Chapter 7
DAWSON
I showed up early because I didn’t have a choice.
Ruby had made it clear weeks ago that rodeo sponsors expected visibility at community events, and the Valentine’s dinner was the biggest one Mustang Mountain had outside of summer.
So I put on the cleanest shirt I owned, checked my watch twice, and told myself I’d stay long enough to shake the right hands and then leave.
Lilah was meeting me there. She’d been in town with Ashley most of the afternoon, something about needing a break from the ranch. I hadn’t thought much of it until I walked into the community center and Ruby zeroed in on me like a heat-seeking missile.
“Dawson.” She beamed, embracing the spirit of the holiday in a red sweater covered in glittering hearts. “You’re right on time.”
“Hi, Ruby.”
“Ashley helped Lilah get ready,” she said, her voice too casual while she adjusted one of her earrings. “We thought she deserved a little pampering since she’s been working so hard out at your place.”
I narrowed my eyes. No telling what Ruby had up her sleeve this time. “Is that right?”
“Mmhmm.” Her smile didn’t waver. “You’ll see.”
Before I could respond, she swept off toward the kitchen, leaving me standing there with the uncomfortable feeling that I’d just been outmaneuvered.
I moved toward the auction tables, scanning the donated items without really seeing them. My mind kept circling back to Ruby’s tone, the deliberate way she’d mentioned Ashley, like the two of them had orchestrated something I hadn’t agreed to.
And maybe I was on edge a little because the ranch didn’t feel the same after Lilah left this afternoon.
It was too quiet without her. Too gray and dreary without her smile.
I didn’t like it a damn bit, and I was pissed at the realization I was letting her get under my skin.
And even more pissed that I liked her there.
The room filled slowly with couples from town and sponsors I recognized from the rodeo committee. I shook hands and made small talk while keeping one eye on the door.
Then Lilah walked in.
I forgot how to breathe.
I’d never seen her in a dress. Heat coursed through my veins as my gaze raked over the dark red fabric that hugged her curves and fell just below her knees.
Her hair was down, loose and shining under the community center lights, and she moved through the room with the same confidence she brought to everything, but softer somehow.
She looked absolutely stunning.
Her eyes found mine across the room, and she smiled.
I crossed to her before I could think better of it.
“Hey,” she said, her voice warm.
“Hey.”
For a second, neither of us moved. Then someone brushed past, and I remembered where we were.
“You look—” I started, then stopped, because good didn’t cover it and anything more felt too big for this room.
“Different?” she offered, a little teasing.
“Yeah.”
Her smile widened, just a fraction, and I wanted to touch her. Pull her close. Make it clear to everyone watching exactly who she was to me. That she was mine.
But I didn’t.
“Dawson!” A voice cut through the moment. I turned to see Harrison Winslow, owner of one of the bigger ranches in the area, with a knowing grin spread across his face. “I didn’t know you were bringing someone.”
My head snapped up, and I realized, with a sharp kick to the gut, that I’d kept her to myself. Out at the ranch, in my space, in my routine. I hadn’t thought about what it meant that no one here had really seen her yet. That I’d been holding her close without ever naming what that meant.
“Hey, Harrison. Meet Lilah. She’s been training at the ranch.”
Harrison’s grin sharpened. “Is that right? Well, you’ve been doing a good job keeping her hidden.”
Lilah’s expression didn’t shift, but she went still beside me.
“She’s been busy,” I said.
“I bet.” Harrison’s gaze flicked between us, curious and knowing in a way that made my jaw tighten. “It’s good to see you finally bringing someone around. Even if she is a little young for you.”
His comment landed in the center of my chest and seemed to knock the wind right out of me.
Lilah’s hand brushed mine, light and grounding, but I didn’t correct him. Didn’t explain. Didn’t say anything that would put a name to what we were, because I didn’t have one that fit.
As Harrison moved on, Lilah’s fingers slipped away. Before I had a chance to downplay his comment, Ruby appeared at Lilah’s side.
She pulled Lilah into a quick hug like they were old friends. “Don’t you look lovely. That color is perfect on you.”
“Thanks to Ashley,” Lilah said, her smile genuine.
“She has good taste.” Ruby turned to me, her expression shifting just enough to feel deliberate. “Dawson, I need to borrow you for a moment. Rodeo business.”
She steered me toward a quieter corner of the room where one of the rodeo committee members stood with a folder tucked under his arm. Lilah stayed behind, close enough to see us talking but far enough away she couldn’t hear.
“Insurance flagged something,” he said. “The marker Slade found has triggered a historical review.”
My shoulders tightened.
“They want us to limit scope while they sort through it,” he continued. “Keep disclosures tight. Rodeo stock only. Listed riders only.”
Ruby glanced up at me, gauging my reaction.
“Temporary training use doesn’t need to be included,” the man added. “It keeps things moving.”
I understood immediately what he meant. It was about convenience. About making things simpler by making someone invisible… Lilah.
“No,” I said.
Ruby’s brows lifted.
“She’s using my stock with my approval,” I continued. “I won’t cut her off because it’s inconvenient.”
“This could delay approval,” the man warned. “Sponsors won’t love it.”
“I know.” Adding her meant expanding the review. It would require more forms, more questions, and more time. But leaving her off wasn’t an option.
Ruby studied me for a long moment, then nodded. “Dawson’s right. Everything stays above board.”
I didn’t wait for him to say anything else.
My goal was to get to Lilah and fill her in before she heard the news from someone else.
I found her by the auction tables making small talk with Torin.
My gut clenched and an uncomfortable wave of jealousy surged through me.
She could talk to anyone she wanted. I didn’t have any kind of claim over her.
But still, the urge to pull her against my side to let everyone know she was mine surged inside.
“Everything okay?” Torin asked.
“Yeah, I just need to talk to Lilah for a minute,” I said.
“Alright. I’ll see you both later.” Torin moved down the table, leaving us alone and the tension in my shoulders eased.
Nudging Lilah’s hair away from her ear with my nose, I whispered low enough that only she could hear me. “I need to tell you something.”
She turned fully toward me. “Okay.”
“One of the committee members suggested narrowing disclosure while they review a few issues,” I said. “That would’ve meant leaving your training off the books.”
Her jaw tensed.
“I said no,” I added. “It may slow things down. Sponsors don’t love uncertainty, and I’m already pushing my luck with the review.”
“I don’t want to make things harder for you, Dawson.”
“You’re not. They’re trying to cut corners, but if you’re working with my horses, you need to be covered. It’s not negotiable.” I didn’t want her to feel like this was her fault.
She studied my face for a moment, then nodded. “Okay.”
We found our assigned table, and I pulled her chair out for her before sitting down next to her. We were close enough that our shoulders brushed. Close enough that I could feel her warmth.
We made conversation with the group at our table and people stopped by throughout the evening…
neighbors… rodeo committee members. Everyone wanted to meet the gorgeous woman in red by my side.
I hated being the center of attention and she didn’t seem to love it either.
So I kept my hand on hers under the table, my thumb tracing slow circles against her palm.
It felt like enough. Like my presence said what words didn’t need to…at least not yet.
But halfway through dinner, Lilah leaned in, her voice low. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah.” I squeezed her hand. “Why?”
“You’re tense.”
I wasn’t sure how to explain the marker, the ledger, the way Ruby’s comment had cracked open something I’d been trying to keep contained. So I didn’t.
“It’s just been a long day,” I said.
She searched my face, and I could see her deciding whether to press. In the end, she nodded and went back to her meal.
But her hand felt a little lighter in mine, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I’d missed something important.
The band started up after dessert, a couple of local guys playing something upbeat and fast that filled the room with an energy I wasn’t in the mood for.
I kept my attention on my plate, on the little bit of some overcooked piece of chicken I wasn’t eating, trying to ignore the way people were already drifting toward the makeshift dance floor.
Ruby appeared at my shoulder like she’d been waiting for the right moment to strike.
“No one’s dancing,” she said, her tone bright and cheerful in a way that set off every warning bell in my head.
I didn’t look up. “Give it time.”
“Time’s not the problem.” She leaned in, lowering her voice. “The problem is that people are waiting for someone else to go first. And you, Dawson Griffith, are exactly the someone they’re waiting for.”
“Ruby—”
“You brought a date,” she continued, relentless. “A beautiful one. Who looks absolutely lovely tonight and has been stuck at this table with you brooding for the past hour.”
Lilah’s lips twitched, fighting a smile.
“Go dance with the girl,” Ruby said, her tone shifting from suggestion to directive. “Set the example. Be a gentleman.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but Ruby was already walking away, her attention probably narrowing in on her next victim as she disappeared into the crowd.