Learning
the Ropes
Rodeo #3
By: T.J. Kline
Releasing September 30th
Avon Impulse
Rule #1 - Don’t lose focus...
Barrel racer Alicia
Kanani has had a long road to the top - and she’s not quite there yet. Finances
have always been tight, and in the glitz and glam world of professional rodeo,
that means that second best is probably the best she can hope for. With the
National Finals coming up, she’s certainly not looking for a pair of cowboys to
distract her.
Rule #2 - Don’t gamble what you can’t live
without…
Playboy Chris
Thomas is sure Alicia’s the perfect woman for his level-headed team roping
partner, David Greenly. It seems like a match, until Chris realizes he wants
Alicia for himself. The stakes have been raised; David and Chris are supposed
to be a team, and this time, they’re on opposite sides.
Can Alicia rope
this playboy’s heart, or will they find themselves too tangled up to let true
love in?
“Remember that
swimming hole off the highway, near Jackson Ranch Road?”
She laughed and
nodded. “I haven't been there in years. We used to go every weekend.”
“We need to go
now.”
We? Was he
asking her out? Or was this just a friendly outing, reliving old memories?
“You wouldn't be
trying to get me into a bathing suit just to see my tattoo, would you?”
Chris gave her a
mischievous grin that made her stomach do a backflip. “So it's something a suit
won't cover?”
She regretted
saying anything and didn’t answer his question. “I could use a break and with
Dad leaving this week for the show, there won't be much to do that the grooms
can’t handle,” she said, changing the subject.
“We can make a day
of it. Take lunch and just hang out, like old times. I have to help Dad
tomorrow. What about Tuesday?”
She nodded and
heard the sound of a hoof hitting metal. “Do you think that's yours or mine
getting impatient?” She glanced at the trailers and saw Beast with his head
hanging out the window. “Looks like it's mine. I’d better get going.” She
reached into her purse to grab her wallet.
“I've got it.”
He slipped his
credit card to the waitress, signing for the meal and rising to walk out with
her. His hand slid to her lower back and her skin tingled at his touch,
lightning shooting from his fingers directly into her belly and down her limbs.
She knew better than to make more of his simple gesture than it was but
couldn't help the pace of her heart. As she approached the trailer, she stepped
onto the side rail to close the windows.
“Get your head in
there, Beast. We're going home.”
Chris moved behind
her, with a hand on either side of her, and closed the window. She spun and
found herself eye to eye with him, her breath catching in her throat as he
stared at her lips.
“Um, thanks,” she
whispered, surprised she could get any sound out at all. She laid her hands on
his shoulders, prepared to step down when he moved.
Instead of moving
backward, Chris's hands found her waist and he lifted her from the side of the
trailer and set her on the ground. She couldn't get her bearings with his hands
on her ribcage and her fingers slid down the muscles of his biceps to grip his
forearms. His eyes were dark with longing and she realized what he intended only
moments before his mouth met hers in a scorching kiss.
They moved backward
until she was pressed against the side of her truck, with every inch of him
heating her flesh, his hands buried in her hair. His lips tasted her, teasing,
branding her, demanding a response. She couldn't help herself as her fingers
trailed up around his neck, drawing him down to her, closer. His lips moved
from her mouth to her ear and down the side of her neck sending shivers of
pleasure down her spine. His fingers trailed over her spine as she whispered
his name, near frantic with yearning.
He growled and
stepped away from her abruptly, leaving her trembling with longing. “Ali, what
are we doing?”
She wasn't sure
what he expected her to say. Her mind was still spinning with the dizzy
exhilaration of his touch. When her eyes met his, she could see regret. She
wasn't sorry he'd kissed her in the slightest. In fact, she wanted him to do it
again, but she could see the guilt rising over him, drowning him with shame.
Without another word, he turned and walked to his truck, climbing inside,
leaving her standing beside hers with her hand over her kiss-swollen lips,
wondering what just happened and how she was going to make it right.
T. J. Kline was
raised competing in rodeos and Rodeo Queen competitions since the age of 14 and
has thorough knowledge of the sport as well as the culture involved. She has
written several articles about rodeo for small periodicals, as well as a more
recent how-to article for RevWriter, and has published a nonfiction health book
and two inspirational fiction titles under the name Tina Klinesmith. She is
also an avid reader and book reviewer for both Tyndale and Multnomah. In her
spare time, she can be found laughing hysterically with her husband, children,
and their menagerie of pets in Northern California.
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