Page 9 of Rodeo Rivals
Dammit! Fuck! Fuck! Shit!
McKayla tossed her blankets off and immediately tangled them in her legs. As she thrust herself out of the bed, she landed directly on the floor—face-first. She’d slept through her alarm. Thankfully, she had a backup set for just this reason.
Regrouping and collecting her bearings, she threw on a sports bra and some leggings. She had to bolt out the door of her camper with her gym bag over her shoulder. No time for breakfast. She had a morning routine to keep if she was going to make a good showing for her first time riding officially at a PRCA event. Fucking this up wasn’t an option. She had to cash, earn a check, if she had any hopes of making a name for herself.
Fucking Wyatt last night was a bad idea. Sure, it felt great getting her back blown out, but the morning came quickly. Had she gotten enough sleep? Her body still ached from the thorough romp, but it would be nothing compared to being bucked offa rowdy mare in three seconds. She couldn’t let one night of passion ruin her future.
With a shake of her head, she blew out a breath and charged around her truck to the cab. Once she got the door open, she tossed her bag in and hopped into the driver’s seat. Thankfully, the gym wasn’t all that far. She’d have to cut her workout short, but she’d still get something in to make sure she was good and loose for later that evening.
Wyatt
With his earbuds in and his attention on the television screen, Wyatt started his cardio workout on the treadmill. A good five-mile jog should get him warmed up. It’d be a light day because the genuine test of his body would be in the arena.
“You missed out last night,” Seth said, breaking into Wyatt’s thoughts.
Wyatt removed the earbud and turned toward the leader on the PRCA scoreboard. “Yeah?”
If Seth only knew, maybe he wouldn’t be so smug.
Seth nodded with a wide grin. He took up residence on the treadmill beside him and tapped at the controls to make the belt move.
“Toby took home twins.Twins!” Seth laughed, shaking his head.
Wyatt smirked and rolled his eyes. Though he couldn’t help but notice that Seth had set the speed faster on his treadmill than Wyatt’s. Of course, Wyatt had to bump his up to match. So much for a casual warm-up.
“So many buckle bunnies, man,” Seth reiterated. “Texas always has been some of my favorite stops.”
Chuckling, Wyatt didn’t comment. He couldn’t. Hadn’t he done the exact same thing last night? From the way McKayla spoke and how she rode him hard and put him away wet, he was sure she’d seen a mechanical bull or two in her day. She had buckle bunny written all over her.
“What did you wind up doing?” Seth asked.
Wyatt shrugged. “Had a beer at this hole in the wall. Played some pool. Nothing exciting.”
“Oh!” Seth slapped his forehead in an exaggerated move. “I keep forgetting you haven’t been around for a while.”
Pumping his arms, Wyatt grunted in agreement. He was pretty sure Seth was well aware of who his competition was and wasn’t. Which meant he knew full well Wyatt hadn’t competed for a few months.
“Anyway.” Seth tapped the controls of his treadmill and increased his pace. “Have you heard about our new competition?”
Wyatt bumped up his speed to match Seth’s before turning toward him. “No?”
People qualify to participate in rodeo events as professionals every day. All anyone had to do to be sanctioned was be eighteen, get a permit card, and earn a thousand dollars over any number of PRCA rodeo years. Most of that was easy enough to do, but cashing at these events was some crazy work.
With two judges monitoring the rider’s performance and the horse’s, someone could ride his damnedest, but if the horse ain’t good, he’d be shit out of luck. Not to mention the fact that there were six hundred riders competing across seventy sanctioned events. It was no easy task.
Either way, Seth rarely discussed rookies. So what made this one so special?
“We’ve got another lady to contend with.” Seth smirked.
Wyatt furrowed his brow. “Another?” He hadn’t even known there was one to begin with.
“Yeah. Haven’t you met Kaila Mussell?”
Wyatt shrugged and shook his head.
Seth snorted. “She’s been around. I’m surprised you haven’t seen her. Then again, she hasn’t been the same since she broke her neck a while back, but she is still out there.”
“So, you’re worried about a woman?” Wyatt asked.
