Reckless for Cowboy Read Online Free Page A

and I hate how much I like it.
    “Oh, umm, let’s see.” Denny ticks his fingers. “A. You’re a cowboy and B. You’re a straight cowboy. I’ve spent too much money on my smile to have my teeth knocked out because of some homophobe.”
    “You think I’m homophobic because I’m a cowboy?” Cooper places a hand on his heart. “I’m hurt.”
    Picking up my next tray of drinks, I say in parting, “Sounds like you boys have a lot in common. A little man on man action might do you both some good. Have fun.”
    For the next hour or so, Denny’s too busy to talk and Cooper just sits at the bar, not saying a word, watching my every move. It’s worse than before. I can feel his eyes on me, sweeping over my exposed skin and, though the bar is smoking hot, I’m covered in goose bumps. His constant stare unnerves me so much my hands shake and I end up tipping over a bottle of beer. His hand whips out, fast and steady, and he grabs the bottle before it can smash on the floor.
    “Thanks,” I mumble. I snatch the bottle from him and hurry away. Why did he have to do that? Why does he have to continue doing things that make me wet for him? Why can’t he pick his nose or scratch his balls or something? Sheesh! He’s driving me flippin’ crazy.
    “Hey Brooke.” Sydney sidles up to me. “That guy’s back, huh?” She motions with her head toward the bar.
    “Looks like it,” I say.
    “You going for him?” she asks with a gleam in her eyes.
    “Ah, no.”
    “Mind if I take a stab? I know what you said, but goddamn, that man is fine.”
    With my free hand I wave her on. “Go for it. But don’t say I didn’t warn you when he turns out to be a lying, cheating dirt bag.”
    With a sinking gut, I watch her push through the crowd and up to the bar, ending up at Cooper’s side so she can talk to him while she waits for her drink order. Nasty, catty thoughts about Sydney flash through my mind until I shake them out of my head. Sydney’s great. Pretty. A little naïve but sweet. If she wants to ignore my advice and is dead set about being initiated into the cowboy club, well, there’s nothing I can do about it.
    So why does it eat at me so much?
    As the evening wears down and the crowd begins to thin, I see Sydney stopping more and more often to talk to Cooper. Watching her make her move bolsters my resolve to stay away from him. Even from a distance I can see he’s charming her and she’s totally falling for it. Gullible, gullible, gullible.
    Finally the lights come up and the bouncers herd the stragglers out the front door. However, Cooper’s still there while I’m cashing out.
    “So, do you and Sydney have a date?” I ask all casual.
    “Maybe. Are you jealous?”
    I blow air out through my lips. “No.”
    “Really?” he says softly, pushing himself up from his stool and coming to stand behind me. Right behind me. He’s so close I can feel his presence with every tiny hair on the back of my neck. I realize how big the dude is. Too big. I bend my knee so my boot is aimed at his shin and give him a nice little nudge to back him up.
    He makes a grunting sound but he’s not deterred and sits down on the stool right next to me. “What if I told you I had a date with Denny?”
    A laugh explodes out of my chest. “Denny? Now that’s something I’d like to see.”
    “Hey Den,” Cooper calls across to where Denny’s cleaning up. “Brooke says she wants to watch.”
    “I told you she’d go for it. For all her, I’m-an-uptight-frigid-cowboy-hater façade, she’s as nasty as they come.”
    I’m shaking my head. “I’m not nasty.”
    “No?” Cooper says with a little smile on his too-handsome face. “Too bad.”
    “Not nasty?” Denny laughs as he cleans the bar in front of us. “She only feels me up every chance she gets.”
    “Do not.”
    “Umm, hello? Everyone in the whole damn bar saw you. Including Coop.” Then Denny leans way over the bar, catches hold of my cowgirl kerchief and pulls me