We Ride On (Falling For The Bull Riders #4)

Chapter 1

Three weeks was a real long time. One of those weekends had been a little vacation, too. We'd spent our break between shows puttering across the country and enjoying various hotels while Cody and I healed up a bit. The shit part was that healing up had been the most I'd managed to accomplish.

I'd planned to be back on a bull by now, but a few broken ribs, a little surgery, and a torn ligament in my knee weren't nearly as scary as the wrecks I'd seen back in Boise.

So, when a real pretty pair of blue eyes had gotten all big and pouty at the idea, I'd caved.

That girl didn't even know the power she had over me, but she still used it.

I was pretty sure she was using it for good, too.

But when the hazel ones had hung on me the same way, looking all worried and shit? Yep, I was a goner. The moment Cody and Tanner teamed up, there weren't no way a man could resist that. Well, not this one at least.

So I'd bought a pair of front row seats for this weekend. They put me close enough to lean into the arena if I had to. Right up at the rail, next to the bull chutes, they'd let me see everything happening. Mostly, I could see the wrong damned colors down there on the dirt.

It was supposed to be red, yellow, and purple.

Instead, it was blue, green, and white. The alternate bullfighters had become the main team, but they weren't good enough.

Back in Boise, the wrecks had been fucking impressive.

The kind that had the crowd on its feet more often than not.

I was damned sick of hearing the announcer tell people to clap because the downed rider could hear 'em.

Fuck, that rider wasn't listenin' to nothing but the blood and pain pumping in his head.

He was prolly doing his best not to scream, because that shit hurt.

Fifteen hundred to two thousand pounds of pissed-off bovine hurt real bad when it slammed into a body.

Padding or not, riding bulls could end with the kind of pain only a little cowboying-up held in check.

But here in Greensboro, North Carolina, things weren't looking all that different.

With three rides out, we were on another pause while Doc ran into the arena to check the unconscious man in the dirt.

Beside me, Tanner was struggling not to bitch.

His little grunts and grumbles were cute, but for all the wrong reasons.

"They should've turned that bull sooner," he finally said.

"Yup," I agreed. "And now you know why I'm sittin' my ass right here."

"Shit," Tanner drawled. "If either one of you go down, I promise I won't be on this side of the rail for long. Not gonna just watch those idiots fuck up that bad."

"And you can't do shit," I reminded him. "We are gonna sit our asses here and not fuck up Cody's career, you get me?"

He huffed in annoyance, then looked over at the scoreboard. "She's ranked thirteenth, right?"

"Mhm. Means we got a bit."

"More if they keep stopping for the medical team." He leaned back in his chair and looked over, making his point.

But damn, that straw hat on his head made his pretty eyes even prettier.

The too-tight shirt he was wearing kept him from standing out, or looking like a displaced bullfighter.

It was black, thin, and I woulda said it'd look good on the floor of my room, but I'd have to be able to do something after he took it off. Right now, I couldn't.

Still, with my pretty pink shirt - which had been hard as fuck to find in men's sizes - I figured we were here to represent.

And while the cameras knew where we were sitting, the people behind us didn't think nothin' of no boys cheering on a girl riding bulls.

Dressed up like I was - or down, as the case might be - I wasn't getting a whole lot of fans asking me questions, and I was ok with that.

We'd had this whole bit down. That girl was my rookie.

When we'd gotten cornered back in Boise about watching the show, it had all come out so easy.

Tanner fawned over his girlfriend. I made a few comments about Lasso denim and the Fierce brand Cody was wearing.

I'd said it was good to know that if I couldn't be down there representing Tillman, the company who owned both brands, then at least she was doing a good job of making us all proud.

But this? I leaned in a bit, letting my shoulder brush up against Tanner's. So far as I cared, this was a date. Me and my boyfriend were here to watch our girlfriend ride. Yep, there was something all nice and normal about that. There was also one big fucking problem.

"Max said the contracts are finally secure," I said softly. "It took a little longer than expected, but he says there's no way this can fuck me up now."

Tanner looked over and the cutest smile curled his lips. "Yeah? Because we both know they're not letting me come back."

"Fuck that," I grumbled. "Naw, we need ya back."

"Gonna wait until next year with me?" Tanner asked.

Thrusting out my lower lip, I shook my head. "Nope. My guy's talking to Cody's guys, and somehow we're gonna figure it out, ok?"

"How?" Tanner asked.

I shrugged. "Dunno, but that's why I got Max."

Tanner actually chuckled at that. "Yeah, ok. I like the man. He's good to Cody, too. There's just one thing I don't get. Isn't he your Tillman rep?"

"Yep," I agreed. "But Max? Naw, he ain't loyal to a brand. He's loyal to his people. Told him he needs to start a company of reps for the riders. You know, like how singers have managers and shit. Give us someone to call who can handle all the bullshit on the backside."

"And?" Tanner asked, sounding almost excited about it.

"And he likes the idea, but says he's gotta worry about our shit first, because he ain't leaving me hanging." I flicked my brows up at Tanner. "And he means getting your ass back out there."

"Good luck," Tanner grumbled. "Man, J.D., we both know it's not going to be that easy. I also wouldn't change a damned thing. Just real hard to come out when we're not in the spotlight."

"I'm riding in Nashville," I promised. "My mama's gonna have something to be proud of."

"I thought she didn't watch the shows."

I just gave him my crazy grin. "Normally, no, but she always comes to Nashville. It's tradition now, and my mama is gonna see her boy on that bullpen at the end. If I'm lucky, Isabella will come too."

"Your little sister, right?"

I nodded, pleased he really had been paying attention to me. Well, or at least to the ink on my body, but that counted. I'd let him trace those words a few times, and not just to make sure he knew my mama and sister's names. Naw, just because I liked him touchin' me.

Or her.

Or us.

"What?" Tanner asked, making me realize I was starting to smile all dumb-like.

"Oh, was just thinkin' about how you learned their names." I let my eyes flick over his body, but a sudden burst of intense music made both of us forget all about that talk.

Our heads snapped up, our eyes hit the chutes, and our bodies tensed.

A big yellow-and-white bull came out hard.

The boy on its back had his chin tucked real nice and pretty, and his arm was waving hard.

I clenched as he leaned back too far, but then he caught himself and, using his free arm, pulled himself back up.

Then the bull switched to spin the other way. That boy wobbled real bad, but he was sticking. His legs were down, hanging on. Yeah, that was a Cody trick, which meant he'd been listening to the girl outscoring his ass.

I jerked my chin that way. "I think Cody might be someone's mentor."

"That Jackson up there? The Canadian one?"

"Yep," I agreed, leaning forward a bit. "I think he's gonna stick all eight."

"And that's Pumpkin Spice," Tanner said. "That bull likes to put his head into the riders."

"Fuck."

The buzzer went off, proving me right, and we both stood.

We couldn't help it. Like we were sharing a mind, Tanner and I pushed over to the rail, hanging on to it for a little support.

The boy on the bull pulled at the tail of his rope to get free.

The bull kept bucking, tossing Jackson up the moment his rope was slack - and then he crashed down into the dirt.

"Run!" Tanner yelled.

Jackson's head snapped up, proving he'd heard.

Shoving a hand into the dirt, he pushed off and started running, but the bull had seen him, and it wasn't one of the little ones.

When three-quarters of a ton of bovine came charging, it was an impressive sight, and the thing was behind this boy so he couldn't watch his own back.

"Left!" Tanner barked out.

Jackson juked like some damned football player, spinning off to the side as Pumpkin Spice flew past. The kid didn't give the bull a chance to turn back either. Naw, that boy sprinted again, making a wild leap up the wall right in front of us.

I reached, intending to pull him over, but Tanner was faster and stronger. My boyfriend hooked a hand on the guy's belt, his other on Jackson's vest, and pulled. I managed to scoop his feet, getting them over the rail real fast, just as the bull slammed into the wall, making all of us stumble back.

"Fuck me," Jackson breathed as he pulled off his helmet. "Damn, Tanner, I fucking miss you!" Then he leaned in and slapped Tanner's back nice and hard. Next, he jerked his chin at me. "Ribs still fucked?"

"Yeah, a bit," I admitted. "Just be glad I wasn't the one trying to pull, cuz I can't."

"But you're still walking," he reminded me. "And there's a real cute blonde back there talking about how proud she is of you for healing up." He winked, then turned to wave at the cameras as his scores were called out.

Tanner and I stepped back, trying to get out of the shot that was up on the big screen, but it wasn't enough. Over by the chutes, a whole crew of cowboys started cheering. It was enough to make Jackson chuckle.

"Pretty sure that's not for me," he told Tanner, and then jumped back over the rail so he could retrieve his rope.

"Hey!" I barked. "Don't let them give you no shit, rookie!"

"Yes, sir!" he called back before turning to the bullfighters who were milling about, looking a little lost. "Where's my rope?"

"Where'd you leave it?" the guy in white snapped.

"On the bull," Jackson said. "You're the ones who're supposed to be watching that, and if you can't even pick it up, can you at least point me to it?"

The three idiots looked confused, as if they had no damned clue what he was talking about. Tanner sighed and shook his head, but Jackson saw his gear. One of the chute attendants had picked it up.

"This is a fucking mess," Tanner grumbled.

"Yep," I said, leaning over the railing with my forearms holding me up.

Tanner joined me, matching my posture. Like this, we looked like nothing more than a pair of cowboys wanting a good view. It also moved us away from the fans sitting around us, giving us a little privacy.

"You know," I said, "if I come out, ain't gonna be real hard to figure out this shit we're doing."

"Nope," Tanner agreed. "I'm good with it, though. So's Cody."

"Yeah, but - "

He gave me a scathing look that had my mouth shutting real fast. "J.D.

," he said, "listen to me. I'm done hiding it.

I'm done being ashamed of it. I didn't say anything before because I didn't want to deal with my parents, but Austin took that out of my hands.

I also got a damned good dad in the process, and I'm ok with that. "

"Well, yeah..." I tried.

He murmured, cutting me off. "No, you're not listening. I've got an amazing man beside me, a phenomenal girl with me, and her old man keeps calling me 'son.' Why wouldn't I want to do this?"

"Because 'this' is why the Pbr has you sitting right here, not out there!" I hissed, doing my best to keep my voice down. "If you make it clear you're straight, Cody'd have the bullfighters she needs."

He shook his head. "Sometimes, it's not about what she needs, J.D. Sometimes, we get to need shit too. And me? I need this. If I have to go work in a fucking mailroom? Yeah, I'll do it, because as much as I like that girl, I happen to like someone else just as much."

Feeling my lips curl, I glanced down at the dirt by the wall. "You used another L-word before."

"And she hasn't."

"She will," I assured him. "Tanner, she's workin' up to it, and I'm pretty damned sure she's right there, so she will."

"Don't rush her," he warned.

"Naw." I shook my head, proving I had no intention of that. "I'm just sayin' she's real damned close, but me?" I reached up to scrub at my mouth. "I could say it."

His eyes narrowed as he tried to read between the lines. "About her?"

"Not just her."

His gaze snapped to mine so fucking fast. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," I said, feeling my damned-fool face getting warm. "Fuck. See, this is why I wanna come out, so I don't need to feel like I'm doing some double talk."

Tanner leaned in a little more. "Well, so you know, this isn't a fling for me.

This isn't a little fun, an itch that needs to be scratched, or anything else.

See, I have a real weakness for men who have no problem with stepping back so they can lift someone up - even if it's not me who's getting the lift. "

"Her?"

"Mhm," he agreed. "And yeah, I'm getting all mushy about her. Fuck, but she's exactly the kind of woman I didn't think I'd ever find."

"The kind you love?" I pressed.

"Yeah," he breathed, those hazel eyes of his locked right on mine. "And she's just like you, J.D. Kinda why I feel the same."

Fuck, but now my chest ached for a whole different reason. This time, it wasn't my ribs healing. Nope, I was pretty sure that was a punch right to the heart. And deep inside me, I felt the fucker pound like it had just gotten the medicine it needed.

"Same," I breathed. "Yeah, Tanner. Me too."

His smile proved he knew exactly what I meant.