Page 15 of Drunk Dialing

He breathed in, then out, thanking the Uber guy when they stopped at his drop point, making sure his tip went through. Then he headed to breakfast, trying to put a smile on his face for the sponsors. Angela was really nice, always making it easy, but he knew he wasn’t ready to sign another five-year contract.

Jake was getting too long in the tooth for that.

He grabbed a clean shirt and some clean underwear out of his go bag in his truck, then he jogged into the fairgrounds, nodding to the folks at the ticket booth, flashing his participant badge on the way in. He changed in one of the public bathrooms, giving himself a bit of a whore’s bath on the way. Nobody came in there while he was cleaning up, and he was damn grateful for it. Most of these guys, he wouldn’t have to explain himself to.

But the high-dollar cowboys? The rhinestone ones with gold nugget rings and 100X Stetsons and Luccheses? Shit, they wore watches that were worth more than he made in a year.

Once he was all put back together, he went to meet Angela in one of the fancy VIP buildings that had sit down service as opposed to a food court. She was there, of course, sitting down early, just like he expected.

She was a handsome lady. She’d been pretty, he imagined, when she was a kid. When she was a teenager, she’d been a buckle bunny. But loving cowboys and the Western life had taken it out of her a little bit—left her with a hard face, with pursed lips, with eyes that were sort of like chips of ice. He liked her a lot.

“Hey, lady, how goes?”

“Fair to middlin’. Miss being in Denver a little bit. You know, I’m here in Texas now until middle of March.” She was the Colorado girl, hair to boots.

“Yeah, you got Houston after this, then Austin. You’ll like Austin.”

“I always do. Austin is a hell of a place to be. I’m staying through South by Southwest this year. Rented myself a little B&B in Hyde Park, and I’m gonna just hang before I go home.” She smiled at him, and he thought it seemed sad. “How about you? What are your plans? Where are you headed to next?”

“Oh, I don’t know, I guess it depends on how I do here, and what my rankings are at the end of this event. Houston is expensive. So is Austin.” Maybe. Maybe if Treat asked, maybe he could be in Chama? He could see himself hanging around New Mexico in the mountains, watching the high desert cholla bloom. He could do that. It wouldn’t suck.

“Yeah, I hear you. It’s a rough life.”

What was he supposed to say to that? He didn’t know. “It’s life, that’s for sure. How’s business?”

“Slow. It’s like that all over though. I—” She sighed, and he could see the goodbye in her eyes, just like the sad love songs said. It worked in business too. “Let’s sort out breakfast before we get into it.”

Oh. She was dropping him. Oh fuck. Okay. “Just coffee for me.”

He wasn’t hungry. Not now. Not after the steak last night, seeing Treat, and now this morning. Shit. He might never be hungry again.

“I’m sorry, man. You know how it is.”

“Absolutely, I get it. There are lots of guys are riding better than me.”

“My boss wants me to get one of the big-league guys. If you want a big-name bull rider?—”

“Yeah, I hear you. I got it.”

The waitress walked up wearing a Keith Urban T-shirt and a pair of ancient Wranglers, lipstick like a smear of blood leaking into the lines cigarettes had drawn on her lips. He tried to smile at her. “Just coffee for me, please. Cream and sugar.”

“You got it, hon. How about you, ma’am?”

“Coffee and water. And I’ll take some breakfast tacos with bacon, eggs, and cheese. And a cinnamon roll.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Angie sighed. “I hate it, Jake.”

“I know. You got sent with my last check, I take it?” He could use that. God, he needed to…go sit in his truck and think.

“I did. They gave you a bonus and said to say thanks for everything.” She blew out a breath and handed him an envelope. “I hope it helps.”

“Being fired is never fun.” He doctored his coffee, making it good and sweet.

“Don’t think of it as?—”

“Being fired?” he shot back. Jake took a deep, deep breath. “Sorry. I was thinking you’d called me here to sign a new contract. This was a bit of a shock.”

---