‘Not sure you can handle it,’ I remarked, reaching out to pick up the heavy crate, only for him to gently move me aside and lift it himself, walking it over to Bailey at the wagon.
‘Try me,’ he challenged, ignoring Bailey as she laughed at us.
‘You two,’ she said, vaulting up into the wagon to pull the crate in. ‘She’s the match and you’re the kindling.’
‘Well, this here matchstick is gonna be my assistant for a minute,’ he winked, shrugging at my confusion as he announced to the guests that alongside having our campfire-brewed coffee, we were going to be running a roping competition.
‘Now, y’all are gonna be aiming for our wooden cow over there.’ He gestured to a crudely carved log cow, complete with long curved horns. ‘But Cole and I thought it might be more entertaining to demonstrate on two moving targets.’
Lottie suddenly looked up from her clearing, shaking her head as Cole approached, already circling the rope over his head.
‘Not a fucking chance,’ she said, glancing at me for a moment, catching the momentary tilt of my head to the left.
‘Now, what you want here is a nice smooth motion, just a gentle flick of the wrist,’ Jesse instructed, only half watching us as he also lifted his rope in the air.
‘Go,’ I shouted to Lottie, both of us bolting away from the serving tables towards the creek.
‘Fuuuck,’ she yelled, laughing as the rope landed around her, Cole letting go of his end to prevent her from tripping over.
As I turned to glance back at Jesse, his rope landed over me to raucous applause from the guests behind, the metalheads hollering their approval the loudest. He dropped it too, allowing me to step out before he came over, as Cole took charge of organizing the guests into teams.
‘Prettiest damn thing I ever had in my rope,’ he said, gathering it up again. ‘I didn’t hurt you, did I?’
I shook my head.
‘You likening me to a cow?’ I teased, holding his gaze for a moment. Then, before I could stop myself, I added, ‘But you don’t need a rope, you know.’
His whole expression changed, fingers tightening around the loops for a moment.
‘You can tell me to fuck off,’ he started slowly, watching me carefully. ‘But if you’re free August twenty-fourth, will you come with me to Cole’s brother’s wedding?’
It was leftfield enough to give me pause. I felt the weight of his stare, that same depth of sincerity as clear and urgent as the mountain current.
‘Your plus-one?’ I clarified, giving him a soft smile, a strange churn of nerves as he returned it.
‘My plus-one and then some,’ he whispered, tracing a finger along the neckline of my tank top. ‘But please, for both our sakes, no see-through tops. I’m not gonna fit a giant fucking boner in my good suit.’
I shrugged as he turned back to help Cole.
‘No guarantees, cowboy.’
He shook his head, still smiling as he approached the group.
It was almost enough to distract me from the undercurrent of anxiety ahead of the rodeo. On the ride back, with the very first stars puncturing the eastern sky, I ended up riding next to Cole.
‘You have a good time?’ he asked, striking me yet again with how such a giant bear of a man could have such a calm, kind vibe. His voice was gravelled and deep, blending effortlessly with the scenery around us as it faded into twilight.
‘Until I was openly compared to livestock, yes,’ I joked, receiving a throaty chuckle in response. ‘I have got a question, though, on the whole rodeo thing.’
He nodded, pushing Domino forward a little to keep in step with Penny.
‘Shoot,’ he said, tilting his head as I figured out how best to word it in my mind.
‘Is there any way . . .’ I began, then stopped, knowing how my question would come across. ‘Can Jesse be talked out of the whole bull riding thing? I know it’s his choice, I just . . . Can’t you earn decent money from roping? Or something else?’
Cole narrowed his eyes, looking out towards the mountains on our left.
‘I’m not sure he can,’ he said, sighing. Then, to my surprise, ‘Between us, I’m not a fan of it either – but that man is two things, sugar, and it’d help you to know what they are right now. One is stubborn. Once he’s landed on something and he wants it, ain’t nothing shaking him off, bulls included.’
