Page 82 of Call Me Anytime
He grins, shakes his head, and reaches out with his big hand so he can drag my barstool closer to his. So close, in fact, the wooden edges bump against each other and one of my thighs slides perfectly between his.
“Hannah, sweetheart, I’ve spent the whole night watching every schmuck in this place stare at my girl, so you’re going to have to excuse me for refuting your flock-of-women comment,” he says, his voice quiet and raspy. His face is so close to mine that our noses just barely brush.“Honestly, I’m not even sure if I want you on that bull. Fuck knows, the stupid pricks in this bar will be lining up to watch you ride it.”
The possessive warmth in his words wraps around me like a blanket, and I feel myself melt into it. He makes me feel safe. Like I can let go, like I can trust him with the most vulnerable parts of myself. And God, do I want to.
I’m high off his complimentary words. But I’m also a little tipsy and ready to see this man ride a damn bull.
“Dom?”
“Yeah, Hannah?”
“I think it’s time to put your money whereyourmouth is and ride the bull,” I tell him and lean forward to press a soft kiss to his lips.
“And what about you?” he asks, before lightly brushing my tongue with his own in an even deeper kiss.
“Oh, baby, I’m riding that bull,” I answer without hesitation. “For all eight seconds.”
Frankly, I’ve never ridden a bull before, and I don’t have a clue where my confidence is coming from, but with the way Dom is smiling at my words, I can’t be anything but all in for whatever is about to go down.
I stand up and take his hat off his head, placing it directly over my hair. “Let’s go, cowboy.”
Dom laughs. “Fuck, you’re a handful.”
“Are you chickening out on me?” I ask, quirking a brow in his direction and holding out my hand toward him.
“Fuck no,” he retorts and takes my outstretched hand. He reaches out with his free hand to tip the rim of his hat, which still sits on my head. “Let’s do this, cowgirl.”
We head straight over to the gated area where the mechanical bull sits. Since it’s a weeknight, there’s not a lot of action in this corner of the bar, and it doesn’t take long for both of us to get signed up with the bearded man running the bull.
I stare at the beast, and even though it’s not alive, it might as well be mocking me. My heart thuds as the reality hits—I’ve never ridden abull in my life, and now I’m about to let this robotic monster toss me around in front of Dom.What the hell am I doing?
I glance over at Dom, and his confidence is nothing short of effortless. It radiates from every part of him—from his casual lean against the gate to his warm and easy smile. When his eyes meet mine, that smile grows big and inviting, making me feel like I can take on the world. Like I can finally step into the version of Hannah I’ve always wanted to be.
And the way he kissed me earlier—possessive, lingering, like he was staking his claim—sent a thrill through me I still can’t shake. It made me want to be his. Fully.Completely.
“Ready to ride?” Beard’s voice breaks through my thoughts, and I snap my gaze back to the bull, forcing myself to focus.
Looks like I’m first. Gah.
I nod and stride toward the mechanical beast, doing my best to look like a girl who knows what she’s doing, even if my insides are quaking. Before I hop on the bull with the bearded dude’s help, I jog back over to the side of the gate, where Dom stands watching me with a smile on his face, and toss his cowboy hat back to him.
“You don’t want it for luck?” Dom calls out, his voice dripping with amusement. Something about the way he looks at me—like I’m the only thing in the room worth noticing—makes my inner flirt come alive.
With a playful wink, I blow him a kiss. “I don’t need luck, cowboy!”
Dom chuckles as he pretends to snag the kiss from the air, and I refocus my mind on trying to stay on the big robotic bull for eight seconds.
“You ever rode a bull before?” Beard asks me, and I shake my head, my teeth digging into my bottom lip at the same time.
“Nope. But I need to stay on for eight seconds.”
“That’s a big ask, darlin’.” He chuckles. “But here’s a few tips. Grip this leather strap here with this hand,” he instructs me, moving my right hand to the strap behind the bull’s neck. “The trick is to keep a good, strong grip but keep your other arm and your torso loose.”
“All right.” I nod, trying like hell to make his instructions make sense in my mind. “Got any other tips?”
“If the bull’s head goes down, lean your body back. If the bull’s head moves up, lift your hips and lean forward as far as you can so you don’t slide off the back.”
“You say that like it’s all real easy, but I have a feeling it’s not at all, is it?”
