Page 74 of Rough Ride

“Love you too!” Eli replied, waggling his fingers.

“Come on,” I said. “Let’s go celebrate with Sophie. I hope she saw that performance.”

“I’m in, but you’re buying,” he replied. “Maybe we can get her to admit I’m the better lover.”

“Doubtful.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because,” I said with a smirk, “she doesn’t strike me as the kind of woman who lies.”

Eli barked a laugh.

I dipped back into the stall to retrieve my belongings, and Eli quickly did the same thing.

Neither of us noticed that Appleton had overheard the last exchange.

33

Sophie

I hummed a song to myself while working the bar at Billy Bob’s. I didn’t even care that one of the customers—who was old enough to be my grandpa—had called me sugar-tits. Nothing could ruin my mood tonight.

“Are you happy one of your boyfriends won tonight’s event,” Liz asked me when our paths crossed behind the bar, “or are you happy Chris Appleton lost?”

“All of the above!” I replied. “But they’re not my boyfriends.”

“Excuse me,” Liz said with an overly-dramatic apology. “One of your rodeo fuckboys.”

I grinned at her. “That’s more like it.”

Liz’s eyes locked onto something across the room. “Speaking of…”

Johnny, Eli, and Sawyer were all smiles as they walked toward the bar. I turned away so they wouldn’t see my sudden grin, and asked Liz, “How do I look?”

“You look great.” She flipped open another button on my top, revealing a little more cleavage. “Butnowyou look irresistible.”

“Excellent.” I turned back toward the bar just as the three cowboys arrived. “Why hello there.”

“Three whiskeys,” Eli said, holding up three fingers. “The most expensive you’ve got. Johnny’s buying.”

“How’d the rodeo go tonight?”

“Don’t act like you don’t know,” Eli said with a knowing smile. “I saw you in the crowd serving beer.”

“Are you sure it was me?” I asked, leaning forward on the bar. “There were a lot of beer girls working tonight.”

Eli’s eyes flicked down to my cleavage, then he dragged his gaze back up to my face. “I’d never confuse you with any of them. That’d be like mixing up a thoroughbred racehorse with a three-legged donkey.”

Next to me, Liz cleared her throat.

“Present company excluded,” Eli added, tipping his hat to her.

“Comparing Sophie to a horse?” Johnny raised his eyebrow. “That’s not the compliment you think it is.”

Eli’s eyes sparkled with humor as he stared at me. “I think she knows what I mean.”

“I do.” I turned to Johnny. “Let me get a better look at that bling.”

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