29. Like a Rodeo
Chapter 29
Like a Rodeo
Asher
S he looks perfect in my passenger seat. Her feet are up on the seat, her back is leaning against the door. The sun is setting behind her, basking her in an orange glow. I can see why they call it the golden hour. Her lips are painted red, and fuck, that color would look good as a ring around my cock.
She brought a book with her, probably some other romance. She seems to really enjoy these, and her facial expressions make me laugh. Plus, I have to admit that I like to hear what’s happening.
We’re on the way to the roping, we have the horses loaded up in the trailer, and she hasn’t shut up about it since I asked her to go. We’ve been content with just background music and the sound the truck makes down the road, opting to not have much of a conversation. We haven’t talked any more about what happened the other day, although I know something was bothering her. I know something happened on her phone. I just wish she would tell me what’s up. She’ll tell me when she’s ready. At least, I hope she will.
As I go to take a sip of my water, she blurts out, “When you jack off, do you moan out loud?”
Water spews out of my nose as I choke on it.
“Do I do what?” I cough. This woman is going to be the death of me.
“Do you moan out loud when you jack off?”
“Uh, can I ask why?”
“This guy in this book is. I’m just curious if it’s fiction or if it’s real.” I can’t help but laugh at her. She is so na?ve about some stuff, I can’t help but give her a hard time.
“Was our little session not enough of an indicator?”
“Well I know you moaned then, but I didn’t know if that was for show.”
My brows shoot up. “Every fucking minute of that was real, first of all. Second, yes, I tend to be very vocal when I come.” Her face turns red at my confession.
“Hey.” I chuckle. “You asked.”
We go back to being quiet for the rest of the drive, which is only about forty-five minutes. When we get there, the arena lights are on, and there is a ton of action. The sun is just about done setting, and the fun is about to begin. I get parked and pull the horses out. I get all of the necessities for them set up so when we’re done, I can head out with her and not have to worry about taking care of stuff here. I get the horses saddled, and we head out to the warm-up pen. There are people throwing ropes, horses going in every direction, and I set off into my routine. She’s content just sitting on Rooster, watching and walking around here and there. I may be busy, but I keep her in my periphery no matter where I am. I don’t need some other guy thinking she’s available because she may not claim it, but she’s completely mine.
We hang around for a while, just riding around on the horses to keep them warmed up. We were one of the last ones to sign up, so we’re also one of the last ones to compete tonight. I like that better, though, less time to wait to see how we did against all the others.
We talk and laugh the entire time, it’s nice seeing her outside of the farm. We’ve only gotten this opportunity truly one other time, and it’s been a while. There’s no rhyme or reason to our conversations, just whatever pops in our heads becomes a topic. It’s easy with her, it doesn’t feel like there’s any stress or regulations about what we have to do.
Before I know it, it’s my turn to go and compete. My buddy and I make our way into the arena. The lights beat down onto the dirt below us, and the horses start doing their own dance. They get antsy and start bobbing, anticipating the rush of adrenaline that’s coming. I back my horse into the left box, and I look opposite to see my partner has done the same in the box on the other side. The steer shoot is right in between us, pointing straight. They set the rope, and I take a deep breath. One nod of my head, and we’re off. As soon as the timer starts, it’ll be go time.
I open my eyes and nod, the steer is released from his confines, and I swing the large loop above my head. I push Dom forward as I line him up for the perfect throw. I throw the loop, and as I see it circling the horns, I pull tighter and wrap it around the horn of my saddle. I keep watching behind me to make sure my partner can get the feet, and he does! We stop the horses, and the person waving the flag drops it, to show a catch. I look up at the time at 6.5 seconds! Holy fuck! The rope drops off the feet, and I follow along so the kid working the chutes can give me my rope back. I look over and see Esme beaming at me. Fuck, she’s gorgeous, and that look gives me another cocky boost. She looks proud of me.
After gathering everything, I make my way to her, and she leans over Rooster and plants a kiss on my lips. I’m so shocked I barely have time to register what is happening before she’s rambling on about how cool it was to watch and yada yada. I’m still processing the fact that she kissed me, in public, in front of whoever is watching this interaction, and she’s just rolling with it. Maybe she really does like me as much as I like her.
* * *
Another hour or so goes by before they finally decide to publish the results. We did well enough to bring home a check, and that’s a good day’s work. We make our way back to the trailer and untack the horses. We make sure they’re set before I decide to drop another bomb on her.
“I have a surprise,” I announce.
She turns around abruptly and gets that giddy smile plastered across her face.
“You do?!” she squeaks.
“Yep, but we gotta drive, so grab your blanket and shit and load up in the truck.”
She doesn’t wait for me to say anymore before she scrambles into the trailer to grab everything, and I can’t help but laugh at her excitement. She’s going to love this, I can just feel it.