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"All-righty," Max said, sounding like he was about to end the call.
So I stopped him. "Hey, Max? Figure you need to know that Cody's got some cowboys chasing her."
"I saw the awards in St. Louis," he assured us. "That bullfighter surprised me. Figured Ty McBride would be the one pulling off something like that."
"Yeah..." I said. "Max, we need to talk when you get here. Cool?"
"Can do, J.D.," he assured me. "Anything I should brace for?"
"Whole lot," I decided. "I'd just rather do this face to face, if you don't mind?"
"After Cody's meeting then," he told me. "That way I'll have all night for you."
"Thanks, Max," I said. "Now I'll let you run off."
"Drive safe, you two," he told us. "Glad to be working with you, Cody. I'll see you tomorrow to get your stuff to you."
I reached over to disconnect the call, then glanced over to check on Cody. "I'm gonna tell him."
"That I'm dating three guys?" she asked. "Shit, J.D., no one will wanna sponsor me after that!"
"Well, I meant about me and Tanner," I told her. "But I think you should tell him that too. See, Max's job is to cover for us. Now, there ain't a single reason why you can't date a few guys at the same time. Shit, do you know how many girls some of these guys are with? Got a wife at home and a girl waiting in each town. All of them think they're the only one, too. So if they can do that, then why can't you?"
"Because we're touring together," she pointed out. "Because you're my competition. Because this isn't something that stays behind the chutes or in the hotels and bars. This is..." She reached up to shove her hair back. "I'm a slut! That's what they'll say."
"Real hard to be a slut when you've been with exactly two guys," I countered.
"Like anyone would believe me," she said. "See, that's the thing. It doesn't matter how many guys I'veactuallybeen with. It only matters how many they think I have. Girls are supposed to be lady-like, and polite, and - "
"Bullshit." I slashed my hand through the air between us. "Let's just stop that shit now, before it can even start. Girls also aren't supposed to ride bulls, right? Cuz that's what a few of those guys are sayin'."
"See!" she gestured like I'd just made her point for her.
"And you're the one who said we need to change things up," I reminded her. "Just means you need to stop being the good girl, Cody, and start acting like the rest of us."
"But how?" she asked. "I mean, it sounds great when I'm in the shower with two naked men, but I've been thinking about it. How exactly do I change things up? What can I even do? My job is to stay on the bull for eight seconds, do it again the next night, not break myself too bad in the process, and then repeat the whole thing the next weekend. Where in all of that is a chance for me to change things?"
Yeah, she had a bit of a point, but I was pretty sure I had another one. "You're my rookie," I said.
"And?" she pressed.
"Mine," I told her, daring to glance over. "Cody, c'mon. We all know I got a reputation. I mean, I worked real hard to earn it, so I'm ok with it. But, ya know how it all started?"
"No," she mumbled.
I thrust out my lower lip and nodded, warming up for this. "Well, when I was a rookie, I rode as José Adkins. Little Mexican boys behind the chutes didn't get treated real good back then. So, some fucker decided to shove me around, and I shoved back. Then I hit back. For that first year, it was real touch and go, because I didn't have the money to pay for a fine. If someone hadda complained? Yeah, I woulda been out."
"Which is why you had Ty get me out of the bar," she agreed.
I began bobbing my head again. "Yup, but see, that was when I first met ya. I thought you might be a real nice girl who'd get scared off with the shit we guys throw down."
"Uh huh..." She shifted, her feet moving a little closer to my balls, but I was pretty sure she didn't realize it. "So you thought I'd break, huh?"
"Somethin' like that," I admitted. "Mostly, I was scared you'd get flustered, get on a bull, and get hurt comin' off. I was real scared that the first girl brave enough - and good enough - to ride in the Tough Enough series wouldn't wanna come back. So, I made sure that Austin figured out you might have a little backup."
"You didn't have to cut him," she chided.
I laughed. "Yeah, babe, I kinda did. See, he'll remember that lesson for a bit. And next time, you'll be the one holdin' the empty bottle, because I'll pay the fines. You're my rookie. I'm your mentor. I'm also a no-good piece of shit that no one wants to fuck with."
