Good buck, her honey badger said approvingly when he finally pulled back, this time nipping at her lip as he did so.

Fuck, that was hot. If he fucked as good as he kissed, maybe he wasn’t just bragging.

Chapter

Three

THOR

After a kiss hot enough to make his cock try to push its way out of his jeans through sheer force, Thor knew he had to back off, or he’d end up dragging Debbie off to his trailernowand using up all the energy he had built up before his event even started. He would have never thought he’d even be tempted to do such a thing.

Womenalwayscame second to competing.

Especially women he'd just met. Why he wanted to make an exception for Debbie, he had no idea.

Smells good.The happy thought and contented sigh from his buck were more than a little disturbing. There was no way Debbie was his mate, right? He would have known immediately. Thankfully, his stag was happy to clear that up.Not mate.

For whatever reason, his stag justreallyliked the way she smelled. Thor liked the way she looked… and her sassy mouth. He’d always had a thing for mouthy women.

“Hungry?" he asked. He really should get a little something to eat. There were only a few more hours before the bull riding started, so it was now or never.

“Starving.” The glint in Debbie’s dark eyes went along with her smirk.

Double entendres for the win. Or the loss, really, since he couldn’t do anything about it right now, but he still appreciated it.

Pretending he hadn’t caught the second meaning, even though he could tell she wasn’t buying his act, Thor escorted her out of the stadium and to the food aisle of the carnival. There was everything from turkey legs to funnel cakes, and Thor had to laugh when Debbie went straight for the Sugar Shack with all the enthusiasm of a five-year-old kid.

Of course, the line was long as hell.

“I’m going to go grab something more substantial. I’ll meet you back here?" he asked.

“Sure, whatever,” she said, her eyes glued to the sign above the cashiers, displaying everything the Sugar Shack had to offer.

Thor was tempted to feel insulted at how quickly he’d been replaced in her thoughts by funnel cake, but he doubted it would do him any good. Shaking his head, he ambled over to the BarbecuePit stall across the aisle. He had just finished ordering his double cheeseburger and onion rings when a deep voice behind him said his name.

“Thor?”

Turning his head, Thor found himself looking straight into the golden eyes of Maddox Courtland. In human form, the big bull shifter was still intimidating as hell—several inches taller than Thor’s six feet and muscled like his animal half. The wide grin on his face was full of challenge, and Thor’s lips automatically stretched to match it.

Everyone around them seemed to quiet, realizing there was some kind of showdown going on, even if they didn’t know who Thor and Maddox were. The vast majority of the crowd clearlyrecognized them though, as their names were whispered over again over again by those drawn into the upcoming spectacle.

“Mad,” Thor drawled the nickname, making it sound almost like an insult.

“Looking forward to eating dirt later, deer?” Maddox jeered, obviously not realizing it almost sounded like he was using an endearment.

Well, no one had ever claimed the bull was big on brains, just brawn.

Ambuck! Stag.The attempted insult had hit home in one spot, although Thor’s animal had always been a little picky about what he was called. Thor ignored his stag’s affront; as an animal, it never really understood trash talk.

“Looking forward to losing your streak, sweetheart?” Thor asked.

The big bull snorted and frowned, trying to figure out why Thor had just called him sweetheart. Most of the people in the crowd around them snickered. Out of the corner of his eye, Thor could see several of them were already filming.

They were going to be disappointed if they thought things were going to get out of hand. Trash talk before an event was not just expected, it was encouraged, but anything more than that could get them kicked out of the rodeo circuit altogether.

“I’m undefeated,” Maddox sneered, rocking back on his heels and thrusting his thumbs into the belt loops of his jeans. Every line in his body was full of arrogant swagger. “You can’t say the same.”

Thor shrugged, grinning, and thickened his Southern drawl. “Just means it’s a matter of time, darlin’, and your clock has done run out.”