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"They just wanted to chase me off."
She lifted a brow. "There's no 'just' to that. I know bull riding is a tough sport. I know you riders think you're unbreakable. I also know ignoring it will not make it go away. Trust me, we women have been fighting this fight for a very long time, and Under Armour is behind you all the way."
"Yeah?" Max asked.
Grace nodded. "Oh yeah. Breaking trails, right? That's what our brand is all about. There's no reason to punish our chosen celebrity for standing up for herself - and corporate agrees. They wanted me here this weekend to run interference if anything goes sideways. That means you can get some time off, Max."
"I might even take you up on that," Max said.
But Grace's words had caught my attention. "Sideways? Like last weekend?"
She shook her head. "Like the organization treating you differently because you're a woman."
I grunted at that. "So, like last weekend," I said. "You know, when my riding got better and my scores went down. Grace, I know this might shock the hell out of you, but I'm actually more worried about that than I am those idiots trying to beat the crap out of me."
The woman sighed. "I'm going to have to learn a few things about bull riding, huh?"
"I can help," Max offered. "Just make sure your wife knows that'sallI'm doing."
"Wife?" That made my head snap up.
Grace chuckled in that ironic way people had. "Cody, I'm a lesbian. I hope this doesn't change how you feel about working with me."
I quickly shook my head. "Nope. Some of my good friends aren't straight. I figure it's none of my business, and shouldn't really be any of the PBR's neither."
Max just smiled at me. "But you're gonna blaze the trail for them, right?"
"Blazing away," I promised. "Don't even care if it's hard. I'm here to ride, and tomorrow I'll prove that. You two just watch me. Doesn't even matter what score they give me. I'll be the one the fans will be talking about after the show." I pulled in a deep breath, doing my best to convince myself what I was saying was true. "I'm going to prove I can ride better than even J.D. Adkins."
"And with this," Max told me, gesturing to the contracts between us, "you're one step closer, Cody. Doesn't mean I'm going to stop looking for more sponsors, but with this? There's no way they can stop you now."
Grace just smiled. "And Under Armour wants to make sure we're on the winning side. Your sponsors have your back. Ride hard. That's all we want to see."
"And it's what I'm best at," I agreed.
Chapter10
I'd just gorgedmyself at the Denny's next door. Nothing better than eggs and hashbrowns to start the day right, in my opinion. My stomach was full, my body wasn't aching today, and I was feeling pretty damned good.
Tomorrow, we'd be riding again. I'd checked the listing of stock contractors, and it looked like this string wouldn't be the easy kind. I was ok with that. Right now, I was sitting in second place overall. This was the best I'd ever done in my career, and I wanted to make sure I stayed here.
I was halfway across the lobby when my eyes landed on my least favorite person in this sport. Austin Chambers was a dick and a half. Worse, he wasn't even that good, but the bastard sure thought he was. In his pea-brain, he was convinced his crap scores were someone else's fault.
In truth, it was because his seat sucked. He could spur well enough, but if the bull was the least bit unpredictable, his entire body was flopping all over the place. Worse, he couldn't keep his chin tucked when he rode. It was like the dumbass assumed the cameras would want to see hisfacewhen they snapped a picture.
Yeah, well, he'd figure it out about the time he quit. Least, that was what I'd guess. Guys like him were a dime a dozen. They wanted to ride for the show, not the check. Working to improve their technique? Too hard. They'd rather spend their free time drinking and fucking everything they could.
Grunting under my breath, I made sure not to make eye contact. I'd been doing this long enough to be happy on my own. I wasn't here to make friends. I wanted to ride. That meant getting better each time I got on a bull. I needed to focus, review the videos of these animals, and get my head in the game - which was my plan for the rest of the day. This way, I'd be ready for tomorrow's event.
But just as I reached the elevator, the doors dinged and opened. What stepped out had me fighting a smile. Trying to play it cool, I jerked my chin in greeting at Cody Jennings. That girl was nothing like I'd expected, and I was starting to respect her a bit.
"Morning, Jake," she said.
The shittiest thing was she was cute. I had a funny feeling that if she'd been built like a linebacker, no one would've cared about her breaking into the PBR. Instead, Cody was this petite little thing. Add in the blonde hair, blue eyes, and superstar face? Yep, she was going to get noticed.
Sadly, getting noticed wasn't usually a good thing. We got our check either way. But getting noticed? That was how we got shit on by the other guys. It was how we got backed into corners, getting asked questions our sponsors wouldn't want answered. Getting noticed was dangerous, which was why I'd mastered keeping to myself.
Too bad she'd already been noticed. Just to make the point, I glanced across the room to where the dumbass and his favorite crony were still talking. So far, Austin and Eli didn't seem to know she was down here, but I had a feeling that might not last for long.
