Heavenly Angel (38 page)

Teresa felt confident enough to handle whatever came her way today with regards to these women that followed the rodeo circuit. When she’d come out of the bedroom dressed and ready to go earlier, Angel and Joaquin had complimented her and caressed her ass and breasts, making their point clear that she was the one they saw.

They were speaking with a cowboy dressed in a red plaid shirt when, from somewhere nearby, a female voice squealed, “Cowboy!” Joaquin’s head swiveled, and Teresa saw him cringe.

His friend turned toward the source of the squealing voice, looked at Joaquin, and said, “Oh shit.” The cowboy turned to Teresa and quickly said, “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, ma’am. Enjoy the rodeo.”

She smiled at him distractedly and shook the hand he offered before he hightailed it out of there. Teresa knew it was just a matter of time before one of these buckle bunnies made a bold move. Grace warned her that not all of them would keep their distance, regardless of whether a woman walked beside him or not. Some of them were that brazen, others just unobservant.

This young woman was evidently of the unobservant variety. That or she was making a concerted effort to ignore the possessive hand Joaquin had wrapped around Teresa’s hip. Either way, she was about to embarrass them all.

Teresa finally spotted the squealing young woman as she came at Joaquin at a dead run. Teresa felt the eyes of all those who stood nearby.

Oh no.

This buckle bunny was going to make a scene out of her reunion. Joaquin looked at Teresa imploringly and said, “Sugar, I’m sorry,” as the buckle bunny made full, crashing body contact with his left side, practically knocking Teresa to the asphalt on his right side. Only Joaquin’s hand on her hip steadied her.

Teresa was sincere when she’d told him she didn’t hold any of his sexcapades against him. That didn’t mean she wasn’t feeling more than a little territorial about his arm and hip that the young woman was currently
mashed
up against. The young woman giggled shrilly and clutched at him, pressing her breasts and hips against him.

In a loud voice, she said, “Cowboy, I’m
so happy to see you again!
I thought you’d fallen off the face of the planet!”

In a moment of clarity, Teresa realized something. This girl didn’t even know his name. Or didn’t remember it.

“Um, hey,” he said half-heartedly.

The young woman rubbed her breasts on his arm as he tried to slip away from her grasp unsuccessfully. “Listen, my daddy bought me a brand-new trailer. You should see it! I’m parked—”

He turned to the buckle bunny and quickly, but gently, removed her hands from his arm and closed a protective arm around Teresa.

“Hey, it’s—uh—good to see you. But I’m newlywed. This is my wife. I’m sorry, but—”

The buckle bunny looked at him, stunned. She opened her mouth, then slammed it closed again. Finally, she smiled and summoned the grace to say, “No, cowboy. I’m sorry. Congratulations on getting married.”

She lowered her eyes, gathered her tattered pride about her, and sauntered away, her long, straight blonde hair wafting on the breeze.

Joaquin gazed at Teresa in surprise. “I’m so sorry, sugar.
Damn it
. Are you okay?” he asked, tilting her chin up to look in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Joaquin. Maybe I should have gone with Angel. That would have been less embarrassing for you.”

“You don’t have to apologize to me, sugar. I should be apologizing to you for being such a —”

“Don’t you dare say it,” she whispered, placing her fingers over his lips. “It’s in the past.”

“I should call Angel to meet us and walk you back to the seats. There will probably be others like her,” he murmured, embarrassment coloring his cheeks.

Teresa shook her head. “No, I don’t want you to be late getting checked in, Joaquin. I’m a big girl.”

Joaquin smiled down at her, and they moved along toward the short line at the registration booth where all the riders and workers needed to check in. Adam and Ethan looked back at them as they approached, but said nothing of the exchange they had no doubt witnessed.

After check-in was finished, they proceeded to the area where Joaquin would leave his gear. He needed time to stretch out and prepare. He held Teresa to his side for a few minutes, introducing her to other riders and their wives, who were all friendly toward her.

One of the wives told her there was a prime location in the arena from which family members and other VIPs could watch the action at a closer vantage point than the other spectators, the best seats in the house. That must be where Angel and the others waited for the rodeo to begin now. Numerous buckle bunnies hung out on the periphery of the behind-the-scenes area. Several of them made eye contact with her, challenge gleaming in their eyes.

Fiona Wills, one of the wives, said, “Don’t let them bother you, honey. Joaquin was prime-cut tenderloin to those gals for years. They’re trying to piss you off and make you defensive. You just hold tight to his hand and ignore them. It’s obvious he’s only got eyes for you by the way he looks at you. It’s good to see him like this.”

Joaquin was deep in a conversation with Fiona’s husband and did not appear to be following the ladies’ conversation.

Curious, Teresa asked, “Like what?”

“Showing his feelings. His eyes are sort of tender when he looks at you. He’s always been a happy-go-lucky ladies’ man having a good time. But there was never anything in his eyes, no feeling, no real enjoyment, just gratification. I can see in his
eyes
that he’s happy.”

“Thanks, Fiona. I appreciate that.” Glancing at a group of young women that walked by, she frowned.

Fiona curled her lips at them as the girls passed her. “Don’t let them see that they get to you. And don’t trust a thing any of them say to you. They’ll wait until you’re alone and act like they’re trying to befriend you, but they work together at ‘divide and conquer.’ Stick with your man or one of us, and you’ll do fine. So how is Angel doing? I haven’t seen him in a couple of years.”

A happy smile came to her face as Joaquin turned and looked back at her and grinned. She looked at him, unsure how to answer. He said, “It’s okay, sugar. Fiona knows Mom and the dads, known us all our lives. You can talk freely with her, though probably not around any others,” he said, glancing around.

Teresa released his hand for a moment and held it paired with her other hand with the tops facing out, showing Fiona the pair of wedding bands. Fiona’s eyes went a little bulgy.

“Well, honey! You hit the jackpot, now didn’t you? I hope they are taking good care of you?”

“Oh, absolutely, Fiona,” Teresa said dreamily, making the older woman giggle.

“Uh-oh. I think you’re about to be claimed,” Fiona said, chuckling as Teresa was startled by a large hand sliding around her waist. A hard male body pressed against her backside, and she felt caressing lips at her temple. She couldn’t stifle the feeling of euphoria that came over her at Angel’s touch. Joaquin smiled and nodded when he saw him. He must have called Angel while she was talking with Fiona to walk her back to the stands.

“Those are good men you have, honey, watching over you like this,” Fiona said. Then she turned to Angel, and he gave her a friendly hug. “It’s so good to see you, Angel. I see you learned well from your daddies.” They made small talk about the families and life in general for a few minutes.

“Well, sugar, it’s about to start in a few minutes. If you want to be able to see, you’d better go with Angel and Fiona. I’ll see you afterward. Pray for me,” he said in a whisper as he gathered her in his arms and kissed her fiercely. She felt a little dazed when he released her.

“I promise I will, honey. Do good. Be safe.”

“I’ll make you proud. Thanks, Angel,” he added, bumping fists with his brother before Angel drew Teresa away, with Fiona walking along beside them.

Teresa looked back at Joaquin as she twined her fingers with Angel’s. She felt her face blush slightly when she caught him ogling her ass as she walked away. He gave her a lopsided grin and waved before turning to put on his gloves and approach the area where the rest of the cowboys were congregating.

“He feels pretty guilty for putting you in an uncomfortable situation. You okay?” Angel asked. Teresa noted the calculating looks of several young women hanging around the area as they observed her close proximity to Angel, his fingers intertwined with hers. She wasn’t about to pull away from him for anybody else’s benefit.

Quietly, she asked, “How can they be happy doing this? Following the rodeos, looking for one-night stands.”

“The chance to say they’ve been with someone who could be famous. Bragging rights. They come into these towns like tourists, spending their daddies’ money. They have anonymity except amongst us. Maybe they enjoy the ‘freedom.’ Some of them just like the lifestyle and men in chaps.”

Teresa’s lips twitched. “Well, there’s definitely something to be said for the chaps.”

“I’ll remember you said that, beautiful,” he whispered in her ear. Teresa felt herself grow wet and throb a little at what he intimated. She bit her lip and glanced at him, her cheeks tingling with warmth. Angel’s eyes were locked on her, a knowing smile on his face. “Hmmm, interesting.”

Thankfully, Fiona spoke up, “Joaquin drew a challenging bull.”

“Which one?” Angel asked her as they walked along together, weaving through the crowd.

Fiona replied, “Joe Peterson’s CC.”

Angel nodded his head positively. “Good one. Joaquin has a chance at a good score with him if he stays on.”

“What does CC stand for?” Teresa asked, not sure she wanted to know.

“Crazy and cantankerous,” Angel replied. He evidently noted the worry in her eyes when the name registered. “Don’t worry. It’s a good, hard-bucking bull. I’ll bet he does well tonight.”

“He was in the running for ‘Texas Bucking Bull of the Year’ last year, in the top ten,” Fiona said. “Joaquin seemed real pleased with his pick.”

Angel explained to Teresa that the bulls were scored on how hard a time they gave the rider and on their overall agility, kicks, and drops. At the end of the season, the best bulls would be brought to the rodeo finals.

Part of her felt excited to watch him ride this challenging bull, and part of her was terrified. Teresa hoped she didn’t make a fool of herself in the stands. She didn’t want to embarrass her men.

Fiona joined her kids and her brother-in-law in the stands, and Angel led her to where Grace and Michael were sitting. Rachel and Eli had also joined them. After exchanging hugs, Teresa sat down next to Angel, and he reached for her hand, slipping his other arm over the backrest of her seat. She looked at him and smiled tremulously then leaned into his shoulder.

“He’ll be fine, beautiful.”

She smiled up at him and squeezed his hand. A few minutes later, right after Jack joined them in the stands, the rodeo began with the grand entry of all the riders and mounted competitors. Michael was enthralled by the horses and riders making their galloping entry into the arena, carrying all the flags.

He looked at Angel with big, trusting brown eyes and asked, “Daddy, am I gonna do that someday?”

“Yep, you are son. If you want to, we’ll let you.”

“Cool!” Michael said, clapping his hands with the spectators as everyone stood for the national anthem. Her heart pounded with gratitude for Angel and Joaquin taking the time with him that they did. Michael would grow into an amazing man with them guiding him.

As announcements were made, people streamed into the arena, parading back and forth on the wide aisle at the foot of the stands.

A beautiful blonde strutted down the aisle. Her hair was styled, nails done, and makeup perfect. She was gorgeous and just a little voluptuous, but she was clad in a strapless sundress that was smocked at the bust, tube-top style, and only reached mid-thigh, with fancy cowgirl boots on.

Sympathetically, Teresa whispered, “I’ll bet she’s cold. It’s too chilly to be dressed like that,”

Grace chuckled and said, “I think she’s probably planning on having a cowboy keep her warm.”

The rodeo queen, junior miss rodeo queen, and little rodeo princess were all introduced then the timed events began. The women’s barrel racing was exciting to watch. Teresa wondered if one of the young women racing was the one who’d had Joaquin tied to her bed Christmas Eve morning. Surprisingly, she didn’t harbor ill feelings for that particular woman. Joaquin had access to that kind of carefree nightlife and lifestyle but had fallen in love with Teresa on sight. She was confident in where she stood with Joaquin.

Steer wrestling and team-roping competitions were next then mutton busting. Angel walked Michael down lower into the stands for the mutton busting, so he could watch close up. Each child was secured on their sheep then they held on for dear life as the animal tried to buck them off. The top two little riders were awarded the right to claim a small cash prize or to keep the sheep they successfully rode, plus the obligatory winning ribbons.

“Ladies and gentlemen, that’s some redneck child abuse for you, right there. You can’t spank your kid in Wal-Mart, but you can tie ‘em to the back of a half-wild sheep and
let ‘em run.
Give ‘em a round of applause, folks!”