The Buckle Bunnies Series Boxed Set (Volume 1)

by Tyler, Paige

  “Okay.”

  She headed for the door, but found herself stopping again—this time at the foot of the bed. She scooped up the leather harness she’d been wearing for the last two hours or so and draped it over her shoulder.

  “Okay, now I'm ready.” She blew them a kiss. “Back in a flash.”

  “Daisy, what are you going to say if someone asks you what that harness is for?” Beau called out.

  She leaned back in the door and gave both men a grin. “I'll tell them this is what a real cowgirl wears—when they're getting ridden by two hot cowboys. All the fashionable buckle bunnies will want one by next season.”

  The men were still laughing as the door closed behind her. Daisy ran for the elevator. She couldn't get that toothbrush fast enough.

  Team Roping

  Chapter One

  Dallas O’Shea shouldn’t have been smiling, especially since she was still pissed about having to cover for one of her employees. But the bar was going to take in a good haul tonight, and that always made her happy. Then again, the reason she was going to make so much money was the same reason Sara was MIA—the rodeo was in town. Her best bartender was currently laid up in bed with a severe case of I'm-getting-so-much-rodeo-dick-that-I-can't-walk-itis. She and Sara had talked about it before, but unfortunately, it was a weakness the other woman couldn't seem to overcome.

  Her gaze swept the crowded room as she mixed another rum and coke. She couldn't really blame her nymphomaniac bartender. There were a lot of hot cowboys roaming around Mesquite tonight—and they were all looking to get laid. There was something about the rodeo that got men—and women, for that matter—horny as hell.

  She supposed it wasn’t hard to understand why the men got so turned on. She'd ridden horses enough to know the kind of adrenaline rush that came with riding the big beasts. Throw in the big, dangerous bulls, the thrill of competition and the roar of the crowd, and she could definitely see why every rodeo rider came walking into her bar with a tent pole in their 501s.

  No doubt, the women knew that. Her place was packed with drooling females—known around here as buckle bunnies—willing to just about drive over their own mothers to get their hands on a hunky cowboy.

  She’d been one of those women a time or two herself. She probably would have been one of them tonight—if she wasn't covering for Sara. Unfortunately, the drinks wouldn't pour themselves.

  But while she might grumble about having to mix drinks and take orders for Buffalo wings, mini-sliders and nachos alongside her other regular bartender Caleb, she loved this part of the job. It gave her a chance to talk to people from all over the country. If she had to spend all her time in her office, she’d go bonkers.

  Dallas bent to grab a couple beers from the fridge when she felt eyes on her. She turned to find two rodeo riders sitting at the far end of the bar giving her the full-on eye exam. If she didn't know better, she’d think she forgot to put on her jeans before coming to work because they were definitely attracted to something down there. Of course, they could simply be waiting for her to look their way so they could get her attention. But if that were the case, they'd be waving their arms in the air or whistling right now, not eyeing her ass like it was the last rib on the buffet.

  She set the bottles of beer on the bar in front of the couple who’d ordered them, then wandered over to the men, throwing a little extra wiggle in her walk on the way. She enjoyed a man's attention as much as the next woman. And if she had two hotties eyeing her? Well, that was twice as good in her opinion.

  She gave them a smile. “What can I get for you fellas?”

  They blatantly scanned her up and down in a way that was about as far from subtle as you could get before one of them flashed her a devastating smile.

  “Well, I guess that depends on what's on the menu.”

  “Smooth, Mack.” The other man leaned forward with an equally gorgeous smile. “I'll take anything, ma’am, as long as it comes with a few minutes of your company.”

  Mack snorted. “That’s because you'd only last a few minutes, Ked.”

  Dallas couldn't help laughing. “Sorry, boys, but I'm not on the menu.”

  Ked looked her up and down again, his hazel-green eyes lingering on her long, jean-clad legs and rounded breasts before meeting her gaze. “Well, now that's too bad because you definitely look good enough to eat.”

  Mack glared at his friend—at least she assumed the two men were friends—disgust in his chocolate brown eyes. “I can't believe you just used that lame-ass line. Why don't you save yourself any more embarrassment and just give up now?”

  Dallas shook her head. Ah, so that’s what was going on. She'd assumed this was the usual case of two randy cowboys coming on to their bartender. Hell, a woman who poured alcohol for a living? That was every cowboy's dream. She might even have taken one of them up on the offer—what woman didn't like a pair of cowboy boots under her bed now and then? But besides the fact that she'd be working all night, she had no desire to be a prize in what was obviously some testosterone-fueled pick-up competition.

  “You’re both wasting your time. I'm busy all night,” she said, bringing their attention back to her. “But if you want a drink, I'm your gal. What'll you have?”

  The men were silent for a moment before answering.

  “Whiskey,” Mack said. “Neat.”

  “Make that two,” Ked added.

  “I’ll be right back with them.”

  Dallas turned and walked over to where the bottles of whiskey sat on a shelf along the back wall. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the two men throwing her interested looks in between chatting with each other. Taking down one of the bottles, she grabbed a pair of glasses and made her way back to them.

  “I’m Mack Carter, by the way. This is Ked Everett.”

  “Dallas O’Shea.”

  “O’Shea. Like the name on the sign out front,” Mack said. “This your place?”

  “It is.” She glanced at them as she poured their drinks. “You in town with the rodeo?”

  “Yeah.” Ked gave her an apologetic look. “About before. Sorry if you took what we said the wrong way.”

  She lifted a brow. “You mean you two weren’t trying to get me into bed?”

  “Well, yeah. That’s exactly what we were trying to do,” Ked said without a trace of shame. “But we know you're busy and didn't mean to put a burr under your saddle.”

  “Thanks—I think.” Dallas pushed their glasses toward them. “Don't get me wrong, fellas, I appreciate the attention, and any other night there'd be good odds one of you would end up naked in my bed. Unfortunately, for me and whichever one of you that might have turned out to be, you picked the wrong night to come wooing. I'll be right here behind this bar until closing, then I have to clean up the place. I wouldn't want to give you two the wrong idea and see you get angry when you realize you wasted your time.”

  She felt horrible to be so blunt with them, especially since she was serious—any other night she would have been coming onto them, their little competition be damned. They both had that confident way about them that told her they’d be a great roll in the hay. Damn, she was going to filet and deep fry Sara when she came in tomorrow. First, for the extra work, and then for making her lose out with one of these two.

  Mack sipped his whiskey. “Why don't you let us decide if we're wasting our time or not? We're more than happy to have a few drinks and chat with you whenever you get the time.”

  Dallas shrugged. “Okay, but consider yourselves warned.”

  True to their word, Mack and Ked hung around, talking to her whenever she went down to that end of the bar. She had to admit, they were charming as hell. Unlike most men she'd run into, they seemed more than willing to carry on a conversation about something other than themselves—that was definitely a plus in her book. They asked her about the bar, how long she'd owned it, whether she always mixed drinks and took food orders.

  “I’m here most every night, but you're right,
I don't usually work behind the bar this much,” she told them. “I'm stuck covering for my best bartender.”

  “She sick?” Mack said.

  Dallas shook her head. “Sara feels fine, trust me.” She almost laughed at their looks of confusion. “My bartender seems to come down sick every time there's a rodeo in town. And when she comes back to work tomorrow? Let's just say she'll be walking a little bowlegged.”

  Both men chuckled at that.

  “So she's a buckle bunny,” Mack said.

  Dallas laughed. “You could say that, yeah.”

  “I'm surprised you haven't fired her,” Ked added. “If she takes off and leaves you in a lurch that much, I mean.”

  A heavyset guy at the other end of the bar whistled for a refill on his beer. Dallas gave him a wave, letting him know she'd seen him.

  “I wouldn't do that. Like I said, she's my best bartender. And besides, I can't really blame her for wanting to get a cowboy between her thighs. Everyone knows there's no better ride than a rodeo ride.” She smiled. “I'm jealous, not angry.”

  That probably wasn’t the best thing to say if she wanted to convince Mack and Ked they were wasting their time hanging around. Since she had other customers to keep happy, she didn’t wait to see what the two men made of her answer.

  After working through half a dozen thirsty cowboys and cowgirls crowding around the bar—not to mention the waitresses shouting drink orders to her from the rail—she discovered that Mack and Ked were still where she’d left them, waiting patiently and slowly nursing their drinks. When they grinned at her, she couldn't help but smile back. It wasn't every day a woman had two hot guys vying for her attention.

  She headed their way—just to see if they needed refills on their whiskey, of course—only to stop in her tracks as two women dressed to show off their assets sidled up to Mack and Ked. From the way they were drooling over the men it was obvious they were professional buckle bunnies.

  Dallas frowned. She’d done her best to dissuade Mack and Ked, and now it looked like they were going to focus their attention on someone other than her. She should have been glad. Then why was she feeling the irritating sting of jealousy?

  Oh get over it, she told herself as she turned to pour a glass of wine for a woman who was clearly in the wrong part of town and seemed pretty happy about it. She immediately followed that order up with a flurry of snack requests from a group of hungry bull riders. Four bowls of chili, loaded potato skins and an order of Buffalo wings. Damn, those guys could sock away the food.

  When she finally had a second to catch her breath, she glanced over at where Mack and Ked had been sitting, expecting them to be gone, but they were still there. The two women were nowhere in sight.

  She’d be damned. These boys were really serious.

  She probably shouldn't have, but her ego demanded she go over and get the details of what had transpired. She grabbed the bottle of whiskey on the way.

  “What happened, fellas?” She splashed some whiskey into each of their glasses. “The way those two women were hanging all over you, I thought for sure they were going to drag you off.”

  Ked shook his head. “They weren’t exactly our type.”

  Dallas set the bottle on the bar and leaned closer. Her long, dark hair fell over her shoulder to brush the polished wood. “What exactly is your type then. Because those two certainly seemed cute enough.”

  “Cute,” Mack agreed. “But they're not you.”

  Someone halfway down the bar whistled for her attention, but she ignored them. Caleb would take care of them. “And what makes me so special?”

  “Besides the fact that you’re the most beautiful woman either of us has ever seen?” Mack’s dark eyes smoldered as they bore into hers. “You're different—I can tell just by looking at you. The way you walk, the way you talk, the way you smile. Everything about you screams that you're a woman who knows how to make love to a man just the way he likes it.”

  Her pulse did a little hitch-kick. “And how would that be?”

  She shouldn't be leading them on like this—especially if she wasn't going to follow through with it—but their comments had her seriously curious.

  “We both want a woman who gives as good as she gets,” Ked answered for both of them. “A woman who isn't afraid to tell a man what she needs to get off, and isn't ashamed of it. We're guessing you're exactly that kind of woman. Are we right?”

  Dallas hesitated, looking from one man to the other. The lust in their eyes was obvious and intense.

  Several more customers were calling for her attention now. She couldn't put them off much longer. This place was her livelihood.

  “Are we right?” Ked asked again.

  She should say no, tell them that they had her all wrong. If she did, they’d almost certainly head off looking for another score. But she couldn't do that. It wasn't in her nature.

  “Truthfully?” she asked.

  They both nodded.

  “Then yes, I'm exactly the kind of woman you think I am. I'd rock your world—if I ever slept with you.”

  Dallas turned and walked away, both to take care of her demanding customers and to keep Mack and Ked from seeing the huge grin on her face. The sexual taunt had been silly, but it was thrilling to think how hard it was probably making both of them right then.

  Unfortunately, work kept her busy for the next two hours so she couldn’t go back over and check, but each time she glanced at her favorite corner of the bar, Mack and Ked were still there. While they were laughing and joking with the other people sitting nearby, they were mostly focused on her. She reached for the bottle of whiskey so she could pour them another refill, but put it back when she realized they hadn’t even touched the drinks she’d gotten them earlier. In her experience, that was practically unheard of for a rodeo cowboy—unless they were thinking about getting some.

  She gave them a smile as she walked over. “Aren't you two getting bored sitting around here watching me work?”

  Mack shook his head. “Not at all. Watching a pretty woman is never boring. Especially since I'm spending my time imagining what you're going to look like naked later.”

  Beside him, Ked snorted. “Keep imagining because you're never going to see her naked. Unless she lets me take a picture of her to give to you, that is.”

  Dallas couldn't help but laugh at the sophomoric barbs being thrown back and forth between the two men. They seemed to think the only way either one of them would win her was if they beat the other one.

  “From the way you've been working me all night, I'd have pegged you as a calf roping team, but I don't think I've ever seen two partners ever rip each other so hard.”

  “Team roping?” Ked gave her a horrified look. “Bite your tongue, woman. We're steer ropers.”

  Dallas had heard there was a rivalry between team ropers and steer ropers, but never understood it. They both clearly took skill.

  “Steer roping?” she teased. “Isn't that for guys who just can't work well together?”

  Mack let out a short laugh. “You got it all wrong. Team roping is for men who don’t have the balls to rope up a cow by themselves.”

  “Got that right,” Ked agreed.

  “I don't know,” Dallas mused. “I think the idea of two men working together to tie up a woman is pretty damn manly. Not to mention sexy as hell.”

  She slipped off while their jaws were still bouncing on the bar, not bothering to hide her grin. Let them make of that what they would.

  As she worked, she made sure to keep an eye on her cowboys this time. Since it looked like they were going to hang around until closing, she supposed she couldn't do any less. She even made sure to throw them a shot or two of her bending over to get brews out of the fridge—just to keep them encouraged.

  “How long you boys staying in town?” Dallas asked in between pouring drinks.

  It was the same question she’d asked a lot of her customers that night. So what if she had an ulterior motive in this cas
e?

  “Two days.” Ked told her. “We’re staying through the weekend so we can do some sponsor work on Monday.”

  “Sounds like fun. What hotel are you two staying in?”

  Okay, so she hadn’t asked anyone else that question. But she was simply making small talk.

  Mack took a handful of pretzels from the bowl on the bar. “I’m staying at the Westin, right around the corner. Ked is sleeping in the cab of his truck.”

  Ked smirked. “Funny.” He looked at Dallas. “I'm at the Westin, too, but I’m sure your place is a lot roomier than a tiny hotel room. Do you live nearby?”

  “About fifteen minutes,” she said. “If you take your time.”

  His mouth curved into a sinfully delicious smile. “Oh, I always take my time.”

  Mack snorted and mumbled something under his breath about Ked always taking his time roping a steer as well.

  Dallas laughed. These two couldn’t resist ribbing each other, could they? She would have asked which of them won their little steer roping competition earlier that night, but her other bartender hollered at her from the other end of the bar. She sighed. Damn. And this conversation was just getting good.

  “Work calls,” she told Mack and Ked. “See you later.”

  Caleb wanted to know how to make a cosmic screwdriver. It wasn’t something her regulars usually ordered so she couldn’t blame him too much for not knowing how to mix it. Luckily, she did. As she set the drink in front of the woman who’d ordered it, Dallas glanced at the clock mounted above the neon beer sign in back of the bar. It was after one A.M. Less than an hour to closing time.

  Her gaze went to Mack and Ked. They were both lounging back on their bar stools, looking more handsome than two men had a right to be. Since they’d hung around this long, they obviously weren’t going anywhere. For the first time, she started thinking she might really end up with company for the evening.

  But which one would she take home with her? Whoever it was, they were definitely going to her place. She wasn't a hotel kind of girl.