"It seems," Ty said, sure sounding like he was bragging, "that Wes here reallyhasbeen saving himself for marriage. At least for the partner he left back home." He slapped Wes's back playfully. "And the guy's cute, J.D. Probably notyourtype, Cody, but he's perfect for Wes."
"Where?" Cody asked Wes.
He pointed. "There. Standing on the railing by the first set of stairs."
"Oh, he is cute," she said. "I mean, a little dainty for me."
"Damn," I said, shifting over. "How long ya been married?"
"Almost two years," Wes said.
"Bi or gay?" I asked next.
"Gay," he admitted.
I nodded. "Well, we got your back. Ain't no need to hide that shit no more. Seems these guys? All the ones here who ain't riding? Yeah, you and I shoulda trusted 'em more. They're good ones."
"Starting to realize that," Wes agreed. "And no offense, but I'm still glad it was you testing the waters first. I'm not that brave."
"Naw, I got ya," I assured him. "Now go ride, bro." And I held up my fist.
He bumped his against it, but our bulls were making their way in. Wes's set was starting to go out. I hadn't been real sureabout this whole riding thing, since no one else was. It hadn't felt real fair to me, but that? Yeah, it kinda changed things.
Because today, my only job was to represent, and now I wasn't just representing myself.
But before they could walk away, I caught Ty's eye. "Thanks," I told him. "I mean, you shouldn't be outtin' no one like that, but yeah."
"Figured you needed to know you're not alone," he said, clasping my shoulder. "J.D.? I get you. Friends, right? I meant it then, and I fucking well mean it now."
Chapter 82
After Austin camea few more riders. Wes was one of them. He'd said he couldn't afford to play Ty's little game, but that didn't stop him from showing off. The moment his bull went out, J.D. was screaming, cheering him on. He also wasn't alone.
Ok, I may have yelled a bit too, but seeing Jake and Ty encouraging him? It got everyone else going. He rode until 5.8 seconds on the clock, then ended up slipping over the bull's head. Renato was up next, and that man? He had fun with it. Sadly, watching him try tothrowa ride? Yeah, I realized how good he really was. But at 7.7 seconds, the bull bucked so hard he finally hit the dirt.
After that was Jake. He was the last rider in his set, so I actually went to pull for him. He told me to lean in a little more so he could see down my shirt. It didn't matter that my protective vest was zipped up and it wouldn't happen. He still said it. Yeah, he also got bucked off at 2.1 seconds.
Then Cletus took over and we went to a commercial break. That was when the men who'd already ridden all started crowding around the last set of chutes. Jackson came over and held out his hand.
"Rope?" he demanded. "I'm pulling for you, Cody."
"Perfect," I said, handing him my pink thing.
But Jaxon - the American one - moved to J.D.'s chute. "Need a hand?" he asked.
"I want that shit tight," J.D. told him. Then he smiled. "And thanks."
"Yeah, we're good," Jaxon assured him. "I mean, having your..." He paused. "Is boyfriend the right word?"
"Yep," J.D. said. "Tanner's the boyfriend, Cody's the girlfriend, and the orgies are amazing."
Which completely broke any tension that might be remaining between them. "Well, your boyfriend saved my life," Jaxon said. "Least I can do is make sure you don't risk yours again."
I couldn't see that far down the line, but I was pretty sure Renato was pulling for Ty. Cletus was also working the fans a little differently tonight than usual. His jokes were still family friendly, but tonight he was making quite a few mentions about fairness, and judgments, and how country folks stuck together. It wasn't too obvious, but I couldn't be the only one who noticed.
Then we were a go. I saw Ty's bull come out of the chute, but didn't stick around to see how it went. He'd get bucked off. He'd already made that clear. Tonight, I was only competing against J.D. and Derek, and I wanted to make sure one of the "good guys" won.
At the chute beside me, Derek looked smug. I had a feeling he and Austin had something set up, but I didn't have the chance to worry about it. Not right now.
