On the Run Together

Chapter 6: Home, Home on the Rodeo

(Author's note: Many thanks to Canucklehead Cowgirl, my co-writer, who knows way more about rodeos than I do!)

The morning that the rodeo showed up in town, K was up early — dressed only slightly differently than usual, her jeans a little bit looser around the knees and a scuffed-up-looking pair of cowboy boots to finish out the rest of the usual attire.

She was pulling her hair back into a braid when she came out to where Clint was just waking up. "I have to go talk to my friend. I called him a few weeks ago, but I'll need to see which horses he has with him before I can sign up for anything." She tipped her head at him. "Same spot as the circus. You can come if you like."

"I think I wanna," Clint said with a nod. "I used to live on a farm — I mean an actual farm and not like... yeah." He drew himself up. "I always liked being around the animals!"

"Well, go ahead and get dressed," she said. "We'll head out when you're ready to go. I think you'll like my friend."

Clint nodded, though he didn't offer any commentary on the matter, just quickly getting dressed and climbing in the truck with her, though K could tell that he was a little nervous, even if he didn't say anything until they were almost there. "What if I fall off the sheep and don't get a belt buckle?" he asked.

"You'll still have fun," she said.

Clint nodded at that. "Yeah, that's true," he said, then shot her a little smile. "I just really want a belt buckle. I wanna show Barney that I can do stuff like that."

"All you can do is give it your best shot," she said.

Clint settled back, watching the landscape pass them by before they finally arrived and he hopped down out of the truck, bouncing from one foot to the other. It was quickly transitioning from nerves to excitement for him — and it showed.

K led the way past one horse trailer after another until they finally came up to one that had half a dozen horses tied to it outside along the far fence line. "Here we go," she said. "I trained three of these." She pointed to the three on the left with a little smirk. "All of them are fast."

Clint looked downright awed as he looked around at the horses. "Wow."

She made her way over to the furthest horse on the left and put a hand on the horse's withers, smirking to see how well-muscled the animal was, when a tall Native American man stepped around the trailer and picked her up around the waist with a laugh. "I see how it is. Go right to the horses. Forget to say hello," he laughed as he set her back down, though once her feet hit the ground, K simply turned to give him a hug.

"Oh right. Manners or something," she said. "Hey Joe. You should meet my friend Clint."

The tall man turned to see Clint, who was hanging back behind K, rubbing the back of his arm with another and trying to look smaller, though he did look up when K introduced him with a small 'hi'.

"Clint has been helping me with Sicem," K said, which got a broader smile out of Joe.

"You know, I gave her that puppy," Joe said. "He was the runt of his litter. No one wanted him."

Clint nodded quietly. "She... she likes little guys, I guess."

"He said he wants to try the mutton busting," she continued, smiling Clint's way. "But he needs a hat. Whatcha got?"

Joe kept his bright smile in place as he tried to wave Clint over. "We have a few." He stepped over the trailer tongue, and another big golden retriever barely picked up its head from under the trailer. "Don't mind Teddy," he said. "He sleeps more than anything else these days."