Page 17 of Just Hold On

Chapter 16

Maybe it wasa good thing she was headed home tonight. After the damage that bull had done to my junk, it took everything I had to play it off when Cody came to check on me, but I liked that she'd been worried. Granted, I wasn't going to tell her that even my damned spleen hurt from how bad I'd been hit, but seeing her limp down to the gate had made it worth it.

And a few of the guys had noticed. Her re-ride was the last of the night. When she headed off to strap in, a few gave me knowing looks and obnoxious slaps on the back. Well, let 'em think what they wanted, so long as they kept their damned hands off her. I wasn't exactly offended.

It wasn't like women were in short supply around here or anything. At every event, there were dozens wandering behind the scenes. Some were wives, mothers, and sisters of the riders, but most were chicks we were trying to impress. A few local girls got the privilege of hanging out backstage. Some of the guys had a girlfriend they'd picked up along the way - and who would likely fly back after a few states had passed us by. All of them had one thing in common: they were nothing at all like Cody. Sweet, gentle, and pretty - sure, but my girl had all that and more. She was real. Completely and totally there for me to take or leave, and I wanted to take.

Hanging out over the cattle gate, I had the best view for when she rode. I wasn't the only guy. Just like last time, everyone wanted to see what this girl rider could do. Oh, I'd heard the guys. Some expected her to look like a man. Others were laughing that she must be a lesbian. When she'd taken that hit on Overdose, their opinions had changed, and I wasn't real sure I liked it. They'd all gotten a chance to see the pretty little blonde who knew exactly what she was doing.

"Hey," Kaleb said, sliding beside me to lean over the rail. "Cody's the girl, right?"

"Yep."

He chuckled. "Jake says she's cute. Got an ass on her like - "

"Hey," I snapped, cutting him off. "Not cool."

"It's cool as shit, man. You think she's the wild type? I mean, she's gotta be desperate as hell, right? If she's riding bulls? What guy's gonna want some bitch that's gonna try to tell him what to do?"

Yep, I knew exactly where this was going, and the idiot didn't even realize he was contradicting himself. "Lemme guess. You're trying to say that you'd bang her just so she didn't feel left out?"

"Hell yeah. I mean, just taking one for the team, ya know."

"God." I managed to smother the annoyed laugh I wanted to spit in his face, but only barely. "What the hell would you know about that? What are you, eighteen?"

"Nineteen," he shot back.

Grumbling under my breath, I turned back, having no intention of missing her go. "Well, let me tell ya a secret. Most women are nothing like the ones J.D. passes down. Oh, and while we're at it, if he's not willing to take them home, then you'd better run, and fast. If all you want is to blow your load, use your hand. Less chance of getting something that won't go away. Like a kid. I mean, I know that redhead he dumped on you probably popped your cherry and all, but damn. Have a little self-respect."

"Like you're one to talk. Besides, she was a redhead!"

"You think that matters? It's hair dye, you idiot."

From the corner of my eye, I could see the kid puff up like he was ready for a fight, but that was as far as he got. He didn't have the guts to try shoving me around, and I wasn't exactly going to make this easy for him. He needed to learn real fast when he was taking it too far, and that it would always come back to bite him. Didn't take long before the kid huffed loudly and pushed himself back into the flow of traffic wandering behind me.

A few seconds later, someone claimed the empty spot. When she rubbed my arm, there was only one person it could be. Looking over, I found Hannah smiling back. I couldn't remember the last time she'd waddled herself to the rail, but she was looking good, not quite as tired as she'd been lately.

"Nice to see your smiling face," I teased.

She rolled her eyes at me. "Don't give me that crap. I had to come see your girlfriend ride."

"Not mine yet."

She blew that off. "Patience, cowboy. These things take time, especially if what Reni's been saying is true. Someone screwed with her gear? Isn't that, like, really dangerous?"

"Very. She's got Clint's rope and Emilio's helmet now, though."

"Yeah," she drawled, bobbing her head. "Little bird told me that you were ransacking everything back there trying to take care of her. Kinda cute, Ty."

"Hush. I was not ransacking. Had Clint's rope in my truck and just asked your boyfriend if he could help out. And so you know, he's not a little bird. Pretty sure there's nothing at all little about him."

She winked at me. "Nope. Nothing little at all."

I groaned, playfully wincing at the bad joke. "Hannah, I really do not want to know anything about that."

"Scared?"

"No. Disgusted. Look, what you two do - "

The sound of the announcer overhead cut me off. "And for our last ride of the night, riding a bull called Yellowbelly, in the Stanley Tools chute is our first female rider in the PBR Tough Enough Series. Cody Jennings from Spring Creek, Missouri gave it a good go last time. Let's see if she can do any better on her second attempt!"

Leaning out a bit, I could see her easing down onto the back of a big, blonde bull. She probably hadn't even heard the guy. The look of her entire body was focused, like a professional. Then again, that was exactly what she was. She also looked very, very comfortable with all of this, and that made me a little proud.

"Come on, Cody!" Hannah yelled, adding a whoop at the end. "Show these boys what it means to ride like a girl!"

Smiling, I looked at her and nodded, intending to add my own yell, but someone beat me. From the far side, a guy called out, "Show that bull who's boss, Cody!"

Then more.

"You got this!"

"Yeah, baby. Just close your eyes and hang on tight."

"I want to see a ninety, Cody. Make me proud to be an American, girl!" That was J.D.

Granted, not all of them were actually cheering for her. Some of the guys were handing out jeers, and quite a few had something lewd to go along with it, but I wasn't about to miss out. "Best rookie of the year," I screamed. "Show me what ya got, Cody!"

Her head was bowed like her eyes were on her hand, but I saw her look over. The grill on the helmet made it hard to miss. Then she was back to business. Shifting into place, she tugged, wiggled, and made a few adjustments, then scooted even closer. Without waiting, she nodded.

Yellowbelly came out with a bang. Leaping up, his front feet were nearly level with the top of the chute, but he was diving into the arena. She didn't even rock. Her right hand was up in the air, her fingers nice and relaxed like she wasn't even trying, and the bull was making a show of things. His front hit the ground, and the back end went up. All of her weight was on her thighs, holding her right where she needed to be, but the bull's back was so close. That was a photo-worthy kick.

He tried that a few more times, but she didn't wiggle, so he went for the next trick. Jumping up with all four feet, Yellowbelly kicked out, slinging drool before him with the effort. When I saw Cody's feet sliding up his sides, I couldn't help but whoop. She had this. She really had this, and I wasn't the only one yelling at the top of my lungs.

Down, up, around and back, that bull put on the kind of show we like. His bucks were like a metronome, but powerful. His leaps were full force. No one could say she didn't earn this, and the clock was quickly working its way to eight. The only problem was how easy she made it look. She wasn't frazzled, she wasn't hanging on for dear life. That tiny girl was riding like this beast had just become a part of her.

When the buzzer went off, I couldn't help myself. I patted Hannah on the back, laughing just like she was. They'd tried to make an ordeal of her being a woman, and she'd just shoved it in all their faces. Cody could ride, and this was the perfect way to end the night. The only problem was after she made it off. She didn't jog over to the wall, she skipped, and that meant she had to be hurting pretty damned bad.

"Not bad at all," the announcer said as the scoreboards flipped. "I think she's just shown some of the boys how it's done. With a score of 89.75, that bumps Cody up to fourth place overall."

Wrenching off her helmet, she turned to see the big screen, where her name blinked into place under only three others. For a moment she did nothing, just stared, but I knew this was what she'd wanted. She hadn't just proven she could do it to herself, she'd shown everyone that girls could do anything they set their mind to.

"Yeah!" she screamed, punching at the air with the helmet. She did it again, but this time she was looking around the rail.

I couldn't help myself - I leaned over. "Not bad for a rookie!"

"Ty!" Since the bull had already been shooed out, she gimped over my way, the biggest grin on her face. "I'm fourth!"

"Means a buckle. Nice job." I paused, waiting for her to get a bit closer. "You kicked my ass."

The look on her face was priceless. Confusion came first, then annoyance right behind it. Hoping for a clue, she looked back to the scoreboard, and her body almost twitched in shock. When she turned back to me, her mouth was open and her eyes were wide.

"You're fifth?"

"I sure am. Earned me another buckle." Then I pointed at the gate. "Get off the sand, rookie. I'll meet you back there."

Draping an arm around Hannah's back, I used my body to force our way back toward the stairs. There was no way I would leave her up there. Besides, I wanted Cody to meet her. I had a feeling these two would get along a little too well.

"Where's Renato?" I asked.

She grabbed my waist as she took the first step. "Brazil's on the other side. Pretty sure he'll come down to see her, though."

Yeah, and he wasn't the only one. By the time we got down near the chutes, a few others were already crowding the path. I couldn't see Cody in all of that, but I could see the void where her short little head must be. Then I heard a squeal. A split second later, her head came up, right next to J.D.'s as he spun her around in a massive hug.

"That's my rookie!" he was laughing. "You guys see this? Finally found a rider as good as me. Any of ya touch her, and I'll break your hand."

"Let me down," she ordered. Oddly, he obeyed.

Normally, I would have rushed over, but I wasn't going to let any of these guys knock Hannah around. I could wait. Besides, this was her moment to shine, and she deserved it. She also must have seen me, because it looked like she was making a straight line over.

"Ty!" she said, breaking through the last of the crowd. Then she stopped. Her eyes flicked over to Hannah and my arm on her shoulder. "Uh, hi."

"Hey!" She offered a hand. "You were amazing out there."

Cody tried to smile, but the spark had just fizzled out. "Thanks. I'm Cody, by the way."

"Oh!" Hannah pressed a hand to her forehead. "And I'm an idiot. Hannah, Renato's girlfriend. Ty was playing bodyguard." She looked at her belly. "I'm at that stage where they think anything is going to make me explode."

Cody's smile returned full-force. "Nice to meet you. How far along are you?"

"Twenty-nine weeks. I get one more show, then punted back home to act like a good girl and finish cooking the parasite. I'm just really glad I got to meet you first. I've heard so much."

"No, you haven't," I groaned.

She just thumped my arm. "Ty, you've said a hell of a lot more than you know." Grinning, she leaned closer to Cody. "I just hope the feeling's mutual."

And there was that blush I loved so very much. It made me completely forgive Hannah for embarrassing the crap out of me. Also gave me a good chance to save my girl.

"So, guess this means I get to stand beside you when you get the limelight, huh?"

"Wait." Cody chuckled. "I'm gonna be on the bullpen?"

At every event, the round, padded ring in the middle of the arena protected the cameramen. Before the first show and at the end when we got awards, it also became a stage. The top five were lined up, shoulder to shoulder, on top of it. The rest of the riders got to stand around the base. Most of them got little more than a mention.

"You sure are," I told her, "and I hope you finally decide to let your hair down for it."

She just nodded. "I can do that. I can definitely do that."

Source: www.allfreenovel.com