Learning the Ropes (36 page)

She saw the pair walking toward her from the barn, laughing as Chris slapped David on the shoulder. It was surprising how quickly they’d fallen back into an easy friendship, especially considering how David’s father had practically disowned him for joining their partnership and refusing to allow him back onto the ranch. She could still see a loneliness in David’s eyes and felt a twinge of guilt when he watched her and Chris together. She’d catch him at times but she knew it wasn’t jealousy. There was something else in his eyes, something sad and troubled. She knew he didn’t still carry a torch for her but she couldn’t get him to open up about it.

Chris sauntered up the stairs and curled an arm around her waist, welcoming her with a kiss that practically melted the silver buckle at her waist. She couldn’t help but cling to him, wishing they had time to head inside before their guests arrived. When he pulled away, Chris pressed his forehead against hers and sighed.

“I’ve missed you.”

She laughed. “In the thirty minutes it took you to feed?”

“Trust me, all I hear is Ali this and Ali that. It’s kinda sickening,” David joked, taking the coffee from the railing and heading toward his house. “I’ll be back in a bit. I want to shower before our first group gets here.”

“Don’t be too long,” Ali called after him. “I’ll make you both breakfast.” He waved back, letting her know he’d heard.

Chris circled his arms around her waist and pulled her against him, nuzzling the hollow behind her ear, brushing her long sable hair back. “What if breakfast isn’t what’s on my mind? I’m hungry for something else.”

Alicia slid her hands into the back pockets of his jeans. “I don’t think we have time for that, cowboy.”

“I need a shower, too.” His eyes glittered with desire. “Don’t you?”

She tried to hold back her grin. “Maybe.” The sound of a truck coming up the driveway drew her attention. “Mom and Dad are here.”

Chris growled at the interruption and slid his thumb over her breast, causing a shiver to break over her. “That was so you’ll remember what you’re missing while you’re visiting,” he teased, turning to greet her parents.

“Cristobel,” her mother called, hurrying forward to give both of them a hug. “Baby.” She turned to Ali. “We need to get these wedding invitations addressed today and mailed out or no one will be at the wedding next month. I still think you’re rushing things.”

“Mom, rodeo season is starting. If we wait any longer, no one will be here but us,” she reminded her.

“And you still want to do it here?”

Alicia smiled at her mother. “This is our home. It’s the perfect place.”

“Ali’i,” her father stepped forward and gave her a hug. “Thank you.”

“For what, Daddy?”

“For making me realize this really is my dream. I was afraid to take the first step but between you and this guy,” he reached out and squeezed Chris’s shoulder. “You made me see it was more important to go after what I wanted.” She saw his eyes well up. “I’d better get some horses saddled before your guests arrive.” He hurried toward the barn as her mother headed into the house.

Chris moved behind her, circling his arms around her waist, leaning his chin on the top of her head. She felt herself relax against him. Nothing made her happier than the day Chris had asked her father to be their head trainer and convinced him to build a house on the property. A proper, wood frame house built to her mother’s specifications. It allowed her father to head up their training and breeding program and freed them up for clinics and lessons. She leaned her head back against his shoulder, watching her father head toward the barn.

“He’s pretty happy, isn’t he?”

“Yes,” she agreed, looking up at his jaw. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Everything. Being there when I needed a friend, helping me get this place.” She laughed quietly. “Refusing to let me buy you out.”

Chris laughed. “I still can’t believe you thought I’d take your NFR winnings.”

“I didn’t think you would.” She gave him a saucy grin. “It was a test, cowboy.”

“Good thing I passed.” He brushed his lips against her temple and desire curled around her heart, swirling ribbons of need through her veins. “I’d hate to think you might have left me.”

“Never,” she whispered, turning in his arms. She cupped his jaw, noticing he needed a shave before everyone arrived, even though she preferred him a little scruffy. “Thank you for helping Dad to see what he really wanted. That he could do so much more than he thought he could.”

“Now I see where you got it from.” He smiled down at her.

“What’s that?”

“You’re so much more than you give yourself credit for. Ali, you’re such an amazing woman, so much more than I deserve. Do you have any idea how much I love you, how lucky I am that you picked me?”

Tears welled in her eyes. “I love you.” She knew there was so much more she wanted to tell him but as her heart swelled, emotion choked out any other words. She pressed her lips against his knowing she would count herself blessed each day that this was the cowboy she kissed goodnight, the man whose blue eyes stared into hers each morning, and the roper who’d lassoed her stubborn heart and tied it to his forever.

Acknowledgments

T
O MY GIRL,
Kassidy, without your eyes on this book first, I don’t know what would happen and how much more work I’d be in for. You always push me to reach new limits, even if you drive me nuts at times.

To Tessa, my editor extraordinaire, for being the first to give me a chance and the one who never lets me be lazy. Because of you I have reached new heights I never thought possible (and can’t wait to see how far we go!).

To my writer besties and mentors: Leanne, Codi, Candis, and Cynthia. You have gotten me through the messes I make for myself and celebrated with me every step of the way. You are my go-to girls and I love you for the laughter, the advice, and even the necessary kicks in the rear when I need them.

To my husband, Bryun. I know this roller coaster ride isn’t the one we signed up for but I have loved every moment of the last seventeen years and I’m looking forward to the rest of our lifetime.

Want more rodeo?

Check out T. J. Kline’s first book in the rodeo series,

RODEO QUEEN,

to see Sydney and Scott fall in love.

An Excerpt from

RODEO QUEEN

T
HE DRAWLING VOICE
of the rodeo announcer boomed over the loudspeakers. “Ladies and gentleman, we’d like to welcome you to the Fifty-first Annual West Hills Roundup Rodeo! But first, let’s have one last look at the ladies vying for the title of your rodeo queen!”

The array of glitter, sequins, and beads was dazzling in the April sunlight, nearly blinding her. She patted her dapple gray stallion to calm him as he shifted eagerly at the end of the line, kicking up dust in the newly tilled rodeo arena. Sydney looked down the line of young women on horseback, spotted her friend Alicia first in line, and gave her a reassuring smile.

“First, let’s welcome Alicia Kanani!” Sydney watched as her best friend coaxed her gelding from the line, taking off into a slow lope along the fence. Alicia cocked a two-fingered salute to the crowd, her black tuxedo shirt glittering with silver and gold sequins, before filing back into the line of contestants. The next seven contestants duplicated Alicia’s queen run. “And, last but not least, Sydney Thomas!”

Pressing her heels into Valentino’s sides, Sydney made a kissing sound to the stallion as he took off from the line like a bullet from a gun. Leaning over his neck, Sydney snapped a sharp military salute while facing the audience. The sequins of her vest were a blinding flash of red light as Valentino stretched his body into a full run, his ears pinned against his head. Sydney reveled in the moment of flight as she and the horse became one, his hooves seeming to float over the tilled earth. As they rounded the last corner, Valentino slowed to a lope and Sydney sat up in the saddle. Reaching the end of the line, Sydney sat deep into her saddle, cueing the horse to bury his hocks in the soft dirt and slide to a dramatic stop. As the blood pounding in her ears subsided to a mild roar, she could still hear the audience cheering.

“There you have it, ladies and gentlemen, your contestants for West Hills Roundup Queen,” the announcer repeated. “May I have the envelope, please?”

Glancing at the fence line, Sydney caught her brother’s gaze as he winked and gave her a thumbs-up. She smiled, appreciating that he had come to cheer her on when he had his own event to prepare for. The “crowd” was sparse in the morning hours before the rodeo actually began. It was mostly family and friends of the queen contestants and a few rodeo competitors who performed before the rodeo due to too many entrants in their events.

“Without any further fanfare,” the announcer paused for effect as the meager crowd immediately quieted to a hush. “Your princess this year is . . . Alicia Kanani!” Cheers erupted from the grassy hillside where Alicia’s family was seated with Sydney’s. She cheered from the line, excited for her friend. “And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for . . .”

Sydney’s heart raced. She felt it in her throat and in her toes at the same time as she waited for the name of the new queen to be called. Only her brother, Chris, knew how many hours of training and preparation had gone into this competition, all in hopes of having her name come to be associated with the best horse trainers in rodeo. As queen, she would be attending rodeos all over California, meeting and networking with stock contractors and other rodeo participants. She hoped that it would all lead to more exposure for her mounts, which meant more horses to train.

“The new West Hills Roundup Queen is . . . drum roll please . . . Sydney Thomas!” The applause rose to a roar on the hillside again as Sydney’s family rose, laughing, cheering, and hugging one another. Sydney edged Valentino forward as the previous year’s rodeo queen placed the silver-and-rhinestone crown on her red cowboy hat. She was soon encircled by the other contestants, who offered congratulations as they exited the arena and headed for the horse trailers.

They’d barely dismounted at Sydney’s trailer when Alicia tackled her with an enthusiastic hug. “I can’t believe we did it! You won!”

Sydney opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by the massive arms that lifted her from behind and spun her around. “Congratulations, Queenie.”

“Chris, put me down,” she squealed. As her boots touched the ground she slapped him on the shoulder. Her brother might be a year younger than she was, but he’d inherited their father’s tall, lanky frame.

“Ow!” He rubbed his arm. “You’ll never find a king acting like that,” he teased.

“Please. That is the last thing I’m looking for.” Sydney rolled her eyes and turned to tie Valentino to the trailer.

“What about you, Alicia? Want to be my princess?” Chris asked as he snuck his arm around her shoulders.

Chris was a hopeless flirt. At nineteen, he was striking with his jet-black hair, aqua eyes, and broad shoulders—everything a girl would imagine from a cowboy, including the drawling charm. The fact that he and his roping partner were consistently ranked in the top of the national standings for team roping made him a pretty hot ticket around the rodeo circuit. But he’d never shown any indication that he would ever settle down with one girl.

“Why don’t you go find yourself one of those ‘buckle bunnies’ that hangs out behind the chutes?” Alicia asked, shaking his arm off.

One of the drawbacks of rodeo were the women fans, young and old alike, who wanted to snag a cowboy. Too often Sydney found the cowboys around the circuit expected all of the other women to do the same.

“No thanks.” Chris laughed. “When I find the right girl, she’s going to outride and out-rope me.”

“Good luck with that.” Sydney laughed.

Alicia pulled her cowboy hat off, exposing her long dark hair, and set the hat on the back of the truck. Sydney didn’t miss the look of appreciation Chris shot her best friend. “You never can tell, sis.” He tapped the red line her hat had left on her forehead before stepping back. “I’ll never understand why you girls wear hats that tight.”

Sydney slipped her sequined vest over her arms and unbuttoned the tuxedo shirt, grateful for the tank-top underneath, and hung her shirt in the tack compartment of her horse trailer so she could wear it again once the pre-rodeo events finished. “You guys should try doing a queen run sometime. If that hat hits the ground with a crown on it, my head better be in it. Rule number one.”

She flipped the front of her brother’s cowboy hat, knocking it to the ground. “Unlike you ropers, no one picks up our hats when they come off in the arena,” she teased as she pulled a light cotton Western shirt from the trailer, wishing again that short sleeves were allowed. “Okay, I’m going to head back to find the stock contractor and see what they’ll allow us to do during the rodeo.”

It was typical for the stock contractor to allow the rodeo queen and her court to carry the sponsor flags for the events, but Sydney was hoping to network a bit and charm her way into being allowed to clear the cattle from the arena in the roping events. It was good exposure to show off Valentino and her accomplishments as a trainer. She exchanged her red cowboy hat for a baseball cap, pulling her russet curls through the opening in the back.

“Can you keep an eye on Valentino for me?” Sydney spotted their families heading toward the trailer. “Here comes the crew,” she said, jerking her chin in their direction. “Let them know I’ll be right back.”

“Talk with Mike Findley,” Chris instructed. “He’s in charge. He should be pretty receptive to you.”

“Thanks. I’ll be right back.”

Chris glanced toward Alicia, who was being hugged by both of her parents. “No hurry.” Sydney smiled, wondering if the dance tonight wouldn’t be the perfect opportunity to give Chris and Alicia a little nudge to take their friendship to the next level.

Sydney rolled up the sleeves of her shirt to her elbows and pulled the shirt from her chest in an attempt to cool herself. It was only April, but her shirt was already sticking to her skin at nine in the morning. She couldn’t help but smile and take in the smell of alfalfa, dust, and leather as she made her way through the jumbled maze of trucks and trailers, most with horses tied in the shade, dozing before their events. She knew how lucky she was; most people couldn’t honestly say that they loved their life, but she loved every minute she’d spent growing up in rodeo.