by Sofia Hunt
“Wow, I had no idea. You got it bad for the guy.”
“I’ll get over it. Celibacy isn’t such a bad thing. The way Ethel is hounding my every step, it’s a good thing I’m behaving. She thinks it’s her duty to protect my tarnished virtue.” Ethel worked for NARA, coordinating the rodeo queen’s calendar, selecting of a new queen, and ensuring the current queen maintained the high standards of ethics and morals set by the association. Between her and the cowboys next door, the circuit would be hell.
“I feel sorry for you with that old bat on your case all the time.”
“I knew the requirements when I tried for the position. I guess I’d better abide by them.”
“So what is the scoop on your supposed stalker? Your dad must be really concerned if he hired those two.”
Mitzi snapped back to the present. “It’s nothing. Haven’t heard from the guy in a while. It all goes with the territory. I mean, it started after I won the title.”
“You should still be careful.”
“I am as much as I need to be. I still think it’s all bullshit. Something my dad concocted to try to control me. Same as hiring Riley and Jonah. He wants me chaperoned so I don’t besmirch his already ruined good name.”
They both paused to watch Jonah step out of the camper and splash water on his face from a nearby bucket.
“Oh, my God. Look at his body.” Tanya fanned herself. The muscles in Jonah’s bare chest flexed as he stretched in the morning sun. His broad shoulders tapered to a narrow waist, a nice six-pack, and a sexy dusting of black hair on his chest. His unbuttoned Levis revealed black briefs and a generous bulge between his legs.
“Have you ever saddled that boy?” Mitzi asked her friend. Tanya had sampled most of what the professional rodeo circuit had to offer.
Tanya shook her head. “Not yet.” Her friend pressed her face against the window and patted her chest. “Be still, my heart.”
“He hangs out with Riley. That was enough for me to stay away.”
“I’ll put him on my to-do-later list. I have my sights set on Armondo Pacardo. I hear he’s unparalleled in the bucking chute. He’s also creative and daring in the sack, a quality most of these boys lack outside of the rodeo arena. I bet ninety percent of them only think there are two positions—missionary and doggy style. But not the Pack.”
“Armondo’s legendary. I hear he doesn’t hesitate to use his big gun.”
“I hope he stocked up on ammunition because I aim to find out.”
Mitzi grinned. “Go gettum, sister.”
Something caught Tanya’s attention beyond their half-naked neighbor. “Well, sister, duty calls. Armondo’s rig just pulled in. I’d better give him the royal welcome.” She winked at Mitzi, reapplied her cherry-red lipstick and fluffed her hair in the mirror.
Mitzi smiled and shook her head. Beware Tanya, the lioness on the prowl. God help any man she set in her sights. “Wait until he’s unloaded his horses and settled in. You don’t want him to think you’re hot for him.”
Tanya’s red lips turned down in a pout. “I suppose you’re right.”
Laughing, Mitzi went into the small bathroom and left her friend staring out the window.
Chapter 3
Jonah knocked on the door of the fanciest horse trailer he’d ever laid his eyes on. Tanya Sloan, a hot little blonde number, swept open the door. Jonah pasted a broad smile on his face and slipped into his good-ol’-Southern-boy charm. He ran a hand through his hair and called attention to his shaggy hair. Ladies loved stubble and unruly hair, and Jonah loved the ladies. He had it all going on, he figured.
“Howdy, ma’am.” Jonah swept off his hat and bowed gallantly.
“Hello there.” The tigress looked him up and down, as if sizing up his potential to warm her den. Jonah had a penchant for den-warming as long as it didn’t last the night.
“Hello there, darlin’.” He echoed her words back to her. His eyes wandered over her body, giving her a little of what she gave him.
She almost purred. “Jonah, to what do I owe this pleasure?”
“Looking for a cup of sugar, baby.”
“You came to the right place for sugar.” She jutted one sexy hip to the side and slid a red-tipped nail down his bicep.
“Now we’re talkin’, sweetheart.” Jonah recognized the woman was toying with him as much as he was toying with her. Not that he’d mind a little midnight ride with the lady, but the rodeo grapevine buzzed with rumors about her being hot for Armondo. Jonah didn’t steal his fillies from another man’s barn.
Gold sequins and dazzling rhinestones drew his attention away from Tanya. Mitzi walked out of the small bathroom dressed in her gold rodeo queen outfit. His jaw almost came unhinged, but he faked rubbing his chin to keep his jaw in place. Jonah let out a long, low whistle. She looked better every time he saw her. When she graced him with her professional rodeo queen smile, he made his decision.
He wanted Mitzi Garrison. They’d be a notch on each other’s belts neither would forget, yet there was the deal with Riley. Not that he understood it. Regardless, a little flirting couldn’t do any harm.
“Damn, but you do look good in rhinestones, darlin’.” In fact, she’d look even better in nothing but a rhinestone belly-button piercing and sequined nipples.
“Thank you.” She smiled at him, with minimum warmth but a little bit of interest. He smiled back, feeling pretty good about his chances. She didn’t look him up and down like her friend, despite his bare chest. Instead, she met his level gaze.
He leaned against the door frame, copping his best nonchalant pose. “By the way, I found this stuck in your door. It’s got your name on it.”
He held out an envelope and gauged her reaction. She reached for it then froze, as if she sensed something sinister about the contents.
“Are you expecting something bad?”
“No, nothing.” Mitzi snatched the envelope from his hand. Her fingers shook imperceptibly as she stared at the handwriting.
Tanya touched Mitzi’s arm. “Mitz? What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing really. Just a fan.”
“A fan?” Tanya frowned. “You’re afraid to open the envelope.”
“No, I’m not. Really.”
“Why is your hand shaking?”
The two women exchanged one of those looks meant to communicate not in front of him. Jonah played dumb and watched both women, carefully observing the situation. Protecting Mitzi was his job now. More than twenty-five thousand dollars rode on it. What more there was to his interest in Mitzi, he didn’t care to analyze.
Some bastard had the nerve to stick a note in her door in these crowded quarters and right under Jonah and Riley’s nose. That didn’t set well with him. Not just because it was his job, but for reasons he couldn’t explain, he felt oddly protective toward this woman.
Tanya shoved a cup at him. “Here’s your sugar.” She pushed on the door, but he stuck his foot in it and part of his big body.
“It’s your stalker, isn’t it?”
“No. Not at all. Just another fan letter.” Mitzi recovered her composure.
Damn, but the lady was hot even when she adopted an ice-cold outer shell. He’d love an opportunity to put a blowtorch to that ice.
He glanced at the envelope now crumpled in her hand. “Are you sure?”
“Positive. Now you need to go.”
“Honey, we can’t very well protect that fine ass of yours if you won’t be honest with us.”
“And I told you I don’t need protecting. I can take care of myself.” She pointed at the door.
Jonah knew when it was time to back off. Nodding, he stepped back, and the door slammed in his face. He listened but couldn’t catch any of their whispered words.
Women.
Riley might be right. This mission, or whatever the hell you’d call it, might well be the death of them.
* * * *
Riley chucked another forkful of manure in the wheelbarrow. His old horse, L
oco, watched him with interest and munched happily on his hay. Jonah leaned over the stall door.
“Hey, Ry, we have a problem.”
“Like I don’t know that? Anything to do with Mitzi Garrison is a problem.”
“Yeah, I know. But more than that. She got another note from her stalker.”
“What did it say?”
“You think she’d tell me? One of us needs to get close enough to her that she’ll trust us.”
“That piranha? No thanks.”
“That leaves me.”
“Sure does. I prefer to protect her from afar.” Riley slapped him on the back. “Good luck, buddy.”
“With my looks and charm, I won’t need luck, just stamina.” Jonah grinned, way too pleased with the prospect of protecting Mitzi, which stuck in Riley’s craw. He didn’t want anything to do with the woman, but it bugged the hell out of him that his buddy might be considering more than a professional relationship.
“Hey, this is a job, remember?”
“Yeah, so? I’m not one to turn down fringe benefits when they’re offered to me. Unless you have an issue with it.” Jonah studied him carefully.
“Hell no. Why the fuck should I care?” Riley snorted. “Besides, who says she’ll offer?”
“She will. You shoulda seen the way she was looking at me earlier. Like I was a prize stallion needing to be ridden.”
Riley ground his teeth together and resisted the urge to wipe that smug smile off Jonah’s face. A twinge of guilt reminded him he had no right to feel that way.
Yet he did.
* * * *
Mitzi smiled for the cameras, flanked by the home-town rodeo committee. She jabbed one old goat in the side with her elbow when his hand ventured too low on her ass. He rewarded her efforts with a grunt. Then she was grouped with the local rodeo royalty for more pictures. All the while, she stifled a yawn.
Ethel Hagert hovered nearby, writing on her ever-present clipboard and barking orders to the poor photographer. Mitzi sighed. The smile plastered on her face felt forced, but no one seemed to notice. The men were too busy looking at her boobs, and the girls were too in awe of her glittery outfit. Tossing back her auburn mane, Mitzi nodded to the group and said her good-byes as Ethel ushered her out of the building to their next stops—a tour of the rodeo grounds and the stock, an interview with the local newspaper, then a spot on a country music radio station. By late this afternoon she’d be dragging, but she’d pull it together in time to ride in the grand entry in the rodeo’s opening night festivities.
Several hours later Mitzi sat on Rowdy inside the arena during the calf-roping event. Her job was to push the calf toward the stock pen gate after each roper finished his run. Rowdy watched all the goings-on with interest, his ears pricked toward the chute. He loved these events and most likely hated being relegated to watching on the sidelines. Mitzi held the reins loosely in one hand, her other hand resting on her sequin-clad hip. She ignored the hoots and hollers from the wannabe cowboys crowding near the fence behind her. In your dreams, boys.
Her heart sped up when Riley appeared riding his veteran cow horse, Loco. The big bay backed up in the roping box and sat back on his haunches, ready to spring forward at the lightest touch of Riley’s heels. The man sat on a horse like it was a part of him. His long legs wrapped around the big gelding’s barrel. His big hands held the rope with the pigging string clenched between his teeth. He sat slightly forward, his face a hard study in concentration. A battered black cowboy hat was pulled low over his eyes.
Mitzi knew those eyes, how they burned with such a dark intensity when aroused and profound tenderness in the aftermath of lovemaking. She squirmed in her saddle just thinking about the cowboy. What a monumental waste of time to be so interested in a man who didn’t show the least bit of interest in her. Yet, she couldn’t drag her gaze away from his lean, muscled body. He might not be charming and carefree like Jonah, but his quiet intensity and guarded expression inspired a girl to break down his walls and discover the complex man underneath. There’d been a time a year ago when she’d aspired to do just that, even chipped a few holes in that wall.
Riley nodded to the guy sitting on the chute. A split second later the calf shot out, and Loco charged after him. Riley swung the rope over his head in powerful loops then released at the precise time. The rope caught the calf’s head and tightened, yanking it off its feet. Riley leapt out of the saddle and ran to the calf, flanking it on its side and tying up three legs. He sat back and raised his hands over his head to indicate he’d finished.
Chest heaving, Riley stood and walked back to his horse. He stepped easily into the saddle, a satisfied grin on his face. He’d gotten a good time. It’d be hard to beat. Mitzi found herself smiling, too, as she rode to the calf, waited for the men to untie it, and herded it out the open gate. Turning her horse, Riley rode by, and their eyes met.
“Good run.” She gave him a thumbs-up.
He tipped his hat at her, but the brief meeting of their eyes caused her pulse to race. She felt her face flush and pulled her hat lower to hide her reaction.
Jonah rode a few runs later, also riding Loco. More compact and bulky than Riley, his dark good looks stirred something inside her, too. Funny, she hadn’t felt interest in any man except Riley in a long time, yet Jonah attracted her as much as his buddy. She hoped it was a sign she was getting over Riley, instead of a sign she might be even deeper than she wanted to be. Lusting after both men, currently her bodyguards, wouldn’t be a wise thing, not when her interest in at least one of them extended beyond a casual sexual attraction. She didn’t like either of them, yet her body sure did.
Crazy, but true. She wanted them. Both of them. Separately, of course. Or together. Or hell, she didn’t know what she wanted. She just wanted their bodies, naked, hard-muscled male bodies, sweaty and turned on moving on top of her, inside her, even underneath her.
Mitzi fanned herself and reined in her imagination.
Those two meant nothing to her. She suffered from sexual deprivation, and they were convenient. She’d best keep them at arm’s length and maintain the pseudo-professional relationship they pretended to have. Sure, she loved to get under their skin, driving them crazy by eluding their watchful eyes and making it difficult for them to keep track of her. Heaven knew why she enjoyed harassing them, but she did.
“Hey, cowgirl, pay attention.”
Mitzi started, embarrassed to be caught daydreaming by the grizzled old cowboy sitting on the arena fence. She turned her horse around and waited for Jonah to bust out of the roping box.
Jonah’s run was only a tenth of a second behind Riley’s. If their times stood, they’d be on their way to winning first and second money, a good start to the circuit for them. Judging by the looks of their trailer, they could use every penny they earned.
Finished with her duties, Mitzi rode back to the barn and unsaddled Rowdy. She looked up when she heard footsteps near her stall. She glanced up, expecting Riley and Jonah.
“Honey, I could’ve helped you with your outfit design.” Her archrival Brooke Regan’s voice dripped venomous honey.
Mitzi bristled and bit back an equally nasty retort. Brooke and Mitzi got along like two Mustang mares vying for alpha mare status. Brooke had competed for the NARA Rodeo Queen title along with Mitzi and lost by a fraction of a point. She still held a grudge. In fact, she claimed Mitzi slept with the judges, which was so not true. Those paunchy, old men? Not a chance, not for any crown.
“Good to see you managed to stay in the saddle.” Brooke sneered.
“So, Brooke, how did you do in the barrel racing today? Seems like I saw a barrel or two hit the ground.” Mitzi shot Brooke a murderous glare over the top of Rowdy’s back.
Brooke pursed her lips as if she’d just swallowed a particularly sour lemon. “I’ll be in the money this weekend.” Suddenly, she turned her attention to a spot behind Mitzi. The acid look on Brooke’s face transformed instantly into a megawatt smile.
&
nbsp; Mitzi looked over her shoulder to see Riley and Jonah walking toward them, still in their chaps, spurs jangling. Something inside turned soft and gooey, which irritated Mitzi. Her response to these two guys wasn’t acceptable. They were thorns in her side thrust upon her by an overprotective, controlling father, not love interests, or even sexual interests.
“Howdy, ladies.” Jonah tipped his hat and leaned nonchalantly against the stall. He caught Mitzi’s eye and winked. Her heart thudded, and she glared at him, pissed at her ridiculous reaction.
“Oh, Jonah,” Brooke gushed. “I’ve been looking all over for you. I’m looking at a new horse. I’d like your opinion.” The bitch’s gaze flicked to Riley, but his brooding expression backed her off. Riley had that dark, dangerous thing going on, just the bad-boy type who attracted women like flies even when he didn’t try.
“Well, now, darlin’, I’ll look you up this weekend, and we can discuss it.” Jonah turned away from Brooke.
Obviously dismissed, Brooke shot one last dagger at Mitzi and stomped off.
“Did she and Brent Black split the sheets?” Jonah directed the question at Mitzi.
Mitzi shrugged. “Heck if I know. Not that it’d matter to her one way or another. She’s after anything in chaps.”
Riley raised one dark brow but didn’t comment.
“Don’t you two have horses to take care of or stalls to muck or something?”
“What’s the matter, honey? Are we making you nervous?” Jonah’s voice dropped a notch and sent chills tripping along her spine.
“No, not at all. I just don’t need your constant attention. Get a life.”
Riley straightened and scratched the back of his neck. “You are our life for the next few months. Like it or not.”
* * * *
The Enforcer stood back in the shadows and watched as Mitzi prepared herself for bed. He could almost make out the outline of her figure through the curtains on her windows. He moved closer, careful to stay away from the pool of light near the trailers. The light flicked off, removing his ability to see anything.