Page 101 of Cowboy Daddies

At the fairgrounds, we get checked in, make sure we’re all registered and get the schedule, finding out where we are supposed to be and when. Tripp is tenser than I’ve ever seen him, and I know he’s worried about losing. About the pact he made with himself about settling down here. He does things like that all the time, makes little deals with fate to guide our lives.

If x happens, then I will do y. If I win this competition, then we will take a month off. If I beat my personal record then I’ll have the nicest steak money can buy for dinner.

It’s never bothered me before, but this time it feels bigger. More important. Like losing could actually fuck up the course of our lives.

After getting registered, I check in with Marci. The grandstands are empty mostly, but starting to fill up. She’s at the very top. I make my way up there and sit down next to her.

“This is the boring part. It’s going to be a couple hours before the fun actually starts.”

She nods. “I figured. Where’s Tripp?” She half stands and cranes her neck, scouring the area below.

“He’s around here somewhere.” I wave it off. Tripp is doing what he does, and he’s usually off by himself before a competition. I’ve learned not to take it personally.

“What events are you doing?” Her interest feels genuine and I smile and relax, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

“Ah, I’m just doing the easy stuff. Tie-down wrestling and steer roping. Me and Midnight can pretty much do them in our sleep at this point.”

Marci smiles, her eyes lighting up. “Figures. You’ve already proven you know your way around a rope.” There’s a ton of innuendo layered into her words and for a moment all I can picture is her tied up and naked, last night, tomorrow night, all the nights for the rest of our lives.

She waves a hand in front of my face and I realize I’ve missed something. “Huh?” I ask. “Sorry, I spaced out for a moment.”

“Is Midnight your horse?” She repeats her question.

“Oh yeah. We’ve been together for a minute.” I smile easily, thinking about the magnificent creature.

“Where is she? Can I meet her?”

I pause and think. “I do need to go down to the barns and see her. But it could start getting busy soon. You might lose your spot.”

“I don’t care.” Marci beams at me. “I can stand.”

I like her cheekiness and her dedication, but I hope it doesn’t come to that. I want her to be able to watch us do what we do best, and I know as well as anyone how long these events can be, even when you have a place to sit. But I decide it’s worth the risk, because I know I’ve fallen for this woman and suddenly, her meeting my horse seems like the most important thing in the world.

Chapter Nine

Marci

The barns are louder than I expect.

Not with people, but with horses shifting in their stalls, hooves thudding against packed dirt, leather creaking, and the occasional sharp whinny cutting through the air. The smell of hay, dust, and saddle soap hangs thick around us. Having grown up in this town, it’s nothing new to me, and I welcome the familiar aromas, breathing them in and really savoring them in a way I never have before.

Levi walks beside me, one hand resting lightly at the small of my back as he leads me past the horse-filled stalls toward the end of the row.

“Ready to meet the boss?” he asks.

I glance at him. “I thought you were the one competing today.”

“Exactly. She’s the boss.”

He stops in front of a stall, and a black head immediately appears over the half-door. Midnight’s ears prick forward, and her dark eyes settle on me.

“Oh,” I whisper. “She’s beautiful. And she’s looking at me like she knows me.”

Levi grins. “Yeah. She does that.”

Midnight nudges his shoulder, impatient for attention. He laughs and rubs her forehead, then looks back at me.

“Come here. Let her smell you first.”