10. Nick
Nick
T he rodeo grounds buzzed with the noise of cheering fans, crackling speakers filled with the muffled voices of rodeo announcers, and the unmistakable thud of hooves as they pounded against the dirt.
The sounds were as familiar to me as the hockey rink.
Farming, ranching and rodeoing were all part of the same family and I loved it here almost as much as I loved it on the ice.
With a smile on my face, I looked around at the cowboys and cowgirls with dirt-streaked faces and satisfied smiles.
Some were preparing for their event and others were fresh off a win; all of them were happy as hell to be here.
I was included in that and it had a little too much to do with the woman currently chatting with Will’s sister.
Shandra was a firebrand, a lively woman who didn’t look like your average cowgirl with her silky, golden hair and big blue eyes.
She looked more like a model than a woman who rode horses for a living, but she carried herself like a woman who wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty.
Shandra was all blue denim and grit as she laughed easily with Sonya, gesturing wildly while she explained something to Sonya, who was absolutely captivated.
Shandra and Sonya couldn’t have looked more different if they tried.
Sonya was a knockout in blue denim that hugged her every curve with knee-high riding boots that should’ve looked ridiculous among all the cowboy boots, but she wore them well.
An off-the-shoulder sweater showed off a red gingham bra strap and a strip of midriff.
She wore her hair down, the golden curls tumbled around her shoulders, catching the sunset every time she moved her head as if it existed just to make her more appealing.
Shandra tossed her head back and laughed, a move that sent her Stetson flying from her head, but it was Sonya who caught it before it hit the ground and handed it back with a smile.
The women were easy with each other, as if they’d been friends for more than thirty minutes.
When Will joined them with a wide smile, they made room for him and listened to whatever story he was sharing.
I snapped a photo with my phone before joining them with a hand to Sonya’s lower back. “Are you a rodeo expert now?”
Sonya’s smile was bright and her laugh was free and easy. “Not an expert but I understand the point of what’s happening now. I expect Shandra will be a coach when she hangs up her saddle.”
Shandra pointed at Sonya with a mock-glare. “Bite your tongue woman. I will never hang up my saddle.”
“Cowgirl for life,” she clarified with a laugh of her own.
“Damn straight.” Shandra glanced at her watch and sighed.
“Thank you for chatting with me,” Sonya began. “Mind if I get some photos before you win another ribbon?”
Shandra’s smile beamed bright. “Well, if you’re just gonna flatter me up like that, I can’t say no.
” With her hands on her hips and a toothy smile on her face, she posed for several photos alone, and then a few with her and Will wearing matching smirks filled with pride and mischief, before Sonya insisted on a few with all three of us.
“Thanks. Good luck out there!” Sonya stepped away, gaze trained on the phone as her fingers flew over the screen.
“Thunderhawks social media are about to look very rodeo-chic,” Will laughed as he wiped sweat from his brow.
Shandra’s brows dipped. “Is she always on duty like that?”
“Pretty much.” I shrugged, this time watching Sonya with something more than lust. There was admiration there and something too heavy to worry about at the rodeo.
She multitasked like it was second nature, documenting the moment and staying connected while keeping a bit of distance between her and her subjects.
That last part made me sad for her, but if it worked for her, who was I to judge? “She’s new on the job,” I explained.
“Like I can talk,” Shandra muttered. “Speaking of, I gotta go model some clean boots for one of my sponsors. See you suckers later.” She waved over her shoulder as she sauntered off, leaving me and Will alone.
“There’s a hottie who’s competing in the saddle bronc competition. I think I’ll go wish her luck.” Will wiggled his brows and gave me a shove. “Have fun with Coach Mac’s kid.”
His words should’ve been like a bucket of ice water over me heated body but it wasn’t. Sonya was her own woman and she was a bigger obstacle than Coach, at least at the moment. I walked up behind Sonya and leaned in close to whisper in her ear. “Seems like hockey is already taking over your life.”
She gasped, startled by the interruption before she sent me a smile over her shoulder before she finished typing.
“Exactly.” She spun to face me as she slipped her phone into her pocket.
“And I don’t want to spend my free time waiting until you’re done with hockey to have time for me. Even if it’s just for a few orgasms.”
My pulse spiked and heat raced through my veins at her words, spoken so casually as if she was talking about an extra slab of chocolate cake. My nostrils flared but my lips curled into a mischievous smile. “How many orgasms would make you wait?”
Her smile grew until it turned into a full-blown laugh. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” Playful Sonya was my favorite version of her so far. Her green eyes lit beautifully like glittering emeralds when she teased me.
I licked my lips and nodded as I leaned closer, nodding eagerly. “More than anything,” I answered with an unstoppable smile tugging at my mouth.
“One-track mind,” she muttered, shaking her head despite the smile on her full, pink painted lips. “Come on, we have to watch the finals.” She turned away from me but I caught up with her and grabbed her hand.
I waited for her to pull away but when she didn’t, I relaxed and we walked side by side until we arrived at the large arena where the final events would take place.
Standing right behind Sonya, I smiled at the way her hands curled around the seat in a white-knuckle grip as if she was invested in the outcome.
She gasped when Shandra weaved through a barrel so tight it looked like she might clip one, sighing heavily when she made it.
“Holy crap,” she whispered when the event was over and Shandra held her hat high in the air, a surefire sign she knew she’d kicked that event’s ass. “That was amazing.”
There was a beat of silence that was filled with the heavy weight of expectation while the racers and the whole damn crowd waited for her time to be posted. The first sign it had gone up was the immediate roar from the crowd around us. “First place,” I shouted. “She smoked it!”
“Good job, Shandra!” Sonya shouted at the top of her longs, so happy you’d think she won. “That was really intense,” she sighed and fanned her face. “Fun but I’m not sure my heart could handle that regularly.”
We shared a laugh and stood as the crowd slowly began to exit the stands. “I think that’s true of all sports, at least for sports fans.” Her ambivalence towards hockey didn’t seem to translate to other sports so maybe she just didn’t support a specific team or athlete.
“Maybe,” she conceded, searching for my hand with hers until she pressed her palm to mine. “I’ll cheer for whoever, most of the time both teams or athletes throughout an event.” She shrugged. “Maybe I just appreciate the spirit of competition.”
“You really are an odd one,” I whispered in her ear. “I really like that about you.”
Surprise colored her cheeks and heat flared in her eyes when she looked at me. “Put that charm away,” she whispered frantically. “Before you accidentally get it all over somebody else.”
I rolled my eyes and guided her towards the parking lot. “Come on. It’s been too many hours since my last meal.”
Sonya’s brows shot up. “It’s been like four hours,” she insisted.
I shrugged. “I said what I said. You’re not hungry?”
She flashed a teasing smile before she shrugged. “I could eat.”
A relieved growl left my lips, making her laugh. “Thank goodness woman or I might’ve been forced to stop crushing on you.” I wiggled my brows and helped her into my truck.
“You have a crush on me?”
I rested one hand on her thigh and squeezed gently. “Of course I do. Have you met you ?”
She rolled those green eyes skyward but she leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to my lips before relaxing into her seat with a sweet smile. “I told you to put that charm away.”
“Why would I do that when you like it so much?” I stole a quick kiss before closing the door and jogging around the car to slide behind the steering wheel.
“I don’t like it that much,” she finally said, breaking up the easy silence inside my truck.
My response was simple, a hearty, full-bellied laugh. “As long as you like it, we can work with the amount and the intensity.” I tapped the steering wheel in the silence, turning into the best fast food burger in town. “Kind of like orgasms.”
Sonya choked on a laugh before she smacked my arm with the back of her hand. “Don’t do that!” Her smile was so big and her cheeks were a beautiful shade of pink.
“Don’t make you laugh? I can’t help it that I’m a funny guy.” We ordered dinner—burgers, fries, pies and shakes—and got back on the road.
“Where are we going?”
I slid a gaze to the passenger seat. “Worried?”
She shook her head. “Curious.”
“It’s a surprise,” I answered, easily navigating the roads that would take us to our destination. “Question. How do you feel about surprises?”
Laughter exploded out of her lush mouth. “I think it’s too late to ask that question, don’t you?”
“Nope.” I shook my head, smiling at the interaction.
“You’ll like this surprise, I’m sure of it.
But that’s not an indicator of how you feel about surprises in general.
Like, are you a person who can’t enjoy a surprise because of anxiety or a person who wants to know desperately every second before, but you can still enjoy a good surprise? ”