Rayna paced in front of the window anxiously.

"Just sit down," Tandy said, not even looking up from where she sitting on the sofa engrossed in her monthly reports.

"I can't. I haven't seen Maddie in two weeks. She's never been gone that long before. She won't even talk to me on the phone or answer my messages. "

Maddie was having an awful time with the news of the engagement, and it was getting continuously worse, not better. She'd been staying at Teddy's, and then Deacon's. But Deacon was leaving on Luke's tour in a few days, so Maddie was coming home. Reluctantly. Very reluctantly.

To say that she wasn't her daughter's favorite person right now was an underestimate.

With a sigh, Tandy put down her stack of papers, stood up, and walked over to stand next to her sister. "She's just being a teenager, you know. Hating her parents for making her life change. She'll get over it. I mean, god, remember the way we were at that age? No wonder Daddy had so much gray hair."

"I don't know," Rayna said with a sigh, going over and sinking onto the sofa. "I'm not sure she'll ever get over any of this. And I can't say I blame her much for being angry at all of us. Her life has been completely turned upside down in the last year."

"Have you seen him?" Tandy said. "Deacon?"

Rayna shook her head slowly. "We've texted. Only about Maddie. You know, questions about schedules and school and things. I don't know what else to say to him."

"Well you better figure it out in a hurry," Tandy said from her place at the window. "Because they're here. And he's getting out. That's my cue to leave. Call me later."

Her heart raced.

Maddie came into the house, gave her mother an icy glare, and headed right for the stairs without a word.

Rayna winced as she heard the heavy stomp of boots on the wooden stairs, and then a door slam a few minutes later.

And then there was Deacon.

For a second she didn't think he would come in, but then he was there, standing in her kitchen archway awkwardly with his hands in his front pockets. Had it only been two weeks since they'd stood in these two very spots? Two weeks since he'd laid it all on the line for her and walked away hoping she'd have faith to take the chance on them again, since he'd pressed that ring into her hand.

Just two weeks and it felt like a lifetime.

Deacon cleared his throat. His eyes looked everywhere but at her. "So she's…uh..still having a pretty rough time with….everything. But she's been keeping up with her homework, and she's got some event at school next week or something."

Rayna swallowed hard. This could work, she kept telling herself. They could still be Maddie's parents and raise her up and not be together. I mean, hell, her and Teddy did it, didn't they? It was virtually the same thing.

But it wasn't, not really. Not at all. Her and Teddy had fallen out of love and into "team mode" long before their divorce had ever been final.

Her and Deacon had never been anything but tangled in each other's lives. Untangling it now wasn't just hard, it was damn near impossible.

"I'll talk to her. Thanks for bringing her back. How long will you be gone?"

"A month. Then there's a break for about a week. I'll get back and see her when I can. "

"Well alright then."

He turned to go.

"Wait-." She said quickly.

He stopped, shoulders straight, but didn't turn around.

"I mean, is this it, Deacon? Are we going to keep going on like this?" She said quietly. "For Maddie's sake, I feel like we should put it behind us."

When Deacon turned around there was so much hurt in his eyes that it took her breath away. She had never seen him look so broken. Not even the night he found out he had a daughter. It wasn't like either one of them could just walk away because of Maddie. He'd known that the night he came here and said all those pretty words, and kissed her and looked at her with those eyes. He'd known how much he was putting on the line, and he'd done it anyway.

He was much braver than she would ever be.

"I know it's easy for you to just pretend like it didn't happen," he said quietly. "But it ain't as easy for me. I thought for a long time that I had something to fight for but….well, I guess not, huh? Guess I gotta accept that this slate will never be clean enough for you."

He turned and stalked out, leaving her feeling emotionally drained, struggling to find her composure. It was a few minutes before she realized her face was wet.

God, what had she done?

##############################################

"I can't wait to hear this song you've been talking about," Rayna said, throwing Luke a bright smile as he carried a stool onto the stage for her to sit on.

"Well, I thought it would be kinda nice, you know, since we're leaving on sunday and I won't see you until you come to Dallas in two weeks," he said, leaning over to plant a kiss on her mouth. "Wanted you to hear it before I play it onstage for the first time."

Rayna tapped her foot as the band started playing a bouncy beat, and Luke started singing.

Then she started listening to the lyrics, and her smile wavered. A lot. Actually, it was pretty damn hard to keep that smile pasted on her face at all.

What. The. Hell.

When the song ended, he looked all proud of himself. "So what'd you think? Another hit for sure. Course nowadays it'd prolly be a hit even if it was a dud, with you and me attached to it."

"I think…." She said, trying to remain calm. "That we need to talk."

Luke looked perturbed as she walked off the stage with her arm tucked firmly into his, and led

him to an empty corner of the rehearsal space.

"What's the matter?"

Rayna sighed. "Babe, you cannot sing a song about me with lyrics like "she likes to sleep with me

naked" in front of 40,000 people and you certainly cannot release it to country radio."

A horrendous image floated through her mind of sitting in the car with Maddie and Daphne and

suddenly that song would come on the radio. My god, she wondered seriously what he'd been thinking

even writing something like that.

"Oh come on, darlin. It's just a song. I just want the whole world to know how good we are

together."

"Is it really just a song?"

"Yeah, it is. Ain't even the raciest thing on the radio right now."

Rayna pressed her lips together. "It is not just a song, and you know it. It's you sticking it to Deacon. Not only onstage but in front of the world."

"Just makin a point," he said, not even denying it.

She did not look impressed. At all. "Do not sing that song onstage. Promise me?"

Luke's eyes trailed behind her, where Deacon had just walked in. He was standing there talking to one of the roadies, but his eyes were on the two of them and the dark look on his face was obvious.

Rayna didn't miss his gaze, and she turned and saw where he was looking.

Luke held up his hands in defense. "I'm not saying a word."

"How is all this gonna work?" She said quietly. "Him being on your tour and all? Are the two of you really thinking you'll be able to handle it, or you gonna need a referee?"

Part of her was kicking herself for even telling Luke about Deacon's proposal in the first place.

She'd been trying to do the right thing, trying to be honest but it seemed like it had done nothing so far

but backfire.

Luke shrugged. "It's just business as usual. I'm there to put on a show, not buddy up with the

openers anyway."

"Right," she murmured. Business as usual.

#########################################################################

Rayna sat on the edge of her bed and stared at the cd case in her hands. Everything was

different now. She'd made this record fully knowing it might be her last one. She'd put her heart and

soul into it, and now…well now somehow it's success had nothing to do with those songs and that

carefully chosen music and everything to do with her being half of a superstar couple. In short, it was

every single thing she'd tried to avoid doing and being for the last 25 years.

Daphne came into the room and crawled up onto the bed next to her. "Whatcha doing, Mom?"

"Just thinkin," she forced a smile. "You ready for a movie night? I have to go to that party with

Luke in a little while but Maddie will be here with you."

"Yep. As long as she doesn't sit there and be grouchy all night," Daphne rolled her eyes.

Rayna patted her hand. "You know she's having a hard time with some stuff right now.

Hopefully she'll feel better soon."

"Hopefully," Daphne said sadly. "I miss her being happy. I miss us singing together."

"Can I ask you something?" she said to her youngest daughter, Daphne always the ray of

sunshine. God bless this child, how she'd come out of the mess out of the last year more unscathed than

any of them.

"Sure."

"Do you want me to marry Luke?"

Daphne hesitated.

"Be honest. You won't hurt my feelings."

"Well…." Daphne hedged. "not really. I mean, he's nice enough and all."

"But?"

"But it makes everything different," she said in a quiet voice. "I liked it better when it

was just us. You know, me and you and Maddie and our dads…But Deacon told us we should want you

to be happy. I want you to be happy, mom. So you should marry Luke if he makes you happy."

She looked surprised at that remark. "Deacon….told you that?"

Daphne nodded. "We talked about it the other day when we were at his house. "

She stared at her youngest daughter. "You were at his house?"

"Dad said I can take guitar lessons now," Daphne explained. "So he let me go with Maddie to Deacon's house for the afternoon. You weren't here."

You weren't here. Those words pained her. She hadn't been "here" for enough lately, and even when she WAS here, so caught up in Highway 65 and dealing with Lamar's estate, and now this engagement stuff.

Things needed to change. Her little girls were growing up and slipping away from her.

"That's real nice that he's giving you lessons," she said. Because truthfully, Deacon had no obligations to Daphne at all. But he loved her just the same, and he had never hesitated to pay attention to her.

"Yeah…." Daphne's voice trailed off. "He can still be my Uncle Deacon, right?"

"Yes," she said firmly, even though it made her heart sting a little. "Now run off and find Maddie while I get ready."

Daphne stopped in the doorway. "I love you, Mommy. Whatever makes you happy, it makes me happy." And she bound off.

The honest of those words touched her heart and stung deep at the same time.

Luke appeared in her bedroom doorway just as she was getting into the shower.

He gave her a smirk at the sight of her standing there in the bathroom doorway in just a towel.

"Don't even think about it," she said with a warning smile. "I cannot be late tonight. I mean, it's my own party. And the girls are right downstairs."

She was in the shower before she realized she'd forgotten to take her ring off.

"Babe, can you put this in my jewelry box til I'm done?" She handed it out to him through the side of the shower curtain.

Luke obliged, going to her dresser and opening the box. But among the necklaces and bracelets, he noticed another ring. Smaller, not flashy at all, just a silver band without a stone.

It could have been nothing, he thought. But then again….

Luke picked it up and examined it. On the inside of the band was one word engraved; "Eternity".

Goddammit, Rayna, he thought. Why can't you just let go?

He was gonna put a stop to all this nonsense once and for all.

###########################################

They were all dressed up to the nines, on the way to the label party in the limo, and Rayna was feeling pretty good after all the trauma of the last few days with Maddie.

But Luke was real quiet all the way to the venue.

"Are you sure nothing's wrong?" She asked him again, taking his hand. Then she realized they were stopping.

"What the hell?" She murmured, glancing out the window. "Wait, why are we stopping here?"

"Just walk with me." Luke said, lacing her arm through his.

Whatever was eating at him, she didn't know, but his mouth was set in a straight line and he stared straight ahead as they walked.

"Luke," she said uneasily 15 minutes later when she found herself standing on the sidewalk on the Cumberland bridge. "If this is a joke, I missed the punchline."

He pulled something out of his pocket, and she realized he had Deacon's ring.

Her heart pretty much hit the pavement. "Why do you have that?" She reached out and took it from him slowly, realizing he must have seen it in her jewelry box earlier.

"The question is…." Luke said, unable to keep the anger out of his voice. "Why do you have it, Rayna? Is that the ring Deacon gave you?"

"I kept it because I was saving it for Maddie," she said, holding her chin high, and closing her fist around it. "It's just sentimental value, Luke. Don't you save things from your

ex for your kids?"

The doubt was written all over his face. "That's all it is, huh. Just an old ring."

"Yes."

"Prove it. Prove you've let go of Deacon once and for all."

She looked at him in confusion, and then she realized what he was saying and why he'd brought

her here. He wanted her to take that ring and just give it a big old fling, just toss it off the bridge and let

it fall to the bottom of the river forever. It really would be gone forever then.

Images of the last time she'd stood in almost this very spot with Deacon clouded her mind.

What would you change? Nothing. Everything. That makes two of us…

"I'm not gonna do that,"she said firmly."I told you. I'm saving it for Maddie. Now can we just

stop this ridiculousness and go to the party? We're standing in the middle of the bridge in formal wear.

Not a picture I need in the Tennessean tomorrow morning.

Without another word, Luke stalked down the sidewalk and headed back to the limo.

The party was such craziness, talking to so many people that she couldn't worry about it.

Reporters and interviewers in her face nonstop. Most of them didn't give a damn about her album, she

realized. They wanting the scoop on the wedding.

Luke had his smile pasted on, but she could tell even from across the room that he was angry and hurt.

And that ring was tucked safely into her purse where it belonged. She loved Luke, but like hell if

she was gonna fling it off a bridge. It meant more than that, and she really was saving it for Maddie.

He was real quiet on the way home, just staring out the window brooding.

"Listen," she said softly. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I'll … give it back to Deacon and he can keep it for Maddie."

Luke squeezed her hand. "You know what? Forget about that ring. Let's set a date. Right here, right now."

Rayna looked surprised. "Already? You don't want to wait a little while? I didn't even meet Sage yet, and everything going on with both our tours….."

"Yep," he said firmly. "Let's just pick a date and go from there. Or a month at least. We can pick the exact date later. How bout December? That way it'll be all done by Christmas and we can have our first Christmas as married people."

She laughed uneasily. "Luke, that's only three months away. I don't know if I'm ready for that."

"Well, I'm ready, Rayna. I want to start our life together."

"Okay, I guess," she said, trying to sound more enthusiastic. "December it is."

##############################################

Rayna sighed and picked up the newspaper. Her own face stared back at her. Pictures of her and Luke from the party the night before were plastered all over the front page. She thumbed through it, looking for the music reviews.

And on the second page of the entertainment section there was Deacon, who had apparently played a smaller show at one of the bars in town. They say all songs come from somewhere, and this last one had to come from somewhere deep. She silently read the quote by the reporter.

Quickly she turned the page. She didn't need to read the rest. She knew that the song Deacon had sung two weeks ago at the Bluebird had been a big deal. She knew this because Maddie had dropped blatant hints that it was about her. And so far she had avoided hearing it.

She'd never admit that she was afraid to hear it.

She rubbed her temples with her fingers as she dropped the newspaper on the kitchen counter and flipped through one the brochures a hundred different wedding venues had sent over. She was silently kicking herself for agreeing to have this wedding in a mere three months.

"This is ridiculous," she complained to Tandy. "Seriously. Luke wants a bigger wedding than George Clooney's, I swear. He's like a male bridezilla. I don't know why he has to have a room full of celebrity friends and reporters for it to be a great day."

Tandy was sitting next to her browsing over honeymoon travel brochures.

"He's trying to show you off, that's what he'd doing."

"Why in the world would he need to do that," Rayna muttered. "Our faces are already over every magazine in the country." She was so tired of being asked about "Ruke"'s wedding plans. Luke might be used to having the spotlight in his face 24/7 but she had always preferred to keep her private life private. It was impossible now. Worse than impossible. It was a nightmare.

"Because he's rubbing Deacon's face all over it," Tandy said without hesitation.

"Oh come on now, " Rayna rolled her eyes. "They're both more mature than that."

Tandy raised her eyebrows. "Two grown men fighting over the same woman? Don't bet on it."

Rayna paused in flipping through the magazine pages. "I have been dying to know how the tour's going." She admitted. "But I'm afraid to ask. I'm supposed to fly to Dallas for the show tomorrow night."

"Listen," Tandy said with a sigh. "I still think it was a jackass move the way Deacon did it, but….I don't know, Luke's been different lately. He's so damn obsessed with being rich and famous I think he's missing the point of….everything. I never realized what a fame whore he is."

"He didn't grow up like us, Tandy. He grew up with nothing." She said, frowning. "I think he just wants a better life than he had. "

"Deacon grew up with nothing." Tandy pointed out. "And he doesn't seem to feel the need to tell all the details of his life to the press."

"And why are you all "Team Deacon" all of a sudden?" Rayna said, hands on her hips. "After all those years of telling me I needed to put him behind me and move on?"

Tandy sighed, and closed her laptop. "That day when he dropped Maddie off, I met him outside when I was leaving. Something about that look on his face has been bothering me ever since."

Rayna looked down at the brochures spread out around him. She chewed her bottom lip.

She took a deep breath. "Tandy, what if I made the wrong choice?"

"Honey, it's a little late to be changing your mind now," she said gently. "You can't keep going back and forth like this. It's not fair to Luke, but to be honest, it's mostly not fair to Deacon. He's never going to move on if he thinks there's still hope."

She nodded, her heart feeling hollow. It hurt a little to hear that, but Tandy was just being honest. She'd made her choice. She'd chosen the safe route, the clean slate. There was no going back now. There was no hope. She'd decided that. For all of them. "

But she couldn't help but stare at all this wedding stuff and think of the wedding she really wanted.

"Wouldn't it be so nice," she said with a sigh. "Just to have a nice little ceremony outside somewhere…next to the water…just a few friends and family and some pretty dresses….Just us and the people that are important. Have a little party. No reporters, no cameras….Just me looking at him and him looking at me saying our vows and getting on with our life together."

Tandy raised her eyebrows and put down the brochure in her hand carefully. "I think it's a good think you've only got three months to think about marrying Luke."

"Why?" She murmured.

"Because," Tandy said calmly. "You know what you just did, right? You just described your wedding….to Deacon."

She stared at her sister. "I did not."

"You did. You need to quit doing this."

She knew Tandy was right.

Trouble was, she didn't know how to quit him.