Big Girl Boots

Three

"And no black eyes at this rodeo, got it?"

My aunt Callie was staring at the three of us in turn with raised eyebrows and shaking a menacing finger.​ First, she looked at Kellan who nodded submissively to his mother like he always did, then to Coda, who seemed to shrink into herself more than usual, and then to me. Knowing how serious my aunt was, I didn't even send her my typical half grin that said I might try and be good. Like Kellan, I nodded, my own eyes serious. For once, I was dead set on getting through an entire rodeo without either starting or finishing a fight.

Apparently gaining confidence in the three of us, she nodded triumphantly and set both hands on her hips. "Good."

"Now can we leave?" My tone was a lot whinier than I would have liked, but I shrugged it off. Whiny or not, I was excited to get on the road.

A slow smile made it's way onto my aunt's face until her blue eyes sparkled. "Are you really that excited to rodeo?"

She laughed when I nodded vigorously. "Alright, fine. Load up."

Even though Kellan was his slow, careful self, I knew he was ready for the coming week, too. For him, it meant seeing his friends and, best of all, not having to go to school. He had been fairly good natured during the arduous process of packing up, at least after we'd gotten some coffee in him.

It was Sunday morning and we had been up since five fitting everything into the pickup and trailer. Surprisingly enough, I'd gotten out of bed pretty easily. Uncle Mark and Aunt Callie both looked like they'd seen a ghost when I walked into the kitchen before the sun was up, dressed and ready with a cheery smile.

Coda was eager to get on the road, too, and I had a feeling that had something to do with Wyatt's promise to be at this event.

Somehow, my sweet, shy best friend had caught the eye of Kellan's best friend Wyatt Lunders; a rodeo cowboy notorious for being the life of the party. Unlike most girls, she'd fought him tooth and nail when he'd tried to get her to go out with him, and I was actually proud of her. It was good for Wyatt to put in a little effort, especially for a girl as awesome as her.

While my excitement had nothing to do with boys, or at least not love interests, I was just as enthusiastic, if not more, than Coda as we shoved the last of our belongings into the bed of Uncle Mark's white Dodge. "Are you ready for this?"

She shot me a wide grin that stretched across her entire thin face. "Hell yeah! Are you?"

Again, I nodded vigorously, feeling the corners of my eyes crinkle. Reaching up to readjust the black and blue ball cap on my head, I surveyed our efforts.

Four horses were standing quietly in the large gray trailer. All of our tack was arranged neatly in the front compartment, though I knew it wouldn't stay that orderly for long. When you're in a hurry to hit your next event, you don't put much thought into keeping things organized.

The large bed of my uncle's dodge was filled, too. All of the bags were arranged like puzzle pieces to lay flat, which was obviously mama Callie's doing. I wasn't very good at packing, but I decided it was just a skill one acquired when they became a mom.

Even though the last rodeo had been half as far away, we'd taken two different rigs just because it was a pain to unhook a trailer every time you needed to go somewhere. This one was in my home town of Caldwell so I'd have my own rig to drive as well as parents to rely on for transportation as needed. That being said, we were only taking Uncle Mark's crew cab pickup, and although I wasn't really looking forward to being crammed in the back of it with Coda and Kellan for the long drive, I didn't plan on letting it dampen my mood.