Christina Butrum's Blog

Competitions were a part of him. They’d been a part of his life for more than half of it, and there was no way he would stop now. Rodeos had become a home away from home.
Drew scraped the remaining food onto a scrap plate for the Wranglin’ Duo—a set of Australian Shepherds that ran the ranch right along with the Dixon brothers.
He placed his plate in the sink and waited for Blake to finish scraping his plate before thanking their mother and heading out of the kitchen. Blake grabbed his hat from the hook by the door and put it on, and Drew adjusted his as they stepped out onto the front porch.
Drew wasn’t sure about working with the horses with an injured arm even though he knew he could do it one handed with his eyes closed. Horses had always been his favorite, and looking back, he would have tried barrel racing if he hadn’t invested so much time and energy in bull riding.
“What do you say we get started for the day?” Blake asked, patting Drew on the back. The door opened behind them as Garrett stepped outside. He walked around them, mumbling something under his breath before heading down the steps and climbing onto the four wheeler.
Drew hooked a thumb over his shoulder in Garrett’s direction and asked, “What’s his deal?”
Blake shrugged and said, “I’m not too sure, but it might have something to do with his recent breakup.”
Drew glanced over his shoulder and watched as Garrett rode off toward the pasture. Garrett was the fixer-upper around the ranch. He’d fix anything that needed fixed, and they’d called on him a lot throughout the years. More times than not, it turned out the fence needed mending or the gears in their tractor needed tuning.
“I’m glad I don’t have to deal with any of that,” Drew said, thanking the good Lord for keeping distractions and temptations at bay throughout the years. The last thing he needed was a woman to pull his attention away from the thing he loved the most. “Relationships are nothing but drama, am I right?”
Drew nudged Blake with his elbow, trying to get a reaction out of him. But instead, Blake adjusted his hat and shrugged him off. “I don’t know about all that,” he said, making his way down the steps. He glanced back at Drew and asked, “Are you coming or what?”
Drew refocused with a nod as he followed his brother down the steps. He thought about his brother’s reaction and wondered if Blake had ever started something with that girl from last winter. She’d called and let them know their cattle were in her yard, staring in at her through the dining room window. Blake had gone over there to wrangle ’em up, but it had taken longer than expected. Drew and Garrett had just assumed it was due to Blake and all his sweet-talking ways.
“Do you think you’re ready to teach your first riding lesson?” Blake asked as they walked toward the stables.
“Yeah,” Drew said confidently. “I was born ready.”
Blake slapped him on the back and let out a laugh. Drew felt pretty confident in his abilities to work the horses, and there was no doubt in his mind that teaching riding lessons would be a breeze. At least now the time he’d spent with the horses through the years would count for something.
“That’s good because she'll be here any minute,” Blake said, tapping the face of his watch. “I think you’ll like her.”