A Cowboy's Claim Read Online Free PDF Page A

the rodeo?”
    â€œI ride at eight o’clock in Vernal tonight.”
    The town was three hours north, and it was only one-thirty in the afternoon. Vic had time to eat before he hit the road. “Want to grab a burger at the Muggy Rim?” If Darcy and her friends saw Vic with Tanya, maybe they’d leave him alone and focus on another unsuspecting cowboy.
    â€œSure.” The tense set of his shoulders relaxed and Tanya read it as a signal that Vic wanted to spend time with her.
    â€œI need to turn Slingshot loose in the corral before we leave. I’ll meet you in the parking lot in ten minutes.” Tanya hurried off to take care of her horse, telling herself that the only reason she’d suggested the Muggy Rim was that the bar was close by and not because she wanted to prevent Darcy from sneaking off to a motel room for an afternoon quickie with Vic.
    * * *
    V IC TURNED HIS pickup into the gravel lot of the Muggy Rim and parked near the front entrance. The rodeo was still in full swing and the majority of the cowboys and fans wouldn’t arrive until after the bull-riding event.
    â€œHave you been here before?” Vic asked, the question breaking the silence that had accompanied them during the five-minute ride into Nephi.
    â€œOnce,” she said. “What about you?”
    â€œA few times. Their burgers are good.” He got out of the truck and shut the door, then took a deep breath, hoping the fresh air would clear the lingering scent of Tanya’s perfume from his head. The earthy aroma made him think of dark corners, slow music and naked bodies pressing together.
    Whoa . This wasn’t a date—even though he found her attractive and wouldn’t mind getting to know her better. The only reason he’d sought Tanya out at the rodeo was that he was lonely. He’d been lonely a long, long time—by his choice—and he couldn’t say for sure what it was about her that had drawn him into the open. No matter, nothing could come of his interest in her, because he couldn’t afford any distractions this season. He had too much riding on the line.
    He opened the saloon door, and a gust of wind lifted Tanya’s hair off her shoulders, the long strands brushing his chest as she stepped past him. A wave of lust gripped his stomach. He’d inhale a burger and then hit the road before he did something stupid like ask her to dance.
    â€œI don’t know about you,” she said, “but I’m starving.” She led the way to a table near the dance floor.
    â€œWhat can I get you folks to drink?” A waitress wearing a black T-shirt with Muggy Rim printed in white letters across the front stopped at their table.
    â€œI’ll take an iced tea,” Tanya said.
    â€œMake mine a sweet tea.” He’d need the sugar to keep going the rest of the day.
    â€œIf you know what you want to eat, I’ll put your order in before I get your drinks.”
    â€œSure,” Tanya said. “Cheeseburger, hold the onions.”
    â€œFries?” the waitress asked. Tanya shook her head.
    â€œI’ll have a double cheeseburger with everything. And fries.”
    â€œComin’ right up.”
    Someone dropped a quarter in the jukebox and a Miranda Lambert song came on. Tanya glanced toward the dance floor, but Vic pretended interest in the baseball game televised on the TV behind the bar.
    â€œI wish I had just a little bit of that winning streak you’re running on,” she said.
    â€œAll winning streaks come to an end eventually.” He hoped his streak ended after winning a buckle in Vegas later this year.
    â€œSo...” She peeked at him from beneath light brown lashes.
    Alarm bells went off inside his head, and the cushioned seat beneath his backside turned to cement.
    â€œAre you seeing anyone?” Her cheeks flushed pink.
    â€œNo one steady.” No one period . He didn’t want to give Tanya the idea that he