Despite his sore muscles and exhaustion, he could gradually feel his skills coming back. His balance was improving, which made it easier to keep f irmly seated. His instincts, too, were sharpening, allowing him to anticipate the reversals and pitches. In the four days following Christmas, he drove to Henderson County, where he rode live bulls. A guy he knew had a practice facility there, and though the bulls weren’t of the highest quality, practicing on the mechanical bull could do only so much. Live animals were never predictable, and though Luke wore both a helmet and a flak jacket, he found himself as nervous before these encounters as he’d been in McLeansville back in October.
He pushed himself hard, and then even harder. The season began in mid-January, and he needed a strong start. He needed to win or place as high as possible in order to garner enough points to move up to the major league tour by March. By June, it might be too late.
His mom saw what he was doing, and little by little she began to withdraw again. Her anger was evident, but her sadness was, too, and he found himself wishing that Sophia were with them, if only to ease the growing awkwardness. Then again, he wished Sophia were here, period. With Sophia back in New Jersey for the holidays, Christmas Eve had been a quiet affair. Christmas Day was also subdued. He hadn’t gone over to his mother’s house until the early afternoon, and her tension was palpable.
He was glad to have the Christmas tree sales behind him. Though they’d done well, the month in the grove meant everything else on the ranch had deteriorated further, and the weather wasn’t helping matters. Luke’s to-do list grew longer, and it worried him, particularly because he knew he’d be traveling a lot in the coming year. His absence would only make things harder for his mom.
Unless, of course, he started winning right away.
Always, it came back to that. Despite the tree sales, which his mom used to add seven pair to the herd, the farm’s income wasn’t going to be near enough to cover their payments.
And with that in mind, Luke would trudge to the barn to practice, counting the days until New Year’s Eve, when he’d finally see Sophia again.
He left early in the morning, arriving in Jersey City a few minutes before lunch. After spending the afternoon with Sophia’s parents and sisters, neither Luke nor Sophia had wanted to battle the crowds in Times Square for New Year’s Eve celebrations. Instead, they had a quiet dinner at an unpretentious Thai restaurant before returning to Luke’s hotel.
In the hours past midnight, Sophia lay on her stomach while Luke traced small circles on her lower back.
“Stop,” she said, wiggling. “It’s not going to work.”
“What’s not going to work?”
“I already told you that I can’t stay. I have a curfew.”
“You’re twenty-one years old,” he protested.
“But I’m at my parents’ house, and they have rules. And actually, they were being extra permissive by letting me stay out until two. Normally, I have to be in by one.”
“What would happen if you stayed?”
“They’d probably think we slept together.”
“We did sleep together.”
She turned her head to face him. “They don’t have to know that. And I have no intention of making it obvious.”
“But I’m only here for one night. I have to leave tomorrow afternoon.”
“I know, but rules are rules. And besides, you don’t want to get on my parents’ bad side. They liked you. Although my sisters told me they were disappointed you weren’t wearing your hat.”
“I wanted to fit in.”
“Oh, you did all right. Especially when you started talking about 4-H again. You noticed they had the same reaction I did when they found out you sell those poor little pigs for slaughter after raising them like pets.”
“I’ve been meaning to thank you for bringing that up.”
“You’re welcome,” Sophia said, her expression mischievous. “Did you see Dalena’s face when I explained it? I thought her eyes were going to pop out of her head. How’s your mom doing, by the way?”
“She’s all right.”
“I take it she’s still mad at you?”
“You could say that.”
“She’ll come around.”
“I hope so.” He leaned down, kissing her. Although she returned his kiss, he felt her hands move toward his chest and gently push him away.
“You can kiss me all you want, but you still have to bring me back home.”
“Can you sneak me into your room?”