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"I got him," Dad assured me.
"What?" Ok, I really needed some coffee to make all of this make sense.
"You," J.D. told me, "are going to make sure Tanner makes it to the arena on time. You're going to check in, get your bull, and warm up. I'm going to lie here until the doctors check me over. I may not get out, Cody. They may wanna keep me another day."
"Oh."
He nodded. "So you're gonna ride real good, get that ninety you've been trying for, and make me damned proud you're my rookie, right?"
"Right," I agreed. "But what if they do let you out?"
"Still have the rental," Dad pointed out. "Bet they even have the show on this TV here. J.D. and I can watch you, so you got work to do, and I'm going to take care of your boyfriend while you do it."
"Another thing dads do?" Tanner asked.
Dean nodded his head in a way that said more than words. "Yep."
Overnight, something had shifted between those two. I wasn't sure what, but I liked it. The way Dad was smiling at Tanner was like he approved, so I was just going to roll with this.
What I didn't bother doing was changing out of my fuzzy pants. Ty had brought us up clothes for the night, and he'd made sure J.D. had something for when he was released. What I needed for the day was back at the hotel, though.
"I have to find all our shit," I realized.
"Ty got most of it," Tanner assured me. "Should be at the hotel. What we stripped last night is still in the truck."
"Got the keys?" J.D. asked.
I did. The ones for the truck, and the one I'd loaned Ty for the hotel too. So, gathering up my dirty stuff that I'd changed out of, I ran through a list of what I'd need and where I had spares. This was not how I wanted to start my day, but J.D. said I was riding, so I was definitely going to ride.
Half an hour later, Tanner and I were on the road and headed back to the hotel. I parked J.D.'s truck up close, knowing we'd be leaving again soon, and then we headed in. The lobby wasn't empty, though. Nope, quite a few riders were getting ready to head out on their own.
Tanner and I came in wearing what we'd slept in. The guys noticed. Over at the side, I saw Jake smiling at us, and I almost stopped in my tracks to ask why. I didn't get the chance. Austin moved to plant his dumb ass right between me and the elevator.
"Figured we wouldn't see either of you for the rest of the weekend," he taunted. "I mean, since your boyfriend's all hurt and shit."
"Guess your friends would never give a shit about you getting hurt, huh?" Tanner asked, moving before me slightly.
Austin just grinned. "My friends know how to get even, Tanner. You fucked up real bad yesterday, letting that bull dance on me like that."
"Think so?" Tanner asked.
"Just know there's a video of it," Austin pointed out. "All that shit."
"Fuck off," I grumbled, grabbing Tanner's hand to pull him around Austin. "And you?" I glared at the asshole. "Go fuck yourself."
Austin just laughed, backing up and out of our way. Unfortunately, he wasn't done yet. "Gonna hold my hand when I get hurt, Tanner? Maybe give me a kiss too?"
"What?!" Tanner snapped, turning like he wanted to go back.
I gripped his hand harder and kept pulling, towing him to the elevator. Thank fuck the thing was already down here, so when I pressed the button for it, the door opened right away. Tanner clearly wanted to put Austin on the ground again, but not here. Not where it would get the cops involved.
Yet as the elevator doors closed, shutting that asshole out, I saw Jake pushing to his feet. That guy was starting to show up a little more than I really liked. It felt like every time I turned around, Jake was here.
Was it simply because I'd been used to it being Ty? Because if I hadn't been with J.D. for the last few events, I'd been with Ty. In truth, I spent more time with either of them than I ever had with Tanner. Granted, it wasn't easy when Tanner was always down in the arena, but still!
Yet J.D. had said Jake was a good guy.
That was the only reason I wasn't worrying too much. If Jake wanted to get involved in my mess, then I wasn't gonna stop him. He knew the bullshit that followed me around. Hell, he'd even said it was why he'd avoided me at first. So maybe he was just fucking off before it got messy? No clue.
