Page 114 of Tame Our Wild

“Then that’s all that matters. People will always project their doubts onto you.” I point at her chest. “But in the end, what matters is that you always believe you can.”

When I lower my hand, sunlight shimmers off the sunflower charm and catches my eye. Lowering my hand to my lap, I run my fingers along the worn braided leather. Flipping my wrist over, I loosen the knot that has kept it bound to my arm since I made it the same week I lost Paisley, so I could always carry her with me.

“Even when the dust settles, I will still be here.”

She was right all those years ago. Our birthday was the last time I saw Paisley, right before Harlow found me breaking in the middle of our old practice arena.

Strangely, I feel at peace as it falls off my wrist. “I want you to have this.”

Calli’s eyes roam over it curiously. “Your bracelet?”

I turn over the leather in my hand. “It’s not just any bracelet.” I grip a worn, fragile section of the braid. I rip it, and Calli’s eyes widen as she watches me take it apart and untangle the necklace I wove with the leather.

I hold it up, so she sees it hanging from my fingers in its true form. “When I was around your age, there was this girl bull rider I used to know.”

Her eyebrows shoot up. “Harlow?”

I shake my head. “Her name was Paisley. She came before Harlow.” Her head tilts as she listens to me, the bright spring sun glistening off the sheen of sweat on her face from the last hour of practice because she’s been working her ass off. I see how hard she wants this. “Paisley was fearless. Determined. Unbelievably strong in ways I wasn’t. She had some hard falls in her career, but she’d still get up. She’d keep pushing on because she knew she was capable of great things.”

She swallows. “Really?”

My gaze hooks onto the sunflower charm dangling, the soft green fields rolling as a backdrop. Someday, when Calli’s old enough, I’ll tell her what really happened to my sister, my twin, but for now, she only needs to know the important parts.

The beautiful and precious things she’ll always be remembered for.

“I’ve always carried this piece of her because it’s always a reminder that, even if it takes time”—over a decade—“I can overcome hard things.” I look back up at her, giving her a soft smile. “The ride is never easy, Calli, but each moment, each doubt, each hard-earned lesson that you conquer is a win on its own. That’s what grit is. And if you decide to keep going, then you have it, kid.”

Her tone is so bright and happy that I cling to it as she gently takes it from me, admiring the accessory like the treasure it has been to me all these years. “Where is Paisley now?”

I tell her what I feel deep in my bones. “She’s somewhere out there, chasing sunrises and wandering in sunflower fields.”

She looks from the necklace to me, clutching it. “I’m ready to go again.”

I laugh. “We have gone fifteen minutes overtime, and I think your mom is ready to take you home.”

Her lips twist to the side before she thinks about it and gives me a firm nod. “Next week then.”

“Next week,” I agree. “And Calli?”

“Yeah?”

“I know I said the only person who needs to believe in you is you, but I believe in you, too.”

I stand, and her head tips up as she smiles at me from below the brim of her hat. “Thanks, Coach.” And then she’s gone, walking toward her mom with the necklace dangling from her hand.

Turning, I knit my arms over my chest and watch her leave. Mentoring Calli and the other riders makes me think I can do the dad thing one day. That would be the next dream, to have a bunch of little, stubborn, and reckless Paynes running around for my wife and me to wrangle.

Harlow and Matt are talking through the fence to Calli’s mom when she approaches them. Harlow looks from Calli and then to me, a soft, knowing smile pulling at her lips when she sees my sister’s necklace in Calli’s hand.

Harlow’s hands are tucked into her pockets, showing off the tattooed band of ink around her ring finger.

When she asked if we could get our wedding bands tattooed, since we’re rough on our hands from the life we lead, I didn’t hesitate to say yes. The fucking possession I felt in that moment was insurmountable, knowing she wanted to walk around, branded to me for life.

It feels more permanent.

It feels like us.

Her long blonde hair falls in loose waves over her shoulders, her hat on top of her head, a Lucchese, since they are her sponsor now that she has placed in the top three at the World Finals the last two years.