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Two hours later, Dani found herself wedged between her friends in the front row of bleacher seats at the Sagebrush Event Center, clutching a jumbo popcorn and trying not to spill her four dollar beer as her friends giggled and pointed out rodeo riders in the souvenir program.
“Oooh, I like that one,” gushed Alexis, gesturing to the headshot of a dark haired man with a perfect amount of stubble covered his square jaw. “He looks like he’d be trouble.”
Tami laughed. “Not more trouble than you can handle, girl. I like that guy—” She gestured vaguely to the page—“He looks like the Marlboro Man.”
“Literally every single dude in here looks like the Marlboro Man, dummy,” Kelsey giggled. “They’re pretty much tall, rugged and handsome. You can’t get more Marlboro Man than that.”
Dani could feel herself frowning. “Yeah, they’re all tall and handsome, but none of them are dark. Why aren’t there any brothers in here?”
The girls squabbled good-naturedly about their preference of cowboys and Danica pretended not to be scouring the pages of the program for a picture of the cowboy Kelsey had pointed out earlier that afternoon on the street—tall, lanky, sandy blond hair and perfectly blue eyes—but the photos were in black and white and all a bit fuzzy.
Who designed this? Dani could feel her marketing brain start judging the program. I could come up with something better than this in my damn sleep.
“It’s starting!” Alexis squealed and snapped the program shut before Dani could find the photo of her mystery man and discover his name.
“Um, what even happens at a rodeo?” Dani whispered to Tami as the four girls stood for the National Anthem. The crowd around them erupted into cheers as a pretty blonde girl on a white horse circled the perimeter of the arena carrying a gigantic American flag as a tinny rendition of the anthem blared over the loudspeakers.
“I have no idea,” Tami replied, raising her voice to a shout in order to be heard over the cheering crowd. “I’m guessing cowboys ride bucking broncos or something? Honestly, I don’t even care what they get up to, as long as we can see these fine looking boys in action.”
“And take one home!” Alexis shouted, high fiving Kelsey and looking smug. “Whichever boy stays on that bronco the longest tonight is definitely coming home with me.”
Unfortunately for Alexis, they had arrived late and the bronco riding that night had already finished. The next event scheduled for that evening was—
“Bull Riding?” Dani repeated the event after the announcer blared it over the loudspeaker.
Her friends looked at her blankly.
“Seriously?” Tami said, puzzled. “But they can’t really be riding a damn bull, right? I thought that was just in old movies.”
Tami’s assessment of the situation proved to be incorrect, however, because the event was exactly what it sounded like. One at a time, the bull riders were loaded onto an angry thrashing bull, then tried to stay on for eight seconds before they were inevitably dumped in the arena, lying in the dirt and hoping that the judges scored their ride high enough for them to win.
“Oh my god,” Kelsey muttered. “They are actually riding cows. This is actually a real thing that is happening.”
“Technically,” Tami said, a bit of a know-it-all tone creeping into her voice. “They aren’t cows. Cows are female cattle and bulls are—”
“Oh my god, Tami,” Kelsey said, rolling her eyes. “Nobody cares about the different breeds of cows.”
“That’s gender,” Tami argued and got a fistful of popcorn tossed in her face for her trouble.
“Quiet!” Kelsey practically shrieked. “It’s starting!”
The girls stared in wide-eyed wonder as rider after rider eased themselves onto a bull and then shot from the chute, clinging desperately to the thrashing bulls as they bucked around the arena. Some riders lasted well past the requisite eight seconds and while others were getting tossed off their angry animal almost immediately. Dani found the whole thing terrifying, dangerous and strangely arousing.
“And that was Rusty Lloyd, moving into first place with a solid score of eighty-nine,” the announcer’s voice crackled over the loudspeakers. “Next in the arena, we have number one hundred and fourteen. Everyone put your hands together for hometown favorite, Weston Stroh!”
Dani followed the announcer’s instructions and started to put her hands together, but froze mid-clap. There, sliding onto a frenzied bull in the chute, was the blonde cowboy from this afternoon.
“Look!” Tami elbowed Dani sharply in the ribs. “It’s your boy!”
“You better hope he doesn’t win this,” Alexis warned. “Because if he wins this, I’m taking him home, girl.”
Dani rolled her eyes, but gripped Tami’s hand tightly in her own as the buzzer sounded and Weston Stroh barreled out of the chute on his madly thrashing bull, elegantly matching the animal as it twisted and thrashed, trying to rid itself of the irritating human clinging to it. Finally, in what felt to Dani like no time at all, the bull dislodged Weston, sending him sailing into a graceful roll through the dirt of the arena.
The crowd roared as Weston leaped to his feet in victory, raising his black cowboy hat over his head and waving at his fans. Dani was shocked to find herself standing with the crowd, cheering wildly for a man she’d never even met.
The loudspeakers crackled. “And, with a total score of ninety-four points, Weston Stroh takes the lead and secures himself a spot in the Cowboy Days finals on Sunday night!”
Dani and her friends screamed in excitement, their exuberance melting in with the electric joy that hummed throughout the packed arena.
“You still mad we made you come to the rodeo?” Tami whispered as they took their seats.
“Honestly, Tami,” Dani replied, face flushed and eyes glowing with excitement. “I’m starting to have a little bit of fun.” Then, she quickly added, “Don’t tell Alexis.”
The friends settled in to watch the final few riders compete, but no one could beat Weston Stroh’s score and soon the handsome blonde cowboy was making his victory lap around the arena on a lovely little golden horse, once again waving his hat at the adoring crowd.
It didn’t escape anyone’s attention that more than a few of Weston’s screaming fans were young, very attractive women.
“Uh oh, Lex,” Kelsey warned, giggling. “If you were planning on taking that boy home tonight, you might have some competition.”
Out of nowhere, Dani found her voice and her bravery.
“Yeah,” she said, the steel in her voice cutting off her friends mid-laughter. “You do have some competition, Alexis. Me.”