Show Day -

“He’s arrived!” A statement sung right by her ear causing her to pause, mouth awkwardly filled with the bite of hotdog she’d just taken, gaze drawn from the arena and the bull rider therein just as he was sent flying from his seat atop a monster bulls back.

The expletive she released warbled around the meat in her mouth, Constance tried to catch the bits sprayed even as she chewed frantically.

Across the crowd, the object of her attention lifted his gaze, seemingly drawn by her own perusal and she swore she could see the amusement light the smooth, sharp planes of his face.

“He’s on his way over!” Heather hissed unnecessarily and for a second Constance wished her friend would just shut up because she wasn’t helping matters.

Giving up on swallowing the food when it just lodged in her throat, Constance turned slightly and spat the mangled mess into her cupped hand. Quickly lifting her attention even as her hand dropped to open and release the expelled contents of her mouth on the ground by her boot.

Meeting Heather’s gaze she pulled her lips back in a poor imitation of a smile, Heathers' quick nod letting her know no evidence of her lunch sat stuck in her teeth.

Trepidation a swarm of butterflies in her stomach Constance attempted to lean nonchalantly against the rail at her back, noticed how the stretch of the material across her ample chest, popped the topmost button and stopped.

“Damnit,” she muttered, clenching and relaxing her hands at her side, “what is he even doing here? This is just the local show day!”

Shrugging Heather watched with rapt attention as the tall figure drew closer, “He’s brought back up though.”

Lips tight Constance nodded, having spotted his lackey’s half a second after seeing him, “He needs the validation.”

Heather snorted sliding her an amused look, “He’d probably say the same about you.”

“Whose side are you on?” Constance muttered, tone low now that he was less than ten meters away.

“Depends,” glancing between them Heather took a sip out of her drink, “on whoever wins this round.”

Constance made a noise of disgust which she directed at her friend, attention diverted just long enough that the young man had time to insert himself into the space before her, effectively trapping her against the rails.

“Constance,” a sarcastic lift to the corner of his lips, gaze close enough now that Constance could clearly make out the amusement lighting deep green to something lighter.

“Josh.”

He propped his hands on lean hips, the action pulling taut the red checked material of his shirt over broad shoulders. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“Don’t tease,” Constance all but growled, “you knew I’d be here, otherwise YOU wouldn’t be here.”

“Think highly of yourself don’t you,” he mocked shifting to pull his Akubra off his head, Josh ran his fingers through the blond strands, mussing them further. “Wanted a bit more saddle time before States next week.”

“So, you drove four hours?” She couldn’t help the sarcasm, hated how that just seemed to entertain him more.

Raising both hands in a placatory gesture Josh shrugged, “Look, honestly this was unintended and I’m not lying about just wanting more competition time for me and Rus.” The smile he angled her was filled with his trademark ‘good ol’ country boy charm’, once she had been drawn in by that smile, had let a foolish sixteen-year-old heart believe it meant more than it did.

But Constance liked to hope that four years had taught her enough about that smile, enough about the person beneath it, to know better than to fall for it.

“A likely tale, Josh. Do -tell us another.”

The charm warmed into something a good deal more genuine, and that threw her, he’d never smiled at her like that before.

“Alright, maybe I knew the chances of you riding at your local show day event was high. But I’m here now and there’s no point in being a bad sport about it.”

Furious Constance jerked, “A bad sport?” She struggled and lost her grip on her temper, “Me! The bad sport?”

Heather cleared her throat and sent a warning elbow into Constance’s side in an action that seemed natural, and Constance drew in a deep breath on the realization that she had been a bit shrill.

Instead, she tried for a smile of her own, tone deliberately condescending as she observed, “I wasn’t the one who cried injury at Cotton Tree last weekend.”

One of the lackeys huffed a laugh, catching the sound reasonably quickly in his elbow and following through with a bout of convincing coughing.

A stalemate as over the loudspeaker the announcer called the next bull rider into the ring, proclaiming this to be the last for the event.

Waiting until the announcement was over Constance turned with something witty, only to come to a stop at finding Josh’s gaze on her.

An eruption of butterflies, unwelcome and unpleasant, as despite her best efforts her face warmed.

Wondering if she had something in her teeth or even worse hanging out of her nose, she slid Heather a subtle look.

Heather for her part had also noticed Josh’s attention and shrugged at Constance’s silent inquiry, none the wiser about his behavior.

Damn him! What was his problem?

“I’ll see you in the ring,” she muttered instead, turning on her heel to stalk off, pausing only long enough for Heather to join her at the gate out of the grandstands.

“My god,” Heather started, Constance already in agreement.

“He’s such a jerk-“

“He’s so hot!”

Constance stumbled to a stop, “What?”

“Oh come on,” Heather pushed her shoulder slightly to start her back up, “you have to admit it, Josh is mind-bogglingly attractive.”

Scoffing Constance ducked under the orange flags separating the driveway and the show stables, a niggling sense of honesty pushing her to admit, “Fine. He’s good-looking.”

“That hair,” Heather sighed, “I wonder if it’s as soft as it looks.”

Grudgingly Constance added, “It smells nice.”

Heathers' brown eyes warmed to the subject, “His body. Long. Lean. Broad shoulders. Biteable butt. The man knows how to wear those jeans, I swear.”

A shiver slipped down her spine, a memory resurfacing as Constance unlatched and slid into her gelding, Nugget’s stall.

Earlier that summer she and Nugget had been riding one of the forestry tracks on an off day after the competition, it had been humid and hot, and they had found a small creek. Only they hadn’t been the only ones to find it, and Josh had been stripped down to just his undies.

Water droplets sliding down golden bronzed skin, shoulder muscles pulling and rippling as he ran his fingers through his hair, those perfect even white teeth peeping out in a welcoming smile. His low-slung white bonds trunks soaked and hiding little….

Clearing her throat and jerking her attention back to the present Constance remained silent as Heather continued.

“Have you seen the six-pack on that guy? In fact, what’s more than a six-pack? Twelve pack? God, whatever it is he has muscles everywhere!”

“He works alongside his father on the farm,” Constance muttered, “of course he’s going to be conditioned from all the labor.”

“It’s where the tan comes from too, I guess,” Heather sighed and leaned on the rail, her chin resting on her folded hands and her gaze distant, “I wonder if he’s tanned everywhere….”

A quick flash, a memory of white skin above the line of his trunks, as Constance muttered distractedly, “Not everywhere.”

A beat of silence as Constance became aware of what she’d revealed and then Heather squealed.

“What! How would you know that?”

Trying to hide behind Nugget’s immense size, Constance struggled for nonchalance, “I’ve just seen him shirtless ok.”

“I’ve seen him shirtless, but I still didn’t know if the tan went everywhere, girl.”

“I’m assuming.”

A huff of laughter, “Yeah ok, I’ll believe you for now. Can I just add, however, that if I had a guy like that looking at me the way he was before…? Well- I’d be finding out about that tan of his if you know what I mean.”

Ducking out from around Nugget Constance crossed to the rails where all Nugget’s tack rested along the top.

“Don’t get all worked up about it,” she advised, keeping her expression calm, “Josh and I have been competitors for years, he teases me I bite back, I tease him he bites back. He doesn’t look at me in any specific way, for any specific reason other than to push my buttons.”

Heather reached out and caught her wrist, her expression uncharacteristically solemn, “Maybe there’s something more there that you don’t see, that you’ve never considered.”

Wondering if perhaps Heather knew something more than she was letting on, Constance was stopped from asking by the announcement that the showjumping would begin in half an hour.

Meeting her friend's gaze Constance sighed, “Look. I don’t know what Josh’s deal is. But I tried the crush thing, remember? He made me look like an idiot in front of everyone and then didn’t talk to me for six months. He dated Shirley if you’ll remember, Miss small-town queen-bee.” Pulling firmly but gently away from her friend Constance smiled to take the sting out of her action, “I have to get this big fella ready for his ride, so let’s leave the subject alone and get ready instead.”

Heather looked like she wanted to argue before finally sighing and nodding, “Alright. But I think you should at least keep an open mind.”

Rolling her eyes Constance laughed, “Fine! I’ll keep an open mind! Now, can you please hand me that bridle and reins?”

To be continued….