The Bull Rider's Plan

by Jeannie Watt

  ONE WILD RIDE

  After careful planning, Jess Hayward is finally hitting the bull riding circuit to chase his dreams. There’s just one complication—he’s agreed to bring along his late best friend’s little sister, Emma Sullivan. Jess could use a second driver, and after calling off her wedding, Emma needs an escape. It’s a win-win arrangement...in theory.

  Free-spirited and impulsive, Emma is the exact opposite of Jess—a problem he’s anticipating on the road. Only, she’s not the annoying little tagalong he remembers. And the intense attraction between them is no childhood crush. If Jess wants to be a champion, he needs to keep his head in the game. But lately all he can think about is Emma...

  “Take me with you.” The words came out before the thought was formed.

  The look on Jess’s face was priceless. It also ticked Emma off. “I’m not kidding.”

  “You can’t come with me.”

  “Why?”

  “For all the reasons I’ve given over the years when you wanted to come along with me and Len.”

  “I’m not underage anymore.” She was twenty-five, but he probably didn’t realize that. He started to speak, but she interrupted. “I can drive part-time, which will come in handy if you get yourself all beat up, which is a very real possibility.” He opened his mouth again, and again she jumped in. “I have a little money socked away. Not enough to start a new life, as I’d hoped, but enough to buy food for myself for four weeks.”

  Jess eyed her, obviously waiting for her to run out of steam before telling her no way.

  “You can buy the gas, because you’d be doing that no matter what.”

  Jess waited a few more seconds, then said, “Are you done.” It was a statement rather than a question.

  Dear Reader,

  I knew five sets of identical twins growing up. I went to prom with an identical twin. Several years later, my husband and I were watching a television show about identical twins who married identical twins at the twin gathering in Twinsville, Ohio. I was able to point at the screen and say, “The one on the left was my prom date.” I could tell them apart even then. Funny thing, once you get to know identical twins, they don’t look so much alike.

  I truly enjoyed writing my twins stories—The Bull Rider’s Plan and A Bull Rider to Depend On. Jess and Tyler Hayward look alike, but they have opposite personalities—like many of the identical twins I know—so I was able to craft two very different stories. Tyler was a wild child who depended on his brother to bail him out of trouble, and Jess is the responsible twin who needs to loosen up and follow his dream. Writing Jess’s story was particularly fun because I gave him a heroine, Emma, guaranteed to drive him crazy. Jess needed some crazy in his life, although in the beginning he would not have agreed with me.

  I hope you enjoy reading Jess’s story. Please feel free to stop by my website, jeanniewatt.com, to learn more about me and my books or to sign up for my newsletter. I’d love to hear from you!

  Happy reading!

  Jeannie

  THE BULL RIDER’S PLAN

  Jeannie Watt

  Jeannie Watt lives in southwest Montana on a small cattle ranch and hay farm. Before moving to Montana, she spent many years living off the grid in Nevada ranch country and teaching at a rural school. When she’s not writing, Jeannie enjoys running, sewing, reading and having electricity available at the flip of a switch.

  Books by Jeannie Watt

  Harlequin Western Romance

  Montana Bull Riders

  The Bull Rider Meets His Match

  The Bull Rider’s Homecoming

  A Bull Rider to Depend On

  Harlequin Superromance

  The Brodys of Lightning Creek

  To Tempt a Cowgirl

  To Kiss a Cowgirl

  To Court a Cowgirl

  Molly’s Mr. Wrong

  Wrangling the Rancher

  The Montana Way

  Once a Champion

  Cowgirl in High Heels

  All for a Cowboy

  Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com for more titles.

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  To Jake, the best calf rider in the family.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Epilogue

  Excerpt from A Texas Soldier’s Christmas by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  Chapter One

  There were times when a guy needed to be alone with his thoughts.

  This wasn’t one of them.

  Loud voices and louder music washed over Jess Hayward as he pulled open the rear door of the Shamrock Pub and stepped inside out of the light June rain. After too many nights spent alone, second-guessing himself, he wanted noise and lots of it. A way to shut off his brain and focus on things other than the fact that he’d just given up a steady job to follow the rodeo for four weeks.

  It was the right choice. His twin brother was tearing up the professional bull-rider circuit, and Jess knew he should take a shot before it was too late. He was a good bull rider, better than Tyler in some respects, but he was also cautious—not about rough stock, but he did have a backup plan for when things went awry. That was why he was going the rodeo route. If things worked out, he’d join his brother on the pro circuit come January. If not, he’d go back to work for the construction company that sent him all over Montana overseeing the assembly of steel-framed buildings.

  But even though he’d made his decision, it was surprisingly hard to shut off the voice of sanity and reason—possibly because for most of his life he’d been that voice for both himself and his brother. Tyler had a penchant for wild behavior—or he had until he hooked up with his now-wife, Skye Larkin. Jess was no saint, but compared to Ty, he was...well...kind of boring.

  No. Not boring. Careful.

  He crossed the crowded floor to where his friend Gus Hawkins was standing behind the bar. He waited his turn behind a group of college girls, smiling at one of them when she turned and gave him a flirtatious once-over. Apparently, she liked what she saw.

  “Hi,” she said with a dimpled smile. “I’m Talia.”

  “Jess.”

  Talia’s friend turned and pushed a drink into her hand, then made a gesture toward a group of guys on the other side of the room. Talia gave a helpless shrug as her friend grabbed her wrist and started pulling her away.

  “Maybe I’ll see you later,” she called with a laugh before disappearing into the crowd.

  Maybe. It’d been a while since he’d dated anyone and he felt kind of rusty. Something about twelve-hour days and being on the road too much. Well, he was about to be on the road too much again, but in a different way.

  “This is a surprise,” Gus said as Jess stepped forward to rest his hands on the edge of the bar. “For a minute, I thought you were Tyler.”

  “Easy mistake to make.” Even their mom made it some
times.

  “Because even though he’s on the road most of the time, I still see more of him than I do of you.”

  “And that will continue,” Jess said. “I’m hitting the rodeo circuit.”

  Gus gave a satisfied grunt. “Finally.”

  “It’s now or never. The body’s not getting any younger.” Taking a beating on a bull was truly an occupation for the young.

  Gus set a glass in front of him and poured a shot. “On me. For luck. How are you traveling?”

  “Bedroll in the back of my truck.”

  Gus held up a finger before moving away to take an order from an old guy in a cowboy hat. He drifted back toward Jess and said, “Take my camper. I’m not using it. I’m just too lazy to sell the thing online.”

  “That would be...great.” It would certainly beat the bedroll in the back of the truck, which was how he and his brother had operated during the three years on the Montana circuit before Tyler went pro and their parents sold the family ranch and moved to Texas. At that point, Jess realized that neither he nor Tyler would have a place to live if one of them didn’t get a full-time job and keep the home fires burning. Tyler hadn’t really needed home fires, because he was rarely at home. When he finally did come home for a spell, he’d moved onto a neighboring ranch and had become engaged to the owner.

  That had been a turning point. That had been when Jess decided that maybe he did have enough money in the bank. That he was only responsible for himself, which was an odd feeling for an identical twin.

  “When are you leaving?”

  “Tomorrow afternoon for Union City.”

  “Come by and see the camper tomorrow morning. If it’ll work, take it.”

  “I’ll pay you—”

  Gus leveled a deadly look at him. “I don’t think you will.”

  Jess simply nodded. He’d pay something if he used the camper, but he’d wait until he got back rather than argue with Gus now. He continued to stand at the bar, talking to Gus as he drank. Across the room, Talia smiled at him and raised her glass in a small salute. He smiled back, thinking it might be time to make his move. But before he could push off the bar, a small crash at the other end made his head jerk around.

  Emma Sullivan’s wide gray gaze came up from the mess of broken glass and beer on the bar. She instantly started apologizing to Gus’s uncle Thad, who was standing only a few feet away.

  “I’m so sorry. That guy bumped into me.” She began stacking the smaller pieces of glass onto the larger pieces as she attempted to clear the mess.

  “No harm done—or there won’t be if you stop trying to pick up the glass,” Thad said sternly.

  “Sorry.” Emma pulled her hands to her chest, holding her fists against the blue-gray sweater she wore. Her eyes came up again and this time she zeroed straight in on Jess. Her lips parted as she recognized him, then she looked over her shoulder at the door.

  Excellent. Unless he was misreading the signs, Emma, his late best friend’s little sister, had had too much to drink.

  He set down his whiskey. “I’ll be back,” he said to Gus. Just as soon as he made certain that Emma wasn’t alone.

  “Jess,” she said as he approached. She attempted to sound offhand, but the end of his name came out just slurred enough to confirm his suspicions.

  “Are you here with someone?” he asked, reaching out to take her elbow as someone jostled her from behind, making him think that her story about the guy bumping her was true.

  “Watch it,” he growled. The guy turned, half ready to defend himself until he saw the deadly look in Jess’s eyes. He gave a grunt and moved a few feet away. Jess turned back to Emma. “Are you here alone?”

  “I came with Jonesy, but I haven’t seen her in a while. I think she might have left with someone.” She spoke the last part in a stage whisper that had Jess rolling his eyes.

  A table close to them emptied and he gestured toward it. “Sit. I have to get my drink.”

  Drawing in a breath, he headed to the other end of the bar, retrieved his whiskey, which he might as well enjoy, because it might be his last drink of the evening, and headed back to where Emma sat with her elbows on the table.

  “What’s going on, Em?”

  “My drink spilled when that guy bumped me.” She gave him an encouraging look. “I could use another.”

  “I’m not buying you a drink.” He refrained from saying she’d had too many, because nothing brought out the fight in Em like being told she couldn’t do something. Or that she had to do something. Something about being one of the youngest members of a large blended family. Her stepmom had her hands full raising a lot of kids, but that didn’t keep her from trying to control every move they made.

  She tightened one corner of her mouth, which was wide and full and frosted with shimmery stuff. He used to tease her about her mouth being too big for her face, but he’d been wrong. She’d finally grown into that smart mouth of hers. It looked...good. And the corners were once again drooping.

  “Selma is driving me crazy,” she suddenly blurted, as if needing to explain why she was in the Shamrock alone, having a few. “I need to get married to get her off my back.”

  Jess downed the rest of his whiskey and considered ordering another. Across the room he saw Talia flirting with another guy, then turned his attention back to Em. “Are you thinking about getting back with Darion?”

  “No.” The word came out flatly. Adamantly. Her broken engagement would stay broken. “But that’s not slowing Selma down. If she doesn’t quit hounding me, I’m going to—” she moved her hands back and forth in a gesture of frustration “—do something.”

  “Wait a minute. She wants you to patch things up with Darion?” Which wasn’t the same as Darion wanting to patch things up.

  Em leaned closer and he was suddenly aware of the crisp floral scent that was so her. He remembered how she smelled because she spent so much time hanging around him and Len, driving them crazy when they were younger, wanting to be part of whatever they did because Len was her “real” brother. Her full brother. And now he was gone.

  “She wants me to wear the freaking dress that she paid too much for.” She lowered her voice for another stage whisper. “As if I asked for it. For the record, I did not. I wanted the five-hundred-dollar dress, but she liked the other one.” Emma leaned closer still and her long reddish-brown hair brushed over his arm like a whisper of silk. “She wants to impress the neighbors. Outdo Marilee’s wedding. Since I’m the only girl in the family, I’m the only shot she has.”

  “Come on, Em. She isn’t going to encourage you to get married just so she can pour money down a wedding rathole.”

  “Oh, yeah?” She sank into her chair. “Well, she can’t get her deposits back. The money is already poured.”

  Jess gave his head a shake. “Not much anyone can do about that.”

  Emma’s expression brightened. “Maybe you can take Darion’s place? Just for a while? Fake wedding? Keep Selma happy?”

  “I’d rather take a bullet in the leg.”

  Emma’s mouth drooped again. “I had a feeling you’d say something like that.”

  “Nothing personal, Em.”

  “Yeah.” She leaned back in her chair and started surveying the room, as if trying to pick out another husband prospect.

  “Do you want a ride home?”

  A look of horror crossed her face. “No.” She cleared her throat, trying to sound nonchalant as she said, “I’m no longer staying at home.”

  “Then where?”

  “Starlight.”

  “The motel?”

  “Howard lets me park my truck in his garage.”

  Howard had been one of Em’s friends in high school, but probably wasn’t on her mother’s radar because he was kind of shy and retiring. “Mom knows I’m
okay because she stops to see me at work, but I won’t tell her where I’m staying. I’m one step away from blocking her number, too.” She gave a small snort as she stared down at the table. “I’m surprised she hasn’t tailed me.”

  Jess knew from growing up with Len just how intense Selma could get when she was on a mission.

  “How do you know she hasn’t?”

  “I watch my rearview mirror.”

  “Things were that bad with Darion?” Bad enough to call off a wedding? Although he had to give her credit for calling it off six months before the big day instead of waiting for the last moment.

  She let out a breath. “I don’t want to talk about it. Besides, I refuse to marry him just to get Selma to leave me alone.”

  “But you’d fake marry me.”

  Emma smiled. “Because it’s you. There’d be no complications.”

  “Ain’t going to happen.” Besides, he wasn’t certain if anything went down with Emma without complications. Even getting engaged to one of the nicest guys he’d ever met hadn’t kept things from getting complicated. No one knew exactly what happened with Em and Darion, and it didn’t appear that Jess would be the exception to the rule. One minute they were on, the next the wedding was off. Darion was now working up north in Kalispell, having left right after the engagement was broken, and it didn’t appear that he was coming back anytime soon.

  “How are you getting home tonight? To the Starlight, I mean.”

  Her shoulders sank a little. “Good question. It looks like Willa did leave with someone.” Just as Jess had hoped to do. Well, that wouldn’t be happening. Talia had her arm linked with a tall cowboy who seemed satisfied with the way his night was playing out.

  “I’m going that way.”

  “You barely got here.”

  “I think it’s time to leave. I’m taking off tomorrow, so maybe a decent night’s sleep is in order.”

  “Yes,” Emma said in a mock stern voice as she got to her feet. “One must get their eight hours a night. And eat three square meals a day. And brush their teeth two—”