Page 48 of The Cowboy's Downfall
Nix put a hand on her shoulder and forced her back in her seat. “Stay right here,” he said, his voice hard and his eyes on teenagers. “I’ll handle this.”
He jumped the gate and joined the three teens. He said something to Taryn, who looked as if she was arguing with him. He cut her off, said something that made her eyes widen, then she stormed into the arena without another word, but her eyes sparked with lightning. She spotted Shauna and headed her way.
Shauna, meanwhile, kept her attention on Nix, who was patting Remi down like a seasoned police officer on a school yard drug check. He reached into one of Remi’s pockets, took something out, then thrust whatever it was into his own pocket. He spoke to them both—they were listening intently—and pointed toward the parking lot. He clapped each boy on the back and walked off.
Taryn landed in the seat next to Shauna, who thought it best not to ask questions. Whatever Nix said to them must have gotten the effect he intended because he didn’t appear in the least bothered. He stopped to exchange words with an official, who looked in Taryn’s direction, and nodded.
Taryn kicked the empty seat in front of her.
Nix climbed into the bleachers, stopped beside Taryn, and gave her a long look that would have made Shauna shrivel if it had been directed at her. That look explained why he was the one running a clinic for teens and not Miles, the former world champion bull rider.
“You’re in my seat,” he said to Taryn. “Go talk to Ford.”
Taryn’s face flashed surprise, then rebellion. Shauna waited for the explosion.
It never came.
Taryn said nothing. She did as she was told, and Nix reclaimed his seat. He dropped his arm across Shauna’s shoulders. Shauna took a moment to process recent events.
“Do I want to know what just happened?” she asked.
Nix tightened his arm. “I told Taryn to keep her mouth shut and let me do the talking or she wouldn’t ride. She won’t be riding. So, now they all know I meant business. I told the boys to take their differences into the parking lot. If they can’t talk it out, then they won’t be riding either. That’s harsher punishment for Zane than Remi, but Zane started it, so it’s on him. Remi doesn’t stand a chance against Zane, and he knows it, so it’s in his best interest to talk too.”
“I want you so bad right now,” Shauna said.
Nix grinned. “Dang. I don’t think this place has anywhere even close to being private, other than the speaker’s booth, and it’s occupied already. You’ll have to wait until tonight.”
He had riders coming up, so he didn’t stay with her long. Taryn returned after he left.
“I knew Nix was the reason you come to practice,” she said. “You two aren’t sneaking around anymore, huh?”
Shauna had wondered how to go about raising the topic of Nix with her, but Taryn had spent most of the past week at Nora’s—at least, that’s what she said—so an opportunity hadn’t come up. Now it turned out she already knew. How could she possibly have known? Perhaps she was fishing.
If so, Shauna wasn’t about to confirm any suspicions. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Quit being so cringe.” Taryn’s whole body bristled with pent-up impatience. It spilled into her tone. “‘I’m Shauna, always so perfect.’ I’ve known about you since the night I came home early and caught you in bed.”
“Oh?” Never admit to anything unless there was proof. “What night was that?”
“The night you had beer in the fridge—which you don’t drink—and there was a wine bottle and two glasses sitting on the counter. You had a housecoat on when you came out of your room—something you don’t wear to bed—and your makeup was smeared. You don’t wear makeup when you go to bed, either. You let me have a beer without making a big deal out of it, so you were in a hurry to get back to your bedroom. And one of the ranch trucks was parked on Marion Street, near the elementary school. It was either Ford or Nix, and Ford’s so not your type.”
Taryn had her facts straight—enough to incriminate, not enough to convict.
“You okay with it?” Shauna asked.
Taryn tossed her blond curls. “Nix is dope.” She cast a sly look at Shauna. “He could trap someone less basic. But he doesn’t try.”
Shauna wasn’t sure she liked being thought of as basic by her drip little sister, but she agreed that Nix didn’t try, because she’d done the pursuing. He would never have made the first move.
“Why is Nix my type and Ford’s not?” she asked.
“Nix isn’t your type either. He’s sigma. You like to run people’s lives, Shauna. You think everyone should be more like you. Well, we aren’t. Some of us don’t need to be perfect. And Nix is never going to be more than a cowboy, no matter how much you try to change him.”
Tell me how you really feel, Taryn.
She’d asked for it.
“Speaking of guys who aren’t someone’s type…” she said. She could be direct too. “What’s the deal with you and Zane?”
