“Jessie Hawkins, are youjealous?” I have a huge grin on my face that only serves to piss her off more.This is the best day ever.
She scoffs. “No. Absolutely not. You can sleep with whomever you want.”
“Who said anything about sleeping with people?”
“Yeah, sure. You’ve never slept with the smoking hot blonde who acts like she’s your best friend.”
I can’t stop myself. I laugh. So hard I can’t stop and when Jessie smacks my arm, I only laugh harder. “Jessie, baby, I—”
“Donotbaby me.”
“I have never slept with Emily, nor will I. We’refriends. Believe it or not, I am capable of having female friends.” Jessie doesn’t look convinced, but I can tell I have her attention. “I met Emily when she broke down on the side of the interstate. She was new to rodeo and didn’t have anyone to call for help. I gave her a ride and fixed her truck. We’ve been friends ever since.”
“Oh.”
“And since then, she’s dated two steer doggers and one calf roper. We have never been more than friends. Got it?”
She hums and nods but doesn’t reply. We resume our walk around, and she slowly relaxes, asking a few questions, but she mostly stays in her head, observing and absorbing everythingaround her. Her face is passive, so naturally I’m dying to know what she’s thinking.
By the time we approach the arena, I can’t take it anymore. “Well, what do you think?”
“Of what?”
I gesture around us. “Of all of it. The rodeo world.”
My world.
Her hazel eyes meet mine, and she tilts her head like she has to think about it. “I like it. It’s a different lifestyle, but I think it’s full of good people who care about each other. I couldn’t imagine living on the road, competing in a sport with so much danger, andnotbeing surrounded by these kinds of people. I understand why you love it so much.”
Without hesitation, I grab her elbow, pulling her to the side of the ambulance parked behind the chutes, and kiss her. Becausefuckrule number nine. This woman ismine,and I have to show her that. I have to find a way to keep her with me even when I’m gone. Because she doesn’t know it yet, but I’m already gone. She is gravity, and I’m in free fall, praying like hell she’ll catch me before I hit the ground.
She doesn’t hesitate to kiss me back, and that gives me a sense of peace. This isn’t just one-sided—she desires it as much as I do. With one hand on her waist and one cupping her cheek, I tilt her head back further and pull her possessively into me. She opens to me, deepening the kiss.
Someone whistles, causing Jessie to jerk back. The guy who checked her out earlier is laughing, leaning on the fence behind the chutes. “Damn, Bennett. Better be careful, that one looks fragile.”
Jessie’s tiny frame, standing less than five and a half feet, stiffens.
She’s about to lay into him, so I step in. “Yeah, fragile like a bomb. Now fuck off.”
He turns, still laughing.
Jessie relaxes but steps away from me. “Rule number nine,” she mumbles, crossing her arms. Her guard going right back up.
I rub the back of my neck and nod. I don’t want to argue here.
Knox jumps up and down, holding the top rail of the bucking chute. He’s talking to himself. We all have our own rituals before we climb onto bulls. Some are calm and sit above their bull before it’s their turn. Knox prefers to get hyped, get his blood pumping, and tell himself affirmations. Honestly, if it weren’t for the chaps and spurs, you’d think he was getting ready for an MMA fight.
Personally, I like to joke around and not think about it. Sure, I’ll jump around to get my body warmed up, but when I start thinking, I startoverthinking, so I keep things light and try to just have fun.
The guy before Knox is taking his wrap, which is Knox’s cue to get ready. He climbs in the chute and hands me the tail of his bull rope.
“You got this, Knox. Breathe and believe.” He hates that mantra, and that’s why I said it. He glowers up at me, and I smile. What can I say? I’ve missed giving my best friend shit.
I pull his rope up tight so he can warm up the rosin.
The guy before him rides his bull, and the crowd is pumped about it. I’m getting excited thinking about if I were in the chutes right now with an animated crowd like this.
Knox tells me to slack off while the arena crew moves over to his chute.
