Page 85 of Untamed

After I talked to Colter, Nova was the next person I reached out to. I sobbed so hard she could barely understand me, and twenty minutes later she was in my room, concern etched on her face, desperate for me to tell her what was going on. At first, she thought Colter had hurt me, and in a way he had. But when I told her what Brandon had done, the shock on her face quickly turned to anger.

I grab her hands, silently pleading with her. “Nova, stop. Please don’t say anything. We have to do things his way for now. You know my father will pull Colter off the tour if he finds out about that video. Then where does that leave him? He needs this. Colter has wanted this chance for so long, and I won’t be the one to take it from him. It’s his dream. He deserves it.”

Shaking her head, Nova lets out a frustrated huff. “This is bullshit. You matter, too. Or do your feelings not count?”

I swallow. She’s right, I should be a priority. But Colter never promised me anything. All along, he’s always been honest about what he wants, and right now that’s the rodeo. “You’re right, I matter,” I say softly. “Thank you for always having my back. But we need to do this my way. Brandon will get what he deserves.”

“Yes, you do. Don’t ever forget it.” Nova’s face hardens. “I know Colter’s situation isn’t ideal, but if he wants you, he needs to man up and claim you. Not put you second to the damn rodeo, while you deal with the fallout of both of your actions.”

I sigh, rubbing my temples. “I love you, Nova, but it’s not that simple. You know that.”

“I do.” She exhales. “I just think my girl deserves to be someone’s number one.”

Emotion tightens my throat, and for the first time in days, I smile. “Everyone needs a best friend like you…” I trail off, my body stiffening when I feel eyes on us. My stomach churns when I meet Brandon’s gaze. “How did I never see this side of him? He deserves everything coming his way,” I murmur under my breath.

Nova smirks. “Karma is a bitch. And her name is Nova. I’m gonna kick his ass for what he’s doing to you.”

I laugh, ignoring the heat of Brandon’s glare. “I’ll give you full permission. But you might have to get in line.” My smile falls and I chew my lip. “I just keep thinking about how this will affect Maverick. When he finds out…” I trail off, the weight of the situation suffocating me.

Nova sighs, squeezing my hand reassuringly. “Brandon did this to himself, Mila. Actions have consequences. He knows how protective Maverick is of you.” She pauses, the tension in her body obvious when she mentions Maverick’s name. Again, I want to ask her what’s going on with her, but right now, I have enough of my own problems. “He knows how Maverick will react when he finds out his best friend’s been blackmailing his sister. This is on Brandon. He had the chance to move on, when you made it clear you only saw him as a friend. If he had, none of this would have happened. You think you know someone,” her voice drops to a whisper, as she turns to look at him. “Turns out, underneath the nice guy act, he’s just an asshole.”

We touch down at Salado Airport at just after eleven a.m. A quick transfer in a blacked-out SUV takes us to the hotelmy father booked, giving us a chance to settle in before this evening’s event.

The past few weeks have dragged by and I’m more than eager to see Colter. Still, I remind myself to be cautious with Brandon—I have no intention of feeding fuel to his fire.

“Everything okay, sweetheart? You look like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders,” Dad asks, pulling me from my thoughts.

He wraps an arm around my shoulders, drawing me close. I smile, leaning into his comfort, fully aware of the eyes on us. “I’m fine. Just tired.”

“Well, good thing we’ve got a couple hours before we need to be anywhere. Use that time at the hotel to get some rest before the rodeo.”

I glance at Brandon, who’s watching us closely, then flick my gaze to Skylar who’s absorbed in whatever’s on her phone. I want to ask why she’s here, and if he booked her a separate room, but something stops me. Now is not the time for questions.

“Sounds good,” I say softly.

“Damn. And here I thought we could hit the town, cause some trouble.” Nova sing-songs, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

I laugh, my head snapping to Maverick when he grumbles under his breath, “You don’t need to hit the town to cause trouble.”

I sigh. The next couple of days are going to be interesting.

Chapter Fifty-Two

COLTER

I try to keep my focus on Lincoln as he talks about my success so far—how if I qualify for the finals in Las Vegas, I’ll earn a permanent position with his performance horses, no longer just filling in for Garrett. It’s everything I’ve worked for. Everything I thought I wanted. And yet, I can’t even muster a shred of excitement.

Not when a smug Brandon is sitting five feet away with my woman. Mila’s smiling, but it’s forced. Her body is stiff, her jaw tight. She’s uncomfortable, I can see it plain as day. Nova sits beside her, glaring daggers at Brandon, while Maverick remains oblivious to the tension between his best friend and sister. Fucker’s too busy focusing on someone he shouldn’t be.

I want to walk over there, break that asshole’s face and pull Mila into my arms where she belongs. And I will. Just not yet. I’ve got a plan, one that’s going to ruin everything I’ve worked so hard for, but after talking to Mila the other night, and hearing what she’s willing to sacrifice for me, I realized something. Time and time again, I made her feel insignificant. Like she wasn’t enough, like she’d always come second to the rodeo. And still she stood by me. Selfless. Unwavering in her support of me.Encouraging me to chase my dreams, even when it was tearing her apart.

Since Mila arrived at Oakridge, I convinced myself I didn’t deserve her. She was too good. Too pure. And me? I had nothing to offer her. But I was wrong. Because Mila isn’t who I thought she was. She doesn’t care about money, status or any of the material shit. She just wanted me. And after all the self-doubt, the ups and downs, I’ve finally figured out I’m not the same man I was when I first came to Oakridge. I’m better. Still not good enough for someone like Mila Becker, but I’ll spend every day working to be the man she deserves.

I just need to burn everything to the ground first.

If that’s what it takes to prove to Mila that I’m worth it, then I’ll do it. I’m prepared to set my whole world on fire for the little ray of sunshine who’s showed me what it means to be alive. I rebuilt my life once. I can do it again. Because I can’t live without her. Don’t want to. I want her sunshine, every single day for the rest of my life. She’s all I see, is all I’ll ever see. And its time she knew exactly what she means to me.

“What do you say, Grady?” Lincolns voice pulls me from thoughts, and I shift my gaze to him.

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