"Finally, you're home." Chandler greeted Maleena as soon as she walked in the house.

      "Good morning to you too, Chan, geez." She smiled, placing a hand on the wall to balance herself as she slipped off her boots. 

       Chandler walked into the foyer, stopping Maleena. "Don't take off your boots yet. We have places to go and things to do." He took a sip from his water bottle, smiling at his little sister.

       "Oh? Like what?" Maleena inquired, slipping her boot back on.

       "I dunno exactly. I just thought it would be fun to go exploring and such. We need to stop by the feed store regardless to get some bedding and other stuff for the horses, but after that, who knows where we will end up." Chandler said, overly excited to go and drive around, one of his favorite things to do.

      "Didn't you just go to the feed store earlier today?" Maleena grabbed her cowboy hat off the peg in the foyer, placing it on her head before following her brother out the door.

       "Maybe I just want to spend time with my lil sis?" Chandler chuckled, hopping into the driver seat of his truck.

        Pursing her lips, Maleena responded, "Fair enough." She closed the door behind her, buckling her seat belt as Chandler started the truck, driving down their driveway. 

        The drive into town was beginning to become engraved into Maleena's head; the turns, the roads, the bumps in the street even, were all seeming familiar to her. It could have been because she was just driving down here to go see Dillon, but Maleena let out a sigh when she realized it had hit her that her family moved. This town was her new home, and she would have to come to grips with it at one time or the other, no matter how much she disliked change. 

          "What's wrong, squirt? You're usually talkin' my ear off whenever we go on a drive." Chandler looked away from the road to glance at his sister. Shaking her knee in his hand, he asked, "Come on, smile. We are goin' to have fun together today." 

          "I know. I'm sorry. I'm just thinking about some stuff if all." Maleena faked a smile.

          "Somethin' you wanna get off your mind?" Her older brother asked, putting his hand back on the steering wheel.

          Maleena opened her mouth to spill about the whole "Dillon/Boyfriend" situation, but she kept her thoughts to herself. It just didn't feel right being in a relationship with Dillon, and she wasn't sure if that was because he was the first guy to take an interest in her, or if it's because they were moving so fast, or if because deep down she knew the relationship was not right. 

         Whatever was causing her to feel this way, Maleena prayed she would figure it out before she told her family that Dillon and her are boyfriend/girlfriend now. Either way, she knew that she would have to tell her brother what was going on with her and Dillon at some point. Chandler had always been a confidant and a best friend to his little sister, but Maleena knew that he didn't like Dillon, only one of the reasons she had refrained from telling him anything. 

          "No, I think I'm good. Thank you, though." Maleena replied to her brother's question. She smiled at him so he wouldn't get more suspicious about what was really going on. 

          "Alright. So, I was thinkin' that we go to the feed store first, get the bedding, and then drive around some. How does that sound to you?" 

          "That sounds fine." Maleena replied simply, looking out the window. When they got closer to town, her phone began making sounds and buzzing like crazy. Pulling it up to see what was going on, Maleena saw a hefty amount of notifications coming in.

          "Man, someone is popular today." Chandler joked, nodding at Maleena's phone.

         "I don't have good service back at the house." She replied, deleting several of the notifications. "Every time I get to town, my phone goes crazy since there are cell towers out here." Maleena stopped deleting notifications when she got to a text message from Dillon. He thanked her for coming in to see him and he said that he couldn't wait to see her again; it was the same text that she got from him several times daily. Part of her wondered if he had the text scheduled to send at a certain time every day. Shaking the thought, Maleena grinned slightly as she texted Dillon back. 

          "That guy and you are still talkin', I take it?" Chandler asked, pointing to Maleena's phone. 

         "That guy has a name, Chan. His name is Dillon, and yes, we are still talkin'." This was the time for her to tell her brother that they had made things official, but instead, Maleena tucked some hair behind her ear and asked, "Why don't you like him?" 

          "Because, Squirt, he's your first real crush, I don't know the guy at all, y'all are movin' way too fast, and plus, I have a really unsettling feeling about him." The response came out more harsh than he intended. Glancing at his little sister through his sunglasses, he could see the surprised, and partially hurt, expression on her face. "All I'm sayin' is that, as your older brother, it is my job to ensure that any potential boyfriend treats you how you should be treated. But, then again, no guy will ever be good enough for my little sister." Chandler smiled, giving Maleena's shoulder a slight squeeze. 

          "Thanks, Chan." She let out a chuckle, brushing off the compliment. 

          The rest of the drive to the feed store was quiet as Maleena finished going through her notifications on her phone. It was already getting close to four, the time Dillon was supposed to get off of work. Part of her was excited for that so they could talk more, but another part of her couldn't shake the feeling that this wasn't right. 

           Once they were at the feed store, Chandler backed his truck up by the doors, making it easier for them to load the bags of bedding. Shutting off the ignition, Chandler motioned for Maleena to follow him inside the small store. 

         A bell over the door jingled when Chandler opened the door for his sister. When an early twenties woman greeted them, the pair walked up to the counter. "Hi, I talked to a gentleman on the phone earlier and he said that y'all were fixin' to hold 30 bags of bedding for us." Chandler started.

          As her brother talked to the woman, getting the order figured out, Maleena explored the store. It was your typical small town feed store. It was bigger, with a more unique selection than the feed store in her old town, but the prices seemed to be the same. 

          "You ready to load the truck?" Chandler asked from beside Maleena, tucking the receipt into his pocket. 

          Maleena nodded, following him outside again. Once outside, Chandler told Maleena which bags they were to load. As usual, Maleena and Chandler each grabbed several bags, setting them on the tailgate before Maleena hopped up into the bed, stacking them to optimize the space. Thankful her brother brought the truck with the eight foot bed, Maleena was able to easily stack all the bags, with some room to spare.

          Hopping down from the bed, Maleena grabbed two ratchet straps from under the cab seat, handing one side of the strap to her brother to hook onto the bed rail, tying down the load. 

          Heading away from the feed store, Chandler began driving down the road that they take to get home, but instead of turning left down the road that would take them to the house, Chandler turned right. 

         "Where are we goin'?" Maleena asked. 

        "I told you, we are exploring. Well, kinda, I know where we are goin', but you will just have to wait and see." Chandler glanced over at his perturbed looking little sister. He knew that she hated surprises, but this one, he figured would be good for her. 

         Maleena checked her phone for the umpteenth time. Still no message from Dillon, and it was after four, so he should have been off work by now. Trying hard to not let it bother her, Maleena tucked her phone into her pocket, fixing to focus her attention on her time with Chandler. It had been a while since they were able to hang out together and she didn't want to take that for granted. 

        Ten more minutes later, Chandler turned down a long dirt road; in the distance, Maleena could see something that instantly got her excited. "Are these the rodeo grounds, Chan?!" She exclaimed, sitting on the edge of her seat. In the distance, Maleena could see a lot scattered with some trucks. The closer to the arena that her brother got, the more excited Maleena became. She hadn't been able to compete for months because of school and the move, so just being back at the rodeo grounds got Maleena excited. 

         Chandler parked his truck next to an older, navy blue F-150 with an eight foot bed. Turning to Maleena, seeing a grin rising on her lips, he slipped his sunglasses over his eyes and grabbed his cowboy hat off the dash before hopping down from the cab, walking to Maleena's side to open the door for her. 

         "How did you find where this was at?" Maleena asked as she followed her brother to the arena. He seemed like he knew where he was going. 

        "This was one of the places I ride at on the circuit. But, I brought you here today because they have a rodeo club, and I thought you might be interested in joinin'." Chandler smiled as he leaned against the fence right beside the chutes. 

          "You could tell that I really miss competing, don't you?" She asked her sister, watching as a cowboy slid onto a paint bronc's back in one of the chutes. 

          "Yeah, you're always moping around on Saturday nights. Mom and dad said that sometimes you would go out to the arena at the ranch and practice, but you never entered in any rodeos. I know you have been too busy recently, but now it's summer, so I figured you would have more time to compete again." Towards the end of Chandler's statement, a loud horn sounded, signaling the end of the cowboy's eight second ride.

          Chandler and Maleena joined in the clapping, congratulating the cowboy on his successful practice ride. For the first time, the rider turned towards the fence, revealing his face. He was much younger than he looked when he was on the horse's back. A large grin took over his lips as a couple of his buddies clapped him on the back, congratulating him on a solid ride.

          For some reason, Maleena couldn't seem to tear her eyes from the cowboy. Just as the realization came across her mind, the rider looked over at Chandler and Maleena, his smile only getting bigger as he began to walk over to the fence that they occupied. Maleena had been studying the rider so intently that she didn't realize that the reason he was walking over was because Chandler had called his name. 

         "Squirt, this is Cody McClain, the head of the rodeo club here, and also a friend of mine." Chandler's voice forced Maleena's eyes to stop staring at Cody and look at Chandler, but only momentarily. 

          Without any warning, Cody extended a hand to Maleena. "Howdy. Nice to meet you. You must be Maleena. Chandler has told me all about you." There was that grin again. His dark brown hair was able to just be seen under his dusty, black Stetson, his blue eyes intensified by the color of his rodeo shirt.

          Maleena told herself to knock it off, but there was something about Cody that she couldn't shake. He was hands down the most attractive man she had ever seen, and that's saying something considering Maleena thought that about Dillon when she first saw him. Cody's dark brown hair and blue eyes were only two of the features that made him attractive. Even under his riding gear, Maleena could tell that his body was laced with muscles. Reminding herself that she had a boyfriend, Maleena blinked, responding to Cody's gesture. Her hand connecting with his made butterflies swarm in her stomach, making Maleena inwardly kick herself again. "Nice to meet you, too, Cody." She smiled, retreating her hand as soon as she could. 

          "Chandler told me you're interested in joinin' the rodeo club here?" Cody asked Maleena, walking over to where his duffle bag sat behind the chutes. 

          "Yeah, it's been a while since I have gotten to compete. I really want to get back into it. What all happens in this club?" Maleena watched him unzip his vest, throwing it in his bag. Taking a seat on the steps behind the chutes, Cody slipped off his riding boots, putting on a more worn, every day pair. 

         "Well, we usually meet on Friday nights. We practice our rides and then at the end of practicing, we have a Bible study. Everyone brings a snack, and we just hang out. It started out really small, just a couple of my buddies and I, but recently, it's become a pretty big deal." Cody explained, standing up, zipping up his duffle bag and tossing it back against the fence. "Let's head over to my truck. I have a couple flyers in there." He led the way over to the navy blue F-150 that Chandler had parked next to. Opening the passenger side door, Cody reached in to pull a paper flyer from the center console. Handing it to Maleena, he said, "Here's the flyer. Take some time to check us out, and I hope to see you here some night." 

          Maleena took the flyer from Cody, thanking him before glancing down at the paper. "Yeah, this looks great. I would love to come!" She smiled back up at Cody. 

          "Great! I look forward to it." Cody smiled at Maleena, holding her gaze a second longer than he probably should have. Tearing his eyes from Maleena's, Cody turned to shake Chandler's hand. "Sorry to cut this short, but I have to get back to the chutes. Thanks for comin' out." Dropping his hand from Chandler's, Cody shook Maleena's once more. "It was nice meetin' you." Adding a smile, Cody dropped his hand from Maleena's, turning to walk back to the chutes. 

         Maleena was glad that they parked next to Cody's truck because Maleena wasn't sure that she would be able to make her legs work properly if she had to walk from the chutes back to the truck. Turning away from watching Cody walk away, Maleena hopped into Chandler's truck, and Chandler did the same. 

         When Chandler just sat in his truck, without starting it, Maleena turned to look at him. Seeing a huge, cocky grin on his face made Maleena push her eyebrows together in confusion. "Why are you lookin' at me like that?" She asked.

          "You've only seen Cody once and already you like him." Chandler put his hand up in the air when Maleena began to deny it. "Don't even think about tryin' to tell me I'm wrong. I've seen that look before. Those googly eyes of yours. That's how you look at Dillon. You and Cody are cute together." 

          Not even going to attempt to deny Chandler's observations, Maleena shook her head at her brother. "You're ridiculous." 

         "You'll thank me later." Chandler said, matter of factly, turning on his truck, throwing it into reverse. 

          Maleena looked out her window to the rodeo grounds as Chandler drove away. Right before they pulled out onto the road, Maleena caught a glimpse of the bright blue shirt that Cody was wearing. A smile began to rise to her lips as she realized that maybe she would have something to thank Chandler for later.