Page 91 of Spur It On

He took another bite of the burger, then one more, and set the food on the nightstand. Then, he gave me his full attention.

"That bull tried to get me in the chute, Cody. It had nothing to do with Austin's cronies, ok?"

Which meant he still wasn't listening to me. Reaching up, I pinched the bridge of my nose, wishing I knew how to say this in a way that would make sense to him.

"Why'd you shove Tanner around?" I tried instead.

"Because he called sports med and I was fine," he said. "I also didn't know everyone thought I was out. I thought he was babying me because of this thing we're doing, making me look like a pussy when those assholes needed to know I could put them in the dirt."

Yeah, I was pretty sure there was some kind of logic there, but the way guys thought was stupid sometimes. More times than I wanted to admit, and this was one of them. Still, it didn't fix the problem.

"Ty, you can't do that."

"Do what?"

"Any of that!" I huffed. "Jump out of the chute to throw down with my bullies! Half-ass your ride. Pick a fight with my boyfriend on live TV. All of it, Ty. You can't do that, because I can't handle it."

"I'm fine," he said quickly. "Cody, Doc checked me out. No concussion, nothing."

"Not that kind," I muttered, feeling a bit like an asshole now. "I mean, yeah, I was worried about that too, but you don't understand."

"You're right, I don't," he agreed. "You're fucking talking in circles, Cody. Just fucking say it, ok?"

Well, if that was what he wanted, then that was what I'd do. "You started shit with Eli, Derek, and Casey, and I'm the one who's going to pay for it," I said. "That crap with Tanner? You know what they'll say the next time I come off a bull? That Tanner's saving me, that I can't do it on my own, and shit like that. When you pick a fight with these guys, you think it's all about you, but this ismyfight, and I can't finish it with my fists!"

"So I'll do it," he assured me. "See, I figured that out today. Tanner's your boyfriend. J.D. is your mentor. Me? I'm your protector."

"And you're doing a shit job of it."

"What?" He pushed to his feet. "I shut those fuckers up, and I did it for you, Cody."

"You made sure they'll just wait until you aren't around," I countered. "Trust me, I've been dealing with this shit for long enough. I know how bull riders work."

"Yeah, and that's what you said about me, but I'm on your side."

"Making a mess of it!" I tossed my hands up. "Jesus. Why is this so hard for you to understand?"

"Because the only way to stop a bully is to make sure they know you'll fight back," he told me as he paced to the end of the bed. "C'mon, we all learned this in grade school. When they try to beat you up, hit them back and they'll pick on someone easier."

"I'm the someone easier!" I yelled at him. "What part of that don't you get?"

He paused. Slowly, he looked back. "What?"

"You're gonna protect me, right? Gonna throw down?" I scoffed. "Well, what happens when you aren't around? If you get the punches flying, then I'm fucked, Ty. That shit they're saying? Let them! Ignore them. If they don't get a rise out of you, they'll give up."

He blinked a few times, then slowly shook his head. "I'm not going to let them hurt you."

"So you'll egg them on instead?" I asked. "Ty, they're idiots. I've heard worse back home. Shit, why the hell do you think I want out of Missouri so bad? I know how this goes. Unlike you, I've been dealing with it for my entire fucking life, and this? It's not fucking helping!"

"Well, yeah, but..."

"No!" I insisted. "You're proving their point. The girl can't do it on her own. I can't hack the PBR's Tough Enough series because I'm not tough enough. I need a guy to do it for me."

"And when they do try to beat you down?" he roared. "You think I'm going to just stand there and let it happen? Not fucking likely, Cody."

"No..." I groaned. "No, Ty. That's not what I'm saying."

"Then what the fuck are you saying, because to me it sounds like you're pissed because I stood up for you. You're being a bitch because I treated talking shit about you the same way I would've someone talking shit about Renato. What the fuck do you want from me?"

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