Bucked (15 page)

She was talking about Slade. Sage wasn’t sure she could see wonderful in her future with Mustang, not as long as she couldn’t see past what he’d just told her.

“Come on. I’ll buy you a drink.”

“I’m not old enough to drink.”

Jenna laughed. “Oh, to be young again. Then I’ll buy you a soda. You look like you could use someone to talk to.”

Sage shook her head. “I should probably just go find a hotel room.”

“That might not be so easy with the competition in town. Did you travel far to get here?”

“I just drove in from Texas.”

“Really? Where abouts? Slade is from Texas.”

“Magnolia.”

Jenna’s eyes opened wide. “Um, this may sound like a crazy question, but your name doesn’t happen to be Sage, does it?”

“Yeah.” How did Jenna know her name?

“I’m a friend of Mustang’s. He’s told me all about you. I’m Jenna Block.”

“He told you about me?”

“Of course he did. Well, I mean he didn’t want to because God forbid Mustang admit he’s fallen hard for a girl, but yeah, he finally admitted it.”

“He’s fallen hard for me?”

Jenna nodded. “Oh, yeah. Do
not
tell him I said this but he’s got it bad for you. It’s like he’s a totally different man since he’s met you.”

Sage realized her tears had stopped. She held up the tissue. “Thanks for this, and for the talk.”

“You’re very welcome. So, how about that soda? I’m sure Slade would love to meet you too.”

“Thanks, but I think I have a cowboy of my own I need to go see.” She’d waited too long for him to be in her life. She wasn’t going to waste one more moment of it.

“I totally understand. Maybe we’ll see you tomorrow morning. We can all do breakfast, the four of us.”

Sage smiled. “I’d like that.”

“No availability at all?” Mustang sighed in frustration. “Okay, thanks.”

He’d just disconnected when there was a light tap on the door. Jumping for the door, he flung it open. “Sage.”

“Hi.”

“Hi.” His heart fluttered. “Do you want to come in?”

She nodded. “Did you get a hotel room for tonight yet?” Sage fidgeted with the strap of her bag.

Mustang held up the phone. “Not yet. The two closest to the arena are booked, but I’m about to start calling the ones a little farther into town.”

“You don’t have to. I don’t want a hotel room. I want to stay here with you.” She raised her eyes to meet his.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Very sure.” Dropping her bag on the floor, she took a step forward. “I need you to know it makes me insane even thinking about you with another woman, but I understand why you did it. I know what worrying about your future and working with your father did to you. And I know that having you in my life, no matter how difficult, has to be better than not having you at all. I tried living without you. I didn’t like it.”

He ran both hands up and down her arms and lowered his forehead to rest against hers. “How’d you get so wise so young, Little Bit?”

She pulled back, a wrinkle marring her brow. “That’s another thing. It bothers me how you still insist on calling me
Little Bit
when I’ve heard you call my sister and Jenna and who knows who else darlin’.”

He laughed. “Ah, Sage. I call nearly every woman I meet
darlin
’, but you are the only one in the world I’ve ever called Little Bit.

Does that make you feel any better about it?”

Her expression softened and he swore her eyes looked glassy. “Yeah, it does.”

“Good. But there’s still something bothering me. This is a tough life, Sage. I’m on the road all the time. Jenna travels with Slade a lot, but you can’t do that. You have school—”

“I take classes online, Mustang. I can do that from anywhere.”

“But your job—”

“Is almost over for this year, then I have a nice long summer break. Besides, I’ve been kind of thinking about switching my major.

I’m really enjoying my psych classes. If I do change, I won’t be student teaching anymore.”

“You have an answer for everything, don’t you?” Mustang grinned.

“Not really. I’m not sure what I want to do with school or work. Maybe I’ll take a year off to think about it. All I know is I want to be with you. You have a problem with that?” Sage smirked.

“Not a bit. My only problem is that big bed behind me that I’ve spent too many nights in without you. I don’t intend on spending another one. That okay with you?”

Sage nodded. “Yeah, I’m very okay.”

About the Author

As an award-winning author of contemporary erotic romance in genres including military, cowboy, ménage and paranormal, Cat Johnson uses her computer so much she wore the letters off the keyboard within a year. She is known for her creative marketing and research practices. Consequently, Cat owns an entire collection of camouflage shoes for book signings and a fair number of her consultants wear combat and cowboy boots for a living. In her real life, she’s been a marketing manager, professional harpist, bartender, tour guide, radio show host, Junior League president, sponsor of a bull-riding rodeo cowboy, wife and avid animal lover.

To learn more about Cat Johnson, please visit www.catjohnson.net. Send an email to cat at catjohnson.net or join her MySpace at www.myspace.com/authorcatjohnson or her Facebook at www.facebook.com/authorcatjohnson. Follow Cat on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cat_johnson.

Look for these titles by Cat Johnson

Now Available:

Rough Stock

Unridden

Coming Soon:

Trey

When country boys meet a city girl, everyone is in for a wild ride.

Unridden

© 2009 Cat Johnson

Studs in Spurs, Book 1

Slade Bower and Mustang Jackson are living the high life on the professional bull-riding circuit. The prize money is big, the bulls are rank and the women are willing. But something is missing.

For Slade, waking up in a different city with a different woman each morning is holding less and less appeal. Even Mustang’s creative attempts to shake things up don’t help. Then along comes a big-city author who’s like nothing they’ve ever encountered.

Something about her makes Slade sit up and take notice—and Mustang is always up for anything.

Romance writer Jenna Block has a problem—her agent thinks a cowboy book will jump-start her career. A born New Yorker, Jenna doesn’t do cowboys, not on paper, and definitely not in real life. Luckily for her there are two cowboys ready, willing and able to take her out of her comfort zone in every way that counts…and some ways she hadn’t counted on.

Warning: This story contains two hot cowboys, one very lucky woman, hot ménage sex and lots of bull.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
Unridden:

Evaluating that night’s possibilities, Mustang’s gaze swept the females in the stands until it landed on one woman who made him stop dead in his perusal.

He jumped up onto the rail of the chute and hissed to Slade, “Second section, fourth row back, reddish-brown hair pulled back in a ponytail, black turtleneck.”

In the process of tugging the rope that stretched beneath the bull and winding it once around his gloved hand, Slade frowned up at Mustang from the animal’s back. “I’m in the middle of taking my wrap and you’re pointing out some woman to me? In a turtleneck, no less? Since when are you interested in women whose chest isn’t hanging out?”

“This woman’s different, Slade. I can tell.” The bull hopped once in the chute and Mustang quickly reached over and grabbed the back of Slade’s vest, steadying him on the animal’s back.

“Dammit, Mustang, quit distracting me.” Slade settled himself again and then gave a nod. The cowboy on the ground swung the gate open to release both bull and rider into the arena.

“Talk to you more when you get off,” Mustang called after him.

As Mustang watched his friend disappear into a cloud of dust, Chase Reese hopped up onto the rail next to him.

“Slade’s amazing. It’s like he’s glued onto that bull. I wish I could do that. I went two for ten last series.” The kid had been favored for Rookie of the Year until he’d hit a dry streak.

“That’s because you look at the ground.” Mustang followed Slade’s progress while the bull spun around to the left without deviation, from one end of the arena to the other.

The eight-second buzzer sounded and Slade released the rope wrapped around his hand. He jumped off the bull, hit the ground with his shoulder and then rolled to avoid a hoof to the ribcage before the bullfighters redirected the charging animal away from him.

“I do what?”

Seeing his friend was safe, Mustang took the time to answer Chase’s question. Damn, had he ever been this young? The kid probably didn’t even have to shave once a week.

“You’re looking down at the ground while you ride. If you look there, you’re gonna end up there. It’s a fact. Now, ’scuse me. I gotta talk to Slade.”

Leaving the kid with an amazed expression on his face, as if he’d just been handed all the secrets of the universe, Mustang jumped down to go meet Slade behind the chutes.

“Hey, man. Good ride. That bull was one hell of a spinner, huh?”

Slade laughed and pulled the tape from around his wrist where it held the glove on his riding hand firmly in place. “Hell yeah.

They weren’t kidding when they said he came out of the spinner pen. Felt like I was on a ride at the county fair.”

“Now we’re both done riding for the night, we have to formulate a plan,” Mustang began.

“For what?”

“To reel in that woman I told you about.”

Slade dismissed that with a wave of his hand. “Just do whatever it is you usually do.”

Mustang shook his head. “The usual isn’t going to work on her.”

Slade sighed. “Where did you say she’s sitting?”

Ha!
Slade had given in and was actually showing some interest. Smiling, Mustang narrowed his eyes and easily found her again in the stands. She was writing feverishly while trying to watch the rider in the arena at the same time. He tilted his head toward the section directly behind them. “Far end of the fourth row.”

“What the hell is she doing?” Slade frowned as he watched her.

“Hell if I know, but I think she’s taking notes. See what I mean? This woman is special. She isn’t going to just fall into our bed.”

Her hair wasn’t huge, she wasn’t made up like a showgirl and her clothes showed curves but not an inch of skin. She was different, which was what had drawn Mustang’s attention to her in the first place.

Since Slade had been in his strange funk lately, Mustang figured he’d try something unusual. Hell, even the two eighteen-year-olds going at each other in front of them barely got a rise out of his friend. Mustang was running out of ideas, but this woman… She was pretty much the opposite of their usual conquest and that might be exactly what they needed. It was worth a shot to cheer Slade up.

Besides, never opposed to trying new things, he could use a bit of a change himself once in a while.

“Mustang, she’s probably a damned reporter. That’s all I need, to be featured in some exposé. I can see the headline now. ‘Slade Bower, third-ranking bull rider in the world, propositions reporter for a threesome with former Rookie of the Year, Mustang Jackson.’

That will go over real well with the fans in the Bible Belt.” Slade scowled at Mustang. “Pick someone else. How about the one bouncing up and down over there? She’s about to pop right out of that top. You might want to keep an eye on her.”

Mustang glanced her way. “Yeah, I saw her already. I’m set on the other one.”

Laughing, Slade shook his head. “Good luck ’cause I can just about see the stick up her ass from here. That one is wound tight, but you go for it, man, and I’ll enjoy watching you get shot down.”

Mustang raised a brow. “Is that a challenge, my friend?”

Slade let out a short laugh. “No, it’s the truth.”

“Well, I think you’re wrong. Sometimes it’s the quiet ones that are the wildest once you get them naked.”

“And you think you can get her naked?”

Mustang nodded. “Yup. I do.”

“Well, I’d like to see that.”

Grinning, Mustang slapped his friend on the back. “Don’t worry. You’ll be there too.”

Slade shook his head. “
Maybe
, and that is a big maybe, you might be able to get that woman naked, with enough alcohol and bull, but no frigging way will she agree to both of us. Never in a million years.”

Feeling cocky and never one to resist a challenge, Mustang crossed his arms and dug in his heels. “We’ll see. You willing to make a bet on that?”

He held the reins to her heart once—and this time he won’t let go.

The Real Deal

© 2009 Niki Green

A
Wild Ride
Story

Willa Tate left Millbrook, Texas, years ago—along with her future, her fiancé and her heart. Now, as one of the headlining acts at a hot burlesque club, she looks into the crowd, sees a familiar face staring up at her—and her past comes crashing back.

Chase Kiel has some hard questions for the former love of his life. He spent forever looking for her, and now he wants answers—even if he has to throw her over his shoulder and drag her back to Millbrook to get them.

He’d find it a hell of a lot easier if the chemistry weren’t still there. If they didn’t still fit together like keg of dynamite and fuse. If he didn’t want not only his answers…but her heart.

Chase is still certain he and Willa belong together—and convincing Willa of it will be his pleasure.

Warning: This title contains explicit, powder-keg-hot sex, language that ain’t fit for your mama’s ears, and a hot cowboy with a Texas-sized heart.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
The Real Deal:

The music began roaring its way through the speakers filling the club. Nick recognized the song. It was popular and played on nearly every radio station numerous times a day. He couldn’t remember most of the words but he knew the overall theme, someone had kissed a girl and she had seemed to like it, or so he thought. He couldn’t remember. All he could think about was the pressure his zipper was putting on his increasing erection. Never in his life was he so grateful for a table cloth.

Hayden on the other hand didn’t seem to care if his arousal was evident to the rest of the patrons or not. There he sat an elbow’s length away laid back in the opposite chair, beer bottle lifted halfway to his mouth, eyes roving over the eye candy moving before the crowd. Nick shook his head at his captivated brother and returned his undivided attention to the stage and to the ones who occupied it.

After the first few beats introduced the song a throaty, ultra feminine voice rang out the lyrics that propelled the dancers along.

Each movement from the two was synchronized. What one did, the other mimicked.

They moved with the beat of the music, at first only watching each other through the faux mirror in front of them. Black fishnet gloves traced an eyebrow and moved seductively to the sets of cherry-red lips. Material ran gracefully and without pause over the glistening pair. Their fingertips stroked the top first, then bottom and then back to the top before blowing a kiss to one another via the mirror.

Without faltering, breaking their timing or rhythm, the pair removed the gloves slowly and let them fly into the crowd. With bare hands placed on the vanity top, the dancers rose and inched closer to each other, inspecting the reflection that should have been there.

Closer and closer the pair drew to each other until only a breath separated them from each other.

When the crescendo proclaimed that the chorus had arrived the two stepped away from the prop and twirled and stomped their way around the stage. Each and every step they took was determined and full of intent—the intent being to arouse and seduce every man at their feet.

Little black pleated skirts barely reached the top of the thigh. Nick swallowed numerous times as he watched them both move closer and closer. Black garters ran the length of each leg, connecting the striped, sheer stockings under the skirt. Connected them to what, Nick wondered and then realized he didn’t care.