Learning the Ropes

by T. J. Kline

  “Then why haven’t you called sooner? Spill it and don’t leave out any juicy details.” Ali smiled at her friend’s scolding.

  “I don’t know if you have enough time for it all at once.”

  “Kassie just went down for a nap and Scott is in the barn since Derek just came back from a rodeo in Idaho. So, I’ve got all the time you need,” she promised.

  “I don’t even know where to start.” She sighed. “I’m really confused.”

  “You could start with telling me how things are going with David. You two seemed pretty cozy at Mom’s house.”

  “Yeah, well,” she hemmed, “that’s over.”

  “Over? Chris didn’t tell me that. When did that happen? Are you okay? Do I need to have Scott, Clay, and Derek kick his ass the next time we see him?”

  “Slow down,” Alicia laughed at her friend’s rapid-fire questions. “The other night, I’m fine and no ass-kicking is necessary. I broke up with him.”

  “Why? You two looked so happy together.”

  “His father didn’t seem to care.” She lay back on her bed, the phone tucked between her shoulder and ear. “And had plenty to say about it when I went out to dinner with David, his brother, and Colt.”

  “I’ve met Colt Greenly once and he was an obnoxious jerk but I’ve never known you to let what anyone says bother you. If you can handle Delilah, he’s a piece of cake.”

  “It tends to make a relationship hard when the family thinks you’re after his money.” She put the phone on speaker and tossed it onto the bed, rising to pace. “And Colt is much harder to take than Delilah. But I don’t think it was going to work out with David anyway. He’s really nice but, let’s be honest, he’s too good for me.”

  “What are you talking about?” Sydney yelled. “Did you fall off Beast onto your head? I thought you were going to say because of Chris. That I could understand but to think you’re not good enough? That’s just—”

  “Wait a minute, what do you mean ‘because of Chris?’” Alicia’s heart stopped. He wouldn’t have told Sydney what happened, would he?

  “Alicia, everyone knows you guys have always had a thing for each other.”

  “Everyone who?” She reached for the phone on the bed. If other people could see she had this stupid girlish crush on Chris then he had to have known as well.

  Sydney laughed. “Are the two of you blind? Everyone. Neither of you is any good at hiding anything. We’ve all just been waiting for you both to see it. Why do you think Delilah hates you?”

  “Because of Chris?”

  “Because Chris turned her down for the junior prom so he could go watch you barrel race with me.”

  Alicia thought back to the night. It was her junior year of high school and she was bummed because no one had asked her. It didn’t help that they were graduating and Alicia was planning on leaving home far behind her, so she’d decided to forget about prom and get an early start barrel racing professionally. She’d promised to compete in the rodeo queen competition that year with Sydney but barrel racing was where her heart resided. She’d won her first go-round as a pro and Chris had been waiting to congratulate her at the trailer with a bear hug. She remembered practically melting into his arms as he swung her around before taking her out for ice cream to celebrate. It was the night she’d stopped looking at him as Sydney’s brother.

  “Don’t you remember?” Sydney’s voice broke into her thoughts, jerking her back from the memory.

  “Yeah,” Alicia whispered. “I do. I just . . .”

  “You really didn’t know how he felt?” Alicia could hear male voices in the background of the phone. “Well, now that you know, what are you going to do about it?”

  Alicia bit down on her lip, hard, trying to keep her angry tears at bay. All this time, Chris had feelings for her? Why hadn’t he ever said something? And if he cared, why gallivant all over the state sleeping with a different woman every night of the week? Unless Sydney was wrong. Wanting and loving were two entirely different sentiments.

  “Nothing.”

  Alicia stared out the window and it was suddenly clear what she needed to do. She couldn’t put herself through the torment of seeing Chris at the rodeos, constantly flirting with new women while her heart was being shredded. By taking the job with Bradley, she would be able to get the loan from the bank, purchase the property, and help her father achieve his dream of training his own horses. Maybe it wasn’t exactly the way she’d hoped to achieve her dream of teaching kids to ride barrels but there was more than one way to get there. This path would save the friendship between David and Chris and would be far kinder to her heart. This was better for everyone in the long run.

  “You can’t do nothing!” Alicia heard Kassie’s voice demanding her mother’s attention. “Hold on a second, baby. Mama will come out and watch you rope with Daddy after I get off the phone with Auntie Ali, okay?”

  Ali smiled sadly as she heard Kassie’s sleepy voice begging for the phone, to say hello. “Go have fun with Kassie and Scott. I’ll come see you guys soon.”

  “What? I thought you had . . . Ali, you’re not even making any sense.”

  “I’ll call you in a few days when I get all the details situated.” She didn’t wait for an argument from Sydney before disconnecting the call and heading toward the main house to meet with Bradley.

  CHRIS STOOD IN the doorway of the barn feeling sick to his stomach. He’d been trying to figure out a way to apologize to Ali, to explain his overreaction to seeing David kiss her cheek, but every line he’d rehearsed on the drive over here vanished when he saw her brushing down Beast, the light coming from the other end of the open barn highlighting her enticing curves. How could any woman look that sexy in a tank top and jeans?

  He smiled and leaned against the wall, watching her as she held a one-sided conversation with the animal, telling him how handsome he was.

  “Don’t believe her, Beast. She says that to all the guys.”

  Ali gasped and spun, nearly dropping the brush. “Oh, my . . . are you trying to scare the life out of me?” She held one hand over her heart and his eyes followed. He flicked them back to hers and knew she could probably read his thoughts as he imagined her without the tank top.

  She turned back to Beast, breaking the spell, but he could see that she hadn’t quite caught her breath. As she brushed his back, the horse turned his head to look at the pair. Chris eased closer and put his hands on either side of her waist, leaning close to her ear.

  “You’ve been avoiding my calls,” he murmured, his lips brushing against the outer shell of her ear. “I wanted to say I was sorry.”

  She refused to look at him but her hand stilled on Beast’s back, her chest heaving. It gave him the confidence to press on. She wasn’t nearly as unaffected by him as she wanted him to believe and, if the discomfort of his pants was any indication, she could drive him crazy without even looking his direction. He wanted her again, right now, but he knew she was unsure. He promised himself he would take it slow and prove to her she could trust him with her heart. He’d prove he wasn’t the guy his reputation had led her to believe he was.

  “There’s no need to apologize,” she said, still refusing to look at him.

  Chris smiled at her continued evasiveness. “Yes, there is. I want you to trust me.”

  “I do.” Her voice was breathless as his lips found the hollow just behind her ear and he heard her gasp. His tongue licked the spot where her pulse raced and her head fell back toward his shoulder. He smiled against her flesh. Challenge accepted.

  “Chris,” she whispered. “We . . . we just can’t.”

  “We seem to be doing just fine so far.” He turned her toward him and took her mouth hostage, walking her backward toward the stall door.

  Pressing against her, he explored her every curve, her denial forgotten as her fingers twined around his neck, pulling him closer. One hand splayed in her hair as his other slid down, cupping the curve of her rear, lifting her against his a
rousal. He sought her mouth, his tongue swirling with hers in a dance of yearning, his fingers digging into the soft curve of her hip as he fought to maintain control, even as he thought about carrying her to the tack room couch again. What was it about this woman that made him lose all semblance of restraint? Need exploded through his body, beating against his will to slow down, as she clutched at his shoulders. He forced his desire to the wayside, wanting to tease her yearning for him into an uncontrollable inferno of longing.

  Chris plucked at her lower lip, nibbling at her before licking away the sweet torment. Ali let out a sexy little moan of frustration as he pulled back, settling her back onto her feet.

  “I’m beginning to think something about this barn turns you on,” he teased, his fingers trailing along the neckline of her shirt. Her eyes went soft and liquid, her body shifting toward him instinctively. He brushed a stray lock of hair back from her cheek, tucking it behind her ear. Anything to be able to touch her. His fingers curled around the back of her neck, while his thumb traced a path over the side of her neck.

  She swallowed and bit her lower lip, making his lower half stand at full attention. “You have no idea how beautiful you are, do you?” She bowed her head, looking defeated. “Okay, that wasn’t the reaction I expected.” He took a step back and she covered her face with her hands, rubbing at her eyes before running her hands through her loose hair.

  “What more do you want from me, Chris?”

  “I don’t want anything from you. I want you.” He grasped her chin between his thumb and finger. “Why is that so hard for you to believe?”

  She cocked her head at him and looked at him, perplexed. “Gee, I wonder.”

  He reached for her waist and drew her close again, wrapping his arms around her. “My reputation isn’t real, you know. It’s a lie.”

  She looked doubtful. “Sure it is.”

  He brushed the back of his fingers over her cheek. “Ali, it’s fake. I’m not saying I’m completely innocent but most of the time, nothing happens. Most of the time, I take them home and sleep in my truck.”

  A bitter laugh slipped past her. “You expect me to believe that? I’ve known you for almost ten years, Chris. I know how you were in high school. I was there, too, remember?”

  He wasn’t sure how to convince her but he knew he had to make her see she wasn’t just another conquest to him. This wasn’t who he was. He was the tease, not the one who kept his head in every situation. He’d never been the dependable guy who thought past tomorrow. But Ali had him knocked off balance, spinning in a whirlwind of hunger, dazed enough that he was thinking about a future with her. She filled his thoughts every waking moment and his body craved her when she wasn’t near. How could he have ever convinced himself he didn’t need her? That he could ever get over her?

  He’d always understood that she was a forever kind of girl, the one you brought home to meet the parents when you were ready to settle down, but there was nothing settling about Ali or boring about what she did to him. Or the things he fantasized about doing with her.

  Beast whinnied and Chris felt Alicia jump backward, startled. “Party pooper,” he murmured against her lips. He pressed his forehead against hers and stared into her eyes. “I’m not the same guy, Ali. Come with me to Nevada this weekend. Let me show you.”

  “I can’t.” She scooted away from him and unsnapped Beast from the cross-ties, clipping his lead rope to his halter. “I’m working.”

  “What do you mean working? Working where?” Chris followed her.

  “Bradley Langdon offered me a job and I took it. I have my first show this weekend.”

  “You what? You’re a barrel racer, Ali. You always have been. You’re telling me that you’re going to quit rodeo to show cutting horses?”

  “I don’t really have a choice, Chris. I need a steady job in order for the underwriters to approve my loan for the property.” She glared at him as she looked back, over her shoulder. “Barrel racers don’t get to pay small entries and still make big money like ropers.”

  “How much do you need?”

  “It doesn’t even matter, Chris. I either have to show steady income or double my down payment. Something’s got to give or I’m going to lose out on the property.”

  “Are you sure this is what your parents want?”

  She turned Beast loose into his pasture. “It’s what I want. So, to get it, I need to give up rodeo right now and start showing cutting horses.”

  Chris reached for her shoulders and turned her toward him. She looked up at him with her dark eyes, despair swirling in their depths. “How much do you need to get the property?”

  “I have the job . . .”

  She tried to look away but he tipped her chin toward him. “Stop being so stubborn. How much?”

  “One hundred thousand dollars.”

  Chris inhaled deeply. It was a lot of money and would take most of what he’d saved toward the rodeo school but now that David couldn’t partner with him in it, perhaps he and Ali could work out an arrangement. Maybe she could allow him to use part of the property for a rodeo school or they could be partners. It would certainly show her he was in this relationship for the long term.

  “Done.”

  “I can’t take that much from you! Are you insane?”

  “A little.” The corner of his mouth curved upward in a cocky grin. “You realize this would make us partners, right?”

  She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. “Why would you want to do that?”

  He cupped her face between his palms and stared down at her anxious brown eyes. “Because I don’t think you’re doing this for your dad. I think you want to train horses as much as he does. David and I were supposed to be using the money to start a rodeo school. If you can give lessons for the Diamond Bar, you can give barrel lessons for our school, yours and mine.” He leaned forward, his lips barely brushing against hers. “Partners?”

  “This is a bad idea,” she pointed out. His heart dropped to his stomach as he waited for her answer.

  “Is that a yes?”

  She took a deep breath and held it for a moment. He could tell she was contemplating the consequences of a partnership with him. The only thing he was thinking about right now was how much he was looking forward to working with her every single day, to spending each night with her.

  “Only until I can win enough to pay you back.”

  “With interest,” he added. She gasped in outrage and he took full advantage of the moment, going in for a kiss meant to leave her bones liquid and her wanting more. Lightning seemed to shoot through him as they connected. This was exactly what he wanted and he couldn’t have planned it any better.

  Chapter Sixteen

  * * *

  ALI STARED ACROSS the table at Chris wondering if she’d just made the best decision or the biggest mistake ever. Unless she walked away this year with an NFR win, it would take her at least another two years to pay Chris back the money. In the meantime, they’d formed a business partnership in order to procure the loan from the bank. She had everything she wanted now, thanks in part to Chris, but she couldn’t help but wonder if the cost would prove too high. Was this worth the broken heart she was sure she would have at the end?

  She took a deep breath and held it as she signed her name to the bottom of the loan documents. Funny how it didn’t bother her each time she initialed but actually signing her name made it seem so much more real, cemented in stone.

  Tim looked over the documents one last time before glancing at Ali warily. “You’re both sure this is what you want to do? It’s a bit unusual.”

  Chris glanced her way, as if expecting her to back out. This was her last opportunity. She knew Chris expected this to be more than a business relationship but she was determined to make it clear—they were business partners only. Her stomach did a flip as she thought about the kiss he’d given her to seal the agreement when he offered her the money.

  “We’re sure.” Her voice sounded more
confident than she felt. Chris’s hand fell on her knee under the table and she jumped, his touch sending waves of desire through her limbs, pooling in her core.

  “Okay, then.” Tim tapped the stack of signed paperwork against the top of his desk. “I’ll turn this in today and we should hear back fairly quickly, especially with this down payment.”

  She had to admit that Chris was far more ready to start a business than she was. He’d already done his research and acquired all of the necessary documentation and permits. Then again, she hadn’t been thinking about starting a business, she’d thought only about how to make life better for her parents. She looked at him from under her lashes as he shook Tim’s hand. He wasn’t nearly as carefree and irresponsible as he led people to believe. When it came time to talk about business, he became serious and intimidating. Chris knew exactly what he wanted and wasn’t wasting any time getting it.

  She’d never seen this side of him, the confident businessman, and she had to admit, she was impressed by the maturity she saw. At the same time, this man was so unlike the Chris she knew, he frightened her a bit. A small, wary voice in the back of her mind wondered if she shouldn’t have contacted a lawyer to look at the proposal he’d offered before signing it. He swore it was the same agreement he and David had drawn up but modified with her name and she’d trusted him without looking too closely.

  Of course, she’d been just a little distracted as he bent over her shoulder, leaning close to her ear, his warm breath on her neck making every part of her throb with yearning. When his arm came around her to point out something in the documentation, she’d found herself wanting to press her body into his hands. She had to get a grip on her emotions or she was going to lose her mind working in close proximity with him on a daily basis, especially if she meant to keep this nothing more than a business arrangement—no touching. When she’d said as much to him, Chris agreed with a chuckle, although she didn’t find any humor in this predicament.

  Tim turned to Chris. “I’ll put in this offer on the property but I think they’ll be pretty happy with it. Have you seen the place yet?”