Page 75 of Ace of Spades
“Yes!” I exclaim, sitting up in my seat and pulling Casino back as we jog back down the alley. I had placed third in breakaway this morning, and after placing at the top of the leaderboard for barrels, I was practically set on getting to the Western Rodeo Summit at the end of the year.
“Hailey!”
I catch sight of Dakota jogging towards me in her little denim shorts and boots, one of my cowboy hats atop her head.
“That was amazing, holy cow! You two were flying, I can’t believe how close you came to that first barrel. I literally held my breath the entire time, I was so nervous, you completely crushed Lisa Hart!”
I giggle, unable to stop smiling as she runs up to greet Casino with a kiss on the muzzle, my mare giving her a snort as the three of us walk out into the warm evening.
“What are you doing here, silly?” I ask. “Shouldn’t your brother be riding any second?”
Beau and Rafe had placed second in team roping earlier this afternoon, and bull riding was the event directly after broncriding, which was happening right now. Weston was likely competing any moment, and Chance wouldn’t be competing for another hour or so. This was a large enough rodeo that they had divided the events into two different arenas, Weston and I set to ride at the same time.
“He’s got all of the others, I wanted to make sure you had someone too,” she tells me. “Somebody’s gotta be here to cheer you on! Besides, I’ve seen Weston ride plenty of times. Barrel racing is so much cooler, anyways.”
I can’t help but come down from my high as I realize how right she is—that if she wasn’t here to watch me, nobody would be. My parents hadn’t come to see me at a rodeo since high school, and I doubted they would be any time soon since I had continued to ignore their texts and calls. Brad hadn’t spoken to me since the dance, not that I wanted him to. And Ava had been distant lately. She’d been one of the first to go today, but had texted me directly after to wish me good luck and let me know she would meet me at the bar.
Dakota truly was the only person that had shown up for me today. Her, and her brother, I suppose. He hadn’t been able to come watch me since he was up at the same time, but receiving a text from him earlier had made my heart leap in my chest.
WESTON:Care for a friendly bet, Sorrels?
ME:Let’s hear it.
WESTON:How about whoever places the lowest tonight owes the other one an orgasm?
ME:Bring it on, cowboy.
WESTON:Good luck. Turn and burn, cowgirl. You’ve got this.
ME:Shouldn’t you be wanting to win this little bet of ours?
WESTON:First of all, I would never wish for you to do poorly, bets on the table or not. And second, what makes you think that giving you a mind-blowing orgasm would be a loss for me? Maybe I want to hear you scream my name while I feast on your pussy like it’s my last goddam meal.
“Earth to Hailey,” Dakota teases as I realize that I’d zoned out with the thought of her brother going down on me.
“Sorry, I was just—replaying my run in my head!”
“Shoot, I would be too! I got it all on video, I’ll show you later if you want. You’ll have to ignore the screaming, I was pretty dang excited and got a bit carried away.”
A laugh escapes me.
“Thank you,” I tell her, and I truly mean it.
“Any time, you know I’ve got you.”
“Want to come help me rinse off Casino?”
“Of course!” she says, walking alongside me as we head towards the wash racks and stables on the premises.
“You know, once I teach you how to ride, you’ll be able to walk around on Blackjack instead of having to walk everywhere on foot.
“Next week, I promise! As long as you promise we can practice somewhere where nobody can see me. I would be mortified if I fell off in front of anybody at the ranch.”
“I think we can make that happen,” I chuckle.
“Soooo… I heard through the grapevine that you had a good time last night,” she says, a cheeky smile on her face.
My heart rate picks up pace.
