Page 57 of Spur It On

"She's sweet," Isaac told me.

"Fuck off," I grumbled.

"No," he insisted. "I'm saying she's your type. Tanner, you're sweet. You're not some hothead like half these riders. You're not looking to get your dick sucked and move on. To Cody, that probably counts as sweet, and she's the kind of girl who'll actually appreciate that."

"You think so?" I asked.

He nodded even as he turned this beast of a vehicle into the parking lot. "You like her, huh?"

"Probably more than I should," I admitted.

He killed the engine but didn't immediately hop out. "Look, she's a good rider. She's great in the arena. There's just one problem with this thing you two are doing, so I'm gonna throw it in your face."

"What's that?"

"Us," he told me, "because we're in a different town every week, living in this piece of shit, and busy with all our male bonding. Thing is, we don't fucking need it, and I think you need her."

"Need?" I scoffed.

That was when Jorge leaned over my seat. "Need," he told me. "There's not a damned thing wrong with needing a woman, either. Gives you something to work for. Someone to watch over. A good reason to think before you try to get tossed again."

"But she doesn't agree," I told them. "See, that's the thing with Cody. She gets what I do. She doesn't see me as the help or the backup entertainment. She sees bullfighting as being no different than bull riding."

"Knew I liked her," Isaac teased.

I grunted at that. "I also know that if it comes down to me or Ty? Yeah, she'll choose Ty."

"Wouldn't bet money on that," Isaac told me. "Ty's a pig. I mean, sure, he's supporting her riding, but would he if she wasn't flirting with him? Sleeping with him?"

"He would," Jorge said. "Ty was cheering her on before he thought he had a chance. I think he's honest about that."

"He's still a celebrity," I reminded them, "and I'm not."

"Nope," Jorge said. "You're the kind of man women wanna marry. Ty? He's the kind they won't tell their parents about. A fling. A little excitement. Nothing more."

"It's not a competition," Isaac told me. "I'm just curious about you and J.D., though. I mean, you said he kissed you?"

"And nothing since?" Jorge asked.

Yep, I loved these guys. Both of them were a few years older than me, but they'd never treated me like an idiot. Instead, they'd become the big brothers I'd always wanted. Maybe that was why we worked so well. Or maybe it was just that the three of us were more alike than we wanted to admit. Either way, I had nothing to hide from them. Didn't work that way with us.

"I think he backed off so I could get Cody's attention," I said. "I could be wrong, but she made a comment on our date about him being a good friend."

"Or maybe he's as intimidated as you are," Isaac told me. "I mean, one cute girl is hard enough. A cute girl and a cute guy?"

"Are you calling me cute?" I teased.

He laughed. "Sure, Tanner. You're cute. I mean, so are dogs."

"Aubree says cute," Jorge told me. "Granted, she thinks J.D. is 'so not her type.'"

"Are you trying to do the poly thing?" I asked him.

But Jorge grabbed the door at the back and pulled it open. "Nope, I'm trying to do the beer thing, and maybe be a half-decent wingman."

"Been a long time since you were any good at that," Isaac told him.

I climbed out the door on my side to add, "So if I spend the weekend in the hotel, neither of you will care?"

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