Not my first Rodeo [cowboy romance]

Chapter 5

Francesca

"Francesca, we gotta go"

It's harder than I thought to tear my gaze away from Nathan. I turn my head to my brother and his manager, Marcus. They can't see Nathan behind me, but they hear him. "We'll text later, darling"
Giacomo frowns and almost jogs towards us. He surely wants to know which cowboy is flirting with me because everyone knows that those cowboys have charm. Most of them just use it wrong and lure you. It makes me ask myself if Nathan is like them. It seems like flirting with me is fun.
"Oh, fuck, no" Giacomo says as he stands next to me. He looks at Nathan and I notice that their bull-riding uniform is similar. Showchaps made out of leather, sturdy vests over their shirts, boots and cowboy hats. "I'm ready to go..." I say, wanting to escape this weird situation. I don't flirt with boys often and this one time that I get to talk to a boy my brother has to come in between us. God. "You do not want to talk to Nathan fucking Moore, Annie. Let's go", Giacomo says. I stand still. Yes, my brother knows best, I guess. He knows everyone here but how am I supposed to get to know anyone if I don't talk to them? It's kind of unfair. I was raised on a farm as well. I know those cowboys damn well, Giacomo is one himself. And I'm not dumb. But instead of saying something against him, I just nod and follow him and his team out of the Arena. When I look over my shoulder, I see Nathan still standing there. He's looking at me, head tilted, smirking. And Lord, that smirk could be the death of me.

"Since when do you know him?" Giacomo is really talkative today, since his competition ended. I lay back into the leather seat of the car. He sits opposite from me, Marcus next to him. I frown. I am 24 years old, can't I decide for myself who I want to talk to? It kind of pisses me off. "Does it matter?" I ask and look at him. "It's not like I slept with him" with that being said, my brother makes a gagging noise. It's not like we talk about our sex-lives. Who in the right mind would do that? But I want to set a point. The last two guys who were interested in me weren't 'good enough' and I've listened. "God, Annie, I don't need to know who you sleep with. Ew. But Nathan doesn't have the best reputation when it comes to women" he says. I bury my face in my hands. I want to find out stuff for myself. And talking about guys with my brother is weird. I need to change the subject. "You also don't have a good reputation when it comes to women. A few women on Twitter said you probably think you're too good for a girl. Now think about that instead of my relationships." That makes him go quiet. Giacomo mumbles something beneath his breath and looks out of a window. He hates talking about relationship stuff himself so why does he have to bring it up? I don't need my big brother to protect me. I'm not 10 anymore. Even though I would like to know what it is with Giacomo and his problem with relationships. Cowboys are known to either have a girlfriend or multiple chicks by their side. My brother seems to be allergic to that kind of stuff. Marcus shakes his head. "Y'all argue like children. Giacomo, you have more important issues to think about" his voice is harsh. It's really serious. I guess Nathan is a bigger threat than I originally thought. I get a message.

Nathan: wanna hang out tonight, darling?

Oh. I should do my research before I answer that message.
Doing research on a guy isn't that hard. Especially when he is a famous bull-rider. I have gathered my information within few minutes. Nathan Moore is 26 years old and - I guessed it right - 6'2 ft tall. Apparently he grew up on a Farm in Texas. Could've guessed that. One little meet-up can do no bad, right?

Francesca: missing me already? :)

Flirting is a game for two. I have to step up my game if he keeps going but that's worth it. It's fun. He answers almost immediately.

Nathan: Of course. Be ready at 9 pm sharp.

I bite my lower lip. It's a surprise where he takes me. My stomach tingles slightly and I blame my non-existing love life for that. I haven't had a boyfriend in years and I don't flirt often. Even the smallest interactions make me flustered and I hate it. I hate it when my cheeks blush or my stomach tingles. I feel kind of dumb, to be honest. And having that feeling is dumb in itself, I guess. How ironic. The car stops.