The crowd begins to thin as I walk around and see the last of the winners presented. The boys riding tonight aren’t top tier yet, but this is a good place to start. Checking my watch, I see it’s almost time to meet the owner, so I find the sign for where the offices are and walk that way.

Just as I reach the door, it opens, and standing there is a young woman fixing her shirt and a man old enough to be her father behind her zipping up his pants. She wipes her bottom lip and then looks me up and down like I’m next in line.

“Hey there, cowboy,” she says and winks at me.

I take a step back because I don’t want her to try to touch me. I don’t like to be touched, especially by strange women. The old man behind her says something I don’t hear, and she makes a face as he shoves her out of the office.

“You must be Bronco.” He holds out his hand, but there’s no way in hell I’m touching that thing.

“Why don’t we take a walk,” I say and nod in the opposite direction the girl went. I’m not about to sit in that office with the smell of his dick all around me.

“Yeah, I’m sure you’d like to see the place.”

“I’ve seen most of what I need to,” I say as we fall in step beside each other. “I also had my finance office pull your records.”

“Well, some of the taxes are a little behind and—”

“You’re swimming in debt, and the IRS is about two seconds away from putting a lien on your land.” I nod toward the arena where some of the bunnies are crowning the winners. “Yet you’ve got this place packed to the roof on a Tuesday night.”

“Like I said in my email, I’ve got a few things I can offer up to sweeten the deal.”

“Why would I take on all your debt that I won’t see back for a decade even if this arena sells out every night of the week? With all due respect, Mr. Walker, you’ve wasted a good thing, and there’s no reason for me to unburden you from it.”

“My daughter comes with the place,” he says, and I blink at him.

“I don’t need a secretary—”

“No, you don’t understand what I mean.” The smile he gives me sends a chill down my neck. “I’ve been saving her up for this. You see, I like being kept in a certain lifestyle, and going bankrupt isn’t going to let me keep doing that. I saw you’re not married, and I’ve kept my daughter fresh just for the right price.”

Anger burns hot and fast though me, and I want to punch his teeth into the back of his throat.

“She’s a little on the chubby side, but I’m sure with a firm hand, you could get that under control.” He looks past me and then raises his hand to wave at someone behind me. “Now, keep in mind this deal is on the table for Wayne Johnson too, so don’t lowball me, son.”