Learning the Ropes

by T. J. Kline

  “I’ll call her on my way home and come up with some excuse. I’ll just tell her I’m feeling sick.” It wouldn’t be a lie.

  David glanced toward Alicia’s trailer. He liked her, he really did, and he knew they could have had something special. She was the kind of girl that made a guy want to settle down but if he did that now, he might never have this chance to make it to the Finals again.

  Chapter Nine

  * * *

  ALICIA PULLED INTO the diner David texted her about and looked for a safe place to park her trailer. She wanted to find a place safe enough to drop the trailer windows for the horses but still keep an eye on them. She spotted Chris’s truck and trailer along the side of the parking lot and pulled behind him. She stopped the truck and got out, checking on the horses before heading toward the diner.

  “Hey, over here.” She glanced at the outdoor dining area and saw Chris leaning back in a chair, his feet propped up on another. He waved her over and took a long gulp of iced tea.

  Alicia wandered into the eating area. “What are you doing here?”

  “Having dinner with my favorite girl.” He gave her a broad grin and motioned to one of the empty chairs. Her heart picked up its pace, feeling like a thousand horses pounding through her chest.

  Stop it, she warned herself. He’s a player and you don’t have time for his games.

  “I’ve been waiting for you.”

  Okay, he was playing dirty. That was just unfair.

  She looked down at the table, noticing only two place settings, and looked back at him, confused. “Where’s David?”

  Chris shifted in his chair, sitting up, letting his boots hit the concrete floor. “About that . . . he couldn’t make it.”

  She crossed her arms at him and arched a brow in disbelief, waiting for him to elaborate. When he didn’t say anything more she threw her hands up, letting them slap against her thighs. “Again?” She turned to walk away.

  Chris rose and dragged her back to the table. “Come on, Ali. This time it wasn’t his fault. He got sick.”

  She allowed Chris to push her into a chair. “Really?”

  “Didn’t you see our run today? It was a mess.” Chris sat down across from her. “He wasn’t doing too well when I left.”

  She wanted to believe him, but his eyes said something different. He was hiding something and she could see it in the depths of those blue eyes. She was betting it had more to do with David’s father than missing a loop. Bits and pieces of his conversation with David had carried. Alicia heard his accusations, about her being after David’s fame, and they infuriated her. She’d worked hard to achieve every bit of her success she had and for someone who didn’t know her to think she was trying to ride David’s coattails was insulting.

  “I didn’t see it but I didn’t do much better.” The waitress stopped by their table, interrupting the conversation as Chris ordered them both bacon cheeseburgers, with no pickles, and onion rings. “You still eat them the same way,” she laughed.

  “Pickles are disgusting,” he answered, wrinkling his nose in distaste. “If you even think of touching one, I will not be kissing you goodnight.”

  His voice said he was teasing but the look in his eyes didn’t hold even a touch of humor. She bit her lip absently, unsure of how to respond and then remembered his comment about her biting her lip to tease men. She didn’t want him to think she was encouraging him. Her heart couldn’t take it but if she said nothing, he’d guess her feelings and that was even more dangerous. She wasn’t sure what to say or what not to say and it made her uncomfortable with him, a feeling she’d never had before.

  She smiled, arching a brow, waiting until their waitress left, promising to return with the iced tea they ordered and lowered her voice, trying for the same nonchalant tone he had. “You should be so lucky. At least Delilah didn’t win this time.”

  “You two have quite the rivalry.” He grinned at her and leaned back in his chair, hooking his elbow over the back.

  She didn’t think he’d let her comment pass without a remark but followed his lead. “She’s always been like this with me, even in high school, don’t you remember? I guess it’s just what happens when you’re from a small town.”

  “I suppose.” Chris shrugged but stared at her intently as the waitress set the glasses on the table. “You really don’t realize how jealous she is of you, do you?” he asked when they were alone again.

  “Jealous?” Alicia nearly choked on her tea at the thought. Delilah had the very best life had to offer. She never wanted for anything. She had no idea what it was like to scrimp and save or how to work for anything. Even at twenty-four, her father provided everything she so much as looked at. “She’s not jealous, she’s a bitch. There’s a difference,” she pointed out.

  Chris laughed out loud. “Well, from personal experience, I’d have to agree with you. But she is absolutely jealous. You have more talent in your finger than she does in her entire body. The only reason she wins is because she can hang on while that million dollar horse runs the patterns.”

  Alicia smiled at him. It was good to know someone could recognize the work she put in. “Personal experience?” she teased.

  Chris shook his head and rolled his eyes, not meeting her gaze. “Yes,” he admitted, looking embarrassed. “A few years ago I actually went out with her.” He adjusted his hat on his head. “I’m sorry to say it wasn’t only once either.”

  “Had a Barbie phase, huh?” She couldn’t picture him with someone like Delilah. Then again, she couldn’t really picture Chris with anyone. The only thing consistent about his type was that it was female.

  “Something like that. But you don’t have any room to talk.” He leaned forward on the table and pointed at her. “Remember Billy Maxwell.”

  “Oh, don’t even go there,” she laughed. “I can’t believe I ever went out with that guy.”

  “Jock phase,” he proclaimed.

  “At least my stupidity was in high school. What’s your excuse?”

  “And then there was that long-haired guy you went out with right after graduation,” he reminded her.

  “Skid, oh my goodness!” she laughed as she remembered his name, blushing. “That was during my rocker phase.”

  “I had one of those. Dated a girl with about sixteen piercings, most of them on her face.”

  “Really? I can’t even picture that.”

  Chris arched a brow and gave her a wicked grin. “Don’t judge. You’d be amazed at how sexy piercings and tattoos can be.”

  A blush burned on her cheeks. She wasn’t about to tell him about the tattoo she’d gotten after Sydney’s wedding on a dare. An intricate tribal horse’s head high on her hipbone. His mouth dropped open in disbelief.

  “You have one?” She shrugged, refusing to answer him. “Please, tell me you have one or the other.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Where?” He looked intrigued and his blue eyes burned into hers. “Please, tell me it’s somewhere good.”

  “Do you have any?”

  “Yes, ma’am, I do. I have a couple tattoos. But no one sees them unless I’m naked.” His eyes glinted mischievously. She could only imagine how many women had seen his tattoos. The thought was enough to keep her thoughts from straying to images of his nude body. “Show me yours and I’ll show you mine,” he promised.

  “I’m not showing you anything,” she insisted, breathlessly. She was grateful when the waitress brought their food, ending the conversation. She took a bite of the food and moaned softly. “This is amazing. Either that or I was starving.”

  She looked up in time to see his eyes focused on her mouth. His gaze was slumberous with desire and she fought back a shiver at the longing she could read in them. He quickly looked away, leaning forward in his chair to take a bite of his own burger.

  “So, where are you off to now?”

  She shrugged. “I didn’t want to leave Mom alone this weekend since Dad is heading to a show with Bradley, so I’
m staying at home. What about you guys?”

  “We were talking about hitting up a few rodeos up north but after our last two runs, I’m thinking we should keep our entry money in our pockets. Looks like we have a few kinks to work out first so we’ll probably camp out at Mom and Dad’s to get some extra practice in. How’s the house hunting going?”

  “Coming in third didn’t help much.” She shook her head, hoping she didn’t sound as disappointed as she felt. “I keep thinking ‘I’ll have enough this week to make an offer’ then something happens and I’m just this much short.” She pinched her fingers together.

  Chris took a sip of his drink and looked at her thoughtfully. “What about your parents? Couldn’t they pitch in, too?”

  Her parents had worked their entire lives with just enough to make ends meet. There had never been anything left over. She shook her head and twisted her mouth to the side. “They don’t have anything saved. At least, not that I know of.”

  “Have you asked them if they even want to move?” She glared at him. “Okay, I get it.” He held up his hands. “I’ll mind my own business.”

  She swirled one of her onion rings in ketchup and took a bite. She felt guilty whining about her money woes to Chris. He was only trying to offer advice. “I’m sorry, it’s just so frustrating.”

  “You know what we need?”

  “What?” she asked, humoring him.

  “Remember that swimming hole off the highway, near Jackson Ranch Road?”

  She laughed and nodded. “I haven’t been there in years. We used to go every weekend.”

  “We need to go now.”

  We? Was he asking her out? Or was this just a friendly outing, reliving old memories?

  “You wouldn’t be trying to get me into a bathing suit just to see my tattoo, would you?”

  Chris gave her a mischievous grin that made her stomach do a backflip. “So it’s something a suit won’t cover?”

  She regretted saying anything and didn’t answer his question. “I could use a break and with Dad leaving this week for the show, there won’t be much to do that the grooms can’t handle,” she said, changing the subject.

  “We can make a day of it. Take lunch and just hang out, like old times. I have to help Dad tomorrow. What about Tuesday?”

  She nodded and heard the sound of a hoof hitting metal. “Do you think that’s yours or mine getting impatient?” She glanced at the trailers and saw Beast with his head hanging out the window. “Looks like it’s mine. I’d better get going.” She reached into her purse to grab her wallet.

  “I’ve got it.”

  He slipped his credit card to the waitress, signing for the meal and rising to walk out with her. His hand slid to her lower back and her skin tingled at his touch, lightning shooting from his fingers directly into her belly and down her limbs. She knew better than to make more of his simple gesture than it was but couldn’t help the pace of her heart. As she approached the trailer, she stepped onto the side rail to close the windows.

  “Get your head in there, Beast. We’re going home.”

  Chris moved behind her, with a hand on either side of her, and closed the window. She spun and found herself eye to eye with him, her breath catching in her throat as he stared at her lips.

  “Um, thanks,” she whispered, surprised she could get any sound out at all. She laid her hands on his shoulders, prepared to step down when he moved.

  Instead of moving backward, Chris’s hands found her waist and he lifted her from the side of the trailer and set her on the ground. She couldn’t get her bearings with his hands on her ribcage and her fingers slid down the muscles of his biceps to grip his forearms. His eyes were dark with longing and she realized what he intended only moments before his mouth met hers in a scorching kiss.

  They moved backward until she was pressed against the side of her truck, with every inch of him heating her flesh, his hands buried in her hair. His lips tasted her, teasing, branding her, demanding a response. She couldn’t help herself as her fingers trailed up around his neck, drawing him down to her, closer. His lips moved from her mouth to her ear and down the side of her neck sending shivers of pleasure down her spine. His fingers trailed over her spine as she whispered his name, near frantic with yearning.

  He growled and stepped away from her abruptly, leaving her trembling with longing. “Ali, what are we doing?”

  She wasn’t sure what he expected her to say. Her mind was still spinning with the dizzy exhilaration of his touch. When her eyes met his, she could see regret. She wasn’t sorry he’d kissed her in the slightest. In fact, she wanted him to do it again, but she could see the guilt rising over him, drowning him with shame. Without another word, he turned and walked to his truck, climbing inside, leaving her standing beside hers with her hand over her kiss-swollen lips, wondering what just happened and how she was going to make it right.

  CHRIS HADN’T TALKED to Ali since he’d walked away, leaving her standing beside her truck two days ago. They were supposed to meet at the swimming hole this afternoon but he wasn’t sure it was a good idea. Just the thought of her in a bathing suit was enough to send every part of his body into high alert. His fingers itched with the memory of her silken skin, the softness of her long hair. Blood surged through him and he felt himself grow hard at the thought of her response to him. He couldn’t recall ever wanting a woman as desperately as he wanted Ali, the one woman he couldn’t have. He didn’t want to hurt her, or betray David, but damn, if it didn’t feel right when she was in his arms, fit against his body, her every curve soft against his solidity.

  He tossed the bale of hay against the growing stack against the wall of the barn, ignoring the way the chaff stuck to the sweat covering his chest and back. As much as he wanted to have lunch with her, he knew it was a bad idea. The thought of her wet, in a skimpy bathing suit, coming out of the water, had him adjusting his jeans again.

  “Damn it,” he muttered, jamming the hay hooks into another bale of alfalfa, wondering why he was tormenting himself with thoughts of her near-naked body. This wasn’t like him. He’d never wanted someone he couldn’t have.

  “Problems?” Chris looked up as David came into the barn. “Want some help?”

  Guilt slammed into his chest, choking him with betrayal and deception. How could he do this to his best friend? Chris tossed the last bale off the back of the truck and settled it against the wall as a solution to his problem walked into the breezeway.

  “Yes, I do. We’re going to go have lunch.”

  “Okay,” David agreed, drawing out the word suspiciously. It was obvious he didn’t trust Chris but he sat on the tailgate, waiting to hear the details. “What are you getting me into now?”

  “Nothing you won’t thank me for later.” Chris reached into the cup holder in the truck and pulled out his cell phone. He frowned as he looked at David. “You need a suit.”

  “A suit? What kind of suit? What for?”

  Chris texted Ali to meet him at the swimming hole in an hour, reminding her that he’d bring lunch. “A bathing suit. We’re going to the swimming hole.” Pushing buttons quickly, he smiled at the response he received on the screen. “Okay, all set.” He jumped into the truck and started the engine while David climbed inside. “Just trust me.”

  “The last time I trusted you, I had my eyebrows shaved off, remember?”

  Chris laughed, recalling the prank he and two other ropers had pulled on David while they shared a room at last year’s National Finals. “I promise, you can keep your eyebrows for this one.”

  Although, if Ali looks half as amazing as I imagine, she might just sizzle both of our eyebrows off.

  Chris headed toward David’s house to get his suit before heading to the deli to pick up lunch. “You’ll owe me for this one.”

  Unfortunately, Chris would never let David know what it was costing him to force himself to take a step back from Alicia and insisting David explore what he and Ali might have together. The pain in his groin was
only a minor inconvenience compared to the pain in his chest.

  ALICIA SAT ON a rock at the edge of the water with her feet dangling down, her toes barely touching the cool water below. It was a still a little chilly to go swimming, but she had such fond memories of this place that she couldn’t turn Chris down when he’d asked her to join him. That and she couldn’t help but secretly hope they might repeat the kiss from the diner, even as she hated herself for wanting him. She heard a truck pulling into the parking lot above where she waited and rose, slipping on her sandals, heading back up the walkway to see if he needed help carrying anything. She’d just crested the top of the hill when she heard a giggle of a female voice and David’s deep laughter.

  Her heart dropped and she realized she’d been set up. Again. Damn Chris!

  “Hey, Ali,” David said, turning to see her.

  She tried to hide her disappointment as Chris got out of the truck and draped his arm around Melissa Smart. Alicia didn’t know her well since she was a little younger but she’d seen her working in the trendy coffee shop in town. She knew better than to hope Melissa was dating David. She was sure she was Chris’s new girl today and tomorrow’s old one.

  Alicia pasted a smile on her face, not wanting any of them to see the chunk he was taking from her heart. “Hey, you finally made it.”

  “We come bearing fried chicken and dessert,” Chris said, holding up the bag of food. He refused to meet her eyes.

  Good, he should feel ashamed for toying with my feelings.

  If Chris wanted to act like they hadn’t kissed, she would do the same. She was tired of this game with him. Tired of being nothing more than someone to scratch his momentary itch. If Melissa wanted him, she could have him. Alicia ignored Chris and walked up to David, curling an arm around his waist as if the kiss with Chris had never happened, almost grateful he’d helped her make a decision.

  “Feeling better?” She looked up at him as he slipped his arm around her shoulder.