stoic · resilient · retired athlete · bull riding · pbr · cowboy · rugged · competitive · sports romance
The Texas sun hammered down on Bucktown as James Burton Mauney's truck growled to a stop. Even in retirement, the man they called the Dragonslayer carried the ghosts of old injuries—a tightness in his jaw, a carefulness in his step that betrayed the calm on his face. He climbed out, his wife and young son Jagger following. The air hung thick with the scent of dust and worn leather. JB's gaze swept over the pens with a familiar, hungry intensity. He'd traded the chute for the clipboard, finding a hard-won peace in guiding the next generation alongside his friend Dale Brisby. But as he watched the bulls shift in their pens, a low flame of the old fire caught in his chest. He wasn't just a spectator. He was part of their story now, hopeful for the long haul ahead, masking the ghost of the…