Page 1 of Forbidden Cowboy
Chapter One
Sierra
Iwanted to throw something at a wall.
I felt like the small, potted plant I had been given for my five-year work anniversary at the gym might be a good choice.
Children were watching me, though, so maybe not.
A knock came at the open door, and I whipped around, swiping at my face as I did so. It wasn’t a secret that I was upset, so I wasn’t sure why I bothered trying to hide it. Between the open door and the large windows overlooking the main gym hall, everyone knew how I felt about the situation.
“Hi, Nadia,” I said to the woman standing in the doorway. “If you need help, you’ll need to see Lisa—I’m not allowed to—”
“I don’t need anything,” the woman said. “I wanted to see if you needed anything.”
“I’ll be fine,” I replied, and gave her a watery smile.
“The whole team is pissed, by the way,” she said, and I could tell it was the truth by the fire in her eyes.
I had been with the Larks for almost six years, and had risen in position with time and education, from a mere water girl that handed out towels and refreshments on weekends, to their go-to trainer. I knew more about some of the girls on the team than even the coach, Alison.
“It’s capitalism, Nads,” I replied.
“It’s bullshit is what it is,” she replied angrily. “We’ve all talked, and we want to turn down the offer.”
I could have hit her for that.
“Are you crazy?” I almost screeched, and some of the kids learning how to shoot hoops in the main hall glanced up at the sound filtering out of my open windows.
My phone rang then, and I pulled it out.
Beau Carter
I pressed the ‘decline’ button, and slid it back into my pocket.
“If you need to take that—”
“No,” I said, cutting Nadia off, “it’s just my brother. He keeps calling. What I need is for you to not think so stupidly as to be turning down your big chance! Do you know what kind of opportunities a sponsor like that will get you?”
“Not the trainer we’ve had at our side since we were nothing,” she argued.
I felt my phone vibrating again, and I rolled my eyes before declining another call from my brother.
“No, instead, you’re going to get some fancy, state-of-the-art facility to practice at. You’re going to get renovations and new uniforms. You’re going to get a new trainer who probably went to fucking Stanford, and they’re going to be able to push you guys further than I ever have!”
Nadia’s eyes were suspiciously shiny. Sometimes it was hard for me to remember that she was only twenty-two. Even at seventeen, when she’d started showing up to watch the Larks play, she had always acted older. Her standing height of over six feet probably didn’t hurt, either.
“I’ll miss you too, Nadia,” I said quietly.
I pulled the girl into a hug, and she returned it with enough strength to knock the wind from me. When we pulled apart, she pulled a small book from her pocket and handed it to me.
“It’s not much, and you deserve more, but we all… we all wrote something in there, and there’s phone numbers, addresses, you know… if you ever want to talk to anyone. You’re still welcome at meets and stuff.”
I had to work not to cry as I pocketed the small blue book.
“I better be,” I laughed, the fire I had felt before fading fast. “If I don’t have a seat at the Olympics where I can see you from wherever you are on the court, I’m going to be mad.”
“It’s impressive that you still think we’re going to the Olympics. We’re working on the first goal you gave us.”