The Bull Rider's Son

by Cathy McDavid

  He stopped thinking about why his brother let her go and began wondering why he shouldn’t ask Cassidy out himself. No reason not to. She was exactly the kind of woman he fancied. More importantly, she had no lingering attachments to his brother—who’d married someone else shortly after he and Cassidy split. She also had a son close in age to Bria and would probably be understanding of his single-dad responsibilities.

  “It’s good to see you again,” he said and strode forward to greet her with a hug.

  Suddenly, Shane’s new job had an altogether different perk. One which quite appealed to him.

  * * *

  THE INITIAL ALARM Cassidy experienced upon seeing Shane tripled when he swept her up in an enthusiastic embrace. It was bad enough her father had hired him. Worse that her mother insisted she stock the trailer with fresh linens. Disastrous that he’d caught her here. With him blocking the narrow passageway to the door, escape was impossible. She had no choice but to surrender to his powerful hold on her.

  “Good to see you, too,” she managed to reply.

  He didn’t immediately release her. Cassidy worried he’d sense the tension coursing through her and attempted to extract herself. He let her go long enough to take in the length of her from head to toe before hauling her against him a second time.

  “You look great.”

  “Thanks,” she mumbled, refusing to return the compliment by admitting how incredible he looked. And smelled.

  Good heavens, the man had been out with the bulls for at least an hour by her estimation. He should reek to high heaven. Instead, with her face firmly planted in the crook of his shoulder, she inhaled the spicy and appealing scent of whatever aftershave he’d used this morning.

  With their broad shoulders, lean, muscular builds and ruggedly chiseled profiles, both Westcott brothers were head-turning handsome. Back when the three of them were competing on the rodeo circuit, Cassidy had considered Hoyt to be the more attractive of the pair. No longer. Shane not only held his own in the looks department, he’d surpassed his older brother.

  Finally, thank goodness, his grip slackened and he freed her. “How have you been, girl?”

  “Umm...okay.”

  Girl? To her horror and chagrin, her heart gave a small flutter at the endearment he’d used during their short-lived romance. She dismissed it. Being attracted to Shane was impossible. For too many reasons to list.

  “Sorry I interrupted you.” She attempted to pass him. “Let me get out of your way. I’m sure you want to unpack.”

  “Stay a while.” He didn’t budge. “We can catch up.”

  “I promised Liberty I’d help with her riding class this afternoon.” Surely her sister would forgive this one small fib, considering the circumstances.

  It was then Cassidy remembered her sister didn’t know the circumstances. No one did for certain except their mother, and Cassidy had sworn her to secrecy.

  “That’s not for another hour.” Shane smiled sheepishly and—dang it all—appealingly. “Your dad mentioned the schedule earlier.”

  Her father. Of course, Cassidy thought with a groan. He alone was responsible for hiring Shane and throwing her life into utter turmoil.

  “We have a new student signing up.”

  “Come on.” Shane gestured to the dining table. “It’s been years since we had a real talk.”

  It was true. Cassidy had avoided him and Hoyt like the plague, determined not to let either of them near her son, Benjie. It hadn’t been easy. Shane had competed regularly until recently and often visited the Easy Money.

  “Five minutes.” Shane removed his cowboy hat and tossed it onto the table.

  She hesitated. The one thing more dangerous than being alone with Shane was being alone with his brother. To refuse, however, might raise Shane’s suspicions. She couldn’t chance it.

  “Okay.” She slid slowly onto the bench seat, the faded upholstery on the cushions pulling at her jeans, and repeated “Five minutes” for good measure.

  He plunked down across from her, a pleased grin on his face.

  Cassidy swallowed. The small dining table didn’t provide nearly enough distance. Shane’s appeal was infinitely more potent up close. His sandy brown hair, worn longer now than when he was competing, didn’t quite cover the jagged scar starting beneath his ear and disappearing inside his shirt collar—a souvenir courtesy of his last ride on Wasabi. And those green eyes, intense one second and twinkling with mirth the next, were hard to resist.

  Currently, they searched her face. Cassidy tried not to show any signs of the distress weakening her knees and quickening her breath.

  “What’s Hoyt up to these days?” She strove to sound mildly interested, which wasn’t the case.

  “Same as always. Heading to a rodeo in Austin this weekend.”

  “Still married?”

  At the spark of curiosity in Shane’s eyes, she wished she’d posed the question differently. Now he’d think she cared about Hoyt’s marital state. Well, she did. But not for that reason.

  “He and Cheryl are doing fine. Bought a house in Jackson Hole last year.”

  Jackson Hole. In Wyoming. Good, Cassidy thought. Plenty far from Reckless, Arizona.

  “Any kids yet?” She cursed herself for needing to know.

  “Nope.” Shane shrugged. “Still trying. Hoyt wants a big family. Or so he says.”

  A jolt shot through her. She attempted to hide it with a show of nonchalance. “Tell me about your daughter.”

  Shane instantly brightened. “Bria’s four. Not sure yet if she wants to be a princess or a soccer player when she grows up.”

  “What? No cowgirl?”

  “I’m hoping to change her mind.”

  Cassidy’s son, Benjie, wanted to be a champion bull rider. Like his grandfather before him and, unbeknownst to all but Cassidy and her mother, like his father and Uncle Shane.

  She quickly shoved her hands beneath the table before Shane spotted them shaking. How was she ever going to keep him from finding out about Benjie and telling Hoyt? She vowed to find a way.

  There were those who’d disagree, claiming she should have told Hoyt from the beginning about Benjie. That he had a right to know. Others, admittedly not many, who would side with her. It wasn’t just Hoyt’s nomadic lifestyle and partying ways, which had been one of the reasons for their breakup. Cassidy couldn’t take the chance of him fighting for, and probably winning, joint custody of Benjie.

  She’d seen firsthand how parents living in separate towns divided a family. When her brother, Ryder, had turned fourteen, he’d left to live with their father. Up until last fall, Ryder had rarely seen or spoken to Cassidy, Liberty and their mother. Their father’s return had reunited the Becketts, but they were far from being a family. Not in the truest sense. Too much hurt and betrayal, and too many lies littered their past.

  No way, no how, was she putting her son through the same broken childhood she’d endured. She would not suffer the same heartbreak that had devastated her mother when they’d lost Ryder. And it would happen. Of that, Cassidy was certain.

  “Mom mentioned Bria will be visiting soon.” Cassidy forced a smile.

  Shane, on the other hand, beamed. “Every other weekend to start.”

  To start? Was he planning on obtaining full custody of his daughter? Cassidy’s anxiety increased. If Hoyt followed his brother’s example...

  She pushed the unpleasant thought away. “She’s close by, then?”

  “Mesa.”

  “Ah.” A forty-five-minute drive.

  “That’s why I accepted this job.” A glint lit his eyes as his gaze focused on her. “Now I have even more incentive.”

  Oh, dear. Cassidy steeled herself, determined to resist him. “Bria’s mom is okay with you taking her more often?”

&nb
sp; “Judy’s been great. She wants Bria and me to have a relationship.”

  “But she lied to you about having a child.”

  The uncanny similarities between Benjie and Bria weren’t lost on Cassidy.

  “I understand her reasons,” Shane said. “I wasn’t what you’d call good father material. Now that I’ve quit my wild ways and found a job which keeps me in one place, Judy’s willing to work with me.”

  His brother, too, had quit his wild ways to become a rodeo announcer, but Cassidy didn’t feel inclined to work with him. Not yet, and maybe not ever.

  “It can’t be easy for you, seeing Wasabi every day.”

  “He’s just another bull under my care.”

  Her gaze was automatically drawn to his scar. She’d seen the pictures posted on their mutual friends’ Facebook pages. The gash, requiring forty-four stitches, traveled from beneath his right ear, down his neck to his chest. Miraculously, Wasabi’s hoof had just missed an artery. Otherwise, Shane might have bled out.

  “I’m glad you’re all right.” Her voice unwittingly softened.

  Shane responded with a heart-melting smile. No surprise he’d inspired a legion of female fans during his years on the circuit. Was that the reason for Bria’s mother’s secrecy? It wouldn’t surprise Cassidy.

  “Not my day to die,” Shane said matter-of-factly.

  “All the same, it was a terrible fall. How can you bear to look at Wasabi?” Cassidy still shuddered when she passed the well house, even though the accident involving her and her father happened twenty-five years ago. Like Shane, she’d walked away when things might have gone horribly different.

  He shrugged. “He was just doing his job. Like any bull. I didn’t take it personally.”

  More charm. He could certainly lay it on thick. And Cassidy was far more susceptible than she liked.

  She abruptly stood. “I need to go.”

  Reaching for his cowboy hat, he also stood and waited for her to leave first. “Drop by anytime.” The invitation was innocent. Not so his tone, which hinted at something else altogether.

  When she spoke, her tone was all business. “If you need something, let me know.”

  “How about having dinner with me?”

  She blinked. He didn’t just ask her on a date, did he? “I beg your pardon?”

  “Your dad mentioned a couple good restaurants in town. I could use someone to show me around. Help me get the lay of the land. Seeing as we’ll be working together—”

  She shook her head. “Benjie, my son, has homework tonight.”

  “You could bring him along.”

  “Thanks, but no. He has enough trouble with school as it is. I’d never get him to finish his homework if we went to dinner first.”

  “Maybe another night this week.”

  Did the man never give up? “We’ll see,” she said, planning to stall him indefinitely.

  Outside the trailer she allowed herself two full seconds to gather her wits before heading to the arena in search of her sister. Should Shane come searching for her, he’d find Cassidy doing exactly what she said, helping with the riding lesson.

  Fortunately, Liberty was there, talking to a student’s mother. She finished just as Cassidy approached and met her halfway.

  “What’s wrong?” Liberty asked.

  Cassidy shook her head. “Nothing.”

  “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  Not a ghost. The brother of one, perhaps. “I was talking to our new bull manager.”

  “Shane? Do tell.”

  Cassidy planted her hands on her hips. “What does that mean?”

  “He’s a nice-looking guy.”

  “We work at a rodeo arena. There are a lot of nice-looking guys here.”

  “But none of them have ever left you flustered. Didn’t you two date once?”

  Cassidy ignored the question. “I’m not flustered. I’m annoyed. I have a lot to do and can’t afford the time it takes to babysit a new employee.”

  “Right.” Liberty laughed gaily before turning on her heel and leaving Cassidy to stew alone.

  She hated it when her baby sister was right.

  Chapter Two

  Seven-point-three seconds into his ride, the young cowboy came flying off the bull’s back. He dropped to his knees as the buzzer sounded, then pitched forward onto his face. Recovering, he pushed to his feet, grabbed his fallen hat and dusted off his jeans, a fierce scowl on his face.

  Cassidy couldn’t be sure if he was mad at himself for failing to reach the full eight seconds required to qualify or if he was in pain. Perhaps a little of both. He hobbled slightly on his walk of shame from the arena. Behind him, a trio of wranglers chased the bull to the far end and through a gate. A fourth wrangler swung the gate shut on the great beast’s heels.

  Score: bull one, cowboy zero.

  “Better luck next time,” a buddy hailed from the fence where he’d been watching.

  A second pal slapped the cowboy on the back while a third offered him a bottled water and hearty condolences.

  Moving as a group, the two dozen participants from the Tuesday night jackpot slowly made their way to the open area where either their families, friends or pickup trucks waited.

  Cassidy switched off her handheld radio and tucked her clipboard beneath her arm. She, too, was almost done for the evening.

  Bull-riding jackpots, along with bucking horse, calf roping and steer-wrestling competitions, were popular events at the Easy Money. Especially in the weeks preceding a rodeo. If a participant performed well, he could earn enough winnings to cover his entry fees and perhaps a little extra. If not, well, at least he got in some good practice.

  Tonight, Shane had worked closely with Cassidy’s father, learning the ins and outs. He also studied each bull, noting the personalities and traits of those new to him and re-familiarizing himself with those he’d previously ridden.

  Cassidy knew this for a fact because she’d taken her eyes off him only long enough to perform her tasks of calling out the participants’ names and communicating with her sister in the announcer’s booth. Even now she had to look away for fear of Shane catching her staring at him with doe eyes. Again. He had already, twice.

  Damn, damn, damn. Why did her father have to hire Shane Westcott of all people? She should have said something when she’d had the chance. But, then, she would have had to tell her father why, and that was out of the question.

  Okay, Shane was competent at his new job. Cassidy noticed he took time to converse with each cowboy, offering tips and pointers and, more importantly, listening to the cowboy talk about his ride.

  Shane entered every piece of information into a small spiral notebook he constantly removed and replaced in his shirt’s front pocket. No fancy-schmancy handheld electronic device for him.

  Somehow, Cassidy thought that fitting. Shane didn’t strike her as a high-tech kind of guy. No wonder he and her father got along like twins separated at birth.

  They also dressed alike, though Shane’s shirt fit his broad shoulders better and his jeans hugged his narrow hips with drool-worthy closeness.

  Stop looking at him!

  Slamming her mouth shut, Cassidy wheeled around, intending to return the handheld radio to the registration booth and do a final total on tonight’s runs. Instead, she came face-to-face with her mother.

  “Keep staring at him like that and you’re going to draw attention to yourself.”

  “I’m not staring,” Cassidy insisted.

  “Sure. And I’m a natural blonde.”

  “You are a natural blonde.”

  “Was. These days, my color is courtesy of Pizzazz Hair Salon.” Her mother linked an arm through Cassidy’s and led her away from the chutes. “Come on. Let’s get out of
here before he’s any the wiser.”

  “It’s not what you think.”

  “You did date once.”

  “I’m just curious.”

  “About him or Hoyt?”

  “Not so loud,” Cassidy admonished and glanced nervously about. No one appeared to have heard, but she couldn’t be too careful. “Hoyt, of course,” she continued in a half whisper. “I asked Shane about him the other day.”

  “And?”

  “He’s still married. Still childless. The good thing is, he and his wife bought a house in Jackson Hole.”

  The two of them walked to the registration booth. There Cassidy removed the wristband key ring she wore and unlocked the door. Breathing a sigh of relief, she entered the one-room modified office. Finally, they were out of earshot.

  “Just because he has no children,” her mother said, “doesn’t automatically mean he’d seek custody of Benjie.”

  “You can’t be serious.” Cassidy entered numbers on a ten-key calculator, tallying the evening’s scores for her father. And probably, Shane as well. She’d have to explain their system to him.

  Drat. Yet another reason for them to work together. She paused and leaned against the counter. “To quote Shane, ‘Hoyt wants a big family.’”

  “Me not telling your dad about Liberty is no reason for you to keep Hoyt in the dark regarding Benjie.”

  Cassidy gawked at her mother. “I thought you were on my side.”

  “I am on your side and will support any decision you make.”

  “Except now that Dad’s back, and he and Liberty are all cozy and comfy, you’re having second thoughts.”

  “I’ve always had regrets. It wasn’t an easy decision to make, lying all these years.”

  The story was well known throughout Reckless and by plenty of others in the rodeo world. Sunny Beckett sent her husband and business partner packing when his acute alcoholism nearly ruined them, personally and financially. What she didn’t tell him, or anyone else, was that she had been pregnant with their third child. Rather, she lied about the father’s identity, claiming he was some cowboy passing through.