Page 76 of Firefly Embers

After a hundred extrications of Daisy June’s, as I’d learned her name was, hand from my dick and five excruciating minutes, the electronic lock on the door whirred and unlatched with a click.

I watched the woman’s eyebrows furrow in confusion as she tried to put the pieces together of who might be entering my room, especially someone who so clearly had a key.

“Babe, I know I’m not supposed to see you the day before the wedding, but—What the FUCK!”

Ray’s screech as she entered the room had Daisy June scrambling off the bed, grabbing for any item of clothing she could find scattered across the floor. She was thankfully in her underwear and a T-shirt of mine that barely covered her tits and ass as she gathered her belongings.

“You shitbag!” she screamed at me, tossing one of the pillows that had fallen off the bed in my direction. “You’re married?!”

“Technically engaged?” I asked, looking in Ray’s direction for confirmation. She gave me a sly nod as she struggled to hold in her laughter, watching the woman fumble around on the floor.

“Fuck you!” Daisy June added and turned toward Ray in womanly solidarity. “Good luck, honey. He wasn’t that great of a fuck anyway,” she spat as she stormed from the room, slamming the door behind her.

As soon as the door shut, both of us burst into hysterical laughter. I groaned, gripping my head and falling back on the pillows as the throbbing pain bloomed behind my eyes.

Ray walked over and flopped herself down on the bed beside me, a similar wince escaping her lips from the pounding in her own skull.

“So, what time’s the wedding?” I joked, only to be met with the plush thud of a pillow as it whacked me directly in the face.

WADE

My pulse thundered with excitement as I entered the Thomas and Mack Center for the start of the ten-day-long rodeo event. The smell of the pungent, wet dirt of the arena wafted through the air like a familiar perfume.

I stopped right outside the grandstands, closing my eyes and relishing ‌the feeling of being back here after such a long hiatus. It was like being greeted by an old friend.

There were days I missed the rodeo: the adrenaline coursing through your system as you wait for your time to shine, the camaraderie, the thrill of a new buckle added to your stash, the drinking, smoking, and fucking.

It was an aphrodisiac. But that life was behind me, and I wouldn’t change things if I could. I was happy sitting beside the love of my life, watching one of my riders compete in the biggest event of their career and possibly their life.

Ray’s warm hand landed on my forearm, and I opened my eyes with an easy smile.

“You okay?” she asked softly, a concerned look brushing across her features. I took her hand gently in mine and squeezed three times as I pulled her toward me and pressed a tender kiss to her forehead.

“Yeah, Sunshine. Never better.” I breathed against her skin.

My phone buzzed in my pocket with a text, and I pulled it out, thumbing it open to read the message.

Sterling: BR up 1. IC riding 3.

I laughed at his inability to type out a full sentence, but I knew exactly what he was trying to say.

“Barrel racers are up first. Izzy’s riding third,” I relayed to Ray as we scoured the crowd for the rest of our crew. Max and Stella had wandered off to check out some of the food vendors before the event started.

Ray’s arms wrapped around my waist as she settled herself into my embrace. I could feel the nervous energy radiating from her. It was one thing to experience the rodeo as a best friend. It was another thing to have a family member competing.

Even though barrel racing was generally safe compared to some of the other rodeo events, riders and their horses were still pushed to their limits as they raced for the best time.

Anything could go wrong at any minute, and I just hoped that at the end of the day, Izzy and Oakley had trained enough to score decently and come home unscathed.

“You nervous?” I asked, running my hands up and down Ray’s back.

“Yeah,” she whispered. “I just worry. That’s my baby sister out there, and as much as I trust Oakley, I can’t help this gut feeling that something’s off.”

She shook her head as if she were being ridiculous, and I gripped her chin between my thumb and index finger, holding her attention.

“Do you want me to go down and check on her? I will if it will make you feel better,” I offered, genuinely concerned about anxiety radiating off her.

“No, I’m sure she’s fine. Sterling would have said something if she seemed off, right?”