The Columbia River Finals. The big show. The wildest crowd on the circuit. The stands were deafening. The electric guitar of Brooks and Dunn’s “Rock My World (Little Country Girl)” blared through the stadium speakers while the announcer called each barrel horse and racer.
Lina sat on top of Mushu. His hooves danced with excitement. We both had to hold him back to keep him from plowing forward. She held her hat to her head, a big, bright smile on her face as she tipped her head up to bask in the glory of this moment. And she deserved to fucking bathe in it!
“Larsen, you’re on deck.”
Lina was next, and she turned her grin on me. “Can you have Penn meet us at the gate?”
I nodded, unable to keep myself from beaming back at her. “Chuck’s bringing her down now.”
She bit her lip, and I hoped she was remembering exactly how I sucked on it earlier.
“Don’t choke,” Paige snarked behind us.
Lina didn’t even turn in her saddle or dim the smile on her face. “Eat my dust, Paige.”
The other barrel racer before her raced in through the alley, her trainer catching her. Lina felt so confident, she didn’t even chance a glance at her time. Fuck, it was hot.
“Larsen’s up!”
She leaned down, dropping a soft kiss to my lips.
“Burn the breeze, sweetheart,” I said against her mouth.
I felt her lips tip back up before she straightened her seat.
With a flirty wink, she said, “I’m going to rock your world later, cowboy.”
“Is that a promise?” I called out to her as she started sidestepping Mushu.
“A guarantee!” she yelled before she let Mushu loose.
And they were off, Mushu dragging his butt around the barrels. The crowd roared. The announcer’s voice blared.
“We’re here, Daddy!” Penn yelled, skip-hopping to my side with Chuck wrapped around her little finger. “I got cotton candy!” A big, pink fluff was in her hand and her mouth was already sticky, but she had the happiest look on her face.
“I couldn’t say no.” Chuck shrugged, looking helpless.
I huffed a laugh. I’d probably be dealing with a sugar crash later. But today, of all days, it was worth it.
We barely had a chance to blink before Mushu and Lina were screaming back into the alley. She pulled up on the reins, skidding to a stop, dirt kicking up on her opponents. I had to press my lips together to keep from smiling. I rushed to her side, grabbing high on Mushu’s reins to steady him. She spun around in her saddle at the same time I looked at the time clocked.
She let out a scream, then said, “13.14 fucking seconds!” She slapped a hand to her mouth, tears springing to her eyes.
“That’s your best timeever!” Chuck cried, clapping for her. “I’m so proud of you, darlin’.”
“I did it!” Lina turned her glistening eyes on me. “I did it.”
“You fucking did it, baby!”
“Drinks all around!”Lina announced as soon as we stepped into the rodeo bar.
The bar erupted into cheers and applause.
With my hand on her lower back, I ducked to whisper in her ear, “Sweetheart, are you really going to pay for everyone’s drinks?”
She rolled her eyes at me, gesturing to herself. “Did I just win the fucking finals, or did I just win the fucking finals?”
I shook my head, chuckling.
