Page 17 of Rough Stock
Spinning to look in the mirror, Shyanna almost fainted. Her jaw was ridiculously swollen and there was blood running down her face. “Where’s that blood coming from?” she asked, and her voice sounded weak and far away in her own ears.
“I don’t know, but I’ve got to find out. Hold still.” Jensen tore off a generous wad of paper towels, wet them, and went to work. “You’ve got a little laceration on your head. Here,” he said as he took her hand and put it on the paper towels where they rested on her scalp. “Hold this and press it. I’ll be right back. Lock the door and don’t open it until I come back. Understand?” Shyanna nodded. “I’ll only be gone a minute.” With that, he disappeared out the door and she locked it behind him.
She leaned against the sink, dazed, and tried not to think about the blood she could feel drying on her cheek. A couple of minutes later, there was a knock on the door and she opened it to find him bringing in a small bucket. As soon as the door was locked again, he drew out a handful of ice, buried it in another wad of paper towels, and said, “Let’s get this on your jaw.”
When the ice touched her jaw, Shyanna saw stars again. God, it hurt, not as badly as it had when she’d been kicked in the face by a bronc, but it still hurt. “I’ve got to get done here. Team roping will be starting.”
“You’re not doing team roping. You’re in no condition,” Jensen announced, taking the paper towel full of ice and pressing it on her jaw again.
“I have to. I can’t let my score go. Don’t you see? That’s what theywant. That’s why they did this. And I can’t give them that. I can’t just let them take that from me.” She knew she was right. That’s why they’d come after her, to keep her from riding, and she couldn’t let that happen.
“But you can’t. I don’t think the ring steward?”
“I’ll just stay away from him until it’s too late to turn me away,” she said. “Are you riding with me?”
Jensen just stood there staring at her and for a split second, Shyanna thought he was going to say no. When he finally did speak, he just grabbed her hand. “Come on. Let’s go get this over with,” he ordered as he opened the door and held it for her. She tossed the paper towel and the little bit of ice left in it into the trash can on the way out and headed toward the barn.
She grabbed Rhubarb and saddled her while Jensen went to get Snowman. By the time she got the horse ready, the other half of her roping team was outside the door, waiting for her. They filed into the queue at the chutes, with Shyanna keeping her head down so the other riders couldn’t see her face.
The team right before them headed toward the chutes and when they were gone, the steward made his way to Shyanna and Jensen. “You two about ready for… What in the world happened to you?” he asked when he caught sight of Shyanna’s face.
“Couple of cowboys decided I shouldn’t do this event, and they tried to give me some reasons that I couldn’t. But here I am,” she said, a sudden weariness sweeping over her.
“Have you been seen by the association medic?” he asked.
“No, and I haven’t been seen by the paramedics over there either. Jensen here patched me up as best he could,” she said, nodding toward the tall man on the big Appaloosa. “Didn’t have time for formal doctorin’. I’ve got an event to ride.”
“Well, good luck, but you should’ve known you’d get treated this way,” the man told her.
“Nobody should get treated this way,” Jensen said as the chute hands motioned for them to move in.
“That’s not reality and you know it,” the steward called after him, and Shyanna’s gut twisted. Nobody wanted her there?nobody but Jensen.
“You ready?” she asked him when they were each in their side of the chute.
“Yeah. Can you do this?” he asked her without a hint of a smile on his face.
“Yeah. I can do it. I’m fine.” Rhubarb stomped her feet and shifted around, and Shyanna worked to keep her calm. Snowman was really, really keyed up, and she wondered if Jensen would be able to hold him back and keep him from breaking the barrier. “Anytime you’re ready, I’m ready.”
“Then get ready,” he barked back. In seconds, he nodded, and the calf broke from the chute, both horses hot on its trail.
Just like the day before, Jensen’s rope sailed across the small space and caught the calf’s horns effortlessly. As the rope settled, Shyanna let fly her own and it grabbed the animal’s hind legs with perfection.
They shook the lassos loose and Shyanna made her way on Rhubarb over to Jensen and Snowman. “What the hell?” Jensen muttered when she got close, and then he pointed to the scoreboard.
They’d shaved a second and a half off their score from the day before. “What the hell is right,” Shyanna said, still not believing it. “I just don’t… How the hell did we do that?”
“I have no idea, but I’d say we’re a pretty good roping team,” he answered with a grin. “And now, we’ve got to get you some help. You look pretty damn rough, beautiful.”
Beautiful. No one had ever called her that, and it made her melt from the inside out. “Sorry.”
Jensen gave her a gentle smile that warmed her all over. “Nothing to be sorry about. Bareback bronc and bull riding are a good while from now, so we’ve got time. But you’ve got to have that seen to.”
With an assurance from the paramedic that her jaw wasn’t broken, Shyanna headed for her trailer with Jensen right on her heels. As they went, she saw several guys staring at them from a distance, and a couple of women too, most likely barrel racers. Once they were in the trailer, Jensen led her to her little bed. “Lie down. Don’t worry about watching me in the rest of the events. Just get some sleep. And take these.” As she opened the bottle of ibuprofen he’d handed her, Jensen went about the trailer closing blinds and pulling curtains tight. When he was finished, he reached for the bottle of pills, put it on the little table, and pointed to the bed. “Lie down. I mean it.”
“Yes, sir,” she said with as much of a grin as she could manage without making her jaw hurt even worse.
“That’s better. I’ll be back after my events. I’d better not look up there in the stands and see you,” he said, then leaned down and gave her a sweet, soft kiss on the forehead. “Sleep. I’ll lock the door behind me.” He did just that as he left, and in seconds, Shyanna was sound asleep.
