"You ready for this?"

Rayna Jaymes looked over and smiled at Deacon Claybourne. He was holding his guitar, the strap with his name that she'd given him so many years ago was against his chest. Yes, she was more than ready.

"Absolutely," she replied.

"Ladies and gentlemen, returning to the stage for the first time since we all saw her here last year at the Country Music Awards, singing the This Time, the first single off her new album, The Parts I Remember...the queen of country music...Miss Rayna Jaymes."

Rayna smiled at Deacon again and lead him onto stage, the microphone in her hand.

Well, you know how it goes

When you meet somebody

That you like somebody

Wanna hold somebody

As the music took over and Deacon began to hit his stride, it started to feel like maybe the last year had never happened. There were still parts that she remembered and other parts she didn't, but after months of recovery for Deacon's hand and a lot of cognitive therapy to deal with her memory loss, they were finally back on stage, together, singing a song they had written together.

She watched as his fingers slipped across the strings in a way they had both feared would never be possible again. It had felt like years, not months as she worked on her memory, trying to get to a point where she not only knew the words to the songs she'd been singing for years, but had the confidence that once she got up on the stage she'd be able to sing them the way she always had. But here they were, making music again. Together.

As they finished, she bowed to the audience and then leaned in to plant her lips on his. He slid his arm around her and pulled her closer to him. "Nice job, Ray," he whispered into her ear.

She put her lips to his once again as the crowd continued to celebrate with them. As she pulled away, she smiled. "Think we might be able to make a living off this?" she teased.

"Somethin' like that," Deacon responded as they headed back off the stage.

The tour was set to start the next week, two days after the album dropped. Tonight had just been a tease. Being back on the road, playing to arenas, that would be the true test.

"Felt good to be back out there," Deacon said as he came into their bedroom and pulled back the comforter.

Rayna finished rubbing cream into her hands and leaned over to kiss him. "It was amazing, babe. Your hand feel okay? You were really tearing it up out there."

Deacon nodded. "Yeah, hand feels good, but I have to admit I have a headache. Nothin' a good night of sleep won't fix, though."

He slid down, his head on the pillow and rolled slightly onto his side as Rayna curled into him.

Nothin' at all, he thought as he drifted off to sleep.

Rayna pulled the carafe from the coffee maker and filled the coffee mugs on the counter. "Splash of cream for you, Buck?" she asked her manager.

"Yeah, thanks, Ray," he replied. "Well, reports are all very good," he said as he took a sip of the cup. "Another great performance."

"And the tour?" Rayna asked. "How is that looking?"

"Shows are selling well. The midwestern leg is sold out and the western leg goes on sale tomorrow. Edgehill seems very pleased with the prospects for the album launch."

Rayna sipped from her cup and sat down at the counter across from Bucky. "They've been really patient. Kind of surprised me."

"You've done a lot for Edgehill over the years," Bucky replied. "You needed a year to get over this and you're gonna be back out there better than ever."

Rayna took another drink and set her mug down. "I hope so, Bucky. I just...it still worries me a little bit. How we're gonna hold up, how it's going to affect me, Deacon, us...it's just been so good these past few months, just spending time on getting back to being us again, becoming a family. How does that all change when we head back out on the road?"

Bucky stood up and slipped his coat on. "You're a pro, Ray. You'll get it done. Now, I just have a couple of things for Deacon to sign. Is he headed down soon?"

Rayna smiled. "He was in the shower when you got here. I'm sure he'll be down in a minute, but let me run up there and check on him."

Bucky watched as she headed for the steps, then picked up the newspaper to see the photo of Rayna and Deacon on the front page of the lifestyle section.

"Bucky!" Rayna screamed from the floor above. "Bucky!"

The water had still been running when Rayna came into the bathroom, but Deacon wasn't in the shower. He was on the floor. Unconscious.

All she could do is call for help and hold him. And pray.

TBC