A/N: Here you go ladies, our cowboy finally makes his appearance!

Disclaimer: Characters still own by SM...The bulls are mine! Although I still wish Carlisle and Jasper were mine!

Chapter Two – Rodeo Time

Well it's bulls and blood
It's dust and mud
It's the roar of a Sunday crowd
It's the white in his knuckles
The gold in the buckle
He'll win the next go 'round
It's boots and chaps
It's cowboy hats
It's spurs and latigo
It's the ropes and the reins
And the joy and the pain
And they call the thing rodeo

- Rodeo by Garth Brooks

Time passes...two weeks later

"Come on Bella or were going to be late!" Alice called out to Bella.

"Alice... Just chill," Bella answered. "We have plenty of time. It's only two and the rodeo doesn't start until six."

"I know that!" she exclaimed. "I just want to make sure I get a good seat. After all, this will be the first time I get to see him ride!"

Okay, okay, just calm down. Geesh!" This was all Bella had heard about all week; Jasper's first local bull ride.

Between working on the ranch and now that he was being entered into competitions thanks to Volturi sponsorships. His first two rides were out of state and he did very well at them coming in second place both times. So, he really has had time to socialize much, with all of the practice he needed to do if he wanted to get to first place.

The girls didn't make it to his first ride on Friday. They were busy helping with one of the trail rides the ranch offers and couldn't get back in time. At least, he made it to the finals tonight, that was the main thing and the girls would most definitely be there to see him ride!

Bella finally gave up arguing with her and they left early to go to the rodeo arena. She was surprised with all of the pre-rodeo activities. There was a parade and a mutton riding competition for the kids. Now that was fun to watch, the five-year-olds ride very wooly sheep and trying to hang on for dear life.

As the time drew near for the bull riding event, Alice started to really fidget in her seat. Bella had to put a restraining hand on to try and calm her down. She was starting to freak out the bulls in the loading chute that they were sitting next to. It didn't take long for the stands to fill up. And the seats they had were great, right up next to the arena fence which gave them a very good view of the bull and riders.

They had a bit to wait for Jasper's ride, since he was in fourth place out of seven riders that had made it to the finals.

Of the first three that rode, only one managed to stay on; a fellow Team Volturi member, Alec Volturi, son of one of the brothers.

The overhead speaker comes to life. "The next rider up is Jasper Whitock, currently in fourth place. The bull he is riding today is Tornado and he lives up to that name." The crowd roars.

Poor Alice, she became a nervous wreck watching him nod at the boys to open the chute and him being tossed around like a rag doll on the back of that bull. But she didn't need to worry. The buzzer sounded and he managed to jump off Tornado and run with a leap onto the fence right in front of the girls. His ride was good enough to put him into the lead.

Where the girls were sitting, they could watch the riders mount the bulls in the chutes. There was just something about the rider who was now getting ready to ride. The rider just happened to look up at Bella and their eyes seemed to lock on to each other. Unfortunately the moment was gone in an instant, when Jasper came up behind them and placed his arms around their shoulders, distracting Bella.

Before she could look back at him, the announcer introduced him.

"The next rider up currently in third place is Carlisle Cullen. The bull he is riding tonight is Hell's Fire, and boys let me tell you that the name fits with this one!"

Bella turned her attention back onto the rider just as he broke of the chute. She thought Jasper's bull was a tough ride until this one, he was something else altogether.

Hell's Fire was not the biggest bull that Carlisle had rode so far in his short career, but it was most definitely one of the wildest rides he had yet. This bull was a spinner, first one way than the other.

It was all he could do to hang on for the full 8 seconds that seemed like an eternity. And even then, right after the buzzer had sounded, that ol' bull managed to give one hellacious buck, sending him into the air and onto the the ground. After landing not so graciously, he scrambled to his feet before Hell's Fire could trample or gore him. Running quickly, he jumped up onto the nearest fence he could reach. He couldn't move...he was frozen in place as his eyes just seemed to lock on the pair of chocolate eyes right in front of him.

Bella jumped a bit when a face was suddenly thrust into her view. What happened next, she couldn't explain, she just couldn't help but star back into those beautiful eyes. Something drew her to them like a moth to a flame. It was only when Jasper made a grab for Carlisle to keep the bull from poking him in the ass, that their gaze was broken. But before she could even say a word to him, both boys were gone. All Bella could do was to think about those eyes.

After that, she pretty much lost interest in the rodeo. Two more riders tried to master those long eight seconds. One stayed on, but didn't score enough to be in the top three. The other just fell off right at the chute. She was too busy thinking about that last rider and those piercing blue eyes of his to even watch the last to ride.

The rodeo was coming to an end and the last event was finished. Soon the arena announcer started giving the final results of all the events and the awards were being handed out.

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"... And the final awards for the night is for the bull riding event. In third place with a score of 172 is Alec Volturi. Second place, scoring 178.5 is Jasper Whitlock..."

Alice started jumping up and down, clapping and screaming from him as he accepted his belt buckle and check. Bella could help but laugh at her friends exuberance over her boyfriend's win. Her attention didn't stay that long on Jasper, she was more excited about he cowboy who wasn't awarded his prize yet.

"Tonight's first place bull rider with a total score of 180 goes to... Carlisle Cullen!"

The arena breaks into deafening cheers as Carlisle steps up to the judges to get his trophy buckle and check. He turns back around waving his hat around and scanned the crowd, looking for the brown eyes that has him mesmerized. As soon as he spots her, he can see that she is cheering for him. But before he could go over and talk to her, Alec asks him if he is ready to go. He wished he had taken Jasper's offer for a ride today, that way he could have a chance to meet her properly.

"Before y'all go," Jasper called out getting their attention, "I just wanted to invite y'all over to Saddle Ridge Ranch for a barbeque tomorrow."

"Thanks for the invite Whitlock, but I can't make it," Alec replied, "maybe next time."

"How about you Carlisle, can you make it?" Jasper asked.

"I'd like to, if I can get a ride." This hadn't been the only time he wished he had a vehicle. Unfortunately, his car had died not soon after he got here and he didn't have the funds yet to replace it.

"Great! I'll pick you up tomorrow., it's no problem." With that, Jasper headed out to meet the girls and head back to the ranch.

All the way out to the truck, Alice talked non-stop about how well Jasper did. She praised him enough that he did blush a little. The little pixie didn't notice how quiet her friend had become, though Jasper did.

"Bella, did you have a good time at the rodeo tonight?" Jasper placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked like she was having fun earlier, he thought. Now, he just couldn't tell from the look on her face.

She gave him a small smile, "Yes I did, it was... fun. I was worried watching you ride that horned behemoth."

He just grinned back at her, "Don't worry Darlin', I do what I can to keep myself safe out there." He didn't know if she herd his response or not, he could see that she was a million miles away in her thoughts. Jasper decided not to push it.

Yes, Bella was absorbed in her thoughts... Thoughts of those blue eyes and the blond hair that she notice when he took his hat off as he searched for her in the stands, at least that's what her heart had led her to believe. Did she believe in love at first sight? How could she even believe in that when she hadn't even had a chance to talk to him. She was wondering though, if she would ever see him again.

A/N: As long as I have lived here in TX, I still haven't had the privilege to go to a rodeo but I have seen a few on TV. So if I didn't get some things right, I do ask for your forgiveness. Just do me a big favor by pushing that button down there and leave me some love!

CC