Page 26 of Buck This
“Yeah well, Quickdraw is going to skin me. We were supposed to meet him for lunch five minutes ago. He checked his phone and showed her the screen. Five missed calls from Q.
“Whoo, he’s definitely going to yell at you.”
“He’s already been yelling at me. I’m getting used to it.”
“Do you like my shirt? I paid for it, don’t worry.”
“I cannot believe you are wearing a shirt of me shotgunning a beer.”
“It’s the best one. Look at this line right here,” she said, pointing to a little dot near the elbow of the line-drawing. “That’s one of my hairs. I made it onto the T-shirt! Quickdraw took a picture of you doing it last night and sent it to the printer, and they translated it to a jumbotron logo. So freaking cool! I sold seventy of your shirts today. Seventy! Seven-zero! That’s crazy. People will be wearing them when you buck tonight.”
“Great, more people to disappoint.”
“Quickdraw will have a plan. He already told me part of it.”
“Yeah, you want to enlighten me?”
“We’re getting you Changed before you even come to the arena.”
“Come again?” he asked, jerking to a stop.
“Quickdraw got ahold of a stock trailer. He’ll be trailering you in Changed. He’s already made all the arrangements.”
“But…” He frowned. “Why? No one does that.”
She shrugged. “He’s the coach. Hell if I know. He’s just asked me to stick with you from now until the ride tonight.”
“Hey, Buck!” someone called.
He turned to see a stocky, familiar man headed their way. A petite woman was at his side, trotting to keep up.
“Tuff?” he asked, bewildered. Tuff Enough Slow Burn knew his name. He shook his hand like they were old friends.
“Can we catch a ride with you? Someone borrowed my truck this morning and they’re still hauling horses in.”
“A ride…” he said. “To lunch. With your dad. Who has been my coach for two days.”
Tuff chuckled and nodded. “This is my mate, Luna.”
“Hi!” Torrey said excitedly, offering her hand for a shake.
Luna shook it and said, “Hello,” but she signed the word at the same time she said it. Must’ve been hard of hearing.
“You don’t have to talk louder,” Tuff assured them as they headed for Buck’s truck. “She reads lips like a champ.”
They were just casually strolling through the entrance of the venue the wrong way with Tuff Enough, the number one bronc rider in the world. Just hanging out with Tuff Enough. No big deal. God, this competition was a strange one.
He looked down at Torrey, who had been chattering to Luna, and she looked up at him in the same moment, and her pretty blue eyes could rival a summer sky. She looked happy, but more than that, he could feel the happiness washing off her in waves. All of the overwhelming feelings he’d managed when he’d been signing autographs were gone.
Torrey just made things easier.
Normally he couldn’t be in the same truck as another shifter, and Tuff was a werewolf. He was heavy and dominant as hell. His lady was a shifter too, but he didn’t know what her animal was. His animal balked a little as he settled behind the steering wheel, but Torrey lifted the console between them and scooted over on his bench seat and buckled in right beside him like it was the most normal thing ever. There was an entire seatby the window that had nothing but her little purse sitting in it, and Torrey had chosen to sit right next to him.
He started up the truck and pushed down the urge to kick the shifters out of the back.
They were cool. They were both talking easily, and they were being kind to Torrey, and he could do this. Buck could give her an easy drive to the barbecue place, and an easy lunch. He could let her have fun. Tonight was going to be rough enough on her, but today? Right now? He could make sure she had space to be her happy little self.
Chapter Six
