Page 35 of The Undercover Cowboy

They took their impromptu picnic under one of the several pavilions that were set up with long tables and bench seating. Giant fans were set up near the tent’s ceilings and a water mister was at the front and back end.

“Going to be a hot one,” he said as they sat down. It was still early so this area wasn’t as packed as it normally would be.

“So what do you want to talk about?” She shifted uncomfortably as she poked into her Frito chili pie with a plastic fork. She wasn’t ready to bring up the subject of the cheerleader uniform last night and she was hoping he wasn’t going to confront her about Leisure Industries. She wanted to see how serious Nash was about this “us” business. She could lose her job if word got out. And she wasn’t fighting this hard to keep this rodeo afloat so she could be kicked out because of the morality clause in her contract.

Did Nash just want a quick lay and a casual fling? If so, she’d be on board with that, but she wasn’t about to share her heart or her secrets with him.

Or was he in for the long haul? Dolly wasn’t sure they’d be so good together after they got the hot sex they’d been building toward all year out of the way. They were too different. She liked to play hard and fast with the rules and he was the king of rules. But it could be fun while it lasted.

“You never did tell me what had upset you so much last night. That gift that someone dropped off.”

Yeah, and she wasn’t about to tell him now, either. “Oh that…” She gave an artful laugh. “That was just a misunderstanding. It turned out to be something for Loretta. An art book.” The lie came easily to her. “I thought it was porn.”

“Uh-huh,” Nash said.

Jeez, he didn’t look like he believed her. Was she losing her touch or was he beginning to see through her bullshit? Neither was good. Truth was, she was scared of what that cheerleading outfit meant. At the most benign, someone was being an asshole. But Dolly thought that it was more along the lines of something more nefarious. Blackmail? What on earth would she do then? She didn’t have any money to pay off a blackmailer. She’d have to come clean to Nash. Maybe his FBI buddies could help her then. It was just that Nash saw the world in black and white, withno room for gray. Her past was gray, and could very well come back to bite her in the ass at any minute.

She polished off her meal and sprang up to dump the wrapper in the trash. See, this is why she was a workaholic. She didn’t have to think about serious shit like this when she was taking pictures and working as a spin doctor.

“You okay?” Nash said coming up behind her. His hands felt solid and comforting on her shoulders.

“I’m still rattled about Blevins firing you and stepping over my request at the will-call booth. I think it would be best if we just headed down to the Rocky Ridge Ranch’s pavilion and get in some Donnan time. I can distract the workers with a behind-the-scenes interview while you check out his area.”

“Honestly, I think if there was something to find, we missed it. The next rodeo in Laredo is the key event to do a search and investigation. The bulls from Jaripeo Ranch are coming up from Mexico and if Rocky Ridge has something in a secret compartment, they’ll move it on the first day in Laredo.”

Dolly blew out a frustrated breath. “Okay, I guess I don’t have to promo you this weekend. Let Blevins forget about you. Well, now what?”

“Now, you need to stop working so hard.” Nash gently turned her around. “It’s not worth it until Shelby is rid of Blevins. I don’t want to alarm you,” he said. “But this season might be the UPRC’s last, if Blevins keeps up what he’s been doing.”

Dolly pushed down that familiar anxiety. She was no longer a scared twenty-something kid out of a job. She could always live in the Winnebago, if she lost her apartment. She could always mooch off of LeAnn or Reba, if she didn’t want to go back home. She had options.

Being jobless didn’t equate to being homeless anymore and it sure didn’t mean she’d have to consider something like escorting again. She could freelance her PR skills. She could…

“Are you all right?” Nash said.

Dolly forced herself to take a slow drink of her iced tea before answering him. “I’m fine.”

“You look like you’re about to cry.”

Did she?

She blew out a shaky breath. “I know that attendance is down. It doesn’t help that we’ve had more tragedy than a Shakespearean play lately. Ronnie Sunderland’s death, two crazed bulls, and don’t even get me started on the doping and gambling scandal. Seems like Blevins might be driving this rodeo into the ground on purpose. We need to find that evidence against Blevins before he puts the final nail in the UPRC coffin.” She really loved her job and she didn’t want to start over. But more importantly, she didn’t think shecouldstart over again.

“Me. Not we.”

“We’re in this together, buddy. Whether you like it or not.”

“Why?” he asked.

Dolly realized that she was white-knuckled and forced herself to unclench her fists. “This job is important to me.”

“It’s important to Shelby, too.”

She was pretty sure that Shelby would land on her feet if the company went under. Dolly wasn’t so sure about herself. “After I was let go from the football club, I tried a lot of things. And I failed at a lot of things.”

She met his gaze. Nash’s eyes were warm and sympathetic. She wondered if they would turn scornful and hateful if she went into details. She didn’t want to take a risk like that right now. “I wanted to be a YouTuber or an influencer. But I couldn’t get enough likes and followers to make the ads profitable. I really had to struggle.”

“And you’re worried that if you lose your job, you’d go back to struggling?”

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