Chapter Six #2
Shaun shrugged. “For reasons none of us can understand, she seems to like you. Maybe she can see something promising beyond that decrepit, ancient exterior of yours.”
Jason playfully punched Shaun on the arm.
“I’d better warn her you’re a man given to violent tendencies.
” Shaun feigned injury and rubbed his bicep.
“According to Lisa and Brylee, she talks about you all the time, and her face lights up when you walk into a room. Uncle Galen said she asked a lot of questions when she was at the ranch, like she wanted to get to know more about you. Pops claims she is besotted with you, so there you go. Take the dating advice of an octogenarian and quit wasting time.”
Jason grinned and opened the door. “Maybe I will,” he said, then walked around the pickup and waved at Lainey, wondering what he would do if she had no interest in a relationship with him.
Now that he had gotten to know her, it seemed impossible to forget about Lainey Collins.
The final day of the rodeo, Jason could hardly contain his amusement when Cooper James arranged what he referred to as a chip chucking contest to take place in the arena after the team-roping ended but before the saddle bronc competition began.
“Where did he get this grand idea?” Jason asked as he and Shaun sat on their horses just inside the gate, watching as a group of half a dozen women walked into the arena.
Lainey was one of the contestants and didn’t look as wary as she probably should have, considering some of Cooper’s past shenanigans.
Cooper’s little boy, Alex, went from one contestant to another with a box of latex gloves. The women pulled them on, although they appeared confused as to the reason.
Lainey looked amused as she pulled on a purple glove and snapped it.
Jason took in the sight of her, golden hair gleaming in the sunlight.
She wore a teal-colored blouse with a tone-on- tone pattern that looked like tooled leather, a pair of dark blue jeans, and the brown cowboy boots she’d worn to every rodeo.
A silver necklace with a small turquoise cross encircled her neck, while a wide silver cuff bracelet she’d picked up yesterday at a vendor booth rested on her left wrist.
No one looking into the arena would have any idea she was new to the world of rodeo. She looked the part of a seasoned cowgirl.
Jason glanced over the other contestants.
Cooper had somehow talked the wife of the rodeo board chairman into competing as well as one of the breakaway ropers.
There was a teenage girl with a face so red, Jason assumed she was either incredibly shy or mortified to be out there.
Cobie Quinn, the reporter for All Things Rodeo, was also in the lineup.
Her cameraman stood behind Cooper, ready to capture the action on film.
The sixth contestant was a woman in her thirties wearing a shirt cut so low and a skirt that rode up so high, she didn’t leave much to the imagination.
She minced her way across the arena in a pair of fringed booties with stiletto heels that were ridiculous to wear at a rodeo.
“Cooper! What are you doing down there with those women?” the announcer asked in his booming voice.
“We’re fixin’ to have us a competition,” Cooper said in an exaggerated drawl. Jason knew for a fact that the rodeo barrelman had grown up on his grandfather’s ranch south of Portland, not in the heart of Texas.
“Is that so? What kind of competition, Coop? I don’t see crazy costumes or animals running wild. There aren’t any dance tunes on cue, or gallons of Gatorade to drink,” the announcer said, hinting at some of Cooper’s past contests.
Cooper glared up at the announcer’s booth. “We’re trying out something new. These ladies are my inaugural participants in a chip chucking competition.”
“Chip chucking?” the announcer asked. “Are they flicking potato chips across a table?”
“No! We’re going to see how far they can throw a cow patty, hence the title of chip chucking. Cow chips.”
The women had various reactions to Cooper’s declaration, from a disgusted, nose-snarled look from the woman in stilettos to an exaggerated eye-roll from the wife of the rodeo board chairman, as though she should have expected as much.
Jason didn’t miss the “help me” expression on Lainey’s face as she turned her gaze in his direction.
He smiled and waved at her, wondering how Cooper had landed on such an unusual idea for the competition and why on earth he’d chosen women to participate.
Most of the men Coop typically rounded up for such nonsense would have thrown a cow pie and not thought twice about it, but the gal in the high-heeled boots was starting to look a little green around the gills.
When Billy Clark, one of the Rockin’ K bullfighters, came into the arena carrying a bucket full of cow chips, Jason thought it could have been full of venomous vipers for the way the female in the stupid shoes acted when it was her turn to pull one out of the bucket.
The cow pies had dried until they were hard and wouldn’t stink. In fact, those dried-up pieces of manure were all that had kept some pioneers from freezing when they’d had nothing else to burn to keep warm back in the harsh days of settling the West.
Lainey took a cow chip from the bucket, holding it as though she studied it from every angle, then focused her attention on Cooper as he explained the rules of his game.
It was simple. Whoever threw their cow chip the farthest won.
The prize was a Lasso Eight gift certificate.
Jason liked Lasso Eight clothing for its durability first and style second.
Shaun and Brylee and their kids modeled for the company from time to time and earned good money doing it.
They always came home from a photo shoot with a pile of new clothes.
Jason’s mouth went dry, thinking of Lainey modeling outfits in one of the Lasso Eight ads. She’d be perfect for it, especially their retro line of fashions.
Cooper got the women lined up to toss the cow chips, and they each took a turn throwing them.
The twit in the high-heeled booties shrieked like banshees were attacking her when she started to toss her cow pie.
A chunk had broken off and fallen down the deep V of her blouse.
Thankfully, before she turned the rodeo into an X-rated event by ripping off her clothes, she fainted right where she stood.
Cooper and Billy watched her fall and appeared to have a silent argument over who was going to help her up.
Since she was the last to compete, the other women circled around her. Lainey lifted the woman’s head out of the dirt. The breakaway roper fanned her hat in front of the woman’s face, while the rodeo board chairman’s wife yelled for someone to bring a bottle of cold water.
It didn’t take long to revive her, or for one of the rodeo volunteers to assist her into a side-by-side he’d brought into the arena and drive her out of view.
“Our winner with the longest cow chip chuck is Lainey Collins!” Cooper proclaimed, lifting Lainey’s hand in the air as the crowd applauded. He gave her an envelope with the gift certificate, then the women walked out of the arena.
Jason wasn’t surprised at all when Lainey slipped the envelope to the teen girl. The young woman gave Lainey a hug before she raced through the gate, looking delighted by the unexpected gift.
When Lainey walked past him, Jason tipped his hat to her and winked. Her cheeks turned pink, but she gave him a wide smile.
Later that night, they settled onto a log at one of the small fire rings that were burning at the edge of the gravel parking area. A sliver of moon hung in the sky, and the air was chilly for a summer night.
Earlier, when they’d joined their friends for a potluck dinner, Lainey had changed into a bright blue dress that illuminated her eyes and wore a cowboy hat with her boots. It had been warm and pleasant then, but now, it felt more like early spring than summer.
From the way Lainey kept rubbing her hands over her arms, he knew she was cold, but he wasn’t ready to say good night. Not yet.
“I’ll be right back. Don’t run off,” he said, and raced to the trailer where he shrugged into a red and black plaid insulated shirt and grabbed a red blanket and a fleece scarf.
In no time, he was back at the campfire with Lainey.
He handed her the scarf. As she wrapped it around her neck, he draped the blanket around her, then regained his seat on the log.
“I didn’t expect it to be so cool this evening. The day was hot,” Lainey observed as she scooted a little closer.
“It was warm today, but the elevation is high enough, the nights can get downright uncomfortable.” He slid his arm around her, drawing her close to him, surprised no one else came over to share their campfire.
He’d intentionally chosen the one at the end of the parking lot, set just far enough away where no one could hear their conversations, but close enough so Lainey wouldn’t feel isolated.
They remained silent for a while, watching the flames dance whenever Jason fed more wood into the fire.
Finally, he broke the silence. “It was nice what you did today, giving the girl the gift certificate. Cooper said her family has six kids and more love than money.”
Lainey smiled. “She seemed so happy to get it. I was pleased to give it to her. I was shocked, though, that I threw my cowpie the farthest.”
“You done good, Gypsy girl.” Jason bumped his shoulder against Lainey’s, making her laugh.
They spoke about the rodeo, the people they’d met, and the photographs Lainey had taken for her new book. She’d spent two days following Cooper, his wife, Paige, and their son, Alex.
“Paige is amazing, and so business savvy. She told me if I need help with public relations for this book, to let her know. I might take her up on it.”