Chapter 46
J.D. was dressed almost the same as Tanner.
His suit was black, though. Yes, they were both wearing jeans, but to me, it counted.
There was a moment as they both looked each other over when they completely forgot I was in the room, but I didn't mind.
Hell, the truth was, it made it easier for me to do my own gawking.
Because wow. Both of these men were fit enough to make those tight jeans work. They also had their hats, and that gave them just enough of a "bad boy" look to be incredibly sexy. Tanner was definitely the softer man, but J.D. was not trying to hide his appreciation, and that was hot in its own way.
But when they left, they both stopped to kiss me and make sure I still had something to do. Hell, I had to almost chase them out so they wouldn't miss their reservation! And while they didn't hold hands, I had a feeling they would before the night was done.
And that felt good.
I couldn't even explain why, but it did. I was just happy for them - both of them! And sure, maybe it wasn't me making them happy, but something about that part was nice too. It felt almost liberating to know I could still be a part of this without needing to be responsible for it all the time.
Maybe that was some holdover from the guys back home?
Maybe it was too much "girls should..." stuff.
I didn't know, but this thing we were doing, and the freedom that came with it?
It made me feel a little more like the bull rider I wanted to be, as if I really was expected to act exactly like the boys - but without any of the worries about how they'd get sick of my shit and bail.
But once I was sure they weren't coming back, I sent Jake a text, asking what time he was headed out. He replied within seconds, asking for my room number. I wasn't sure why he wanted that, but I gave it to him. It wasn't something I was trying to hide, after all.
So when the thump sounded at my door, I wasn't really surprised. When I opened it to find Jake looking cleaned up and casual on the other side? Ok, I had to do a double-take. Jake in his riding gear was nice. But this?
His jeans were dark indigo. His shirt was a deep maroon tee that fit real good.
His boots and hat were grey, and belatedly I realized his belt matched.
It looked like alligator or ostrich. I couldn't get a good enough look to tell what type of leather it was, but the sort that had a definite pattern to it.
"So," Jake said, stepping back, "can I give you a ride?"
"Like a gentleman?" I teased, making it clear I could see what he was doing.
"Cody," he chided as I grabbed my keycard and stepped into the hall, "I don't know how to break this to you. You might be a damned good bull rider, and you are definitely our equal in the Pbr, but you are still a woman, and my mother raised me right."
"Uh-huh..." I flashed him a smirk. "So you walk all your friends to the truck?"
"The female ones? Yes."
Oddly, that surprised me a bit. I'd just made a subtle hint that he'd been friend zoned already, and he'd rolled with it so easily. He wasn't offended. Nope, Jake was letting me know he was perfectly ok with being just friends, and combined with this feeling I already had? It felt liberating.
"So, who picks the bar for each city?" I asked as we reached the elevator.
He gestured for me to enter first, then moved in to press the button for the first floor.
"It's the one closest to the arena," he explained.
"If there are a few, then whichever plays country music.
If there's more than one of that? Well, then we just figure it out.
But Ty's got the bullfighters, and I know where they're headed.
"Sounds good to me," I assured him. "It's just that sometimes I feel like I've got this touring thing down, and then other times, I realize there's still so much I have yet to figure out."
"But it works for you," he said. "So does that tank.
" He gave me a little smirk as he made a production of looking me over.
"A girl who doesn't need to get all painted up to go out, but looks damned good when she does, and is not only as tough as the men here, but pretty too?
" He made a little noise. "I think you're putting the rest of us to shame. "
I rolled my eyes at him because he'd just accepted being friend zoned.
Now he was calling me pretty? Yeah, I was starting to think Jake was the sort of man who'd flirt with a wall if it helped him out.
And that helping? It didn't matter if it was breaking the ice, making people laugh, or hiding his own awkwardness.
Tanner had mentioned Jake was a shadow, the sort of man who didn't stand out. In a sea of bull riders, this flirty thing he did probably was expected. And yet, thinking about what Tanner had told me earlier brought up another question.
"So..." I paused, trying to figure out how to ask this gently. "How do you think the other riders are going to take things this weekend?"
"J.D. and Tanner?" he asked.
"Yeah."
"No fucking clue."
"But how are you taking it?" I pressed.
He scoffed. "Believe it or not, I've had gay friends. The bigger the city, the more normal it is for people to think nothing of it."
"And I came from a real small town," I pointed out.
"But you're still ok with it," he countered just as we reached the first floor.
"But hint about it." He gestured for me to go first, then set his hand in the middle of my back to guide me toward the door.
"Make it clear Tanner doesn't own you, or that you think two men making out is hot, or something. Doesn't even matter what."
Yeah, but there was one big problem with that. "I don't want to out them."
"You're not. It's more like setting the stage."
And then we were at his truck. Surprisingly, Jake opened the passenger door for me, waited for me to get in, closed my door, and then headed around to his side. Combined with the way he'd pressed his hand into my back? It made me feel something I wasn't used to: girly.
On the short drive to the latest bar, Jake told me about how he'd signed with Max.
I wasn't shocked about that, but when he told me Deviant already had an offer they wanted him to look over?
Well, I couldn't decide which one was leading the other, but Max and Deviant were starting to make a very nice pairing. I also told Jake to take it.
We'd just pulled into a parking space at the bar. He gave me a look before getting out, but waited until I joined him to share his thoughts.
"Of course I'm taking it. They're offering good money and asking very little. Hell, Cody, I even got to pick which variant of the logo works with my gear."
"They have options?" I asked, a little surprised at that.
Jake nodded. "Yeah, like five of them. One is rainbow, oddly enough."
"Huh," I said, because I hadn't expected that.
But before I could say more, we entered the bar and were spotted right away. "Cody!" someone bellowed cheerfully.
I scanned the crowd quickly, finding Jorge and Isaac up by the bar. "Matadors!" I called back
Which made at least a dozen cowboys also call out, "Matadors!"
"I need to buy you a round!" Jorge yelled.
"Oh, me too!" Isaac added.
And from beside them, a very handsome man adjusted his black hat as he smiled at me. "And one from me as well."
Damn, seeing Ty like that made my body try to react in two different ways simultaneously. First, my pulse picked up at the look of this man in that hat. That he was sitting by the bar was too similar to the way we'd first met. He had a beer resting before him, but this time his shirt was different.
And yet, I also wanted to turn right around and tell Jake to take me home. That was stupid. Just because I hadn't run into Ty at the bars since the blowup in Cheyenne didn't mean anything. We'd been civil with each other for weeks now. Friendly even.
But at these bars, he found the women.
Nope, I was not going to think about that. I was here to have a good time while my boyfriends did the same, alone, as an adorable couple. So, I marched my ass toward them, slapping a smile on my face and then convincing myself I was going to believe it.
"Ok," I said when I reached those three. "I want whiskey."
"Now that," Jake said from right behind me, "is my kind of woman."
"And you?" Ty asked Jake.
In reply, Jake lifted his keys. "I'll accept a non-alcoholic beer or a soda."
"Hey!" Ty barked at the bar tender. "Do you have beer with no alcohol?"
"Yep," they called out.
Ty just waved at Jake. "And a whiskey for the lady."
He was pouring those out when someone else called out my name. "Cody!" I turned in time to see Jackson Cloutier pushing through the press of bodies that were starting to fill this place. "Hey, I heard..." And he paused to smile at Jorge and Isaac. "Shit, you're here!"
"Yep," Isaac said.
Jackson looked back to me. "And Tanner?"
"Out doing his thing," I said.
Jackson nodded as if that made sense. "Well, I heard the B-team packed up and headed out yesterday."
"No shit?" Jorge asked. "Damn, that was fast."
"But does that mean anything?" Jackson pressed. "You two are here and they aren't?"
Jake reached over my shoulder to take his beer. "Buy them a drink and they might tell you," he taunted.
"Shit," Jackson muttered. "Guys, I would, but the strike..."
"We're good," Jorge assured him.
"Man, striking was more than enough - and completely unexpected," Isaac told him.
"It's why we came back," Jorge told him. Then he turned to me and offered a hand. "Dance with me, Cody? As the only safe woman here, let me have a little fun without getting in trouble with my wife?"
"Go," Jake encouraged.
So I tossed back my whiskey, then slapped my hand into Jorge's, letting him tow me to the back where a small section of hardwood was meant to be the dance floor. The music came from the speakers, not a live band, but that was fine. Even better, we weren't the only ones dancing.
There was only one problem with this plan: I still wasn't that great at dancing. I simply didn't have the experience, but I was more than willing to try. First, Jorge spun me around the floor. Then Isaac took his turn when the song changed, bribing me with one more whiskey. From Jake, he said.
After that came Jackson, then Kaleb. All of them came with a bribe, and while the drink changed, it was actually kinda nice. I sucked them back, then spun stupidly with yet another one of the men I now called friends.
Because for the first time, I wasn't hiding behind some guy. I was just me, accepted as a part of the Pbr by these men who should've been my competition. And yeah, I was actually having fun. More than I'd expected.
But sadly, after a few drinks, I had to pee!
Too much alcohol too fast did have that effect.
Excusing myself - and telling Gustavo he had to wait his turn - I headed toward the blurry little sign that said "Restrooms." And yep, they proved this was really a dive bar.
The girls in there were packing on their lipstick over filthy sinks, but it felt right.
No, it felt real.
That was my thought right up until I headed back toward the guys. When a hand grabbed my arm, I thought nothing of it. I simply offered a tipsy smile at the man I was sure had to be another bull rider - and stopped hard.
This cowboy was not one I knew. He was also bigger than the average bull rider, had his hat pulled down low, and his buckle did not have a bull on it.
"Hey, cutie," he tried. "My turn?"
"Nope," I said, turning away. "Sorry, my friends - "
But he pulled me back. "Hey!"
I turned around and braced up. "Get. Your. Hands. Off - "
"Her!" Jake snarled, appearing out of nowhere to put his body between this guy and me.
And then he shoved. Hard.