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And with the bull turning to the right, that meant my left leg was on the outside. There was no better time than now to see if I could do this, so I started lifting my whole leg off his side, making the attempts at spurring that much more dramatic. The bucks got bigger. The kicks got higher. When I felt Yeeter's back brush mine, even though I was sitting nice and centered, I knew I'd figured it out, and all thanks to a date with a mechanical bull.
That was when the bullfighters moved in. A flash of fireworks at the corner of my eye made it clear I'd missed the buzzer, but I'd evidently made eight. As Yeeter kept bucking like the second hand on a Rolex, I looked up to see Tanner waving me down. I was good. I'd done it. Now I just had to get out of here without getting crushed.
A yank at the tail of my rope, and I was free. Even better, this bull just kept going, not giving a shit about me, which let me slide off to the side. My feet hit the ground and I was moving. Purple shoved around me, and the guys took over, doing their thing, but I didn't stop. Not until I was back at the chutes, pulling off my helmet.
That was when I finally got the chance to look back and appreciate just what our bullfighters did. Tanner tapped the bull's nose, getting Yeeter's attention. When the beast turned to chase him, Isaac came around the other side, straightening him back out. Then it was Jorge's turn. They spun around the animal, pivoting like some kind of football player trying to avoid a tackle, and the bull didn't stand a chance.
His bucks gave out and then Yeeter almost paused, looking around. Finding the open gate to get him out, he decided to take it, trotting his fat red ass out as if he was almost offended to have been here in the first place.
"And that's yet another qualified ride for one of our newest rookies on the Tough Enough series!" the announcer called out. "Looks like Cody Jennings impressed the judges a little too, because she's walking out of here with a score of 88.0!"
"Whoo!" Tanner yelled as he caught me from behind, lifted me up, and spun me around.
I laughed, landing on my feet just to turn around and hug him. "I'll take it," I said.
So he held out my bull rope, which had fallen off somewhere out in the dirt. "Yeah you will," he agreed as he passed it over. Then he palmed the side of my face with one hand, pulled off his hat with the other, and stole a quick kiss. "Get out of the arena, cowgirl."
I swatted him on the ass and then jogged for the gate at the side. Sadly, our little moment hadn't gone unnoticed. Granted, I had a feeling that was the whole reason Tanner had done it.
"And this is something you don't see every day in the PBR," the announcer told the crowd. "Seems that Tanner Burns, one of our bullfighters, has a thing for a bull rider."
Someone in the stands jeered, but most of them were laughing.
"Now, don't go thinking like that," the announcer insisted. "Wearing pink, the PBR is proud to boast the first female rider on the Tough Enough series! This is just her third weekend with us, and she has already racked up six qualified rides - and has the points to prove it!"
I slipped through the gap the moment the gate opened, only to find Jake Cunningham waiting on the other side. J.D. and Ty were nowhere to be seen, but Jake was holding my hat out like a peace offering.
"Nice ride, rookie," he told me.
I passed him my helmet, wiped at my hair with one hand, and used the other to get my hat on right. When that was done, I took my helmet back and looked around.
"Where's J.D.?" I asked.
"With Ty," Jake told me. "J.D. said Emilio was watching your shit. Figured that since I'm not up for a bit, I could bring your hat down."
Behind us, the announcer was still going on about girls and pink. It sounded like Cletus was also trying to pick on Tanner for dating a woman tougher than him. I rolled my eyes and did my best to tune it all out, but Jake saw.
"That shit makes you crazy too?" he asked.
"Oh yeah," I agreed. "No comment about my position, spurring, that direction change, or anything I did. All they say is that I'm a toy, cute in pink, and all-American."
Jake patted my shoulder, then steered me towards the stairs. "Well, it was a good ride. I have no idea how the hell you sit up there so stable, but your ass never leaves the hair."
"No balls," I teased.
He roared out a laugh. "Yep, that'd do it."
But when one of the gates clanked, we both paused to watch the next rider. The bull was little, black, and wiry. He also bucked like he knew exactly what he was doing. I watched as the rider's ass got higher, and then higher still. His upper body was all over the place. Naturally, when that little bull went in for his spins, the rider didn't stand a chance. With a hard grunt, the cowboy hit the dirt, showing a clock stopped at 4.47 seconds.
"Hollowed out his back," I muttered, turning to keep going.
But Jake caught my arm. "Who taught you to ride, Cody?"
"My father," I told him, but he just lifted a brow. "Old rodeo bull rider for half his life."
"Ah." He nodded. "So he rode the rankest ones, huh?"
"Sounds like it," I admitted. "Daddy always said that technique could outperform any bovine."
