Page 32 of Austin
“By sleeping with a bull rider? I mean Austin is hot and all, but this seems very out of character for you. Besides that…since when do you two get along?”
“I’m not sleeping with him.” Yet. She had a feeling it was coming, but she wanted things to unfold naturally.
There was a long silence, during which Kristen rolled her eyes to the ceiling, studied the textured panels there. “I’m very confused,” Whitney finally said. “Maybe you should start at the beginning?”
“That’s a long story,” Kristen said on a sigh.
“And I have lots of time.”
“Aren’t you on shift?”
“Schedule change. I’m at home with not a lot to do. Therefore, I think you should spill your guts.”
Kristen arranged a pillow behind her head and spilled. It took some time to answer all of Whitney’s questions, and assure her sister that she hadn’t gone off the deep end. Surely everyone deserved an escape from brutal reality—unemployment, unconfessed sins?
After Whitney’s cross-examination ended, she fell silent. To the point that Kristen said her name, fearing that the call had been dropped.
“I’m here. Just digesting everything.”
“What’s the verdict?” Kristen wasn’t so much looking for approval as understanding.
“Don’t go super crazy.”
“I can go a little crazy?” It was supposed to be a joke, but it didn’t feel like a joke. And Whitney didn’t take it that way.
She drew in an audible breath and then said, “Consider consequences, but don’t let fear rule your life.”
Kristen closed her eyes as her twin’s words sank in. “Do you think I’ve let fear rule my life?”
“Totally.”
She didn’t say anything, because it was so very true. She was a freaking coward, judging her self-worth by the reactions of others.
“There’s a middle ground, Kris. Find it.”
“I might need some help.”
“When you get home, I’ll give you lessons on flaunting authority and not caring about what other people think.”
Kristen gave a soft laugh, feeling better now that she was once again connected with her sister. It’d been stupid to keep her in the dark about her job, but that damned pride thing.
And the fear thing.
“Any more advice?” Kristen asked.
“Practice safe sex?”
Kristen’s body went warm. “Sex isn’t on the agenda.” And if it was, she wasn’t going to share with her sister. She felt possessive about this time away from her real life. Any decisions she made were her own, as were any consequences.
Whitney gave a soft laugh. “You might want to rethink that.”
*
Kristen was inbed with the lights turned out on her side of the room when Austin got back to the hotel room after working out and then grabbing a quick bite with Kane, who’d also shown up early. He had a suspicion his roomie was still awake, but she didn’t say a word, so he returned the favor.
He’d showered at the gym, so it was a matter of shucking out of his jeans and rolling into bed once the lights were out. Not that he was going to sleep yet. He pulled out his phone, plugged in the headphones and started pulling up videos of both his past rides and the bull he’d be paired with at the upcoming event. His body creaked a little as he shifted positions periodically and he wondered about taking another dose of anti-inflammatory pills, then decided to muscle through. He’d barely put his phone aside when Kristen spoke, her voice drifting through the darkness.
“Tell me about bull riding.”
