Falling For A Cowboy (17 page)

He turned the faucet to cold.

Awkward as the morning had been,
Clay had
insisted on
tak
ing
her to breakfast at the B
uttercup
Café
. He
’
d kept the conversation light, had
asked her a lot of questions about
Sweet Water Ranch
, and then they
’
d gone
their separate ways
. Though he
’
d
promis
ed
to stop by
the beer stand
after his ride,
she
’
d told him he shouldn
’
t feel obligated
.
She
’
d had mixed feelings all day about whether she wanted him to stop by or not
.
Life would be emptier if he didn
’
t, more
complicated
if he did.

She hadn
’
t expected to lament
the
decision
she
’
d made
last night
.
After all, she
’
d taken the high road, as it were
.
But in the parking lot after breakfast, when she watched him walk away
,
she
’
d never felt more alone. Regret over what she
’
d
missed
wore on her
all day
.

At the arena, s
he
’
d
listened to every word as
Adam
Greene
, the
announcer
,
said
Clay
’
s
name and called the ride
.
Her heart had been in her throat, the old fear gripping her tight as she listened to the
commentary
and tried to
decipher
the sounds of the crowd
.

When the thunderous roar had drown
ed
out
Adam
’
s
voiceover
,
she
’
d
kn
o
w
n
something good had
happened
.
She
’
d let out the breath she
’
d been holding and scrambled to the opening just in time to see him dust his hat against his
jean-clad
leg and hold up a hand
to shade his eyes
.
H
e
searched the
rim
and
,
even from a distance
,
she could tell when he saw her
.
He gave an extra hat wave
to her
before settling it on his head.
He
’
d just scored an arena record-breaking ninety-one on a
bronc
named Contrary Mary
. Her stomach
had
tied in knots.

A half-hour later
, the Saturday evening
crowd had emptied the stands and was
heading past her
for their cars. Kids clung to the hands of
their
parents and tried to keep
pace
.
Older people walked near the arena wall as if it would hold them up should they need it.

Clay stood before her, hands
fisted
on
his
hip
s
.
“
So…
Doug Morgan
?
He wouldn
’
t be your father would he?
”

She handed him a drink
, her pulse beating a
tattoo
.
It was o
n the house
.
Big
John
’
s rules.
Any record
-
breaker g
ot
a free be
e
r
.
Clay
’
s lips sipped the brew, lips that had held her captive only last night
.

Rico
had already shuttered his booth
though t
he heavy odor of fried
grease
still hung in the air. S
he began to empty the register
’
s contents into the green zippered bag
.
Anything to keep busy.

“
I asked you a question
.
”
H
is voice
grated like
rocks tumbling in a
rolli
ng wheel.

“
Yes,
”
s
he said
,
the sound
more clipped than she
’
d
intended
.
She didn
’
t
want
to discuss her father, or the
score
,
or
Clay
’
s
besting it
,
but from the look in his eye
,
she doubted she
’
d get her wish.
She slammed the cash drawer shut and tucked the bag in the waistband of her jeans
.

“
Your father was
the
saddle
bronc
rider?
”
There was incredulity in his
tone
.

She nodded.
Grabbing a damp rag, she began to
wipe down the counter.

He pushed back his hat and stood, feet apart, staring at her like she
’
d grown two heads
.

“
I
’
m sorry
,
then
,
that I broke his record
, Dusty
.
”
His voice
had gone
soft.

“
I
’
m not.
”
And that was the truth
.
“
The day he set that record was the day he decided to rodeo for
a living
,
”
she said scrubbing at a non-existent stain
.
“
He was on the road to the NFR
for the next twelve years.
”
She
threw the rag under the counter
and took a deep breath
.
Clay wasn
’
t her father and he
’
d done nothing wrong.
Heck, she wasn
’
t sure
,
anymore
,
that her father had.
Stepping around to the outside of the stand, she brushed by
him
and reached for
a
metal
handle. The edge of the security grate hit the counter with a
cl
ang
.
She fumbled in her pocket for the key.

“
Y
ou
had
issues with your daddy
rodeoing
?
Is that why you
’
ve been
walling
me
out
?
”

She locked the stand and faced him.
“
I haven
’
t been
walling you out
.
”
Not much.

“
Hell you haven
’
t. You
’
d think you
’
d have told me your daddy was a
bronc
rider.
”

“
Why? Wh
y
would it matter to you
?
And he rode bulls too
.
Hell, he rode whatever moved if he thought
he
could make some money.
”

“
I think the information would be of interest to the
bronc
rider who
’
s courting you.
”
He emptied the cup and threw it in the nearby trash.

She blinked.
Her heart thudded loud against her chest.
“
Courting me? You
’
re courting me?
”

“
Jesse said I wouldn
’
t be good at it and I must not be if you don
’
t even know that
’
s what I
’
ve
been trying to do.
”
He flung his hands out as if he was exasperated.
“
Despite your thinking all I want is
to
get in your pants, which I
wo
n
’
t deny, I
’
ve
also
been trying to court you
.
You know,
get to know you
.
Like a normal guy.
”

She couldn
’
t help
the
smile.
It was such an old-fashioned way to say it.

A few stragglers wandered
past
on their way to the parking lot
, the
i
r voices echoing in the walkway
.
She just had to drop the money off at Big
John
’
s and she was done for the night.
And Clay
c
ould be
well
on his way
back home
.
The thought wasn
’
t a happy one
.
The way her heart jerked and her pulse sped up and her hands went all sweaty around him, maybe she
’
d already fallen for him
.

“
Now that you broke the record,
are
you going to do the circuit?
”
S
he slid the key back
into her pocket and held her breath.

“
I
’
m h
ere to pick up some extra money,
”
he
said
.
“
I
’
m not a
bronc
rider by trade and even
after
breaking your daddy
’
s record, I
’
m not about to become one
.
It
’
s a hard life. Harder than what I do.
”

He
reached for her.
She felt the pull like it was some magnetic force.
She didn
’
t want to fight it anymore. It didn
’
t matter whether he
rodeoed
or
cowboyed
or drove a truck. She
’
d been struggling against demons that no longer seemed to matter.

One look at Clay
’
s
hand
outstretched
in
invitation
along with
the
silent plea on his face
, and her
boots
were clicking on the concrete as
she went to him.
His chest was solid, his arms strong as
he pressed her
to
him
.
The heat of his body felt good in the mild
chill
of the night air.

His hands moved up her back in a warm caress.
“
I want to celebrate my win
.
Tonight
.
W
ith you.
”
His hot breath teased her skin.