Page 69 of A Montana Rodeo Star

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

One more day.

The wedding was one day away.

So was the biggest competition of his life.

It had been two weeks of silence from Faith, and Brent was close to losing his mind. All he had to do was last one more day. If he could get through the final competition, then maybe he could bring back the evidence to his folks that he was made for this life. Brent was determined to make it big. He was going to do everything in his power to prove everyone wrong.

Was the bronc riding field dangerous?

Of course, but it wasn’t any more dangerous than some of the other sports out there. Football. Hockey. Those were some of the obvious ones he could think of off the top of his head. Where were Faith’s comments on those?

That conversation still rubbed him the wrong way. He couldn’t understand why Faith would turn on him so suddenly.

But it wasn’t suddenly, now was it?

He’d seen the way she’d slowly withdrawn from him over time. And he’d blatantly refused to acknowledge it. Maybe that was his downfall. Maybe he should have forced her to confront her issues when it came to his career goals.

Brent dragged a hand down his face as he exited his house and collapsed on the top step of his porch. In the distance, he could see the people his parents had hired to set up for the wedding. They were putting together large tents that would protect them from the sun or possible weather. Tomorrow they’d likely add the chairs and the more delicate decorations.

In twenty-four hours this place would be crawling with people from town. His brother would likely be a nervous wreck who’d need his brother to stand by his side and tell him that everything would be okay.

And Brent would.

But he wasn’t going to stick around for the party after the ceremony. The reception was scheduled to go into the night. He hadn’t figured out how he would slip away without being noticed, but he’d do it because his life was just as important as his brother’s.

Movement out of the corner of his eye captured his attention and he turned his head in time to see Hallie moving toward him.

Immediately he got a sour taste in his mouth. She was the last person he wanted to see. Whether Faith wanted to admit it or not, Hallie was the source of the problems growing between them. She’d done something to convince Faith to talk to him about quitting.

While they hadn’t broken up, the distance he felt from Faith was still eating him up inside and all he wanted was his support system back.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Hallie muttered. “You’re not innocent in all of this.”

“Neither are you.”

That made Hallie pause. She stopped at the bottom of the steps and her eyes narrowed. That was all the evidence he needed. Hallie was terrible at keeping her emotions hidden.

Hallie huffed out an irritated breath. “Look, I’ve let you do this long enough. But now you need to pay attention. You need to hear me out and accept that you’re going to sabotage yourself if you keep walking down this road.”

Brent snorted. “You’re delusional.”

“I’m not, Brent. This is serious. You need to stop competing. At least until you’re ready to accept the consequences of your actions and tell your parents.”

“Don’t you think I’ve tried?” He shot to his feet and his voice rose. She didn’t bat an eye at his reaction. If anything, she looked just as irritated, but there was also a layer of boredom as if she expected him to retort.

“Not hard enough,” she snapped. “Have you considered the fact that your incessant desire to make your folks happy is only going to cause more problems than not? It’s already putting a strain between you and your family. Your brother. Faith.”

With hands gripping the railing to the stairs, Brent leaned forward. His voice came out in almost a growl. “You need to mind your own business. Stop meddling. With my job. With my girlfriend.”

She let out a sharp bark of laughter. “I’m not meddling. I’m making recommendations based on what I know. Your selfish decisions could rip this family apart.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Brent could feel his heart racing a little faster than before. Why did it sound as though Hallie had her own secrets she was keeping. It felt familiar—like that itch beneath his skin he couldn’t get to. The same way he felt around his parents when he pushed them for a better reason to steer clear of the rodeo all together. “What’s going on, Hallie? You better tell me now.”

There was a brief hesitation in her demeanor. It was just enough to catch his attention, but Hallie was nothing if not good at distracting people from a topic she didn’t want to discuss.

“If you don’t agree to tell your folks, I’m going to. Because this is getting to be too much. I can’t be quiet anymore.”