Nothing
says springtime like horses playfully chasing each other around a corral. I’m
at Bennett Ranch this morning asking Zach Maldonado some of the same questions I
asked Barbie Bennett last month. A former bull rider on the rodeo circuit, Zach
now works the Bennett Family Ranch. Standing outside the corral with him, it’s
easy to understand why Barbie is completely enamored with his dark hair and
broad shoulders.
‘Thank you for talking with me today, Zach. What can you tell my readers about you?’
‘Ain’t much to tell. I grew up in San Diego. Dad worked a ranch outside the city. He had me work alongside him and the other cowboys every summer of my teen years, to keep me off the streets. He cracks a grin. Probably the best thing he ever did. That grin widens. Anyway, I learned to rope and ride, and when I turned 16, he took me to the rodeo. Bull riding was my favorite event and it stuck with me. I spent the rest of that summer learning to stay on the back of one for eight seconds. Good thing. Those lessons helped me take care of Mom after Dad passed away.’
He nods.
‘How long were you part of the rodeo circuit before you met Barbie?’
‘A handful of years. I always liked her music. Never thought I’d meet her.’ He wipes a hand over his jaw. ‘Was nothing but dumb luck that day I happened upon her. I didn’t even know it was her. Just saw a guy grab a girl and stepped in to help her. If she hadn’t sent her bodyguard to find me later that afternoon, that woulda been my only time seeing her face-to-face.’
‘What did you think that night when you had supper with her?’
‘Lots of things.’ He hooks his booted foot on the bottom rail, stares at the horses on the opposite side of the corral. ‘I always thought she was pretty, but up close, she was more than pretty. She was drop-dead gorgeous; the kind of face guys dream about.’ He pauses. ‘But, she was more than that. She was sweet… kind… and thanked over and over for helping her. All the time she was talking, I wanted to kiss her, but didn’t dare.’
‘Why not?’
‘Her crew and bodyguard were lollygagging around outside the tour bus; some bigger than me. Had a feeling if I tried, they wouldn’t hesitate to trounce me.’
“Did Barbie want you to kiss her?’
He shrugs. ‘Too scared to ask. I mean… I was with Barbie Bennett. Her face was on the cover of every magazine in the country… six brothers, cars, homes, money, thousands of screaming fans chasing after her…I was just a bull rider who helped her. I didn’t find out until months later that she would’ve let me kiss her.’
‘You and she have been together for a long time. How would you describe you relationship?’
‘Barbie’s the best thing to have happened to me. I like to think she feels the same about me.’ He pauses again. ‘She stood beside me when that bull threw me and busted my knee, made sure I had the best doctors, and then badgered the heck outta her brother to give me a job. When she was away on summer tours, she called me every night. I woulda called her, but she wasn’t always back on the tour bus the same time each night. We learned to trust each other, to ignore the gossip magazines… I tell her every day how much I love her. She swears the same to me, and that’s all I need, ‘cause deep down, I know she isn’t leaving me for anyone else.’
‘How would you describe Barbie?’
‘A sweet, kind, fun, loyal, bossy when it comes to her career, anxiety-riddled woman I’d give my life for.’
‘Between working the ranch and trying to carve out a life with Barbie, how do you relax?’
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