Cowgirl Up (10 page)

“I did
promise.” Trinity started to get up, then frowned at Cody when he didn’t move
his feet.

Cody
shrugged, then inclined his head toward the cooler. “I’m too comfortable to
move. Surely, Jared can find his own pie?”

Jared
shot him a look rife with humor. “I certainly can. If you’ll just direct me.”

Trinity
rolled her eyes and leaned over to open the cooler lid. “It’s the top one.”

“I’ll
just cut it—”

“Nope.
That whole pie is yours. I brought a spare just for you.” She beamed up at
Jared.

He
collected the dessert wrapped in a plastic bag and smiled like a kid on
Christmas morning. “Cherry. My favorite.” After closing the lid, he turned his
attention back to Trinity. “Thank you. You made this old man happy.”

She
nodded. “My pleasure. Carmen coached me through it, so it should be edible.”

“It’ll
be fantastic.” Jared held his treasure close and swiveled to stare at Cody with
a wicked gleam in his eye. “Enjoy your massage.”

“Will
do,” Cody answered with humor. His uncle might be trying to yank his chain, but
Cody didn’t care. He’d take all the ribbing in the world to continue enjoying
this moment with Trinity.

Jared
walked away, leaving them alone once more.

“He
seemed nice.” Trinity went back to work on the top portion of his foot.

“He’s a
good man. Tough when he has to be.”

“Why do
I have a feeling you’re going to hear about this later?” She peered up at him
from under her lashes.

“Because
I probably will. Nosey old guy won’t let the opportunity to rib me pass.” He
leaned forward just a bit to share a little secret. “I’d do the same if I were
in his shoes.”

Trinity
treated him to a true smile, one that seeped into his very soul.

“It
must have been nice growing up on a ranch as big as your father’s.”

“Lots
of work.” He recalled the endless summer days of working in the hay field, branding
cattle, breaking horses. Rarely did he have free time during the week to just
be a kid. The weekends were another story. The rodeos provided hours of freedom
allowing him to make up for lost time. Sewed his wild oats and then some.

“I can
imagine, but honest work.”

“Yeah.”

“Is
your father like Jared?” She tilted her head and tickled his toes.

“Pretty
much. My grandmother swears they’re cut from the same cloth.” A lot of teens
found themselves butting heads with their parents, rebelling, and sneaking
around. He didn’t have to do much of that. Both his mother and father were
quite open about everything for as long as he could remember, making their home
life pretty damn good. Sure, they argued now and again, and he chafed at not
being able to do everything he wanted, but he learned to deal. Good lessons
that carried him into the SEALs.

“Does
that mean I can butter him up with a cherry pie as well?”

He
grinned, pleased at her line of thought. “Honey, you bake a pie and just about
any man will bow at your feet.”

“Including
you?”

“Including
me.”

Her
eyes widened slightly before the corner of her mouth hitched up slightly.
“Bowing isn’t necessary.”

“Then
what is?” He hadn’t missed the telltale expression that portrayed interest in
him.

She
stared at him for a moment, drew in a deep breath, then blew it out. “Nothing
really. I’d make you a pie just to see you smile.”

Something
in the vicinity of his heart clicked into place.

Trinity
locked up the storage compartment after stashing her tack inside. Legacy waited
for her at the side of the trailer, still needing to be walked in order to cool
down. Most other barrel horses didn’t hardly break a sweat in the few seconds
they were full throttle. Legacy, true to his bloodlines, ran hot. He geared up
for the event both physically and psychologically and tended to end up with
some damp patches by the time he finished. All part of the racehorse psyche,
she supposed.

After
pocketing the keys, she untied his lead rope and led him toward the grassy
outskirts, away from prying eyes, cars, and distractions. Since the rodeo
occurred during the afternoon hours, she had the evenings to wind down and
focus on Legacy.

Absently,
she petted the horse’s neck as they meandered past the warm-up ring and kept going.

“These
small rings just aren’t for us, Legacy.” Trinity blew out a breath. They’d come
in third the last two runs. Lacey, on board the smaller framed Candy, took the
rounds easily. While Trinity applauded her friend, she couldn’t shake the worry
about lost opportunities coming back to bite her in the butt.

The
only problem is the arena was just too small for her mount. Legacy’s long
strides called for longer distances. This stop along the way didn’t offer such
luxury. Instead, she found the finish line appearing before Legacy had a chance
to hit top gear.

“It’ll
be okay. It has to be.” She’d added up the points last night and knew it would
be close. Only the top twenty-five in the country received invites to the
national finals, which meant she needed every placing she could squeak out.

Freshly
cut grass softened her steps. Deciding the spot fit as well as any, she began
to lead Legacy in large circles, ensuring he cooled down adequately before
putting him back in his stall. Shortcuts never paid off, and her fatigue levels
didn’t count for a pile of beans in the scheme of things.

The
miles had worn her down along with the seemingly endless stops every weekend.
She spent her week busting hiney at the farm, then hooked up the trailer and
headed all over the country just to reach the next competition. Bone tired, she
still couldn’t sleep much on the weekends. Strange environments and a lumpy cot
made rest a challenge.

Not for
the first time she wondered if all the sacrifice was worth it. Her dream might
be close to fruition, but the sacrifices piled up.

“Does
the price we pay equal the reward?” she asked Legacy who snorted and slapped
his tail at a fly.

Too bad
she couldn’t take a weekend off and just rest and relax at home. Unfortunately,
with the race so tight, she couldn’t afford to miss a single rodeo.
Hell, I can’t afford to knock a single
barrel down, either.
The pressure was on and she struggled under the load.

The
season couldn’t end soon enough. Then she could move on to bigger and better
things.

The
only bright spot right now was Cody. She’d come to look forward to their
visits, to chit-chat with him, share a meal or two. He gave her a reason to
smile and a dream to aim for. While they were simply friends, that didn’t stop
her from imagining what life would be like if they crossed the line into
dating.

If only things were different…

She
cringed at the phrase that drove her nuts over the years.

Sighing
wearily, she appraised Legacy. “I think we’re good, don’t you?”

He
stopped, lowered his head, and started grazing. She didn’t have the heart to
tug him away from the fresh grass since he saw little of it on the weekends.
Relegating herself to hanging out for a while, Trinity let the lead go slack in
her hands and simply followed along as Legacy moved around to find the choicest
clumps.

After a
few minutes of grazing, she headed him in the proper direction, not wanting him
to gorge on grass. He came across the junction of gravel and grass and snorted.

“Yeah,
I know, big guy. But, look at it this way. We can go back to your stall and
feed you a bucket of grain.”

He
picked up his head as if he understood her words and walked hurriedly at her
side.

Trinity
almost had to trot to keep up. “Geez. You’d think I was starving you.” She
shook her head and kept up the pace in preference of being dragged behind.
Sure, he’d check his stride if she yanked him back, but Trinity learned long
ago to let him have his way much of the time. A happy Legacy made her life
easier. An unhappy one set up pitfalls and barriers at every turn.

“Just
like your father. I swear.”

“That’s
the rumor.”

Trinity
glanced over to find Cody leaning against the end stall, arms crossed over his
chest with a relaxed look on his face. His eyes raked Legacy, then her, leaving
a pleasurable glow behind.

Bewilderment
crossed his face. “What’s his rush?”

“I said
the word ‘grain’.” She rolled her eyes and scampered along as Legacy eyed his
stall a few feet away, intent upon getting there immediately.

Cody
chuckled. “He figured that one out, huh?”

“Umm.
Yeah.” Before she could reach for the stall door, Cody closed the distance in a
blink and opened the door with ease.

Legacy
entered the stall, went straight to the back, found his empty bucket, and
stomped with obvious frustration. He swung his head around and eyed Trinity.

“Give
me a second. Good grief.” She unsnapped the lead rope, grabbed his feed bucket
and carried it back to the aisle. Digging her keys out, she headed back toward
the trailer.

While
some competitors left their feed sitting around, she didn’t. Maybe she was just
less trusting than others or more paranoid, but she took every precaution to
make sure Legacy’s grain didn’t disappear or get tampered with. She hated to
think anyone would do such a thing. Unfortunately, the reality was seriously
messed up people existed and her horse depended upon her for everything.
Failure simply wasn’t an option.

“Mind
if I tag along?” Cody fell into step with her.

“Nope.
Not at all. I just have to get the bag of feed from the truck and bring it up.
That will hold until tomorrow morning when I can lock it up again.”

“Cautious.”

“Yep.”
She slowed as she reached the trailer, jammed the key in the side, then opened
up the door. There, she collected the new full bag of feed. The moment she
lifted it, Cody plucked it from her hands.

“I can
get it.”

He
easily hefted the nearly fifty-pound weight and grinned down at her. “I’ve got
it.”

His
action made her smile. How long had it been since a man did anything out of his
way to help her? Never?

“Thanks.”

“No
problem. Definitely lighter than hay bales and my SEAL pack strapped to my body
in the desert.” He flinched slightly at the mention.

Trinity
got the impression the last part just slipped out. He’d spoken of his
deployment before, never in detail, and always with tension riding him hard.
She carefully avoided the subject because of his blaring body language, not
wanting to anger him or put him on the defensive. Curiosity prodded her, but
she refused to dig at him. Instead, she aimed for shallow and neutral. “How
much did your pack weigh?”

“Varied,
but typically around sixty pounds, plus or minus.”

She
shut the door and reset the lock. Turning, she walked along, keeping up with
Cody’s long strides. “That’s quite a load, especially in the heat.”

He
shrugged with one arm, the feed slung over his other shoulder. “You get used to
it.”

“What
doesn’t kill you makes you stronger?” She bit her lip, immediately regretting
her words.

Cody
glanced down at her with such intensity, she thought for a split second she
might have overstepped the line in a major way. Then he briefly nodded and
stepped into the shadows compliments of the setting sun. “It’s true.”

They
entered the barn and made a beeline for Legacy’s stall. He greeted them with a
piercing whinny and excited nickering.

Cody’s
gaze landed on the stallion. “Does he always throw such a fuss around dinner
time?”

“Pretty
much. I guess he’s afraid he’ll whittle away to nothing if he doesn’t get fed
exactly on time.” She grabbed Legacy’s bucket. “If you’ll set the bag down I’ll
pour it up.”

“Got
it.” He plopped the feed down, yanked on the string to open part of the top,
then began filling.

“He
gets a full bucket.”

“Big
appetite.” Cody finished with a few more kernels, then rolled the paper top
down on the feed to help keep it fresh.

“Big
boy.” Trinity grabbed the handle, carried it into Legacy’s stall, and set it
down in the corner. The horse immediately started to eat with gusto. She patted
his rump, then left the stall.

“Thanks
for the assist.”

“No
problem.” Cody watched Legacy eat for a moment, then turned back to Trinity. “I
missed you last weekend.”

She
smiled softly. “I missed you too.” Looking down, she blurted out an admission.
“It was lonely in Denver. I didn’t know anyone. No one to really talk to or
hang around with.” She sighed and met his gaze once more. “I was feeling pretty
down until you called. It made everything better and I realized how spoiled I’d
gotten seeing you every weekend.”

He
stepped closer and cupped her cheek. “I’m glad I could help.”

“You
always do.” The whispered words came from her soul.

His
eyes darkened a notch before he lowered his head.

Trinity
closed her eyes and lifted to meet Cody halfway. His lips brushed over hers,
left, then returned to stay. Gently, he plied and learned, coaxed and soothed.
She accepted each caress with eagerness, giving back in earnest.

All too
soon, he lifted his head and peered down at her. A grin slowly played on his
face. “Nice.”

She
blinked up at him. “I was thinking more along the lines of yummy.”

He
laughed, his features becoming all the more handsome with the addition of
humor. He trailed his fingers along her jawline and pinned her gaze. Deep blue
eyes twinkled with mischief and something else. “You’re a surprise, Trinity.”

“Is
that good or bad?” She thought she knew the answer, but needed to hear the
words.

“Good.
Very good,” he purred out.

Her
stomach flip-flopped with exquisite pleasure as her previously dormant libido
came to life with a flurry.

“Is it
dinner time already?” Lacey’s voice interrupted.

Trinity
turned her head to find Lacey walking toward them, a bucket in hand.

Cody
dropped his hand and twisted to meet the newcomer. Trinity immediately felt the
loss.

“Seems
so.”

Lacey
stepped around them to enter Candy’s stall.

“I
should get going. There’s a roping horse that I promised to check in on this
evening.”

“Okay.”
Trinity desperately wanted to ask if he’d return, but caught herself just in
time. No sense in sounding clingy and needy. Besides, only a couple more
weekends and she’d be hanging up her boots for good.

He blew
out a breath. “I’ll catch you later.”

“Good.”

Cody
paused for one more second, then turned on his heel and strode away. Trinity
watched him go with more than a hint of longing.

“Damn,
girl.”

“What?”
Trinity reluctantly turned her attention from Cody’s retreating perfect rear to
Lacey.

“The
sparks coming off you two rivaled the Fourth of July.”

“It was
just a kiss.”
The best one of my life.

“Uh-huh. Like Big Ben is just a clock.” Lacey grinned
at her. “‘Bout time you started moving things along. I was beginning to wonder
if you were going to let the chance skirt by.”

“What
do you mean?”

Lacey
exited Candy’s stall and secured the door. “I mean that you two have been
pussyfooting around one another since the start of the season. It’s about time
you roped that cowboy of yours.”

Trinity
shook her head. “He’s not mine.”

“From
what I saw you two have each other’s name stamped on your foreheads.”

The
observation buoyed Trinity’s spirit and gave her hope that perhaps Cody really
did want to be with her.

Reality
intruded with the reminder that finals would be here all too soon and they
would go their separate ways. For good. “I’m not sure there’s enough time for
anything to come of it.”

Lacey
stopped and blinked at her as if surprised by her comment. “Just because you
won’t have a scheduled date every weekend doesn’t mean you have to end it after
the finals. Hell, the best is yet to come. No more burning up the road driving
to hell and back. You can just visit him for a week or two and vice versa. For
that matter, he’ll be out of a job soon, so he can start bunking with you.” She
waggled her eyebrows.