Hey guys! Got the official excerpt for my first solo project in a good while, Chance of the Heart, coming January 26.
Chapter One
The most asinine idea one
person ever conceived. Chance Becket’s sour mood had finally lifted, he’d forgotten all
about Caitlin’s stupid idea. That is, until damned David brought it up. He
couldn’t believe Caitlin had opened
her big mouth to David’s wife Jeri. He supposed that wasn’t fair since they’d
all been best friends since they were knee-high to a grasshopper but he did not
need this. Not now. He’d managed to not bring it up in the six weeks since she’d
gone back to school. And with foaling season he hadn’t had time to do anything
anyway, too much work to do to even think about it.
“t’s
just a little bump in the road, man. She said it was just while she was busy
this last semester. Why’re you being so sour about it?” David wouldn’t drop it.
With a put upon sigh, Chance put down the hammer he’d been using to replace a
dry-rotted plank on the fencing. He knew better than to keep ignoring David
Singleton. You weren’t friends as long as they’d been without knowing what he
would and wouldn’t bother you with until you spilled the beans.
“It’s
not even a break. I think y’all misunderstood.”
David’s
head snapped back. “Surely, you didn’t split up.”
Chance
stood from his squatting position, feeling his knees pop like he was much older
than his twenty-three years. He hated talking shit through, didn’t need nobody
picking through his thoughts or feelings. He was a good boy, simple. He worked
hard, respected his Mama and Daddy, went to church on Sundays, had been
faithful to Caitlin, and saved up money to provide for his future family. He
did what was expected without complaint, because what more was there than to
hope for a good life, a little piece of this earth to call his own, and to help
his family keep their ranch going as it had been for a couple generations, now.
“Naw.
We didn’t do nothing of the sort.”
David
looked confused. If only he knew the half of it. Chance was probably more
confused than he’d ever been. There’d
never been reason to question anything and he hated he was no. He’d had a set
path, a goal since he was a small boy and thanks to one damn conversation, he
was shaken to his core and couldn’t for the life of him figure out why.
“Well,
how come she told Jeri she was cool with you seeing other people. Said we
shouldn’t police you.”
“Y’all
shouldn’t have ever policed me.”
“I
didn’t! Can’t help that them women stick together like they do. Jeri’s best
friend’s at college, so of course if she sees you trying to be a buckle bunny’s
consolation prize it’s part of their Bro Code to tell each other,” David
reasoned.
“What
in the hell is a Bro Code? And anyway, it’s not like I go out none.
I’ve never cheated.” Chance started gathering his tools, loading them on the
back of his ATV.
David
threw his hands up. “We know that. But she was saying that in particular, right
now, Jeri wasn’t s’posed to keep an eye out if you were to go … Y’no… doin’ your thing.”
Chance
took his Stetson off where’s he’d hung it on the handlebars of the four-wheeler
and placed it on his head. That was better. At least he didn’t have to squint
to see his friend any more. “I don’t understand why she made it y’all’s
business, but she thought maybe since we were probably getting engaged after
she comes back, and she’s not gonna be coming home any since it’s her last
semester, maybe she’d give me some sort of pass if I wanted to sow some wild
oats or some nonsense.”
David
laughed and patted Chance’s shoulder. “Is that what’s got your panties in a
bunch? Damn boy. You’re the last single one of us all.” Which was true, they’d
all paired up either in high school or right after. David and Jeri’s second kid
was well on the way. Chance had always been secretly glad that Caitlin had gone
off to college after she’d graduated.
Yeah,
they knew they’d always end up married, probably living in a house on his
Daddy’s land—there was enough of it for sure. But he’d been glad to have the
time alone. He’d been in the same relationship since he was sixteen, and she
fifteen. They’d been each others’ first everything. But marriage… sharing not
just his space but his whole life with her. It’d been an overwhelming idea at
eighteen when he’d just finally gotten his own space in the apartment he’d
built himself over his parents’ three car garage.
Now
he supposed it was time. Which made him restless. That’d been why the whole
conversation started.
“You’re restless. I’ve had
time to figure out what I want. Now you should do the same. My course load is
ridiculous this semester and I’m going to Mexico during spring break so… Take
this time to yourself.” Chance just grunted in response which made Caitlin’s
pretty face light up, smiling sweetly.
“Stubborn man. I’ll even
give you one of those Free Passes. My friends did it before they got married.
We don’t ask questions so if no one does anything it doesn’t matter, but if you
did, it’s not our business. I’ve been at college having fun and you’ve been
home. You don’t go out, you just work. Be a little crazy.”
“So you’ve slept with other
people?” He asked, numbly.
“No!” She stopped twirling
her curly black pony-tail and smacked his arm.
“I would never.”
“You’re saying you want to
sleep with somebody else.” Before she could say no he continued, “Or you think
I’ve missed out not sleeping with somebody else.”
She placed a hand on his
knee. “I’m not saying that. I’m just saying, make sure. We have a good six
months before real life actually catches up with us. It’d be the first time we
were ever on, like, a break. Make the most of it.”
And
hadn’t that been a kick to the balls. It’s like as soon as she’d left, all
these thoughts popped up. Thoughts that had been put away like last year’s
Christmas tress, not needing to be brought out because it was Spring and he had
summer and foaling season to think about. But it appeared Christmas had come
early and the thought of that Christmas tree coming back out, made his belly
rumble with nerves.
“You
okay there?” David asked.
“Oh
yeah,” he muttered. He picked up the last of the scraps of wood from the
repairs and latched everything on the back of the ATV with bungee cords.
“I
don’t know what there is to be upset about. She’s right. Even I had a couple
girls before Jeri and I got together. You only been with her. Maybe it wouldn’t
kill you to go knock some boots. Though, don’t tell my wife I said so.”
A
couple girls before Jeri? That was an understatement. David had probably had
half the varsity cheerleading squad. Chance didn’t get the fascination. Yeah,
sex was good. Right? It was sex. But all the condoms and worrying about knocking
somebody up. In eight years he could count on his fingers and toes the number
of times they’d gone all the way. Now he was trying to get out of sleeping with
someone else and he couldn’t decide if it was because he thought he shouldn’t or because he didn’t actually
want to.
And
this is why he hated when things were uncertain.
David
placed a hand on Chance’s shoulder as he went to start the four-wheeler,
bringing him up short. “I’m done talking about this David.” He didn’t snap,
Chance didn’t snap, but he used his Boss Voice.
David
snorted. Of course, David was the one person on the whole damn Red River Ranch
that voice didn’t work on. “I’m just saying, it’s a Friday. This is our last
big weekend off for the month. Maybe take yourself up to Abernathy, go to the
strip, have a few beers. See what happens. Call it your last hurrah. What could
it hurt?”
“What
am I gonna do around all them college kids?”
“Get
drunk? It’s not like we’re much older than them. Wear somethin’ other than
flannel and boots. Talk about poetry since you’re all sensitive and junk.”
David was just being a dick now.
“I’m
not sensitive,” Chance said, surliness infantile even to his own ears.
David
nodded indulgently. “Whatever you say, Boss.”
Chance
wasn’t going to continue with his friend about what sounded like the worst idea
in the history of ever. Abernathy was a medium sized college town about an hour
and a half from their little town of 1200. It was a good suggestion, more
anonymous than the local bars. If Chance had been interested in that sort of
thing. Which he wasn’t.
David opened his mouth to
speak but Chance started the ATV up, cutting him off, and headed back toward
the barns. He didn’t have any more time for this foolishness, and the horses weren’t
going to water themselves.
***
Bradley
Heart frowned at his phone as his ex-boyfriend’s third missed call in the last
two hours popped up. Carson knew he was at work. What the hell was wrong with
him. They’d not spoken in three weeks, since Carson collected his things from
Bradley’s house. Today, of all days, was not the day to start with his usual
mood swings.
Bradley dropped his phone
on his desk, probably more forcefully than necessary, getting the attention of
a few of the people in the open floor office around him. What he wouldn’t give
for a cubicle right about then.
He clicked around his
accounting program for one of their bigger clients, trying to get his head back
in the game.
“Heart,” his immediate
superior Tanya Bigbee said as she loomed over his desk. “Can we see you in Mr.
Moore’s office.
Shit. He’d seen two other people
go before him to the big boss’s lair so he was quite certain this wasn’t good
news. There’s been whispers of layoffs after the Holiday season, but two weeks
after Christmas. Really?
He nodded before standing
and gathering his suit jacket, pulling it on and buttoning it as he followed
her down the hall. He’d been dreading this, but fingers crossed he would be one
of the few spared. His last few performance reviews had been exemplary, he’d
been dealing with some of the biggest clients, even as one of the more junior
accountants. Surely that counted for something.
As he walked out of Mr.
Moore’s office, though, fifteen minutes later, he was caught between shocked
and resigned. Three weeks and his entire division was “no longer necessary to
the future business of the company.” There’d been talk of outsourcing for
financial reasons and a promise of shining references, but he’d only caught
about every third word after the axe had fallen on his career. Yes, he was
young. Twenty-five was nowhere near too old to start over again. Hell, this had
been his first job fresh out of college three years earlier.
That was little
consolation. He ignored the apologetic glances of the coworkers who’d gone
before him into the office, not in the mood to commiserate.
He plopped gracelessly in
his desk chair and stared blankly at the screen. He’d been told he didn’t have
to worry about the account he was working on now as it’d be passed on as one of
their larger clients. “Wrap up the
Michaels, ChumDum, and Liezel accounts in your final weeks. We appreciate your
hard work.”
Hadn’t that been a kick to
the balls. Fuck, he didn’t want to have to take his sister up on the ridiculous
offer she’d made when he’d mentioned the original rumors of layoffs. He
couldn’t even fathom going back to his father’s ranch, his father’s Church in
Hope Springs. Hah! Hopeless Springs more
like it. He’d not been back in at least six years and didn’t imagine his
father was any sorrier than he was for it.
His phone rang again.
Fucking Carson. Again. He snatched it up. “What?”
“You’re in a fine mood,
lover,” Carson said drily.
“I’m at work.” Curt and to
the point. He caught the disapproving glare Tanya was giving him from her desk
across the room. But what could she do? Write him up? Fire him? Not like he was
ever one to abuse the no-cell-phone policy. Fuck it.
“I was trying to lease an
apartment at Centre Point.” How he would afford the nicer apartments across
town, Bradley had no idea.
“And…”
“They’re the same leasing
company as The Arms.”
“Again… And…”
“I need off your lease.”
Bradley sputtered. “Dude,
you broke up with me. You said I
could have these last two months. Can you not crash with your new guy a little
longer. This is not exactly a good time.”
“Look, Brad. I know this
sucks. But we’re trying to get a place and this is what we want. It’s a douch
move—”
“No shit!”
“But… we can’t wait. His
lease is up at the end of the month. They said you could just sign off this
month and they’d use the deposit…”
“Now you want my half of
the deposit too?” Bradley laughed, knowing he was about to become hysterical.
“Bradley…”
“No. You know what. Fuck
it. Take the damn thing. Come tell me where I need to sign. Small price to pay
to be finished with you finally.” He didn’t mean it. Yes, it’d be nice to be
finished with the cheating bastard, but he really could use his half of the
$1400 deposit now that he’d be out of work. And where he’d stay, he had no
idea. Looks like— No! No, you will not go
back.
“The manager said she’d fax
you what you needed.” After getting the fax number and giving Carson a good old
fuck off he ended the call. Best day ever.
He shot off a text to his
best friend, Emma requesting a night out. He’d definitely need to forget this day,
even if just for a few hours. He waited for her affirmative response, then put
his phone away after Tanya cleared her throat for the third time.
The best part of living in
a college town was the amount of bars with lots of pretty, cheap liquor. He’d
definitely be taking advantage of that tonight. And maybe a hot piece of
college ass. It’d definitely been long enough since he’d had some of that.
Thanks for reading guys! Stay tuned for snippet sundays!
Chance of the Heart
by Kade Boehme
Coming January 26!
