Her heart warmed even more toward Reed. He’d used his play money.
Callie walked into the kitchen where her mother was washing some glasses.
“Mom, I’m going to get plane tickets to the next PBR event. It’s this weekend in Colorado Springs. I have to talk to Reed.”
“Are you going to tell him that you’re coming?”
“I don’t think so, Mom. Let me surprise him.”
* * *
A WEEK AFTER NASHVILLE, Reed won the Colorado Springs PBR event. Jesse came in second, and Luke came in third.
“The Beaumont Big Guns have tied up the first three positions again, ladies and gentlemen. Let’s give them a big round of applause.”
The arena erupted into clapping and whistles. Reed stood in front of the now-empty chutes, accepting belt buckles, checks and saddles from the arena announcer.
“And, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, all the bull riders will be signing autographs in the arena right now.”
The line started forming as the bull riders took their places at tables, mostly in alphabetical order.
“Hi. Who should I make this out to?”
“Callie Wainright.”
Reed’s head jerked up. “Callie? What? When? Were you here for the bull riding?”
“I sure was, Reed. Excellent riding.”
“Thanks, Callie.”
“I was nervous when you drew Jimbo. At least you rode him. And a ninety-two-point ride!”
“And when he tossed me off, I was able to outrun him.”
“Congratulations, Reed.”
He nodded. “Hey, how’d you get here, Callie?”
“Plane. I took the weekend off. I needed it.”
“How about a late dinner with me?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
“Where are you staying?”
“The host hotel.”
“Great. I’m there, too. Do you mind waiting for me while I finish the signing?”
She smiled. “I don’t mind at all. I’m used to waiting for you.”
Reed whistled and held up his hand, and a man with credential tags came running. “Jud, would you mind getting Callie a chair? She’s going to sit by me and wait.”
“Sure, Reed.” Jud went running, and hustled back with a chair. “There you go, Miss Callie.”
“Thanks, Jud.”
He tweaked the brim of his hat to her, and Callie’s heart warmed. Reed was a cowboy, a special breed.
She watched as Reed signed posters, ball caps, cowboy hats, T-shirts and the like. He still drew the line at signing body parts.
“Sorry, darlin’. I wouldn’t want my daughter to go around asking a stranger to sign her stomach, and neither should you. How about an autographed picture instead?”
He had old-school values, Callie thought. She liked that about him. She liked a lot of things about him.
They walked hand-in-hand to the hotel. It was a wonderful night, just a little bit cool. Reed took his jacket off and wrapped it around her shoulders.
He took her hand and she wished they could walk like this together a bit longer, but they only had a block to go.
There was a big fan presence at the hotel and Reed took the time to greet everyone. Then he turned to Callie, “How about room service, if you don’t mind? I’d like to concentrate on you, Callie. We have a lot to catch up on.”
They went to her room because he was sharing his with Jesse this time. They ordered burgers and fries and milk shakes.
“Tell me, what brought you to Colorado Springs?”
“You did, Reed. I have a couple of things to discuss with you.”
He sat on the desk chair and Callie sat on the bed. “Shoot.”
“Tell me about twenty thousand dollars going to Bill Waterson. I don’t have a record of it.”
He was silent for a moment. “I know you don’t have a record of it. I used my play money, not any that relates to the ranch.”
“And by your play money, I assume you mean your—”
“Stock-trading money. Or as you would call it, my gambling money.”
She nodded. “You paid for a hay lot that you don’t really need, right?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “Yeah, but hopefully, Bill Waterson won’t figure that out. Besides, the hay won’t go to waste. I just negotiated a contract to supply it to the stock contractors at PBR events. This way, they won’t have to transport their own. I’ll transport it and give the profits to Bill. Bill will work hard, and eventually he’ll make a profit. I’ll see to that.”
“Reed, I—”
“Like I said. It’s not money I need. It’s money I play with.”
“What else do you do with your stock money?”
“If I hear of someone who needs it, and if it’s a good cause, I see that they get it.”
“Anonymously?” she asked, wide-eyed.
“Most of the time.”
“That’s nice of you, Reed. Really nice. And this all comes from your investment money?”
He shrugged. “Yeah.”
“You’re something else, Reed. Something else.”
“Why all the questions, Callie?”
“I just wanted to know. I wanted to know if you’re a gambler like my father, always chasing a dollar, then spending that last dollar on a lottery ticket.”
“So what did you figure out?”
“No, Reed. I’m finally getting it. You’re like Robin Hood or something, only you give your stock profits to those who need it. Your play money, as you call it.”
“Communication, Callie. We have to be able to talk to one another, and listen.” He sighed. “I guess I’ll quit if it still bothers you.”
“Don’t you dare quit playing the stock market!” Callie couldn’t believe that those words came out of her mouth. “You use your profits for good. Everyone told me that you weren’t a gambler and that includes the worst one alive, my father.”
“So everything’s fine between us?” Reed asked.
“No. There’s one thing still pending.”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Remember how you said that you’d do an activity of my choice?”
“I do. Have you decided what you’d like to do?”
“I sure have.”
“Movie? Bowling? What?”
“I want you to make love to me, Reed,” she said, walking over to massage his shoulders. “That’s what I want. I want you to make love to me.”
As Reed stood up and grinned. Then there was a knock on the door.
“Room service.”
“That’s just my luck.” Reed laughed. “Later?” He gave her a smoldering kiss, a promise of things to come.
It took a while for Callie to find her voice. “Later.”
Chapter Fifteen
“I’m going to take a shower, Callie. Join me.”
Reed began removing his clothes, and Callie could only stare at the sight. He was comfortable in his body. He unbuttoned his white shirt with all the logos and tossed it on the bed, undid the button on his jeans and pulled down his zipper.
Callie was so mesmerized that she barely blinked. There was something so carefree and easygoing about Reed that it pulled her to him. So did his hard chest and six-pack abs.
His jeans were gone and he was wearing just boxers. Soon, his underwear disappeared, along with his socks.
He stood there in his naked glory without a care in the world. “If you’re going to join me, you’d better catch up. I’m naked here.”
“And you look fabulous, Reed, She lightly ran her fingers over the scars on his back and chest. They were scars from bull riding. Strangely, they didn’t mar his manliness; they only added to it.
Fully clothed, Callie stood behind Reed, reaching arou
nd his body, running her hands over his chest, his nipples, feeling his hard abs, and lower, lower still until she felt his erection.
“Whoa, Callie. I don’t want it to be over before we start.” He took some deep breaths and turned toward her.
“Undress for me while I put this thing on.” A condom appeared in his hand. He took it out of the small, square wrapper and rolled it onto his hard length.
Watching Reed put the condom on, set Callie’s heart to racing. If Reed wanted a sexy striptease, it wasn’t going to happen. Callie wanted him now!
She hurriedly got out of her clothes and, with an eager, “Yee-haw,” she pinned Reed on the bed.
He laughed as Callie kissed him along his stubble. She lingered at his nipples and down his muscled chest.
Reversing their positions, it was Reed’s turn to have her under him. “I want to make this good for you, Callie. After all, it’s the activity that you asked for. Right?”
“Right! Now quit talking and let’s have some action!” She was breathless just thinking of what was to come.
Reed laughed. “I guess this isn’t going to be slow, huh?”
“Reed...please! I want you.”
She spread her legs and he looked down at her closed eyes. “Open your eyes for me, Callie. I want you to know that it’s me making love to you.”
“I know that, Reed.”
With a strong thrust, he entered her and waited until she started to move in an erotic rhythm. He kissed her neck and took a nipple into his mouth, biting it softly.
“Oh, my, Reed. Oh...”
He moved to the other nipple and he received the same reaction. He waited for Callie to catch up with him, and when she reached her climax, he let himself go.
They clung to one another, then spooned together, trying to catch their breaths.
“Let’s do it again!” Callie said with a burst of energy.
“This time I’m not going for the gold buckle, I’m going to take it slow and easy.”
Callie put her hand in his. “Challenge accepted.”
“Callie, loving you will never be a challenge. I’ve always been yours.”
“And although I’ve dated some major losers over the past several years, I think I drove them away. They just weren’t you, Reed. None of them could compare.”
They made love again, this time leisurely and unhurried, and as she drifted off to sleep, Callie knew she was so happy that she was going to burst.
* * *
THE NEXT DAY was another bull-riding event. Reed was on fire and, after making love with Callie last night, he was walking on sunshine with his cowboy boots. Finally, Reed thought, everything had been resolved between them and he could show her how much he loved her.
They certainly were compatible in bed, and she finally understood that he wasn’t a gambler. When the time was right, he was going to ask Callie to marry him.
He got Callie a seat in the section reserved for the wives and girlfriends of the bull riders. It was close to the chutes, and Reed couldn’t take his eyes off her.
But he needed to concentrate on his job at hand.
He had an engagement ring for her. The same ring that he’d been carrying with him in its little velvet box in a corner of his gear bag for ten years.
Over the years, the gear bags came and went, but he’d made sure that he had the ring. He always thought of it as a symbol of hope that someday he and Callie would be together again.
And now they were.
But he didn’t want to ask her to marry him in Colorado Springs, or Billings, Montana, or even Las Vegas. He wanted to ask Callie to marry him on the bank of the Beaumont River where they’d first made love. In fact, if he could arrange it, he’d have an extra surprise for her.
Reed would fly home with her after the event was over, and he’d ask Callie to marry him.
It was about time!
* * *
REED DREW WHITE WHALE in the final round. The bull was known for his spinning abilities and meanness when the ride was over. Reed was warned by the bullfighters to hustle away from White Whale and climb the fence surrounding the arena if necessary.
But if Reed could last eight seconds on White Whale, he could get a ninety-point ride.
It was cowboy up for him.
He loaded his bull rope with rosin and worked it until the stuff was as sticky as possible. Then he wrapped his hand.
Just before he nodded his head, he quickly looked at Callie. She had her hands clenched in her lap. She didn’t have to worry about him. He knew exactly what White Whale was going to do.
He slipped on his teeth guard. Then he nodded his head. “Buck ’em, boys.”
White Whale exploded out of the chute gate. The massive bull leaped into the air on all fours, and Reed stayed with him. Then White Whale played all his tricks to get Reed off—a belly roll, a fake to the left. Then a fake to the right. Then the bull spun so fast, it made Reed’s head feel like it was going to explode. But still, he stayed with him.
Reed heard the buzzer above the roar of the crowd.
Eight seconds. He’d ridden White Whale!
Reed didn’t know that he was the bounty bull until he heard the announcer say so.
Twelve thousand dollars was in the pot. He knew just what to do with the extra money. Reed knew of a fellow bull rider who’d just bought a ranch, and the house needed work before he could move in his young family. The extra money would help them out.
Reed made a ninety-four-point ride and the confetti cannons blew their colorful paper. Reed was now in the lead with seven more riders left to go.
They didn’t come close to Reed’s score. No one else could beat him, and Reed was declared the winner.
He asked Jud, the coordinator, to bring Callie to the winner’s circle, and Jud obliged. Callie stood next to him, smiling.
“Congratulations, Reed. I’m happy for you.”
Reed gathered her into his arms and gave her a big kiss. The audience roared in approval.
Reed was presented with yet another belt buckle, another saddle and a rifle.
He turned to Callie and gave her the buckle. “Colorado Springs will always have a special place in my heart. I’d like for you to remember it, too.”
Callie whispered. “I’ll never forget it.”
* * *
“IT’S A GREAT day for a picnic,” Callie said, handing Reed a roast beef sandwich. “We couldn’t ask for better weather. And I just love this spot. It’s the best spot on your ranch, don’t you think?”
“I sure do. It’s our spot, Callie. And you know, I come up here to think all the time.”
“What do you think about, Reed?”
“Mostly you, darlin’.”
Her eyes opened wide. “Me?”
“Yeah. Mostly you. All the time. You.”
“I think of you a lot, too. All the time, Reed Beaumont.”
He put his sandwich down on the paper plate and covered it with a napkin. He held out his hand to Callie and she took it. “Come with me. I want to take a walk along the river.”
“You don’t want to eat?”
“Later.”
“Should I put my shoes on?” she asked.
“Hell, no. Let’s go wading in the water.”
The water was cold until they got used to it. Reed led Callie to a rock and she sat with her feet in the water.
“If I owned this land, I’d have my feet in the water every day.”
“If you owned this land, what would you do with your house on Elm?”
“I’d let my mother have it,” she declared.
“And speaking of money, I want you to know that I’ll be giving the twelve grand that I received for the bounty bull to a fellow rider who needs it for his family.”
“That’s so sweet of you, Reed.”
“Callie, what if we were married and it was our money?”
“But we’re not married and it’s not our money.”
“Let’s just pretend it’s our money.”
“If it were ours and it was an extra windfall? I’d do the same thing.”
“That’s wonderful!”
“Reed, why all the questions?”
“I’m glad to know that we feel the same about money.”
“That it’s like manure and should be spread around?”
He gave her a big kiss. “Exactly.”
She grinned. “You like playing Robin Hood, don’t you?”
“More than anything.” He chuckled, then turned serious. “Callie, I’m going to probably ride until the PBR ends in Vegas in November. Will you travel with me?”
“Yes. As long as I could come back during the week and handle my business,” she said. “I sure will get frequent-flier miles.”
“And you can use some of mine.”
He took her hand and led her out of the water.
He brought her to stand on some grassland, where he dropped to one knee and took her hand.
“Callie Wainright, will you marry me and make me a very happy cowboy?”
“I thought you’d never ask!”
He pulled out the battered black velvet case. “This ring has been kicking around in my gear bag forever.” He opened the box.
Callie’s heart soared. “It’s beautiful, Reed. Thank you!” She pulled him to his feet and they kissed.
“And, Callie? The land that we’re standing on is ours. I picked out ten acres by our special section of the creek to build a house on. My other two brothers each have ten acres, too. You just tell the architect the kind of house you’d like and it’s yours.”
“Reed, things are just going so fast!”
“I know! Isn’t it great? But do you like the ring?”
“Of course, I do, Reed. For heaven’s sake, you could have given me a cigar band and I’d be thrilled.”
“Um, uh...would you like to wear it?”
“Of course!”
He slipped the ring on her finger. “Perfect.”
“Yes, it is, Reed.”
“Are you going to say it?”
“What?” she asked.
“Say that you’ll marry me.”
Reunited with the Bull Rider Page 18
