AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You’ll do it?” Her voice lifted in excitement. “Let me check the schedule.” There was a short pause. “Amarillo, Fort Worth, and San Antonio to start. Maybe the rest of the Texas circuit and Oklahoma. Then if you’re a fit, the rest of the whole damned season.”
Dylan closed his eyes for a second, not sure whether to be thankful for the quick three thousand dollars or to be wary because this training gig matched his schedule perfectly.
“I might not have access to the bulls at all of them.” His uncle supplied bulls for some of the rodeo events and would let him use them for practice in return for some ranch hand work in the off-season. “But I can make do with a mechanical bull or hell, even rig up an oil drum if I have to. How green is the rider?”
“She’s been training with Trent Campbell, so not a complete novice.”
“Hold the phone. She?” Why on earth was a girl looking to learn how to ride a bull?
“Yes. My sister.”
Oh no.
“LeAnn.”
That figured. Killer Keller would be ballsy enough to do it. He blew out a sigh. “Bull riding isn’t like riding a bronc.”
“I’m aware of that, and so is she. Does this change your mind?”
Dolly sounded worried, and she had a right to be. It almost made him change his mind. He didn’t want to watch LeAnn ride a bull, not to mention actually training her how to do it. But he knew that LeAnn was going to do it whether or not he was the one coaching her.
What if something happened to her, like it had happened to Johnny? He forced down that thought before it could worm its way inside of him. Dylan would have to make damned sure nothing happened, that was all.
“No,” he said. “I’ll do it. She needs to sign a waiver, but if she wants to learn to ride, I can teach her.”
“Like I said, she’s ridden before. I saw her go eight seconds on a bull named Apis at Trent’s school.”
“I’m unfamiliar with Apis.” Dylan was impressed despite himself. Trent Campbell had a good school. And if he was letting LeAnn ride, she was probably doing well, especially if she could stay on for eight seconds.
“He was terrifying.” Dolly’s voice shook.
Dylan had a mental image of sexy LeAnn holding on for dear life on a nasty bull with rage in his veins. No lie. It made him a bit queasy.
“Why is she doing this?”
“Well, you didn’t hear it from me—” Dolly lowered her voice “—but the WPRC is going to open up a new event for bull riding, and LeAnn wants to get a leg up on the competition.”
That figured. It sounded like something the little spitfire would do. Too bad she’d been avoiding him since that night they’d slept together. He might have been able to talk her out of it. Riding broncs was one thing. Bulls were a whole other story.
“Keep it under your hat, though. Will you?”
“Not a problem.” The last thing he wanted to do was listen to a bunch of cowboys bitch about women in the rodeo. The MPRC and the WPRC occasionally did joint rodeos together, but for the most part, they alternated weeks in various areas. Amarillo, Fort Worth, and San Antonio were the season openers, and both the men and women would be competing on the same weekend.
“One other thing?”
“Just one?” he drawled. He hated this. Hated that someone he cared about was willingly putting themselves at risk. But he wasn’t a hypocrite. He got on a bull every damned day of his life. If he was willing to face death on four legs, he couldn’t begrudge anyone else that choice. Still, it was LeAnn. Sweet, beautiful LeAnn.
“No one can know about this,” Dolly continued. “LeAnn doesn’t want our parents to find out until WPRC makes the announcement, so until then, it’s got to be kept on the down low.”
“Sure,” he said, amused despite himself. Sounded like LeAnn was still tiptoeing around her family, but doing whatever she damned well wanted anyway.
“I’ll wire the money in the morning, if you send me your bank information and the waiver for her to sign.”
“Will do.”
There was a long pause, and Dylan wondered if Dolly had hung up. But then she said, “I don’t want my baby sister to get hurt.”
That made two of them.
