Yes, it would, because it would start something that has no future, the voice in her head warned her.
揝ee you tomorrow morning at breakfast,?he said and disappeared into the darkness of the bar area.
The moment was gone, and there was a good possibility it would never happen again. With a sigh, Jessica turned out the lights in the kitchen and made her way across the dark bar to the hallway leading back to her quarters.
She went right to the bathroom, flipped the switch to turn on the light, and was met with the lingering scent of Wade抯 soap, which smelled a lot like leather. She took a long breath and held it for a moment. If he took a shower every night, which she expected he would, how was she ever supposed to go to bed and not think about him?
Chapter Eight
Dust hung over the weathered wooden bleachers like smoke in an old-time honky-tonk, blocking out the stars and what there was of the moon over Jessica抯 head that evening. Wade and Oscar had come up with the idea for them all to go to the ranch rodeo. According to them, everyone had worked so hard that they deserved a little fun that Saturday night, but Jessica figured the evening was mostly for the twins?sake.
Jessica had been to a couple of local rodeos, but seeing the events through the eyes of a couple of teenagers was a whole new experience. They were both wide-eyed though the bull-riding event, and when the second contestant stayed on for the full eight seconds, their whoops and hollers put the enthusiasm of everyone around them to shame.
揑 want to do that,?Lily said. 揅an I take lessons? Maybe on one of those fake bulls??
揘ot me.?Daisy shook her head. 揑抦 like Mama. I抦 as graceful as an elephant on ice.?
揌ey, now!?Risa argued. 揑 can do better than that.?
揥ant me to start giving examples??Daisy teased.
Risa nudged her daughter with a shoulder. 揙nly if you want me to tell secrets, too.?
揑 will shut up right now.?Daisy giggled.
揟hat kid that just managed to stick to the bull抯 back for the whole time has been riding since he was mutton busting, and he抯 your age, Lily,?Oscar said. 揑抣l introduce you to him if you want, and you can talk to him about learning to ride.?
揂re you serious??Lily asked. 揥ould you really introduce me to him??
揥hat抯 mutton busting??Daisy blurted out over her sister抯 question.
揑t抯 when kids from four to seven climb on a wild, woolly sheep and try to hold on for six seconds. Cole and his cousin, Peyton, have been competing since right after they turned four. It抯 also known as wool riding,?Oscar explained. 揃ut yes, I will introduce you. Can you girls two-step??
揧ep, we can,?Daisy answered, 揵ut don抰 tell Granny Stella or Granny Martha. They don抰 believe in dancing.?
揗ama taught us how to dance,?Lily said.
揗y lips are sealed,?Oscar chuckled, 揳nd good for Risa. A girl needs to know how to dance, but I抦 not so sure about bull riding.?
Wade nudged Jessica. 揥ant to put a mechanical bull in the space between the pulpit and the north wall? That would give Lily some practice.?
揂re you serious? Aren抰 those things expensive??Jessica leaned close enough to him so that she could be heard, and the electricity between them seemed to crackle.
She took a deep breath, cleared her mind, and tried to think about a beach to still her racing pulse. She hadn抰 dated in two years, not since she got sent to her last duty station and her boyfriend was reassigned to a base in California. Two months later they抎 figured out that long-distance relationships didn抰 work for them. The split was amicable, and now he was married with a child on the way.
揝omewhere around eight thousand, but just think of the customers it would pull in,?Wade said.
Jessica glanced over at Lily and made another impulse decision. 揥e抎 probably be the only ones for miles and miles with a bull. Let抯 talk about it with the rest of the team. We抮e the two supporting partners, but they should have a say-so, too.?
揌ave you ever ridden one??Wade asked.
揙ne time. I hit the sawdust in two seconds. He was named Fu Man Chu, just like in that old country song. I抦 a little like Daisy and not very coordinated,?she admitted.
揗e either, but I really think a bull would generate a lot of money,?Wade said.
揌ow抯 that??she screamed over the noise of everyone screaming and yelling for the first bareback bronc rider.
揟he night I rode one敆Wade leaned over close to her ear棑my friend bet me two beers I wouldn抰 do it. Another one bet a shot of whiskey that I couldn抰 stay on eight seconds at high speed.?
The warmth of his breath on her neck sent tingles dancing down her spine, and she had to keep reminding herself that they were business partners. Oh, yes, sir, she really did need to get back into the dating game so that she could get over this teenage infatuation with Wade.