Her Montana Cowboy

If the afternoon had been a bit cooler, Julie might have left her ewes at the rodeo grounds until the end of the day. The humidity was low, but once the daytime temps reached into the mid-eighties she decided to ask her youngest brother, Adam, to haul them home for her.

She rode along. “So what did you think when the time capsule turned up missing?”

He shrugged. “Beats me. Dad was sure steamed.”

“At least he kept his cool and got the crowd to move away from the site. I don’t suppose the sheriff’s officers we had patrolling the grounds came prepared to investigate a crime like that.”

“Not when Cal and the extra deputies were hired just for crowd control,” Adam replied. “There’s a forensics team coming in from Bozeman, but I don’t expect them to find anything.”

“I agree.” Julie was nodding thoughtfully. “Ryan asked if the theft might have occurred a long time ago.”

“Ryan? The guy I met by the sheep?”

“Yes. He’s one of the rough-stock cowboys. I met him this morning and we seemed to hit it off really well.”

Her brother chuckled. “I want to be there when Dad finds out you’re interested in a rodeo rider.”

“Why, because you plan to defend my right to pick my own husband?” She had to laugh at the irony. “Give me a break. You have enough trouble keeping the girls at bay with him and Mom shoving them at you. The way I see it, since you, Cord and Austin are all older than Faith and I, you guys should get married and settle down first.”

“Life doesn’t work that way, baby sister. When it’s time for me to find a wife, I fully expect her to fall into my lap, not show up because our folks have been matchmaking.”

“Well said.” Julie relaxed, leaned back and sighed. If she allowed herself to accept her brother’s reasoning, she might actually start to believe she’d met Ryan Travers because he was the one for her. Was that possible?

Not rationally, she argued inwardly. She did enjoy his company, but that didn’t mean there was any deeper meaning to their meeting. Or to the fact that they seemed very compatible in many areas. Given her aversion to city slickers like Wilbur, however, she saw no reason to shun the amiable, good-looking cowboy. As long as Ryan was in town, she could enjoy his company and perhaps discourage her father’s matchmaking, if only for two or three weeks.

She would never lead a man on, of course, which meant she would have to tell Ryan all about her dad and why she was unwilling to heed his wishes. A smile slowly lifted the corners of her mouth. It could actually be fun to pretend the handsome rider was her boyfriend, particularly if he was in on the ruse and knew all about her father’s crazy efforts to get all his kids married off and settled on nearby ranches of their own.

Tonight, at the fireworks show, she would set up the amusing scenario. Talk about fireworks!

If Ryan shows up, she added silently.

He will. Julie was positive. And since she was going to be back on the ranch soon, she’d freshen up before returning to town for the evening festivities.

Especially the bull riding. She couldn’t miss that. She’d promised Ryan she’d be there for as many of his rides as possible, and she intended to keep her word.

A warmth infused her cheeks as the reality of the situation grew clearer. Hers was more than a simple friendly promise. She truly wanted to be present to watch him ride. And to pray for his safety when the chute gate opened and he spent the next eight seconds, and beyond, in mortal danger.

Closing her eyes as her brother drove toward home, Julie began her prayers for Ryan’s safety then and there.

* * *

He’d come in third in the first round of saddle-bronc riding and had hit the ground right in front of one of the TV cameras, so his landing was liable to wind up on the late news. This ride hadn’t earned the best score he’d ever been awarded, but it wasn’t the worst either, and there were more chances coming in the ensuing days. They’d eliminate some of the less able riders this first weekend, add some special former champions the second, then tie up the titles and grand prize money during the third and final series of events. All he had to do was see that he landed in the top ten this weekend, then wait for the next chance and the next and do the same.

By the time it was all over, he expected to have lined his pockets with plenty of money and maybe come away with a new hand-tooled saddle and bridle, a pair of silver spurs and a couple of fancy buckles, too.

Barnyard aromas permeated the air. Dust rose in clouds as the livestock was shifted from place to place by expert wranglers. The sun overhead beat down on men and animals alike.

Ryan mopped his brow and donned a protective vest. He’d seen his first bull perform before, so he wasn’t going into this ride blind. He squared his hat on his head tightly and scaled the fence to prepare to step aboard.

One last look at the cowboys and groupies gathered behind the chutes was all it took to make him smile and hesitate. Julie was back!

She waved her arm wildly and grinned. “Hi!”

Acknowledging her with a nod, Ryan stood astride the chute fences, holding his weight off the animal while friends pulled his rigging tight for him and he rubbed his rosined gloves along the braided poly-and-manila rope. He slipped his glove through the handhold, laid the braid across his palm and took his wrap. Then he pounded his stiff fingers tighter with his free hand and eased himself down onto the bull’s back.

This brindle had a hump like a Brahma cross and horns big enough to reach out and touch a guy if he wasn’t careful.

Ryan pulled his feet off the rails. Nodded to signal the gate man. Held his breath. Raised his free hand over his head and tensed, ready for anything—he hoped.

The bull turned toward the arena, leaped into the air, landed stiff legged and was airborne again before even one second had passed.

There was no way to calculate the time or plan ahead. All Ryan could do was keep his balance, bend at the hips to stay out over the shoulders of the snorting, slobbering, lurching animal and hang on.

The crowd went wild, screeches, hoots and cheers buoying him up.

Focused so intently on the bull, Ryan barely heard anything beyond the animal’s growls and the roar of the spectators in the stands.

* * *

Julie was perched on the top rung of the arena fence, shouting, “Go, go, go! Yes!”

An air horn sounded. The eight seconds were up. He’d made it!

“Yay!” Her heart was already pounding from the excitement when she saw Ryan reaching for his rope to loosen it.

“Oh, no! His balance is off,” she yelled to nobody in particular. He was slipping to one side. And the bull was still bucking just as hard as it had before.

Julie gasped and held her breath. The crowd reacted the same way. The din behind her changed to a more muted reverberation. Tension was palpable.

Bullfighters in clown makeup and baggy clothes dashed into the fray. One headed straight for the bull, reaching out as if planning to touch its forehead between the curved horns.

Ryan finally pulled his hand free. He leaped, landing in the dirt and rolling aside, barely escaping the pounding cloven hoofs of the immense animal.

Julie screamed. Men were shouting.

Ryan clambered to his feet, raised his arms over his head and bounced on his toes like a prizefighter after scoring a knockout.

She caught his eye almost immediately and watched his elated grin broaden even more. By the time he’d scooped up his hat and been handed his discarded rigging, he was almost to the fence where she’d been waiting.

“Great ride!”

He beamed. “Thanks.”

“Lousy dismount, though. I thought you were a goner for sure.”

“Nah, he missed me by a mile.”

“Try a few inches. Why don’t you at least wear a helmet like so many of the other riders do?”