Page 36 of Buck This
“Yep. Ten seconds!” Raven pushed Torrey into a sprint and then they burst through another door and into an aisleway beside the loading pens.
What she saw dragged a gasp from Torrey’s lungs. Buck This wasn’t where he was supposed to be, clearly. He was in a big open space, and there was chaos as Quickdraw, Dead, Tuff, and Two Shots Down were yelling and trying to herd him into a panel another guy was opening to get him back in the aisle way.
“Torrey, here!” Quickdraw barked out.
She bolted for where he pointed and felt the exact moment Buck This locked onto her. His huge head swung right for her, and his ears went erect. He kicked up into a trot and she ran right past the guy holding open the gate on Quickdraw’s instructions. She could see it so clearly. She knew what to do.
She climbed the panel as fast as she could and jumped down into the aisleway he was supposed to be in, and then he was here, right behind her—not charging, but staying with her.
“Chute ten, chute ten,” a man was yelling from where he stood out of the way on the fence.
Another man was pointing toward the right, and then Tuff Enough was there, holding open another gate. “We’re with you, you’re fine,” he called as she sprinted past him. “He’s good. He’s following you, not chasing you. Just lead him through the open gates!”
Her heart was going to explode from her chest. Torrey dared a glance back, but while Buck This Storme was trotting behind her, his attention was on everything but her. He swung his headleft and right at anyone who moved near them. He stopped and rammed his head against a panel, and a cowboy went flying from where he’d been perched at the top of it.
“Everyone get back!” Quickdraw roared. He sounded pissed.
Up ahead, she could see the aisleway closing in, getting tighter, and at the end of it was a chute that was open from the back side. Shit, she was going to be trapped!
“Hook your arm!” Raven yelled from where she appeared on the opposite side of that chute. “I’ve got you. Don’t slow down!”
Freaking C-Team track runner. Her legs were on fire, her lungs hated her, and she was going to be trampled to death by the shifter she was growing a crush on and worst of all? She could see herself up on the jumbotron in the opening above the chutes. Boots that made no sense here, boobs bouncing in her tank top, booty shorts showing every dimple on her legs as she ran for her life, a look of terror in her eyes, and the monster himself, Buck This Storme, following right behind her.
At least she’d gotten a good fuck in before she died.
That was her final thought as she squared up to the chute and hooked her arm in Raven’s. She went flying over the chute and landed in the arena dirt on the other side softly as all hell broke loose in the chute. Buck This Storme reared up and roared, Quickdraw and the guys were yelling and cussing as they tried to get the gate closed on the other side.
She could hear the exact moment that gate clicked closed.
Raven cleared her throat, and when Torrey looked over at her, she was staring at a camera with a smile plastered onto her face. “And now smile,” she told Torrey softly.
Torrey’s immediate smile probably looked more like a grimace.
“And wave,” Raven instructed.
Torrey did so.
“And now take a bow.”
And as she bent at the waist and bowed, the roaring in her ears eased and she could hear it.
The crowd was cheering.
Torrey turned slowly, in shock. Everyone was on their feet, and the commentators were chattering excitedly over the sound system.
“—bad boy of the circuit…”
“First time we’ve ever seen a bull loaded like that…”
“Let’s go!” That last one was said by Annabelle, who was waving them to the box on the other side of the arena fence.
Raven ushered Torrey to the rail and scrambled up it alongside her. There was no climbing this fence gracefully in booty shorts, so she just did her best.
“I think I just died and came back to life like four times,” Torrey said excitedly.
“Welcome to the Battle of the Bulls,” Annabelle told her with a grin.
“Come on, Buck,” Torrey murmured, clasping her hands as she stood at the rail of the box they’d sat in last night. “Come on!” she cheered louder. “You’ve got this! Buck like this is the last time you’ll ever do it! This is your time!”
