Chapter Six
Rodeo
“Dinner was wonderful, Lucas. Thank you,” I said as we drove toward Covanta and the rodeo.
I hadn’t expected dessert, but when he’d offered to share a slice of cheesecake with me, I wasn’t able to say no. The menu had advertised it as classic New York Style Cheesecake, but Lucas had informed it wasn’t anything like traditional New York cheesecake. All I knew was it had been delicious. And filling! I’d eaten way too much.
“You’re very welcome.” He said, looking over at me with a smile. “I honestly don’t think I’ve ever had such an enjoyable meal. Eating on the road usually consists of grabbing something greasy from a fast food place or a sub with dry, stale bread from a gas station convenience store.”
“I don’t know how you do it.” I said laughing. I was by no means a foodie, but I did enjoy food – cooking it and eating it.
“It’s a small price to pay for doing what I love.”
“Don’t you ever get tired of being on the road?” I said, as I twisted in my seat to face him. “I mean, you’ve said you wanted a family someday. Do you think you’ll ever be able to find that with how much you travel?”
“Yes, I do.” He nodded emphatically. “As much as I love Bull Riding, I know it’s not something I can do for the rest of my life.” He laughed. “Could you imagine? Being in my fifties trying to ride a bull.”
I smiled, but didn’t laugh. I hated how insecure I felt right now. Lucas was a wonderful man, and if things were different, I wouldn’t hesitate to get serious with him, to settle down and pursue that family we both wanted. But I could not let myself fall for him when he was on borrowed time.
“Here we are,” he announced as he pulled into a large, dirt parking lot.
The place was a lot bigger than I expected. Of course, never having been to a rodeo before, I really had no idea what to expect. Lucas parked the car and was over to my side, opening the door for me before I had my seatbelt unhooked. I took his proffered hand and got out. The air was warm, the breeze light. The sky was dark, though, sprinkled with the brightest stars I’d ever seen.
Lucas laced the fingers of our hands, and led me toward the large barn-like building set off to our right. “This is where we keep the horses when we’re not performing. The bulls are kept over there.” He pointed to another large barn to our left.
“So, what exactly do you do? Do you ride the bulls or are you one of those guys who ride the horses and lasso the bulls?”
“I’m primarily a bull rider, but there are times when I get on a horse and lasso. But I usually only do that when one of the cowboys isn’t able. Even though we have a full staff of people who tend to the animals, we all pitch in and help out. We’re like a big family around here.”
“That’s great.” I said, smiling.
Lucas pulled open the door and motioned for me to enter. I stepped inside and was awestruck by how big it was. Not only were there individual stables for the horses, there was a ring with a secluded viewing room.
“Wow,” I whispered, my eyes widening in an effort to take everything in.
“Come on. We can watch.” He opened another door, and I followed him up a small flight of stairs to the viewing room, which was nothing more than a long hallway-like room with tall, bar-like chairs that faced the plate glass window.
I stood in front of the window and looked down at the ring. There were two men riding horses, trotting around the ring. One of the men swirled a rope over his head and looped it perfectly around a nearby post as his horse galloped by it. The cowboy pulled his heels into the horse’s side, slowing it to stop.
I watched, entranced, as the two men worked. It looked more like practiced grace, a well-rehearsed show, which I suppose it was. But what was better was the way it made me feel. Standing here watching man and horse work together in unison reminded me of my childhood, on the farm with my grandparents. Witnessing my grandfather break a horse with a loving but firm hand.
“Those are two of our best,” Lucas said, coming to stand beside me. “The one on the brown horse is Dylan, and the other is Greg. When a rider is bucked from the bull, those two will ride in and lasso the bull if the rodeo clowns can’t get the bull back to the pin. They are the last resort so the bull doesn’t hurt or kill anyone.”
I jerked my head to look at him. “That’s possible? For a bull to kill a rider?”
“Yes.” He smiled as if amused with my naivety. “But it doesn’t happen nearly as often as you’d think, and they’re part of the reason why.” He nodded toward the two men in the ring.
I placed my hand over my racing heart. “My God, Lucas. Aren’t you afraid of that happening to you?” I couldn’t fathom doing a job day in and day out that had such a high risk of death.
He turned his body to me and caressed my cheek with his hand. I leaned into his touch, loving how warm and gentle it was. I allowed my eyes to flutter closed momentarily, simply enjoying the tender moment.
“I’m a lot more careful then most bull riders.”
“How so?” I asked, opening my eyes to meet his gaze.
“You learn to develop a relationship with the bull, and like any animal, you become attuned to its mannerisms. If I feel it getting ready to move a certain way, I counter it. But if I can feel it being overly ornery, I will let it buck me and get the hell out of the ring.” He laughed. “Not all riders will do that. They’ll try to ride the meanest bull just to show how good they are.”
“It all still sounds very dangerous.”
“I’m sure some of the guys are doing practice rides right now. Want to go watch?” He said.
The excitement in his voice, the sparkle in his eyes reminded me of the look a child got when I handed them a lollipop after getting an exam. I laughed, unable to control myself. “Yeah, I’d love to.” I finally responded.
Taking my hand again, we left the viewing room and across the lot to the other barn. This one wasn’t as nice, but it was just as big. It smelled a lot worse, too. My grandfather had a bull once, to the behest of my grandmother, and the thing was always relieving himself. This barn brought on that memory. I made a face, which Lucas noticed and laughed.
“I should’ve warned you about the smell. I’m sorry.” He gave my hand a squeeze. “I guess I’m just so used to it that I didn’t think…”
“It’s okay. I grew up around animals. It’s been years since I’ve been near any though, so this is nice.”
“What kind of animals?” He asked inquisitively.
“Horses, cows, chickens, pigs, and lots of cats and dogs. My grandfather taught me all about them.”
“My grandfather is the one who first introduced me to horses, and then bulls. He dabbled in bull riding, but mostly for fun and when his friends would bet him he couldn’t stay on longer than them.” Lucas said with a laugh. “He’s the reason I love the rodeo so much.”
Unlike the horse barn, this one didn’t have a private viewing room. The practice ring was located behind the barn in the open field. We stood near the reinforced wooden fence that comprised the ring. Lucas rested his arms on top of the fence, and I tentatively reached out to grip it, unsure if the bull would come charging at us.
“Over there,” he pointed to a gate located on the opposite side of the ring, “is where the rider mounts the bull. When the buzzer sounds, the gate is flung open, and the bull charges out. That up there,” he pointed to a large time clock hanging on the side of the barn, “is the timer. The longer you can stay on, the more points you earn.”
“What’s the longest you’ve ever stayed on?” I asked, genuinely curious.
“Seven point two four seconds.”
“Seconds?”
Lucas laughed. “It’s a lot harder than it sounds. Watch.” He nodded to the ring.
I turned and the buzzer sounded. God, that was loud. Just as Lucas said, the bull came charging out of the gate, he jumped and bucked, trying to dislodge its unwanted rider. Looking up, I noted the
clock was moving rapidly, counting out the seconds the man remained on the bull. My heart raced as the numbers ticked higher and higher.
“Is there a record for your rodeo?” I asked.
He nodded. “Billy currently holds the record at ten point six four seconds.”
“Wow.” I said as I turned my gaze back to the bull rider, adrenaline spiking through my body. Simply watching was exhilarating. I couldn’t begin to imagine what it must be like to be in that ring doing that.
A moment later, the man was thrown from the bull. He was on his feet and running toward the fence, jumping over it to safety before the bull could reach him. I clapped loudly, impressed with the show.
“That’s incredible,” I said in awe.
“We’re having another live show next week. You should come and watch me ride.” He turned so his back was to the fence.
I couldn’t deny the short show I’d just seen was amazing, but could I watch Lucas do that? What if he got hurt again? How could I ever sit by and watch something happen to him. Although, it was an invitation to see him again, and that wasn’t something I could say no to. I smiled.
“Yeah, okay. You don’t mind if I bring my sister along, do you?”
“Not at all.” He pushed off the fence. “Care to take a walk?”
I nodded, and we walked hand in hand away from the bull riding ring and into the open fields behind it. The grounds were well tended to, but the further they got from the barns, the darker it became. The illumination from the moon and stars wasn’t enough to fully bathe them in light, but it did wonders for setting the mood.
“It’s beautiful out here,” I said.
“Not as beautiful as you.” Lucas put his arm around my waist and winked. I realized he said that every time I commented on the beauty of something. I hoped he didn’t think I was phishing for compliments.
“My sisters and I used to play in fields like this when we were kids. We’d pretend we were stranded in the middle of nowhere and we’d wait for prince charming to rescue us.” I laughed, remembering how adamant I used to be about having a cowboy on a brown and white horse rescuing me.
He stopped walking and tugged me to him, wrapping his arms around me. My breath hitched, but I didn’t attempt to pull away. His arms felt too good, his body too strong and safe against mine. I rested my hands on his biceps and looked up into his handsome face.
“Do you still dream of prince charming coming to your rescue?” he asked, a faint smile playing across his face.
“He already has,” I whispered, feeling empowered by the intensity of the moment.
Lucas lowered his head, his mouth aligning with mine, and then his tongue grazed over my lips, parting them. I dragged my hands up his arms, over his shoulders, and around to the back of his neck, welcoming his kiss. It was tentative at first, but then became a little harder, more self-assured, deeper. His arms tightened around me, bringing me so close to him I wasn’t sure where I ended and he began. I moaned softly, never wanting the kiss to end. And he must’ve felt the same way because he kissed me so long I was left gasping for breath when he finally tore his lips from mine.
“I want to see you again, Rebecca.” He said, with bated breath.
All I could do was nod in agreement.