How To Kiss a Cowboy

Rodeos, Sash Queens and Dreams.

Niall Horan edged through the shadows at the far end of the Rodeo Days beer tent, praying he could make it back to his trailer before anyone noticed him. A hubbub at the bar made him pause, and we he saw the cause, he couldn't help but smile.

Liam Payne had arrived, Strolling into the tent with a loose-hipped swagger that said "Cowboy" as clearly as the warn spots on the seat of his jeans. Tall and tan, with rugged good looks and an easy smile, he barely had time to rest one hip on a bar stool before he was surrounded by a flock of pretty young cowboys who fluttered around him like a hummingbird squabbling over sugar.

He had a lad under each arm and another in his lap before Niall had time to blink- a blonde, a brunette, and a redhead. Did he do that on purpose, or what?

Niall knew who the men were. Mr. Wyoming USofA, Mr. Montana EOY, and Mr. Arizona Panache. All three were perfectly coiffed, with hair spilling out from under their fashionably tilted hats. They wore jeans so tight it probably hurt to move, but their practiced smiles never wavered.

Neither did Liam's, though his smile was real as the rest of his cowboy credentials. Most guys worried about something-a tough bull, a bad score, or getting nacho sauce on their shirt-but not Liam. Whether he was chatting up men, riding a rank bronc, or eating sloppy fair food, he was equally at ease.

Watching him, Niall wished he could somehow absorb the magic that made him fit so securely into the world he'd chosen. Unless he was in the saddle, he always felt at least a little awkward and out of place.

He wondered which lad he would choose, but to his surprise, he was easing his way out of the three-way clutch. For a second, he caught a glimpse of panic in his eyes. The redhead had entwined himself around him so thoroughly he looked like a motherless calf tangled up in a barbed-wire fence.

Niall Looked down at his boot tips and smiled. He couldn't help it. Sometimes he felt like he had a mean little inside him. Because watching Liam Payne reject those Rodeo Sash Queens made him feel-good.

But it wasn't sheer meanness that made him feel that way. Him and Liam had been friends when they were younger, and he hated to see him snagged by the wrong kind of man.

He gave himself a mental slap. He didn't know what the right kind of man was. Not for a man like that. He just wanted him to be happy, Healthy, and...his.

A little alarm went off in his head. Danger. Stupid thought alert. Danger. Danger.

He continued to skirt the dance floor, staying in the shadows until he slammed into Mr. Arizona Panache, who was heading for the restroom in a huff. Excusing himself, Niall had almost made it to the exit when he was startled by a voice in his ear.

"What are you smiling about?"

Liam Payne. He was shocked to see him, he told him the truth.

"Those lads," he said. "They thought they'd caught you."

"Nope." He smiled, his brown eyes warm and sweet as fudge. "They didn't catch me. You did."

"I- what?"

"You caught me. I watched you ride today." He shook his head. "Man, oh man. Never seen no one ride like that. You're not scared of anything, are you?"

He told his heart to stop beating so fast. He told his face not to flush. He told himself not to admit he was scared of him, and of the way he made him feel.

He told the other parts of his body not to react too, but it was useless. Liam Payne made him shimmer inside. He didn't know how to respond to the compliment, so he dug deep down inside himself and found a little sass left over from today's victory lap.