Tough tomboy Tabitha Conrad rides bulls and bareback broncs like a champ. In only her second rodeo season, she's headed for the finals. An over-protective older brother and his buddy sometimes take care of her a little too well. She's having trouble living up to the bold, bawdy reputation most cowgirls enjoy.<br><br>Wes Duncan lost his father and an older brother to bulls in the arena. Now he's working as a rodeo clown, determined to save as many downed riders as he can.  He finds feisty little Tab immensely attractive but as his best friend's kid sister, she's off limits.<br><br>As much as he admires her spunk and determination, every time she comes out on a bull, he almost has a heart attack. What can he do to keep her safe? And if he gives in to his heart and his lust, who will keep her safe from him?  Before they know it, Tab and Wes are caught up in a whirlwind of passion and misunderstandings. It takes a very close call to bring them to their senses and get Tab up for the ride of her life.

Cowgirl Up

If Wes had been here, that would have never happened.She tried to depersonalize it, but even so, her realization of how much a bull rider depended on a good clown hit her hard. All at once she really needed to know where Wes was. If he wasn’t going to be there tomorrow, she wasn’t sure she could get on her second bull. There were a couple of other clowns she had almost as much faith in, but Wes took care of her—of all the riders, but especially of her. He always had. But would he still be willing to do it after the tongue lashing she’d dished out? If he was around, it might be a good idea to try to apologize.


For the next two hours, Tab wandered the length and width of the rodeo grounds. Everywhere she went she asked if anyone had seen Wes. A few people said he’d been by earlier, but most of them had not seen him. He’s supposed to be clowning, I know, and Wes is nothing if not reliable. So what’s wrong?


Chapter 10