Page 42 of Spur It On

"Because J.D. may have claimed he's my mentor, Ty, but you're the one I spent so many years studying."

He began to nod slowly. "Ok, I can handle a little competition." Pushing off the wall, he draped an arm over my shoulder, then headed for the line, leaning in towards my ear. "Thanks, babe. You make this a lot easier, even if I'm the one who should be paying your entry."

"Next time," I told him. "But I'm officially not broke and tired of being a bum."

"If you win this, you'll be even less broke," he pointed out just as the music began to play in the arena. "And it's show time."

Chapter16

J.D. hadn't been kiddingwhen he'd said there'd be pyrotechnics. There were also lights, music, and so much more. With a total of thirty-five bull riders, and starting from the bottom, that meant I was the seventeenth out. Just on the wrong side of halfway up the rankings. Then again, I was in the top twenty, so I currently qualified for the World Finals at the end of the year, if I could just hold on to it.

Not too bad for a girl who'd earned most of her points on the Touring Pro circuit, placing second. Even better, when they called out my name, I lifted my hat to a roar of applause and cheering from the crowd. Much of it sounded female, but I'd take it.

Ty had slipped down to ninth overall after two buck-offs last weekend, but J.D. was still the number one in the world. Surprisingly, the top three guys were introduced standing on the tops of the bull chutes. As their successes and records were called out, a spotlight landed on them. Maybe it was my imagination, but I swore J.D. was the only person to get a louder round of cheers than I had.

Once we were all out in the arena, a prayer was said, the national anthem was sung, and the bullfighters were introduced. The last thing was Cletus, the clown who kept people entertained when things slowed down behind the chutes, although his arrival was our dismissal. As a herd, we all headed back to the staging area to grab helmets and ropes, and start getting ready.

The first riders needed to be getting on the backs of their bulls. With four at a time, and two sides, that was eight men "saddling" up. Chaos ensued as those men tried to get their things, get ready, and get where they belonged, but it was the kind I loved.

There was a smell in the air, made of cow shit, diesel exhaust, and excitement. The hum of so many men talking about their bulls, their scores, and their injuries was at a pitch that made all of this feel familiar, just like the open rodeos back home. And when I found my rope and set up to get it ready, I wasn't alone.

J.D. fell in on my left. A moment later, Ty moved to the spot on my right. I was busy working rosin into my rope, but these two? Their focus was entirely on me.

"You need to braid your hair," J.D. reminded me.

I lifted my gloveless hand, showing the rubber band around my right wrist. "I thought you liked playing with it."

"Babe, I am so good with that," he promised, snagging the tie.

Ty stole my hat, hanging it on the panel before me. "You got a spare rope this time?"

"Just the one from St. Louis," I admitted.

So he bent and pulled out a black rope with a bright silver bell on the end. "Kinda what I figured. So put some rosin on this one while you're at it. It's your backup." He hung that beside the one I was working on.

I glanced over to catch his gaze. "Thank you. I mean that."

That beautiful chocolate color of his eyes was nice. Like five shades lighter than J.D.'s, but I liked it just as much. The smile that touched Ty's lips was even better. Soft. Kind. Honest. Something in my belly flipped over itself.

"I'm just taking care of my number one fan," he mumbled.

"Less looking," J.D. grumbled, turning my head back to the front. "What part of half-Mexican makes you think I'm good at anything French? Especially a braid!"

"You like it," Ty teased before turning back to me. "Who'd you get?"

"Yeeter," I said. "You?"

"Just Duck." He shrugged. "Sounds like there should be a lot of full rides this weekend, though. And Yeeter's a good one. You can get some points on him. Just spur and he'll kick his heels up high."

"Ok," I breathed, trying to hype myself up.

"And done," J.D. announced. "Now, Cody, if you wanna get some oomph out of Yeeter, get right up on your hand."

"Use your core," Ty said.

The pair looked at each other, but J.D. kept going. "Get your outside leg off him, and let the judges see a little air."

"Not if she's gonna tip forward," Ty countered.

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