A Cowgirl's Rodeo

Chapter 2

The awkward dinner was finally over with and Justin was helping me clear the table. "So whatcha think of Mr. Pretty Boy? I saw him catching glances at you." Justin stated, bumping me playfully. He laughed at the killer glare I sent him. "What? You don't find him attractive like he thinks of you?"

I threw the dish towel in my hand at him. "No, I don't!" I hissed. "He's one of those things ya carry on your belt. Whatcha call it? Oh, that's right. A tool!" Justin chuckled loudly, almost dropping the left over chicken. "Don't laugh, I know ya see it too."

He set the chicken on the counter. "Ana, give the guy a break. He's obviously not from a rural area and he's way out of his element. Yeah, he's probably a womanizer but it don't mean ya have to be rude and unwelcoming."

I scowled at him and continued washing the dishes. I considered what Justin said but I just couldn't change my opinion of John Ross. He just rubbed on me the wrong way and I'm not gonna be nice to a guy who ain't nice to me. I'm not a girl who swoons over any guy who's nice to look at. They have to have the personality to boot. Growing up barrel racing at rodeos, there's lots of good looking cowboys looking for a good time, so I learned to beware all men and stand my ground. You don't make it big by being stupid and throwin away your dreams for a boy who's just gonna break your heart.

"But don't you have questions, Justin? I mean this guy shows up out of nowhere, he obviously knows Jerald and with how little we really know Jerald.. I just can't wrap my head around it." I sighed, focusing on doing the dishes.

Being lost in my rant and racing thoughts, I failed to notice Justin leave the kitchen to settle down for the night and the fact that a certain hottie was leaning in the archway watching me curiously. I felt his stare and whipped my head up to look at him, cutting my hand on a knife in the process. "Son of a bitch!" I grumbled, blood slowly flowing from an inch long cut on my palm. I dropped the knife back in the sink, grabbed a clean wash cloth and pressed it tightly to my wound. "Where's the disinfectant and bandaids?" He asked, taking my hand gently and removing the cloth to examine it.

I looked up at him in surprise, ignoring my bleeding hand. In a single moment I snapped back to what he had asked, "Rubbing alcohol and bandaids are in the cabinet in the hallway." He pressed the cloth back onto it and quickly moved to the hallway. He came back in a matter of seconds with the clear bottle of alcohol, a box of gauze, and some medical tape. He opened the bottle while I took the cloth off and placed my hand over the side of the sink that didn't contain dishes. "Sorry, this may sting a bit." Was all he said before gently taking my hand again and poured the burning liquid over my cut. I subtly sucked in a pained breath and evened out my breathing to mask my pain. He grabbed a napkin and dabbed at my hand cleaning the blood off. "I don't think you'll need stitches." He unwrapped a packet of gauze and carefully placed it over my cut. "You might have issues doing your normal nightly chores though. Oh, and doing whatever it is you do with hay tomorrow."

I smirked at him, "We bale hay. But I suppose you've never been on or seen a farm before so I doubt you know what a bale of hay looks like." He didn't respond, instead checking me over from head to toe. "Chores won't be an issue for me, but why don't ya give me a hand anyway. Jerald will probably make you do it sometime down the road, might as well learn now."

"Yeah alright, but only because I feel guilty for scaring you." He said, obviously dreading having to go into a barn. I looked at what he was wearing, still the expensive trousers and shirt. I shook my head at him. "What?"

"Go change." I ordered. "I'm not gonna let you ruin your fancy get up. It looks like it cost a pretty penny, so go change into a t-shirt and some jeans you don't care about getting dirty. If you don't have any, ask Justin. I'll just finish up these dishes..."