Eight
He found Rachel sharing a beer with some of the other riders outside the competitor’s trailer. Each of them tipped their hat in his direction before offering a calloused, hearty handshake and a thanks.
“That was some of the best riding I’ve done in years,” one man said, yellowed teeth sharp in a crooked grin. “And seen for that matter.” Several others agreed, raising their brown bottles toward Rachel, who flushed an attractive scarlet.
“You’ve got real skill, miss,” another rider chimed in, a mottled purple bruise blooming on one cheek. Eric remembered him vaguely as the rider who had caught the railing on his way down. He tried not to wince in sympathy.
“Anyone gives you trouble, you holler. We don’t let anyone mess with the only person who can out-ride us!” A rail-thin man who had made it almost a full five seconds called from inside the trailer, rubbing a freshly slung shoulder with his free hand as he stepped out to join them.
Thankfully, the announcer cut through the party, drawing the cowboys’ attention and saving Rachel from turning any redder. Barrel racing was next, and the group disbanded, several members wanting to refresh their drinks while a few others mentioned girlfriends or family members who were competing.
Eric waited for their multi-flanneled backs to be well out of sight before turning to Rachel.
She flung herself on him, wrapping her boots around his waist and covering his sweaty, dusty face in zealous kisses. “We did it! We really fucking did it! And for real! You were trying, I could tell you were. That was nothing like in the barn, whooo-ee!”
Eric gripped her tight denim ass and couldn’t help but squeeze, already growing hard at the press of her, blood zinging through him with adrenaline and relief.
“And it doesn’t even matter Gran found out,” Rachel paused her kissing onslaught to nudge her nose against his snout, flicking the ring mischievously.
“Roger found us arguing and told her that she might as well argue with a wall. That if I wanted to put my money into a ranch and it wasn’t hers, I’d just go buy someone else’s.
” She threw her head back, laughing with such abandon Eric couldn’t help swinging them in a joyful circle.
“And would you believe it?” Rachel continued, releasing a deep, relieved sigh. “It worked. She found me right after our ride and told me she’d have to eat her words but the farm was mine.”
“Where is she?” Eric peered over Rachel’s shoulder, suddenly worried about their moment being interrupted by yet another nosy spectator.
“She went home. Said she only came to keep me from killing myself and seeing that I was alive she could get out of this godforsaken place.”
“She’s going to be furious later.” Eric grinned up at Rachel, accepting the kiss she gave him.
“So fucking mad.” Rachel agreed, grinning against his mouth and deepening the kiss. He parted for her, greeting her tongue with his and breathing in her quiet sigh. This time, when the roaring crowd melted away, it wasn’t ringing in his ears—it was only Rachel.
He moved to her ear lobe, her neck, the tender place where her shoulder bone peeked up to greet his tongue, relishing every happy noise and groan she gave him.
“I need you,” she gasped, fumbling with his buckle in the same moment he pressed her against the side of the competitor’s trailer, leveraging the aluminum siding so he could free a hand.
His thick fingers tore easily through her buttons and he didn’t bother fully undressing her, simply shoving her bra down so he could suck the waiting, pebbled nipple.
She had him in her hands, working him in a rhythmic twist, when a sudden spike of heat slammed down his spine and into his cock.
“Rachel,” he groaned, pressing into her touch. She had his cock in one hand, the base of his right horn in the other and was working them both in similar but alternating rhythms. Pleasure zinged through him like atoms in a collider, threatening to melt him down completely in mere moments.
But he wasn’t going alone.
Hoisting Rachel higher so that she was forced to grip the base of his other horn, Eric pushed her legs over either shoulder, hauling her jeans down to her knees and lapping punishingly at her soaking cunt with his wide, flat tongue.
She arched against him, humping his mouth and spreading her juices all over his face but he didn’t care.
She smelled divine and tasted even better, like honey straight from the hive when the blossoms were freshest.
She worked the base of each horn like she was on a mission to ruin him before he could destroy her, and if he didn’t come soon, Eric was sure he’d black out. But just because this cowgirl had won the rodeo didn’t mean she owned the bull.
Swinging her away from the side of the trailer, leaving her dangling from his horns, Eric gripped Rachel by the hips and settled her on his engorged cock, her moans and gasping driving him harder and harder inside her.
“God, fuck, Eric,” she moaned, gripping his horns harder, clinging for dear life as she rode him like her life depended on it.
“I will never treat you like a breakable thing,” he gasped back, working her faster over his cock, feeling her clenching tighter and tighter as his own release rose higher. “But I will always love the way you come undone.”
With a final deep thrust and one last twist on his horns, both cowpokes came with a low groan. This time, Eric didn’t have to finish himself with his hand, pulling out just as the hot ropes of cum splashed over his stomach, Rachel’s exposed breasts, and down into the dirt around them.
She clung to him, heedless of their sticky, sweaty mess, releasing her grip on his horns. Shaking hands cradled his face, and she pressed a gentle kiss to each cheek before resting her head on his shoulder and sighing happily.
Careful to sidestep the puddle beneath them, Eric unseated Rachel before helping her down. He dusted her off as he had so many times before, while she adjusted her shirt before helping him back into his own pants.
The roaring crowd behind them signaled more excitement in the ring—yet another skilled set of hands guiding reins, cheating death, feigning fearlessness.
In the name of showmanship, yes, but something more.
A pride in the dedication it took to partner between man and nature, to find the mutually beneficial balance between what was asked and what was given.
There was nothing like it.
Rachel reached up and flicked Eric’s nose ring, grinning at him with swollen lips and tear-stained eyes.
“Alright, cowgirl?” he asked.
“Alright, cowman,” she answered.