Carson chuckled, shaking his head. “That won’t do, Lenny. You gotta forgive me sometime. I miss that smart mouth.”
I snorted. That was what got me into that mess in the first place. Being attracted to people who can give it as good as they can take it wasn’t always the best practice. Some of the best narcissists in the world have a silver tongue at the ready.
That was how I’d gotten into this mess with Bishop. I’d let my attraction take things too far and then got burned, so I was done listening to my body’s suggestions. “I don’t have to do shit, Carson, and neither do you. Your wandering eyes and traveling hands can browse and sample the goods at any other market, but this one’s closed.”
Carson said something, but I turned back around toward the show. I was done with the conversation. Bishop’s eyes quickly looked away. He focused straight ahead, a muscle in his jaw flexing as the chute opened and his calf ran out. I held my breath as the calf reached the vantage point, and Titan broke the barrier. When Bishop threw his loop around the calf’s neck, Titan dug his hooves into the ground.
Dad always taught us about the sacred bond between a horseand its rider. One had nothing without the other; that connection could make or break you. Sometimes, during the clinics, someone would ask what that looks like. Dad would always bring in Titan and Bishop to show off. They were the gold standard to which he held the others. It wasn’t exactly fair, seeing as I’d never seen a better pairing.
Bishop jumped down, flanking the calf to the ground. He was so focused, so angry, so hot. Even though I couldn’t see them, I could imagine how the muscles in his arms flexed and strained beneath his shirt.
He reached for the loop in his mouth, making quick work of his tie before throwing his hands in the air. The buzzer stopped, and the crowd went wild, but Bishop didn’t indulge them. He kept his head down as he mounted Titan and waited to see if his knot would hold.
Of course, it did.
The clock flashed 7.53 seconds and Lincoln came running out to claim his prize. I let out the breath I’d been holding since realizing Bishop had hesitated half a second before the barrier fell. Had he done it on purpose to give Lincoln an edge? That wasn’t like him. They had been ribbing each other for weeks about their little competition.
But then, what else could it have been?
bishop
. . .
“Oh man, that was great,”Lincoln said for what was likely the hundredth time since we’d sat down for lunch. The fucker hadn’t shut up about beating me, and it was grating on my nerves. If he didn’t learn to shut his mouth quickly, I’d teach him how.
“Lincoln, baby,” Josie warned, using that sickly sweet tone that turned Lincoln to putty. “No one likes a braggart.”
He turned toward his girlfriend, staring at her with big brown eyes. “Not even a little bit? You’re going home with a winner, darlin’.”
“Double or nothing next year,” I said, pointing my bottle in his direction. “It was an off day.”
Off day my ass, I thought. I knew exactly what had happened.
I’d taken one look at that smug fucker Carson Wells talking to Lennox and had internally lost my shit. He’d worked on the ranch several times, and I was grateful to see him drive away each time.
He did alright on the back of a horse, and his rope skills could get the job done, but he ran his mouth more than anyoneI knew. Always went on and on about chasing skirt or his next big gig. I couldn’t trust him as far as I could throw him.
His presence surprised me since I’d told him not to step back on the property the last time he worked for us. He was far more trouble than he was worth. If Doug found out he was here, it’d probably cause a fight.
He didn’t find Carson’s antics funny when they often concerned his youngest daughter. The kid had a mouth on him and didn’t care who heard him talking about his latest bunkmate.
My gaze drifted to Lennox. She was sitting beside her sister, talking animatedly to a girl from town. I didn’t know what they were talking about, but Lennox spoke with her hands and made large gestures that kept gaining my attention.
So far, she’d nearly smacked Josie three times in the past five minutes. I told myself it was a safety hazard to look away. If I let her keep my attention, maybe I’d save a life or something.
But that seemed to always be my problem where she was concerned. I was constantly looking when I shouldn’t have been. No matter how many times I told myself I’d only been distracted because of Carson, I knew it was a lie. The way he’d leaned in to whisper in Lennox’s ear, how he’d caged her in against the fence, had taken my focus.
She could handle herself. That was never my concern. What bothered me was the sense of familiarity between them and how she didn’t flinch in his presence like she did with me.
“Whatever you say, old man,” Lincoln chuckled.
“I’m not that fuckin’ old,” I muttered. “We’re only a few years apart.”
“Four,” he corrected.
“Same difference,” I countered. “I could still kick your ass in a fight.”
Lincoln held up his hands. “And I have no interest in finding out the truth, so I’ll let you have it.”
