Page 30 of Roping Reba

“Yup, he taught me some different ties with his partner. It’s beautiful really and seems to come naturally to me.”

“Years of rope tying calves hasn’t hurt any I’m sure.”

“True, but it would require a lot of trust on your part. I have a pair of shears and a bunch more rope. There are simple things like chest harnesses I could put on you that you could just wear for me, or for you even. I’ve heard a lot of people like the pressure it provides.”

I reached for my phone and pulled up some pictures of Evan and his partner.

“Wow, you know how to do that?”

“I do.”

“You’re right, it’s kind of amazing.”

“Is that something you’d like to try?”

Her eyes widened as she nodded her head. “Yes, yes, I would.”

“So I would like to discuss a few things first. We should have a safe word, but not only a word, a motion too, in case you can’t speak. Have you heard about that before?”

“Sure. I say stop and you stop everything, right?”

“Yes, if you want ‘stop’ to be the word, but sometimes it’s fun to say stop, so many couples pick a different word, or they use numbers or a green-light system. And sometimes, you might not be able to speak so a motion, such as tapping my shoulder three times if it’s in reach would be act as a safe word as well.

“Sweetbreads.”

“Huh?”

“I want that to be my word. Do you get one too?”

I laughed. “Yep, sweetbreads works for me too. I don’t think we would accidentally say it while we were in a scene.”

“Probably not.”

“So if I have you tied up and you say it, I will immediately cut you free. Everything will stop, but we will also talk through it all after. I want to learn your limits by talking about them, but if we get close to something, I want to know that too.”

“Makes sense, and three taps works for a motion.”

“So, it works the same way. Let’s say I have you gagged–”

“Wait, what?”

I laughed at the look of shock on her face, “Only if you consent of course. Let’s say you agree to me gagging you and youwant the scene to stop. With three taps, anywhere you can reach I will immediately stop everything and we will talk. Deal?”

“Deal.”

We spent the rest of the night talking through a million things different dynamics may encounter. At one point I pulled up a yes, no, maybe checklist and we went through that until we started to fall asleep. My little rider thought she liked pain so we’d explore that, but more importantly, the conversation brought us to a place of trust and learning that we just didn’t have before.

Reba was desperate to let go, give up control, and stop feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders. She’d gotten into rodeo because her older brother had been. When he retired, she’d just never gone home. She’d stayed with us and stayed in charge of everything. I could certainly understand that kind of pressure, and if there was a way I could alleviate some of it for her now, I would. This woman meant the world to me, and I never wanted her to forget that.

Morning came far too soon. I was barely awake when I felt Reba pulling away from me.

“Where are you going?”

“I don’t want Jax to find me here,” she said as she stumbled around the room, trying to gather her things in the dark.

“I get that, but isn’t it too early to be running off?”

She stood straight and stared daggers into me. “I’m not running.”

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