Page 73 of The Cowboy's Bullfighter
Because he wasn’t at all sure he could do this by himself. If nothing else because he was too damn gullible.
Chapter Nineteen
Max and Pansy worked like a couple of dreams. Like dreams with rainbows in the fluffy clouds where unicorns pranced around all day.
Jesus, they were the perfect pair to start his breeding program.
And Coop had just…given them to him.
“That’s my girl,” Brooks murmured. “That’s my sweet Pansy.”
Benji had gone off to work. The kids were back in school. He and Coop were together every night…
He was damn happy. Happier than he could remember being, truth be told. For all that he missed his brother, or at least the idea of him when they were kids, he was so glad to have his brother’s kids in his life.
And Coop. Coop was a fucking revelation.
He was stubborn as hell. He had real ideas about kids and what they should be doing. But he doted on them, and he tore Brooks up at night, and they were…talking.
About books. Movies. Life in general. Their pasts.
It was—Well, it was wild to him.
He stroked Patsy’s neck, so glad their quarantine was over and she was loving the other four members of the remuda. Those rescue horses had a great calming effect on Pansy and Max, who could be high-strung. Not mean. Just nervy.
He took in a deep breath, then breathed out, sharing it with Pansy, whose nostrils quivered. He knew it was horse whisperer-level stuff, but it worked.
Of course, every so often it got him bit or knocked down, but so be it. That was the way it went with horses.
“Okay, sweetie. How about a carrot and a nice warm stall, huh? You’ve worked enough today.” He started to walk her back to her stall, hand on her halter, when his phone rang.
Now that? That didn’t bother her at all. He laughed. Coop was always saying cowboys loved their phones. Young and old.
He pulled it out, frowning when he saw who it was. He hit the answer button. “Oi, Pete. How’s things on the station?”
“Good. Good.” Pete was a big guy with a booming voice and an accent that could peel potatoes, it was so sharp. “It’s not the station I’m worried about.”
“Oh?” He got Pansy in her stall and closed the gate. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s Diamond.”
“What’s wrong with her?” Haley’s Diamond Doll was Pete Haley’s best mare, and Brooks had hand-trained her. She reined like a dream.
“We did our first competition. She won’t work for Fordham.”
“Fordham!” He headed back to the house because his nuts were freezing. “That’s because he’s a dick, and he’s too damn rough on every horse he climbs on.”
“Well, he’s what I have.”
“So hire someone else.” He hated this shit. This was onereason he’d been happy to leave Pete Haley’s employ. He’d held the horses over Brooks’s head to keep him on when he would have left for other opportunities.
“I would rather you came back.”
“Pete, I told you, my brother died, and I have his kids now.”
“I know, I know. But I just need you back to hire someone to take your place, yeah? Come to the big futurity at the end of the month. Show Diamond and Hades and poach someone for me from another crew. A week, tops.”
“I’d have to make some arrangements. I’ll talk to some people, call you back.”
