Billie Bob Jones
After a hectic few weeks it was time to start training, by training I meant bronc and bull riding for the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. I had been competing since my late teenage years and had started riding horses as soon as I could fit on a saddle.
Ma always said riding horses was the first thing I would want to do in the morning and the first thing I would do when I came back from school. It was no shock when I wanted to compete and later on when I got involved in bulls. Ma obviously did not approve of it but I was persistent.
Currently I was ranked world champion for the past five years for my age ranking. Every year was filled with immense pressure to keep on winning and this year was no different. I always started training three months before the tournaments which meant I stayed away from distractions.
Once the tournaments started I would be riding every weekend for two months before the finals. It was exhausting and I knew by the time I got older my body would be nothing but cracking bones, but the thrill one got for those eight seconds was worth it.
I gathered all my gear and got ready to leave for the riding pens. Luckily for me today I would only be riding bulls which was just as painful as riding broncos but at least they did not buck as hard.
With my duffel bag in hand I climbed down the stairs and found Delilah busy in the kitchen. It was one of her days off and instead of relaxing she had decided to bake pies, not that I was complaining.
"Are you going to make that lemon meringue pie I love so much?" I grinned as I gave her a hug then kissed her cheek.
"It's not like I have much of a choice," she tried to act irritated but the smile on her face betrayed her, "Your Ma is also coming over so expect a feast."
"I'll make sure to have an empty stomach," I chuckled, "I'm heading out."
"Alright be safe Bobby."
"Will do," I waved before I walked out the front door. I decided walking to the riding pens would do me some good since I had been craving fresh air ever since I saw the weather outside my window this morning.
It was a partly cloudy day and the wind was cool against my skin. For once it was not as humid. I was confident it was going to rain in a few hours which gave me just enough time to practice.
I arrived at the practice pens fifteen minutes later to find everyone was there. Bloom was famous for the rodeo riders that resided here and luckily for me, Leroy Wayne happened to be my mentor.
He was one of the greatest cowboys of all time. He had won so many championships in his youth that I had even lost count at a point and because of him I was on the road of becoming just as great.
"You're late ol'son," he chuckled as he called out from his navy blue Ford Ranger. His green eyes were hidden behind his aviator sunglasses, his black cowboy hat covered his dark hair and his tall body was dressed in his usual blue colour pallet.
"He was probably out looking at the daisies," Rob joked making Willie, Ben and Cody shriek with laughter.
"I'd be careful if I was you, Bobby is close to shooting you all," JD the expert bull fighter who so happened to be Leroy's son chuckled. He looked a lot like his father with his long dimples and tanned skin. He was a bit more creative with his style choices though than his father and wore a red button up shirt.
"That's a fact," I smiled. JD winked at me as I walked towards them.
"We're going to start off on the bucking barrel for thirty minutes to get you back into shape, then we'll start off with Mellow Yellow," Leroy said as they led me to the fake bull machine.
A bucking barrel resembled an electric bull as it copied the movements of a bull but relied on your body movement to get it moving. It taught you control and how to react to a bulls movements. I could spend hours practising on it
Yet just as I got situated on the cushion surface of the barrel Clyde's Ram truck drove down the gravel road towards us, but that was not what grabbed my attention. It was the dark tinted windowed, black Rolls Royce Cullinan behind him.
Clyde's truck was huge but the Rolls Royce behind it, made it look like an ant. I knew who the car belonged to before the person could even climb out. The two vehicles parked next to each and Clyde was the first one to climb out of his car.
A few seconds later the driver's side door opened to the Rolls Royce and I instantly forgot other people were around me as I openly stared at the billionaire. This time he was not dressed in his usual attire of suits but black trousers, a matching long sleeve v neck shirt that he chose to roll up the sleeves to his elbows; exposing the tattoos that ran up from his knuckles to lord knows where, and matching black sneakers.
He added mystery to it by wearing a black baseball cap and matching sunglasses that had a hint of gold around the rims. His shoulder length hair was tied back into a messy bun revealing his sharp jaw.
Just when I thought things could not get worse his eyes seemed to find mine under my sunglasses. A small smirk crept its way onto his face making my face fluster.
Arrogant bastard.
I climbed off the barrel and walked towards them with the group of men behind me. Obviously Willie, Cody and Ben were more excited in ogling the car after they had been introduced to Benedito. JD and Leroy seemed rather amazed someone like him would be interested in our little ranch.
"Mister Pereira," I softly smiled remembering my manners as I shook his hand.
It was unusual for someone to be that warm all the time. The warmth his large hand radiated spread through my body making me slightly dizzy. Now that we were right in front of each other I was amazed at how tall he was. My 6ft height meant nothing to his 6ft5 height. He towered over me making me frown; another reason for him to be arrogant.
"Call me Benedito, Barbie," his deep accented voice seemed louder than everything surrounding us even though he spoke incredibly low.
"It's Bobby," I rolled my eyes behind my sunglasses.
"I know, isn't it what I said?" he tilted his head as he faked innocence.
I plastered on a fake smile and nodded, "Sure thing Dito." He seemed to find that humorous as he let out a barely audible chuckle. From what I knew he preferred to be called Ben, but since he wanted to get under my skin by mispronouncing my name I would do the same by creating my own name for him.
"I hope you don't mind my unexpected arrival. I thought it would be a good idea to see what you did," he looked away from me and to the pens behind me.
"Having our own rodeo legend could really work in our favour Bobby," Clyde smiled popping the little bubble around Benedito and I.
We both seemed to forget people were surrounding us during our little exchange. I did not notice how close we were standing to one another either; just a few inches apart, until I took a casual step back. The billionaire slightly frowned because of that but I paid no attention to him.
"I don't mind," I shrugged, "he is our investor after all."
Luckily for me the bucking barrel was on the other side of the pens giving me some time to breathe away from the brooding man. He stood with Clyde, Rob and Leroy on the other side of the pens as they conversed. His attention was still on me though which made a cold shiver run down my spine.
What the hell was wrong with him?
"You two seem to get along," JD chuckled as I hopped back onto the barrel.
"We're the greatest pals," I said sarcastically making him laugh.
"It's not often you see rich folks like him in Bloom," JD eyed the billionaire who was still staring at us with a frown.
"He's one of a kind I can tell you that," I mumbled, I leaned forward causing the barrel to move with me, when it moved forward I straightened my legs opposing the motion as my back leaned back. I kept my left hand up and made sure my posture was perfect.
When the barrel moved backwards I bent my knees and tightened them around the barrel to prevent my body from moving down and hitting the barrel.
The movements were slow and tedious but required a lot of control. Once you were on that bull you had to keep a level head. You had to control your body and not let your instinct kick in or you would be bucked off before the bull was out of the cage.
Yet with Benedito's eyes on me I knew this was going to be a long day.