Chapter 13
Dallas
“The rodeo’s back next weekend,” Marcus pointed out between bites of fried chicken. “Are you going to set me up with someone like you did last year?”
Dallas glanced from Marcus to Camilla. It had been stupid to get so close to her in the barn yesterday.
He’d nearly talked himself into backing out of dinner today.
Roman had insisted he come for Nikki’s fried chicken, and at the time Dallas had been thinking it would give him a chance to talk to Camilla.
But then she’d shown up in the barn full of apologies and gentle touches. He hadn’t been prepared for any of it, and it had shown when he’d nearly crossed the line and kissed someone else’s girlfriend.
Camilla wasn’t looking at him. She’d avoided making eye contact since the moment he’d shown up. He couldn’t tell if she was angry with him or just hurt. Maybe a little of both. Then again, since she hadn’t spoken to him nor had she looked in his direction, maybe it was apathy.
Marcus groaned at something Camilla had said. “Come on. It’s tradition.”
She snorted. “You’re right. It is. I’ve set you up with my friends for the last four years, and each time you’ve made a fool of yourself. None of them want to go out with you because you always leave them hanging.”
“Blind dates aren’t supposed to turn into relationships,” Marcus insisted. “You can’t know you’re in love after meeting someone one time.”
Camilla’s eyes darted to Dallas and that one look had heat unfurling in his chest. He’d known he was in love from the first moment their gazes had locked.
He’d told her as much. Dallas tore his focus from her and glanced at Jason, who was seated with another cowboy at a different table.
There had to be something wrong with the guy.
If Dallas had been dating Camilla, he would use every excuse he could to sit right beside her.
As it was, the only people at this table were her siblings Marcus, Isabelle, Roman, and his fiancée Olivia.
He’d sat down with Roman before he’d known Camilla planned to sit there.
How had he gone from chasing this girl to rekindle whatever he could to wanting to avoid her at all costs?
His eyes slid over to Jason, and he frowned.
Okay, he knew the answer to that question.
The man in all his glory—the new boyfriend.
He was the reason Dallas was regretting every decision he’d been making since he’d arrived.
“You have to know someone. I’m guessing there are loads of girls you could match me up with.” He tapped his finger on his chin, and then his eyes lit up. “What about that girl you set Roman up with? What was her name?”
Olivia choked on the water she was drinking. Roman looked like he was about to throttle Marcus for bringing him into the conversation. Camilla didn’t look too far off from mirroring her brother’s sentiments.
“Melody. That’s it.” Marcus grinned at his older sister. “I know she’s a little older than me, but man, she was…” He mimed a chef’s kiss.
“Not going to happen,” Camilla snapped. “Besides, Melody doesn’t go for guys who don’t know what they want in life.” She tilted her head, her expression more thoughtful. “But I think she’s got a younger sister.”
“Perfect.” Then Marcus pointed at Dallas. “He seems to know what he wants. Maybe you should set Melody up with Dallas, and we can all go to the rodeo together.”
If Dallas didn’t know any better, he would have thought he saw Camilla pale at the suggestion.
Roman shot Dallas a warning look that was so short Dallas wasn’t sure he’d seen it correctly.
And Isabelle’s wide eyes were bouncing from Dallas to Camilla with curiosity as if she had a secret begging to be spilled.
Dallas coughed a little and picked up his drink. “I wouldn’t mind being set up.”
If possible, Isabelle’s eyes widened further, and she elbowed Camilla in the side.
He slowly dragged his attention from Isabelle to Camilla. “Like Marcus said. We could make it a group thing. You could bring Jason.”
This time Dallas didn’t miss the dark look Roman glared at him before he got to his feet and left the table.
“Jason?” Camilla asked, her focus shifting to the other table. Her boyfriend must have heard his name because he perked up and looked over at their table. A grin spread across his face, and he sauntered over. He leaned his hands on the table, his eyes darting from Marcus to Camilla and back.
“What’s up?” Jason asked. “Need something?”
Before Camilla or Dallas could say a word, Marcus chuckled. “Want to come on our group date? Camilla needs a plus-one.”
Jason grinned at Camilla. “Sure. Sounds fun.”
Dallas watched the guy through slightly narrowed eyes. He definitely wasn’t acting like a boyfriend. Had Cheyenne gotten it wrong? No. That couldn’t be possible. Camilla was her best friend. Cheyenne would know who Camilla was seeing.
“There, it’s settled,” Marcus announced. “Camilla, you call Melody and see if her sister is available. Then we can all go to the rodeo next weekend.”
Marcus and Jason were all smiles. Olivia looked confused. Isabelle was clearly about ready to burst with something. And Camilla wasn’t meeting anyone’s eyes.
Dallas wanted to say something. To ask her why she suddenly looked sick to her stomach. But he kept his thoughts to himself. This was better. He needed to move on. He couldn’t be the person who came between Camilla and her relationship.
At least that was what he’d tell himself when all he wanted to do was pull her into his chest, inhale her scent, and kiss her like there was no guarantee of tomorrow.
Dallas couldn’t deny that Melody was objectively attractive. She had a lot going for her. Besides her job as a nurse, she liked to volunteer in the community. She was tall, slender, and looked like she belonged on the cover of a magazine rather than in a small town like Copper Creek.
There was just one thing wrong with her.
She wasn’t Camilla.
Dallas caught himself staring at Camilla more times than he wanted to admit. And he got more than a small thrill out of catching her staring right back.
The rodeo was crowded, loud, and full of bustling activity, but none of it distracted him from her. Camilla wore jean shorts paired with a loose white blouse. Her cowboy boots came up mid-calf and her hair had been pulled back into two braids. She was a vision, and Jason didn’t even seem to notice.
Her boyfriend just seemed to want to joke around with her. They didn’t hold hands. And more often than not he’d slip away to chat with friends he knew.
“There’s live music over by the multipurpose building,” Melody called out over the sound of the announcer at the arena. “Do you want to check it out?”
Dallas caught Camilla’s eye for what felt like the hundredth time. Their gazes lingered for a moment before he forced himself to respond to Melody. “Yeah. Sounds fun.”
His date smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
Even he could tell she wasn’t enjoying herself.
They really hadn’t been as well-paired as Marcus had thought.
The second their group had arrived, Marcus had darted away with his date toward the carnival games.
Their group date had turned out to be nothing short of a disaster.
After the three of them tracked Jason down from where he was shamelessly flirting with a girl making corndogs, they headed for the live music.
“It’s okay,” Melody murmured to him. She stood by his side, her eyes locked on the performers. He wasn’t sure he’d heard her correctly and nearly asked when she beat him to the punch. “You were the one who got away, right?”
He glanced down at her again, noting she still kept her attention on the band. “What?”
Melody laughed. It sounded almost sad. “I heard all about you. Imagine my surprise when Camilla reached out and asked me for another favor.”
“Favor?” He turned to face her, frowning. She merely shook her head and waved a dismissive hand through the air.
“What I don’t understand is why you don’t just ask her out. It’s clear that you still like her.”
“I can’t do that,” he ground out.
She scoffed. “Why not?”
She has a boyfriend. The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he bit them back. Jason certainly wasn’t acting like boyfriend material. If he was the only thing stopping him from asking, then what did he have to lose?
Melody laughed. It was quiet, but he heard just enough between two songs to notice it was more of a disbelieving sound than anything else. “You guys are a piece of work. I’ve never seen two people more determined to lie to themselves than the both of you.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he demanded.
This time she turned to face him. Her hands were on her hips, and she was scowling at him. “Camilla’s my friend. I don’t like seeing her hurting. So how about you track her down and tell her how you feel. At least one of you needs to say it or both of you will end up miserable.”
“She knows how I feel,” he snapped.
“Does she? Because from what I can tell, you’re going out of your way to insist you’ve moved on.”
“I’ve moved on?”
Melody’s eyes darted to something behind him. “I’ll be right back.” Her focus cut to his for a moment longer. “Unless you finally realize you’re being an idiot and you do something about those feelings. Then maybe we’ll both have more fun tonight.”
Dallas watched her go, stunned. What on earth was she talking about? Had Camilla told her something?
His confusion shifted into something resembling anger. He was so tired of skirting around the issue. So frustrated that she’d settle with someone who didn’t seem to care about her one bit. Perhaps those emotions were the driving force for why he’d turned to search for Camilla in the crowd.
Jason was talking to another group of men, leaving Camilla watching the performers. Then she heaved a sigh and slipped into the crowd—toward the food trucks.
Dallas followed. One step in front of the other. He stayed far enough behind not to alert her to his presence. She wandered down the rows of food trucks until she came to stand beneath a tree in front of an Italian shaved ice truck.
When her tongue darted out of her mouth to moisten her lips, he lost the thread of control he had on his resolve. He marched toward her with a purpose, and at the last second, she caught sight of him.
Camilla whirled around and stumbled back a step. The bark of the tree prevented her from falling when her heel snagged on a root, and her eyes flew wide. “Dallas, what are you…” Her focus darted behind him before returning to his face. “Where’s Melody?”
“Tell me why…” he demanded.
“What?”
He moved in closer, his face slanting so he could take her in—truly drink in every aspect of her expression. “Why did you set me up with her?”
“Because you wanted—”
“No. I didn’t want to go out with anyone.”
Her brows furrowed. “You said you wouldn’t mind—”
“Marcus wanted a date. Or did you forget how he volunteered me as tribute? What else was I supposed to say?”
One corner of her mouth twitched, and she ignored his question. “Melody isn’t that bad.”
No, she wasn’t bad at all. But she wasn’t who he wanted. “Why?” he demanded again.
“Dallas.” She sighed. “I don’t know what you want me to say.”
“I would like to think that you know my type well enough that you would have told your brother Melody was out of the question.”
This time Camilla’s features tightened. She actually looked mad. “If you didn’t want to go on a group date, then why did you insist on coming? Why drag Jason into this?”
“Why drag Jason…” He released a mirthless chuckle and stared up at the sky before dragging his eyes back to hers. “Do you still have feelings for me?”
She blinked once, then twice. When she didn’t respond, he reached out and grasped her by her upper arms. His hold on her was gentle, but unexpected, which caught Camilla off guard just enough for her to really focus on him and only him.
“Answer the question, Camilla,” he whispered.
There was a note of anguish in his voice, but he didn’t care anymore.
She’d been teasing him, toying with him.
She wasn’t making any sense. Why touch him and look at him that way when she was happy to stay in a relationship that did nothing for her?
“Do you have feelings for me?” he asked again.
Her wide eyes searched his. Her lips parted.
“Camilla?”
They both jumped and turned toward the woman dishing out the shaved ice.
“Medium pineapple?”
Camilla tore away from Dallas, her voice strained. “Yeah, that’s mine.”
“Sorry about the wait. I had to send our guy out to the trailer to get another bin.” The young woman handed Camilla the shaved ice with a smile, then glanced at Dallas warily.
“It’s fine. Thank you.” Camilla accepted her treat, then she tossed him a glance and hurried back into the crowd.
Dallas’s hands balled at his sides, and he blew out a deep breath. She’d been so close to telling him how she felt. And he’d lost his chance yet again.