Page 43 of August’s Cowboy Braxton

A soft laugh escaped me.

Her smile was small and exhausted, but real.

Half my life, I’d built my life around the belief that if I planned enough, watched closely enough, controlled enough variables, nobody could make the choice Eli had made. Tonight Addison had made choices I never would have made for her.

She’d gone into the trailer. Stayed when every instinct in me wanted her out. Found the window when I couldn’t see past the flames. And she was sitting next to me, very much alive. Not because I’d controlled every move, but because we’d trusted each other.

When we reached the ranch, I unlocked the door and followed her inside. Addison stopped in the kitchen and turned toward me. For a moment, neither of us said anything. Then she stepped into my arms.

I held her. There was no strategy, no angle, no plan for what happened next. Just Addison breathing against my chest.

Alive.

Because when it mattered, we’d listened to each other. For the first time in a long damn time, that felt like enough.

CHAPTER 10

ADDISON

By Sunday morning, Evie was in custody and Torin had enough to keep her there. Stalking. Threats. Breaking and entering. Theft. Reckless endangerment. Attempted destruction of evidence.

Seeing the list in black and white should have made everything feel settled. It didn’t.

Evie Mercer had been my mentor since I was sixteen. She’d taught me how to smile for cameras, shake hands with sponsors, and make everything look effortless. She’d also put a tracker in my crown case.

Torin had questioned her about Roy Pritchard and the forged livestock paperwork. She denied any connection to either.

“I took the album and Boone’s notebook,” she’d told him. “That’s all.”

So far, nothing contradicted her. Which meant Cedar Draw had somehow become part of two different problems.

Morgan had promised we’d sort through the historical evidence once the weekend was over. Torin had Roy to deal with. And for the next several hours, I had a group of junior contestants who deserved a Rodeo Royalty Weekend that wasn’t swallowed up by everything Evie had done.

Ruby had offered to cancel the rest of it. I’d said no. Not because sponsors expected me to finish. Not because the girls were counting on me. Not because Evie had spent years teaching me to smile through whatever happened.

I wanted to finish. There was a difference.

By the time the junior clinic started, the grounds were already humming again. Parents crowded the rail with phones held high. Girls hurried between the registration table and the arena in boots that were either too new or too big. Somebody had lost a sash, somebody else had lost three bobby pins, and one nine-year-old had slipped in the mud and needed a whole new dress.

Normal problems. I could handle normal.

Martina Hernandez waited until the other girls headed toward the arena before tugging on my sleeve. “Miss Addison?”

I crouched down next to her. “What’s up?”

She twisted her fingers together, her bracelet sparkling on her small wrist. “What do you do if somebody makes wants a hug and you don’t want to give them one?”

The question landed somewhere deep.

Her mother stood a few feet away, watching us.

For years, I’d known exactly what Evie would have told me. Smile. Deflect. Don’t embarrass anyone. Keep the peace.

I looked Martina in the eye. “You say no.”

She nodded like she was taking my answer to heart.

“Loud if you need to. And if they don’t listen, you get away from them and find someone you trust.”