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"And Austin's in between us," J.D. told me. "That has to chap his ass a bit."
"Shit, all he'll see is that he's ahead of Cody," I pointed out.
But she didn't seem to care about that. "Still, I almost scored as good as him, and all because of our date!"
Wait, what? "How?" I asked, because she'd completely lost me.
"The mechanical bull," she insisted, those pretty blue eyes of hers shining with excitement. "I figured out how to balance and spur!"
"And here I thought I was just looking like an idiot for your amusement," I teased.
Cody wrapped her arm around my waist and leaned in. "Nope, you're keeping me safe."
That. Wow, she'd just put my feelings into words. That was what I liked so much about this girl. She let me be her hero. Not just J.D. and Ty. Not the fancy bull riders who got all the attention, but me, the Iowa boy in the baggy clothes who preferred to run around the bulls rather than sit on them.
And yes, I really did want to keep her safe. Not because I didn't think she was doing a damned good job of it herself. This was different. It was deeper, like a dog guarding his bone. It was also reciprocal, since I knew that having her hanging on my side was making it very clear to all these guys that I liked women plenty. They didn't need to know about the rest.
On Cody's other side, J.D. had clearly had enough alcohol to get into a mood. "Hey!" he yelled out at the room. "Who got bucked off tonight?"
A few guys lifted their hands, so J.D. waved to the bartender. "A round for all of them."
"Oh, me!" I said, lifting my hand.
"And him," J.D. added, "because I saw you catch air at least once, Tanner."
"How's your hip?" Cody asked, glancing down to where I'd taken at least one set of horns.
I hooked her chin with my finger, lifting her face. "Padded," I assured her. "That's why we'll take the kicks for you."
"Oh, for me?" And I'd be damned if she didn't bat those dark lashes of hers at me.
"Shit," J.D. laughed. "Do that again, Cody, and he'll get down on a knee for you."
"Don't want him on his knees," she shot back.
"Oh, but I'm good on my knees," I promised. "I know just how to keep a bull rider entertained."
"Oh!" J.D. almost howled. "That's illegal in public, Tanner!"
I just ran my eyes over Cody. "Just making sure the offer's there. You're the one with the room, you know."
Her eyes immediately darted across the bar to where I'd last seen Ty. "Maybe," she told me.
So I bent to her ear. "And that's fine too. Just making sure you know that one night with you is not enough."
Seeing her teeth clamp down on her lower lip? Yep, I was definitely doing just fine. I might not be tonight's pick, but I was still one of her picks, and that was enough for me.
Chapter23
I hada redhead hanging off my shoulder. A brunette was standing too close on my other side, and the pair were glaring at each other like a fight was about to go down. Behind me, another brunette and her blonde friend were dancing in place, just shaking what they had and giggling. In front of me, the pretty girl with the chestnut hair was taking much too long to line up and throw her dart, doing her best to make sure I could see her ass.
"So," the redhead whispered in my ear, "what are you doing after this?"
"Crashing so I can ride in the morning," I told her.
Yeah, but the brunette heard. "I give amazing massages," she offered. "Full body, deep muscle. The kind that will leave you feeling like rubber."
"Oh, fuck off!" the redhead snapped.
