The tour might have eaten Ruby alive, but right now he couldn’t rightly say the tour hadn’t eaten him alive without her. Riding a bull was a binary science: either you were on the bull, or you were off it. Either you rode, or you didn’t. The clean-cut nature of that world appealed to him. It was one of the reasons all this “maybe” guesswork and “let’s see how things progress” prognosis drove him crazy.
“How have things with this Nolan fellow been since the accident?”
Well, there was a loaded question. Luke fiddled with a packet of crackers from the bread basket. “Fine.”
“A ‘that’s what I tell the public’ fine or truly fine?”
“If I’m not earning, Nolan’s not earning from me. Does that answer your question?” Though the agent had a whole lineup of athletes he represented, Luke used to be one of Nolan’s top clients, getting a hefty portion of the man’s focused attention. Nolan used to return his phone calls within the hour. Now his phone calls got returned by the end of the day if he was fortunate. Friday’s phone call had been the first one Nolan had initiated in a month. He wasn’t going to share that little detail with Ruby, however. Instead, he opted for, “There’s a lot riding on whether I ride.”
“So Nolan wants you riding again as fast as possible, I take it?”
“Whether or not it’s what Nolan wants, it’s what I want.” Luke looked around the restaurant, just starting to fill for the lunch rush. “I’m going crazy sitting around.”
The server took their orders. Ruby had some safe salad thing while Luke opted for the Diablo Double super spicy BBQ sandwich. Home cooking was good, but Gran needed to learn how to use hot sauce the way it was meant to be used—generously.
“I thought you were doing your exercises. I wouldn’t call that sitting around.” She accepted her iced tea, and a basket of biscuits found its way to the center of the table.
“Okay, I’m standing at my kitchen counter, marching and balancing on one leg. I’m used to a bit more excitement than that.”
Ruby was quiet for a moment, and then gave Luke a direct look. “I think I’d like to hear from you first what it is Nolan is going to try to convince me to do.”
“Nolan’s not going to try to convince you to do anything.”
“Please,” she replied, giving Luke a dubious look. “Give me a bit more credit than that. You think I’ll take whatever scheme is in the works more seriously if I hear it from Nolan instead of from you. Mostly because you know I’m familiar with your gift for schemes. How about you just tell me? ‘Straight up’ as you say.”
* * *
Ruby held Luke’s gaze. Clearly Luke was up to something. That man got a gleam in his eye anyone could see a mile off when he thought he was about to get away with something.
He was trying to play it straight, she thought. Ruby just wasn’t sure he was capable of such a thing. Then again, he’d admitted the accident had changed him. Maybe she should give him the benefit of the doubt. It was one of the reasons she’d asked him to tell her now—she wanted to hear his version of whatever was up.
Ruby could see him decide. She was changing his game plan, and she could literally see his brain sort through the merit of her request. You’re so used to being in control, she thought as she watched his jaw work. How does it feel to have your future in God’s hands instead of your tightfisted grasp?
“Okay,” he said slowly. She could hear his gears turning in the tone of his answer. “So you know my accident was big news.”
There was an “of course” in his attitude that reminded her what a monster of an ego he had. But he also wasn’t all wrong about his visibility—the photos and videos of a limp and unconscious Luke Buckton being carried from the arena had been headline footage all over Texas.
“Well, Nolan—and folks at Pro Bull Rider magazine, it turns out—think my recovery and comeback could be just as big news. It would also keep me in the public eye until I get back up and riding.”
Ruby knew Luke saw that issue in terms of when and until and not if, but it struck her doubly hard right now. The fire in Luke’s eyes told her the man wasn’t entertaining even the slightest notion that he wouldn’t return to the arena. That was a double-edged sword; determination could take a patient places medicine couldn’t go, but a stubborn refusal to accept limitations could make someone overpush in a way that could be equally dangerous.
“Meaning?” She had a pretty good idea where this was going, but wanted to hear it from Luke.
“The magazine wants to do a piece on my recovery. A couple of pieces, actually. Documenting how I heal and train. If I give them exclusive access, it could be a pretty sweet deal.”
Ruby pictured photographers nosing in on therapy sessions while some stunning blonde reporter hung on Luke’s every word. None of it sounded like conditions she’d want to work in, much less on a case as demanding as Luke’s.
“Think of it,” Luke went on. “Cameras on hand to capture my first run, my first ride...”
“Your tenth fall,” she cut in. “This kind of recovery doesn’t go in a straight line, Luke. You’re going to have setbacks. Are you sure you want an audience for that?”
“Everybody loves a comeback story. And you know me—I work best with an audience. And a finish line to strive toward.”
Ruby felt her appetite leave the building. She pushed away the salad that had arrived moments earlier. “What do you have in mind for that finish line?”
“An exhibition ride.”
“A ride? On a bull?”
“Well, not the meanest bull around, but one with—”
“Absolutely not.” She started to push her chair away. “How can you even think I’d agree to something so...so...” She couldn’t come up with a word for how reckless and foolhardy an idea this was.
“It’s dramatic, I grant you, but I’ve got to—”
“No, it’s not dramatic. It’s irresponsible. You’ve been seriously hurt. We don’t know the full extent of the nerve damage you’ve suffered, and there’s no set timeline for recovery. All your publicity ideas mean that ride has to be scheduled in advance. How can you make a promise we might not be able to keep? Guarantee you’ll be ready in time? You can’t just cowboy up and grit your teeth past this, Luke.”
“Sure I can. I’ll compensate for whatever I don’t have. You’ll teach me.”
Ruby stood up. “I can’t teach you split-second reactions if you’ve got no sensation.”
“Whoa, lower your voice,” Luke hissed, pulling her back down. “Don’t say that kind of stuff where people can hear you, okay?”
Ruby made herself sit down and look him in the eye. Maybe she could get him to see reason before this doomed stunt went any further. “Don’t say what’s wrong with you? Don’t tell you what you refuse to hear? You expect me to not only stand by and watch you potentially get yourself killed, but you want me to play guest star? Ruby Sheldon, therapist to the late, great Luke Buckton? Because trust me, Luke, that’s what it’ll be. You cannot do this.”
“I can’t just disappear, either.” Luke ran a hand through his hair. “Look, Ruby, I told you how this works. No ride, no pay, no rankings. There are no sick days, no medical leave here. If the fans can’t see me, they’ll forget who I am. That’s why this could be such a great chance. Think about it: this magazine’s paying to watch me heal. What better incentive could a guy get?”
It had to be said. “And what if you don’t heal? Will they want their money back?”
“I’ll heal, Ruby. You know I will. You wouldn’t have signed