Page 9 of August’s Cowboy Braxton

Whatever ghosts lived in this house, Braxton had left them behind on purpose. And now he'd brought me into it.

Later that night, I lay in the upstairs bedroom and stared at the ceiling. The house was quiet except for the creak of old wood and the sound of Braxton moving around downstairs.

My phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number.

Cute bodyguard. But you can't hide forever.

I closed my eyes and tried not to think about the crown on my pillow or the way Braxton's voice had sounded when he said someone had been close.

Downstairs, a floorboard creaked. I heard Braxton's footsteps, steady and controlled, pacing the length of the house like he was standing guard. And I realized he was right.

This wasn't someone watching from a distance anymore. This was someone I'd already let too close.

CHAPTER 3

BRAXTON

The junior queen clinic started at nine, but Addison said she needed to be there at seven-thirty. I watched her unlock the registration office, flip on the lights, and arrange name tags on folding tables with the kind of focus most people reserved for demolitions work. Every tag faced the same direction. Every pen lined up exactly where someone's hand would reach for it.

She wore jeans, boots, and a pink fitted western shirt with pearl snaps that caught the early light. Her hair was pulled back in a braid that trailed down the middle of her back, ending just above her waist. She wasn’t wearing a crown yet but still moved through the space like she ruled every inch of it.

"You always show up this early?" I asked from the entrance.

She glanced over her shoulder. "Do you always stand in doorways looking suspicious?"

"It's called situational awareness."

"It's called looming, and I don’t like it.”

I stepped inside. The space smelled like fresh coffee, printer paper, and the kind of floral perfume that drifted off everything Addison touched.

She handed me a cup of coffee without asking if I wanted one. "Black, no sugar. You look like the type."

I took it. "What type is that?"

"The type who thinks enjoying something is a character flaw." She gave me a wide smile, then turned back to her checklist before I could respond.

Families started arriving a half hour later. Nervous girls in western wear came in followed by parents who already had their camera apps pulled up.

Addison greeted every single one by name. "Karly, I love that buckle. Is it new?"

"Mrs. Peters, thank you so much for volunteering again."

"Emma, your smile is going to knock them out today."

She didn’t hesitate or second guess herself. She just knew.

I stayed back and watched her work until a commotion near the rail pulled my attention away from the gate.

Three of the junior contestants had abandoned whatever they were supposed to be doing and clustered around the biggest wolf I’d ever seen.

I stopped. “Why is there a wolf at a rodeo event?”

Addison followed my stare. “Oh. That’s Hades.”

She said it like that should explain everything.

“Hades.”