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"Well?" I asked.
"You look like the real deal now," he assured me.
"Should show off your tits more," Kaleb taunted from the other side of the room.
I rolled my eyes, but ignored him. While J.D. finished getting himself ready, I pulled out my bull rope and helmet. I had a hair tie on my wrist so I could braid this mess after the opening ceremony. Besides that, I couldn't think of what else I'd need except some clue as to how to get around this place.
Soon enough, the pair of us were headed down to the main area to get in line. Outside, we could hear the first sounds of the stadium filling up. The sound of so many people was a dull hum that just made the excitement start to grow a little in my chest. In the distance, the lowing of cattle fit right in. There was a smell in the air that I couldn't quite make out until we turned a corner.
"Open air," I realized.
"Yup," J.D. said. "This is Cheyenne. There's gonna be pyrotechnics on the back side, a whole lot of music playin', but no bullpen to jump on. The whole setup's different, but don't matter none. Bulls still buck the same."
I nodded to show I heard, and then we were at the staging area. Even better, I saw a bright purple jersey in the middle of everything.
"Tanner!" I called.
He spun, a smile taking up his face, then made his way over. Without a single word, that man wrapped one arm around me, yanked off his own straw hat, and then kissed me hard. I grabbed a handful of his jersey, pulling him closer, and behind us someone whooped in encouragement.
But my lips had parted, and Tanner was clearly not the shy type. He took the chance and kissed me the way he had that first night. His body was close enough to mine that I could feel every single layer of the protective padding that was under his uniform. That was the only reason I didn't try to grab his ass.
Then he pulled back. "So, um... I had fun too."
Uh, what? Right, my text! Fuck, that was what he was talking about. A stupid smile took over my face, and I was pretty sure every cowboy around us could see it.
"Are your thumbs broken?" I asked.
He shrugged, a lopsided and boyish smile on his lips. "I wrote about ten replies out, but deleted them all. Sounded dumb."
"Not how you get another date," J.D. told him. "Now kiss your girl again, because we need to line up."
So Tanner leaned in and kissed me one more time. "Who'd ya draw?"
"Yeeter," I said.
He nodded. "Good. I'll still be keeping a close eye on ya. Eighteenth, right?"
"Mhm."
Then he tipped his head towards the very disorganized line. "Go play, cowgirl."
"Be safe," I told him, managing to take a single step away.
Tanner reached out to swat my ass. "Safe is your job, not mine." Then he grinned and jogged the other way.
"Show off!"
Now that was a voice I recognized. Looking around, I finally found Ty leaning against the wall, his Wrangler patches making him stand out, and that straw Stetson was right where it belonged - on his head. Forgetting all about J.D., I headed straight for Ty.
"Hey," I breathed when I reached him.
His hand caught my waist, but almost like he was holding me at a distance. I understood, but that didn't mean I liked it. Still, he was looking at me strangely.
"Was told my entry's all paid up this weekend," he said.
I shrugged. "It was my way of saying I'm sorry." I scrunched up my face. "Maybe we can do friends?"
His face relaxed, almost like so much hidden tension had just vanished. "Yeah," he agreed. "I can do friends, Cody. I think that's a lot better than my idea."
