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over at Patrick, who felt a little ridiculous sitting
with the girlfriends.
Dak was winning for awhile, then he lost,
finishing third. Jazz was still playing. Son of a
bitch, Dak laughed as they walked across the
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quiet grounds together, I taught him everything
he knows and he turned on me. I broke even
though. He took off his hat and placed it on
Patrick s head, staggering some.
Taught him everything you know, huh?
Patrick pressed Dak s hat down further on his
head.
Dak grinned at him. You re jealous.
Yeah, I am.
Why?
You know why. I ll always be jealous of any
man you ever touched.
That s ridiculous. I m not your first, he
slurred.
Yes, you are.
Pat, you were no virgin when you seduced me
that night.
I didn t say I was a virgin, I said, you were my
first, because damn it, I can t remember any lover
before you. He stopped, looked at him standing
there, none too sober in the middle of the empty
rodeo grounds.
Patrick, he said softly. You re young, you
Stop telling me how frigging young I am, Dak.
Just because I m young doesn t mean I don t know
what I feel.
I didn t say that.
No, you didn t. You don t say anything. And
you won t. You won t even say what s been
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hanging between us for the last few days, what we
both need to say.
Dakota rolled his eyes and kept walking.
Why? Why won t you say it, because it hurts
too much?
He stopped.
Dak, please, it s killing me. I can t leave you. I
don t know how.
He started moving again.
Patrick followed. They rode up on the elevator
together, silently. When the elevator rang, Dakota
stepped off. Patrick stood there. They looked at
each other again. I m drunk, Dak said.
I know and didn t you say tell me that s when
we say what we really mean?
That s what I said, yep. Dak reached out and
caught his arm. He dragged him close, took his hat
off Patrick s head and kissed him hard on the
mouth.
It left him breathless.
I shouldn t love you, he said, then released
him. He slipped the key into his lock and opened
the door. He paused, turned, looked at Patrick.
Coming in?
Patrick nodded silently and walked in behind
him.
Patrick held him and he slept. They didn t
make love. The most he got was a couple of
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clumsy kisses and a slap on the ass, but that was
all right. He was happy just to lie beside him and
hold him.
When he woke up, Dak was gone. Patrick
looked at the clock. It was already ten in the
morning. Dak s competition was at eleven. He
jumped out of bed and into the shower. He
knocked on Josh s room no answer. He d find
him at the rodeo.
The grounds were packed today and the
weather was fine. All around him was the smell of
horses and livestock. There were cowboys
everywhere. He knew a few gay friends at home
that would be in orgasm heaven, but none of them
were as hot as his cowboy.
He found Josh and Kate in the stands down
front. I didn t know you were here, Patrick gave
Kate a kiss.
Just got here, I wouldn t miss my baby
brother s ride.
I didn t miss it, did I? Patrick slipped into the
seat.
No, Josh said, It s up next, twenty minutes.
How s your dad?
He was fine this morning, tense, but he always
is before the ride. Where were you last night?
Watching your father play poker.
Oh. You interested in poker now?
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No, interested in your father and his friendly
hired hand.
That s over. Kate reminded him.
It better be.
Suddenly, Patrick remembered what Jazz had
said about Dakota selling the ranch. Why would he
do that? He wondered if Kate knew about it.
I hope Jump is all right with the neighbour,
Josh said suddenly.
I m sure she is, Patrick said.
An announcer came on now, talking about the
upcoming competition. Dak was competing
against eight riders, two of them first-place
champions. When is he up? Patrick asked.
He s number four.
Patrick sighed, the tension beginning to mount.
How long does he have to stay on the horse to
win?
He has to stay on eight seconds without
touching the horse with his free hand. On the first
jump out of the chute, the rider must mark the
horse out, Josh said.
That means, Kate put in when she saw
Patrick s look of confusion, that Dak must have
the heels of his boots in contact with the horse
above the point of the shoulders before the horse s
front legs hit the ground.
That s tough.
You bet, she said, but he can do it.
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How are they scored?
The rider that manages to complete a ride is
scored on a scale of zero to fifty and the horse is,
also, scored on a scale of zero to fifty, Josh told
him. A score in the eighties is really good,
nineties is champion calibre. A horse that bucks in
a certain way scores more points than a horse who
bucks in a straight line with no significant changes
of direction.
What was Dak s score last time?
Seventy-nine, Kate told him.
That s good, right?
Not good enough, Kate said, adjusting her
binoculars.
The first rider was up. The horse came out of
the stall at the buzzer bucking like crazy. Ten
seconds later, the rider was on the ground.
He s not in the running, Josh said.
He looks hurt.
Josh laughed. His butt will be sore.
The next guy out scored a seventy-nine.
That s what Dakota did last time, Kate said.
He needs to beat that.
The next guy got people up on their feet. He
was last year s champ. An eighty-four, the
announcer cried out.
Dad s up, Josh said, come on, Dad.
Patrick could see Dak plainly. He settled
himself down on the horse, one hand in the air.
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Patrick told himself to watch, to believe. Come
on, baby, he whispered, you can do it.
The horse came out angry, bucking in such a
spectacular way, the announcer shouted. Yeah,
yeah& beautiful form& beautiful& Now the
crowd was on their feet, Patrick, Josh and Kate,
among them. The ride went on. Dak s hat went
flying off into the wind. The buzzer rang and Dak
slid down off the horse, barely touching the
ground. He dusted his jeans off as the announcer
said, Ninety-one. Sensational. We might just have
a new champion here folks, Dakota Bailey, folks.
One hell of a rider.
Josh, Kate and Patrick were hugging. He did
it, Patrick said, and he s in one piece.
Josh laughed. Way to go, Dad.
I knew he could, Kate said, tears in her eyes.
They sat down to watch the rest of the
competition, but it was all over. Dak stood out in
the middle of the stadium to receive his prize, two
other cowboys, also, getting ribbons for second
and third place.
None of them could get close to him. Too many
people wanted to shake his hand, buy him drinks.
They walked around the grounds for awhile,
then rested back at the hotel. Around six, Kate
offered to treat them to dinner and so they left the
rodeo for a few hours and went to eat ribs at that
nice restaurant in town.
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Patrick was longing to see Dak, to tell him how
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