The Rider's Dangerous Embrace (An Interracial Bad Boy Romance Story) (19 page)

She was out of her seat before she even realized what was happening, running in the direction of the arena, her heart in her chest as it beat heavily.

He was waving her away before she even got close.

“I’m fine.” He said, grabbing his hat and pulling it off. “Other than being royally pissed.”

“Are you sure?” she asked, biting the inside of her lip and stopping in her tracks.

“Dammit, yes. I am sure. Still, the medical team should be around shortly, got a bit hooked, so they are going to need to check it out. Just a damn bruise.” He was pissed. Absolutely livid. The hard set of his jaw and clenched eyebrows gave it away.

He collapsed on a small stool and exhaled, the breath wracking painfully though his chest. , Pain scoured the lines of his face, shining with a thick sheen of sweat.

“You’re in pain.”

“Yeah, pain from fucking getting no score.”

Another ride, one she recognized from the facility tagged him on the shoulder.“Hey, man. I just got word that the judges are convening, should be announced as soon at they figure all that shit out. Announcers suck today. Wanted to let you know.”

“Thanks, Bill.”

He tipped a hat at her and walked away.

All she could do was stand there with him, and wait for he verdict. Finally, after several long minutes, the announcer came on the loud speaker.

“Luke Daniels will be granted a re-ride due to the being fouled by Tornado Force Winds, who bucked into the gate. A bull is being selected.”

The entire crowd screamed in excitement, obviously in agreement.

She cheered, looking over at Luke, who was smiling, albeit through the pain.

“Are you sure you can ride again?” She asked, edged away from him by the medical team.

“You’ll be getting a ride tonight, and you know it. Compared to you, this bull is going to be nothing.”

She blushed scarlet.

“Luke, are you experiencing any pain?”

“Nothing extreme. No broken ribs, just a few bruises. I didn’t even hit my head, man. I am going to go again.” Luke was stoic as they checked him over, but he was certainly determined.

“He’s right. Just some deep tissue contusions. Nothing too serious, but freaking painful. You wanna ride another bull?”

“Hell yeah, I do. I should’ve been able to ride the last. Fucking lame.”

“Man, you just got hooked, don’t be so hard on yourself. You need to get to your sport therapist after the ride, that is my official advice. You are cleared to ride again, but be careful man, you don’t want to hurt yourself. Really, hurt yourself.”

She breathed a sigh of relief. He was fine. He was going to ride again. Now she knew exactly the worry her mother had complained about with her father riding. That woman was always so angry about it. To the point where she didn’t even want to see him ride again. The last couple of years of his career she didn’t even go. When Jayda went, it was because Thomas took her.

“Hey.” Luke stood up and pulled her into his arms. “Maybe I need a bit of good luck.”

She took off her dad’s old hat and looked up at him.

“What’re you thinkin’?” she asked, ignoring the dirt on his clothing, just focusing on him. It wasn’t hard to do. Especially with those steely eyes staring into her own.

“A kiss, maybe?” He dipped down and kissed her, his lips touching hers softly at first, and then pulling her in for a deeper kiss. Before she realized it their tongues were entwined and she was breathing heavily, clinging to him. A loud whistle and a cat call pulled her out of it.

“Do you think that will help?”

“I dunno, but it sure as hell can’t hurt.” He kissed her one more time, quickly. “You gonna to be there, watchin’ me?”

“I’m here, aren’t I? Just like I promised.” She gave him a squeeze and then let go, turning and walking away, leaving him watching, for once.

Somehow it felt really good.

Mark smiled at her, when he saw her coming back up towards the seating area.

“He alright?”

“He’s fine. Just a bit banged up. Gonna go again.” She put her hat back on her head and settled down into the stands.

“Well, no shit. What did you expect? Tonight is his night. I can feel it.” Mark was excited.

“You really care about this?”

“Hell yeah, been cheering that asshole on since we were kids. I want this for him. He deserves it. Especially after all that shit in his life.”

“Yeah,” she didn’t know what he meant, so she just nodded. It wasn’t the first time she had heard that he had a tumultuous past.

“Damn bitch, took away his whole world. Married him, made him walk away from all of this, only to chew him up and spit him out.”

What
?

Vitriol. His voice was full of it. Whoever she was, she really did a number on Luke.

“I’m sorry, you probably hate hearing about it, but even after three years it still fucking sticks in my craw.” He spit into the dust and looked over at her.

“I… I had no idea.” She admitted looking down.

“Shit. I really put my foot in it. Huh?” Mark leaned towards her, “I thought you knew.”

“I mean, I knew something happened. People talk, but I didn’t know what. He never told me,” she chewed on her lip.

“Shit. Well. This is all my damn fault. He doesn’t like to talk about her much. She… she ruined his life.” Mark ran his hand through his hair and looked over at her. “You really need to talk to him about this.”

“I plan on it.” She hadn’t asked for a single detail. Not one. This was not Mark’s story to tell, it was Luke’s. Still, she felt the small nagging of anxiety. He hadn’t told her. Hadn’t wanted too, not yet. Did he not trust her?

The man was more of a mystery than she realized, more than she wanted him to be, really. But she could be patient. She could wait.

He was worth it.

“He’s about up. I’m feeling good about this one, are you?”

“No.” She bit down her worry as she touched her hat, and thought about her father. If there was anything out there, surely it would listen to her. At least this once. She needed this, Luke needed this. Mark was right, this was his last chance, he had a few more years in him, but he needed to get something started soon, and he was capable of it. She knew it. Or else she would not have been so eager to sign him, her father wouldn’t have been either.

She saw him in the chute on the bull before they even called out his name, or the bulls. It was all a blur. Him, the bell wrapped around his arm, the angry bull. This one had to be better. It just had to be.

She held her breath as he shot out of the gate on this one, the bull making a clean break into the arena, his bucks strong and high into the fades. This one was a tough one, but each second ticked by, Luke holding strong, his hand high as the bull turned into his hand.

He was clinging onto that bull.

One high kick and she held her breath, worried he was going to get dislodged, but the man was stuck in the seat.

The buzzer.

He made it. All eight seconds.

Luke jumped down from his bull, a clean dismount as he took off for the fence, climbing it while the bull was distracted and lured into his pen.

He did it.

Jayda stood and screamed for him, clapping and cheering right along with the rest of the crowd. It was a magnificent ride. Almost textbook.

94.3

It wasn’t enough to get him into first place, but he was in a strong second. It was enough, to get him seeded.

This opened up so many more avenues for him. Bigger tours. Better competitions. More money. More exposure.

It was his victory, but it was also really good for their agency. Really good.

This was one victory she could revel in.

***

“Let me see your bruises.” As soon as they closed the door to the small hotel room the words came out of her mouth. It wasn’t a request. He was so good at doing that, demanding things from her, but now it was her turn. She wasn’t taking no for answer.

“Is that all you are going to say to me? Not, damn, you rode good. Not, hey sexy let me see you naked? Nothing.” He was being playful but she wasn’t in the mood for it.

“Let me see the damn bruises. I have some salve in my purse, the kind dad always used to use. Take off your damn shirt and let me take care of you.”

He glared at her, but the little quirk in his eyes let her know that he was enjoying it. Every moment of it.

“Fine.” He pulled off his shirt to reveal a multitude of bruises across his torso. She wasn’t a medical expert but she was surprised he didn’t have broken ribs.

“Jesus, and medic cleared you?”

“It looks worse than it actually is, I promise.” He grunted as she pulled a little tub of salve out.

“What the hell is this stuff?”

“It isn’t anything magical, just a concoction of herbs and essential oils in an oil base. Something he got from a local herb woman. He swore by it.” It smelled of lavender and patchouli, but it worked.

“Then put it on.”

She dipped her fingers into the little tub of salve and brought them up to his torso, the cool gel going on clear as she rubbed it in.

Jayda had to give him credit, he didn’t so much as flinch as she rubbed it in, place after place. His muscled body strong under her hands, even if the bruises marred the canvas.

“You are so beautiful.” She said finally, looking up and him from her kneeling place on the floor. “I have never really appreciated just how beautiful. Each muscle. Each little freckle, each mole. They are all part of what makes you so amazing.”

She almost never spoke that candidly, but she meant every word of it.

“Now you know exactly how I feel about you. All your curves, all your edges. Do you even know how breathtakin’ it is?”

She shook her head.

“Come up here honey, let me hold you.” He pulled her up and into his lap, a small grunt escaping as he held her.

“Does it hurt? Really? Tell me the truth. You can do that.”

“Just a little, Jayda. I’ve been hurt worse.” The look in his eyes made her think he wasn’t just talking about a few bruises and scrapes.

“In what ways?” she asked.

“More than you will ever know.”

“Wanna tell me about it?”
Please, please tell me.

“Not yet, someday. But not just now.”

She wanted him to trust her. To tell her all his secrets. All his hopes, all his dreams. All his failures. She was strong enough to handle it. Strong enough to handle him.

Why wouldn’t he just trust her?

She wrapped her arms around his neck and looked up into his eyes.

“I… I love you, Luke. I love you.”

She bent down and kissed him before he had a moment to respond. She didn’t want to know, one way or the other. She didn’t want to hear those words come out of his mouth, it was scarier than any kind of rejection. Love wasn't something she grew up around, and it never worked out, from what she knew. She couldn’t handle it.

“Don’t, don’t tell me yet, okay? Please. I’m not ready to hear it.”

“I can do that, if that is really what you want, Jayda. But either way, I am going to have you. Here. Now.” His hand was on her neck in moments, gripping it hard as the other arm wrapped around her waist. And then he picked her up, and she felt like she weighed nothing in his arms, the ease of his movements obvious. He was strong, so strong.

And he was holding her like she was nothing. She clung to him, searching his eyes as he carried her towards her bedroom. “You pretty near damn perfect, do you know that?”

She shook her head, but it was exactly how she felt about him.

Luke laid her down on the bed, her body flouncing once before it came to a rest. Looking up at him, she could see him in his full glory. Shirtless, rock hard, and beautiful. It was a sight she never wanted to forget. The kind that she hoped was sketched in her brain forever.

Luke crawled over her body and looked her right in the eyes. “I’m not simple, and I’m not easy, but Jayda. I need you. I’ve never needed a woman before, never needed anyone before. This is new to me, Jayda. But dammit, I need you. I am committed, I think you know that by now. Can you work with me?”

“I can try.” But at the moment she was anything but patient. She wanted him, and she wanted him now. Her body was throbbing, aching for him in all the right places.

And he just knew exactly where to touch her.

His hand slipped into her jeans, under her panties and fount her throbbing, aching center, giving it a rub, just enough to provide her with the touch she needed, but not give her the relief she wanted. He was the object of her torture, and she loved every single minute of it.

“I’ll take what I can get.” He pressed his finger further down, in-between her wetness and thrusted inside her. She was slick with desire, and his fingers filling her were not all that she needed. She wanted him. All of him.

“Please,” she moaned as she reached up for him and stroked the length of him, hard against his jeans. “I want you.”