We all head for the rodeo pen at the back of the property with Blake and Chase making a bet on how long I can stay on Prince this time.
“You haven’t competed much this year,” Blake says. “Prince isn’t like riding your Harley, you know.”
Luke chuckles.
“I can still ride,” I say. “Don’t underestimate me.”
Bronc riding is definitely dangerous, but I took to it as a teenager, and I’ve competed in a bunch of local rodeos. Despite the time it takes me away from ranch work, my dad doesn’t mind because it’s free advertising for Wild Ranch. We take good care of our broncs, and once they’re done with the rodeo, they live peacefully into old age on our ranch. Prince is still in his prime, and he’s my favorite bronc to ride.
When we reach the pen, I find the ranch hand was just about to turn him out into the field for the night.
“Just one ride,” I tell him.
Ty and Jesse help me onto Prince, and the bronc is raring to go. I slide my hand into the rigging, all while the gate’s still locked.
I’m concentrating on what I’m about to do because, as much as I’m a casual rodeo guy, riding a bronc and staying healthy is no joke. It requires all my focus. One look at Luke’s scar makes me never forget how easily one second can go wrong in a rodeo ring.
“Hey,” Blake says quietly to me.
I glance down at him. “Yeah?”
“Your girl’s here.”
I look over the gate.
Macey’s leaning over the top rail of the fence. Her dark hair is loose and flowing around her flushed face. Her whiskey-colored eyes are focused on me, and I can just make out the way her pink lips are half-parted in anticipation.
She’s so beautiful my chest aches.
“She’s not mine,” I say automatically.
“Maybe not, but she’s only got eyes for you,” Luke says from my other side.
I don’t tell him how that fact changes nothing between us.
Macey Henwood isn’t mine. She’s a wild mare who doesn’t belong to anyone.
But right now, I’ve got her full attention. So…I’m going to make sure I show her one hell of a ride.
