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“That’s enough, Daron. We’ve taken up enough of Jason’s time,” she said.
“It’s okay,” Jason said, drawing her attention back to him. “I don’t mind.”
Especially if it kept Sloane around a little longer.
A second woman joined the group, accompanied by another little girl. These two, however, he could tell were related. The woman made eye contact with him for a moment, offered a smile, but then shot Sloane a questioning look.
Sloane motioned toward the new arrivals. “My sister, Angel, and niece, Julia.”
They didn’t look as if they were blood-related, not with Sloane being blond and fair and Angel of Native American descent, but the country was full of blended families.
He extended his hand to Angel. “Jason Till. Nice to meet you.”
Angel shook his hand. “You, too. Are you one of the riders?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“He’s a steer wrestler,” Daron said with so much enthusiasm that Jason couldn’t help but smile.
“We should get to our seats,” Sloane said.
“We’ve got plenty of time,” Angel replied.
He caught the look of surprise Sloane shot her sister, and if he wasn’t mistaken Angel reciprocated with one of mischief. Sloane, the surprised expression now totally gone as if it had never existed, turned to him.
“Thanks for taking the time to talk to the kids.”
“No problem.”
“Good luck tonight.”
“Thank you. I’ll do my best to put on a good show for these guys,” he said as he motioned toward the kids.
She said nothing else, just offered a quick smile and nod before she turned all of her attention to directing the kids toward the grandstands. Little Phoebe looked over her shoulder at him and offered a shy wave. He waved back, surprised by the way her smile lifted his mood. It wasn’t as if he was in a bad mood, but there was just something so sweet and pure about the little girl.
“I don’t suppose you have any free time this weekend, do you?”
The question caught him totally off guard. Was Angel about to ask him out? Not that she wasn’t pretty because she definitely was, but she wasn’t the sister who had captured his attention.
Before he could answer, she motioned toward Sloane and the kids. “My sister runs camps for underprivileged kids, where they come out and spend a weekend on our ranch. They get exposure to the animals, camp outside, learn about ranch life. This is the first time we’ve brought them to a rodeo, and it seems as if they’re interested in learning more. Thought maybe you could come out to the ranch and talk to them some more about what it’s like to be a rodeo cowboy.”
He’d never done anything like that before, but if he got to spend some more time with Sloane...well, it would sure beat hanging around the fairgrounds listening to tales of Bo’s latest romantic exploits.
“I could do that.”
“Great.” She rifled through her purse, then pulled out a business card and handed it to him. “Just text me when’s a good time for you and we’ll make it work.”
He gave her a nod and watched as she joined the others. When he saw the curious look on Sloane’s face, he bit his lip to keep from laughing. He knew that expression, having seen it from his own sister on more than one occasion. It promised payback like only a sibling could serve up.
When Sloane shifted her gaze to him, he tapped the brim of his hat with his index finger and offered what he hoped was a smile charming enough to relax her suspicion. When she merely turned away, he did laugh under his breath.
“I’m telling you, that one’s going to be a tough nut to crack,” Bo said as he joined Jason. “Lot easier ways to get some female company.”
“Maybe some things are worth working for,” he said as he gave Bo a backhanded slap to the chest, then headed toward the barn. He needed to get in the right headspace for the competition. After all, he had to put on a good show for the campers.
And if their camp counselor liked what she saw, all the better.
* * *
SLOANE HARTLEY STARED hard at her approaching sister. “You are up to something.”
Angel made a pffftt sound as she reached Sloane. “I think you have me confused with our brothers. They’re the ones always up to something.”
Sloane propped her hands on her hips. “I’ve always heard it’s the quiet ones you have to watch out for.”
“I’m not that quiet.”
“But you do fly under the radar.”
“Not hard when my siblings have such big personalities.”
“I feel as if I was just insulted.”
Angel gently patted Sloane’s cheek. “Not at all. I like your big personality. And Ben’s approaching bearable now that he’s a married man.”
Sloane paused her interrogation long enough to get all the campers and Julia settled in the bleachers. As usual, Julia was striking up instant friendships with the other kids, something their mother had noticed and pointed out as proof that there needed to be more grandchildren running around the Rocking Horse Ranch. Well, Neil and Ben were both married now, so Sloane figured the ball was in their procreation court. She sure wasn’t going to be a player in that game, at least not anytime soon. With her luck, never.
When she sank onto the bleacher seat next to her sister, she resisted glancing toward the barn to see if Jason the steer wrestler was still visible. Yes, the man was wicked good-looking, and she was afraid Angel had noticed Sloane’s awareness of that fact.
“So, spill. What were you talking to him about?”
“Him?” Angel asked, all faux innocence.
“You know exactly who I’m talking about.”
“You mean the handsome cowboy who couldn’t take his eyes off you?”
“You sound like Mom.”
Angel shrugged. “I call it like I see it.”
“Whatever. Maybe you should ask him out.”
“Nah. Not my type.”
“What is your type?”
Angel leaned back against the empty bleacher behind them. “I don’t know because I haven’t met him.”
Sure, Angel had a daughter, but that didn’t mean Julia’s father was the kind of guy Angel wanted to spend the rest of her life with. In fact, Sloane wasn’t sure that normally mild-mannered Angel wouldn’t coldcock Dave if she ever saw him again. If she didn’t, there was a long line of Hartleys willing to do it for her.
“Listen,” Angel said. “All I did was invite him out to the ranch to talk to the kids some more about rodeoing. I saw how interested they were in what he was saying.”
“You did what? Are you crazy? We don’t know the first thing about him. He could be a creep. Or have a rap sheet as long as my arm.”
Angel turned partway toward Sloane. “Did it strike you that either of those things is true?”
“How would I know? I barely spoke to the man.”
“Well, then, you can cure that when he’s your camp’s guest speaker.”
Sloane started to protest again but was interrupted by her younger sister.
“You know I’d never do anything to put these kids, including my daughter, in danger. If it was just going to be us there, I wouldn’t have invited him. But Dad and the guys will be close by. Not that I think the two of us couldn’t take Jason down by ourselves.”
“You got that right.” If anyone posed a threat to these kids, who already had enough to worry about in their young lives, she’d take them out. A boot to the kneecap could bring down the biggest man.
Though her instinct told her Angel was right, that this Jason guy was fairly harmless. Except, perhaps, to her peace of mind. The moment she’d met his dove-gray gaze, she’d been thrown off-kilter. That wasn’t a normal state of being for her. She’d come into contact with plenty of handsome men before, so what was it about Jason the steer wrestler that felt different?
Probably just that he’d seemed to pop up next to her out of thin air. She’d not exactly been startled, rather caught off guard. Just when she’d reined in her initial increased-pulse reaction to his looks, however, he’d gone and been nice to the kids. It was as if he was trying to increase his tally of “I’m an awesome guy” points as fast as he could, before she could even figure out who he was.
No need to worry about it though. As long as he entertained the kids, she was cool with him talking to them. But it didn’t matter how good-looking or charming he might be, she wasn’t interested in a cowboy only in town for a weekend. They came and went. She didn’t blame them. It was how they made their living or followed their passion. But if she ever ended up serious about a guy—and with her dating history, she wasn’t even sure she wanted that—it wasn’t going to be someone living that sort of nomadic lifestyle.
Her family had given her roots, and rodeo cowboys like Jason Till were about as rooted as a tumbleweed.
Chapter Two (#ud6bc64be-43b1-5dc9-bc21-9183a3cc6af2)
From his seat in the saddle, Jason glanced toward the grandstands. He needed to concentrate on his ride, which was only moments away, but he couldn’t keep himself from trying to catch a glimpse of Sloane.
The sound of laughter drew his attention back to the area around the chutes. Bo was sitting atop one of the gates and he hadn’t missed where Jason had been looking.
“I thought you had some sense,” Bo said.
Jason snorted. “And you’re the authority on good sense?”
“Never claimed that.”
Jason shifted his focus to the business at hand as he rode into the box, the steer was loaded into the roping chute and his hazer, Travis Morgan, got into position on the other side of the chute. Jason took a slow, deep breath, visualizing the next few seconds, something he’d done countless times before. He pictured tonight as another step closer to a national championship. Then he gave the chute man a quick nod of his head. The chute opened and the steer took off, shadowed by Travis. The moment the barrier rope around the steer’s neck popped off, Jason gave chase. Maybe a couple of heartbeats passed as he leaned off the side of his horse, got his right arm in position on the steer and let his feet slide free of his stirrups. He dug his heels into the dirt, grabbed the left horn with one hand and the right horn in the crook of his other elbow. He pulled the steer off balance but the animal wasn’t going to make it easy. Jason’s boots furrowed the dirt as the steer tried to free itself. Finally, after what seemed like forever, he managed to throw the steer to the ground. Unfortunately, he ate a bit of dirt in the process.
He didn’t even have to look to know it wasn’t his best time ever. Cursing, he got to his feet and spit out the dirt as the steer trotted away down the arena. Despite the disappointing score, he took off his hat and waved to the cheering crowd. He wondered if Sloane and the kids were clapping, but he couldn’t see them beyond the glare of the arena lights.
“Tough one,” Travis said when they met up outside the arena.
“Yeah, wasn’t my night.” Even though he’d have bet money he was focused, had he actually still been distracted by thoughts of a certain blonde?
He considered seeking her out in the stands, but a hit of common sense kept his boots planted on the other side of the fence watching the rest of the bulldoggers. Bo was right. There were easier ways to enjoy some female company than seeking out someone who evidently wasn’t all that interested in him. Someone who wouldn’t distract him so much that he lost an opportunity to move up in the standings. Plus, he’d be gone from Blue Falls in a couple of days and on to New Mexico.
He tried not to think about the long drive and what life was like for normal people who had weekends and didn’t have a longer relationship with the interstate system than they’d ever had with a woman. His parents were lucky they’d both been rodeo competitors. Neither ever had to leave the other behind when they hit the road. But that had never worked for Jason. He’d dated a couple of barrel racers and the daughter of a stock contractor, but none of those relationships had lasted more than a couple of months.
Why the devil was he thinking about relationships all of a sudden?
Maybe it had to do with his parents’ upcoming anniversary and his sister’s question—she wanted to know if he could take time to attend a party if she hosted one. Shannon had sounded so hopeful despite the fact that she probably hadn’t intended to. Even though she had been the one to break with family tradition and not go into professional rodeo, she fully understood the importance of competing in as many events as possible, or at least enough with sizable prize money.
“You coming with us?” Travis asked as Jason removed the saddle from his horse. “Hear there’s a good band playing at the local dance hall.”
Jason shook his head. “Not tonight. Need some sleep.”
“Don’t tell me you’re turning into an old fart.”
“Just wait. You won’t be young and able to operate on no sleep forever.” In some professions, people were just getting started at thirty. But he’d been riding the circuit since he met the age requirement at eighteen.
Even though Travis was only seven years younger than Jason, sometimes that difference felt like three times what it was. He hadn’t been lying about wanting to get some sleep, but the truth was he just wasn’t in the mood to go drinking and dancing. Not when his mind refused to stop replaying his ride over and over, analyzing what he’d done wrong and how to make sure it didn’t happen again.
But as he lay down in yet another generic motel room an hour later and stared at the ceiling, sleep didn’t seem to be anywhere in the vicinity of Blue Falls. His thoughts abandoned his poor performance at the rodeo and drifted to Sloane... Was her last name Hartley like her sister’s, or was that Angel’s married name? Regardless of her surname, there was something that he couldn’t put his finger on that kept bringing Sloane to the front of his mind. And he didn’t think it was just because she was pretty.
Or maybe he was sleep deprived. For some reason he’d been sleeping like garbage lately. He’d been fixated so much on making this the year he got back to the Finals. Maybe he needed a brief break, a few hours to think about something else. Hopefully it would even help him ride better next time.
He rolled onto his side and turned on the bedside lamp. He picked up the business card Angel Hartley had given him and his phone. He’d take her up on her offer to go speak to the kids about rodeo, see if her sister’s attitude toward him was any warmer in the light of day. If nothing else, it would beat hanging around the fairgrounds all day dwelling on his mistakes.
Before he could talk himself out of it, he sent Angel a text. He was surprised by how quickly she replied, confirming that ten the next morning was perfect.
As he turned the light back off, he smiled. It was nice to have something to look forward to, something that wasn’t accompanied by the pressure to win.
* * *
“CAN WE RIDE real horses?” Daron asked as Sloane helped a little girl named Alice out of the saddle sitting atop a saddle rack in the barn’s alley.
“You’ll get to ride around the paddock with us helping you.” The thing she always feared the most was one of the kids getting hurt, and she took every precaution against that happening.
She held Alice’s little hand until she made her way to the ground via the hay bale steps.
“So, who wants to learn how to play horseshoes?”
“We actually have something else planned right now,” Angel said.
Sloane gave her sister a questioning look for a moment before she realized what she must mean.
“Is that right?”
The sound of an approaching truck engine caused a long-suffering sigh to escape Sloane. She got enough teasing from her brothers and not-so-subtle hints from her mother about finding a good man. She didn’t need it from her sister, too.
“I believe that’s our special guest now,” Angel said with way too much glee in her voice before heading out the door of the barn.
By the time Sloane gathered up the kids and ushered them outside, Jason was already out of his truck and talking to Angel. He held one of the recognizable bags from Mehlerhaus Bakery. When he spotted her, he lifted it as if she hadn’t been able to see it before.
“I brought breakfast,” he said.
Behind him, she saw the front door to the house open and out stepped her brothers. Normally, that protectiveness she saw in their stances would annoy the living daylights out of her, but this time it might actually prove amusing. She barely suppressed a smile.
