Us bull shifters are just animals, right? Would you have handled it differently if you accidentally killed someone and were forced to talk about it and relive it every single day of your life for the world to see? Would you have handled it so different from me? The thing is, you don’t know how you would handle it because it didn’t happen to you. So go on, ask the questions for this one interview and then let Cheyenne live her life. She’s earned it, yeah? She’s hurt enough? She’s mourned enough? Ask and then let her be.”
“Did…?” Rhonda cleared her throat and looked around the room. “Did the affair start before Tarik died?”
“The affair?” Two Shots asked. Oooh, he sounded pissed if the rumble in his throat was anything to go by.
Cheyenne leaned into her microphone. “I came back to this industry to help. I’m a helper. I wanted to represent the top three bulls and, yes, when I applied for this job, part of the reason was that Two Shots Down was making a run for top three. He was a part of my decision to come back. But I didn’t know him. I didn’t know the real him. I’d watched him buck with Tarik and been excited when Tarik drew him that night he died.” Why was her throat going all thick? She swallowed hard and let off a steadying sigh. “I watched the interviews where Two Shots was awful about Tarik’s death, but I saw pain in his eyes, and I felt bad for him. I was having a h-hard enough time, and I didn’t even have to talk about it on camera. I came back because I thought I could help him, Dead, and Quickdraw. A part of me wanted to prove I still belonged here in this circuit, but somewhere along the way, I fell for Two and saw his softer side. The one who protects me, and doesn’t want anyone to hurt me. The one who makes me feel safe, and it’s been a long damn time.” Her voice cracked on that part so she paused and took another breath. “I guess I was in a place of forgiveness. A place where I was ready to accept the good in him. In all the boys, really. You see such a small part of them out there in that arena. You see the raw power, the violence, the aggression…the obsessive focus with bucking a man off their backs. You see the monsters, but for me? I see the men.”
The boys were all glaring at Rhonda. “She’s been hurt,” Two Shots uttered. “It’s not out of a sense of guilt that I like being around her. She cares about people outside of herself, and these days, that’s a rare thing. Am I the best thing for her? Fuck no.”
She giggled as Dead muttered, “Heeell no,” and Quickdraw said, “Nope, not at all,” at the same time.
Unshaken, Two Shots continued with, “But as long as she chooses to be around me, I’m gonna take care of her. And if anyone tries to turn that into some gross thing, that’s on you. She’s the best girl I know. She deserves to feel safe.” He glanced over at her and rolled his eyes at her emotional expression. His smile stretched his whole face. “I mean, look how damn cute she is. I say anything nice, and she gets all mushy looking like this.”