Page 69 of Willow Vale

“Aren’t you supposed to be getting ready for the rodeo tonight? Go away.”

“Touchy today, aren’t you? He’s a grump, isn’t he, River?” Wren pouted.

River continued patting Lucy’s neck as he answered. “He’s not grumpy with me and Lila. He likes us.”

“I wonder why.” Wren grinned, and I reached over to give her a shove, making her laugh as Finn sidled up to us.

“So, are we racing or what?” Finn asked our sister, adjusting his ball cap backward and greeting River with a dimpled smile.

“Last one to that fence is a rotten egg!” Wren and Nila shot forward before I could blink.

Finn laughed as he guided Ruby forward. “No fair!”

They both sprinted past us. Delilah made Sable halt as the twins passed her, hooting and hollering the whole way like a couple of kids. Unsurprised, I shook my head at them until Delilah turned to smile at me, making my heart trip over itself. Her smile was as bright as the sun peeking between the clouds, uninhibited and free as she sat atop Sable. Out in the field with the wind blowing her long hair across her face, I knew I’d do anything to make her smile like that every day for the rest of our lives.

So long as she let me.

So long as she wanted this life with me.

CHAPTER 27

Lila

It lookedas if all of Willow Vale had decided to come out to watch the last night of the rodeo.

There wasn’t a single seat empty in sight from where we sat close to the railing. The whole arena was buzzing with energy.

We’d just watched the bull riding competition take place. River looked a little too interested in that portion of the rodeo, which made my blood pressure spike. He was never getting on a bull if I had any say in it.

And, of course, one of the ridershadto be Victor Ward. His smug face before he put his helmet on made me grimace. Because he knew he was good. It was no secret in town that Victor loved to ride in competitions, always boasting about it because—as much as I hated to admit it—he was good. We all watched as Victor got onto the infuriated bull as it kicked and slammed into the bucking chute keeping him confined. I grimaced at the sounds the bull made. It was no secret that bull riding was a dangerous sport with too many ways to get seriously injured—or worse, killed.

One nod from Victor and the bull was released. Thecrowd went wild, and music boomed all around us. My heart kicked up a notch while River was practically leaning off my lap to watch. The bull tried to shake Victor off with harsh bucks, whipping around like a tornado. Just seeing it made me dizzy. Victor kept a firm grasp on the rope the entire time, moving with the bull as if he was a pro.

He might’ve been, because he made it through the eight seconds and then some before finally jumping off. The bull tried to hook him with his horns but narrowly missed before the bullfighters jumped in. The crowd burst into cheers as the announcer boomed Victor’s impressive time over the speakers. River joined in, clapping and whooping the entire time.

When I looked to Travis, he was scowling at the man celebrating with others by the chute. I didn’t usually wish bad things on anyone, but it would have been nice to see Victor at least fall on his ass.

An hour later, it was time for the team roping contestants to start.

There were a lot of good riders out there, but I knew they had nothing on Finn and Wren. When they rode together, it was as if they were one. Even when they weren’t riding, anyone could see just how close the twins were, how in sync they were.

When it was finally time, the crowd cheered for the Adlers. This time when I looked at him, Travis was smiling with pride. He acted like he was annoyed by his siblings, but I knew he was proud they were his.

The chute opened and the steer shot out, determined to outrun the horses flanking him. But Wren and Nila caught up to him easily, followed by Finn as he caught the steer’s hind legs without any trouble. The time was called, and the crowd cheered again.

Finn and Wren smiled at each other when their names were announced again as they rode around the arena.

It all happened so fast then.

Suddenly, a loud boom from somewhere in the arena startled everyone in the stands, and Nila got spooked. She took off with Wren and we all tensed as she tried to calm the mare down. Nila bucked and twisted wildly as she ran, and Wren clearly struggled to control her. Travis shot up from his seat as the crowd gasped when Nila ran too fast for Finn or anyone else to stop and she turned on her side before crashing straight into the fences. My heart sank when Wren screamed just as Nila slipped and lost her balance. We all watched as both the rider and mare fell together, and Wren’s head hit the ground.

Nila rolled before starting to get back up on shaky legs.

But Wren didn’t move.

CHAPTER 28

Travis

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