Deacon turned away from the stage and slowly made his way out of the arena. There was no way in hell he was going to stand around watching Rayna get cozy with Luke Wheeler out there on stage like that. There was just something about seeing her out there with another man that made him feel like someone had just punched him in the gut. It wasn't a pleasant experience for him. That was for damn sure.
As he walked back to his hotel room, he looked down at his phone and momentarily contemplated calling Megan but he wasn't really in the mood to talk to anyone. Instead, he scrolled through his messages and reread the most recent one he had received from Rayna.
Thank you for tonight. Maddie loved it.
She had sent the message after the night they had all spent at the Bluebird. He had received it while he was lying in bed alone, his smile broadening when he saw who it was from. That night had almost been like a fantasy. For those few glorious hours, they were just a normal family. It felt natural, beautiful even, sitting there with his two girls, talking about anything that came to mind and enjoying each other's company. He had already read the message a million times but he couldn't seem to make himself delete it. The message wasn't much but it made him happy to know that Maddie had enjoyed the outing and reciprocated his feelings that the night had been a success. It was also nice to know that Rayna appreciated his efforts and still cared enough about him to let him know she was thankful and to reassure him that Maddie was happy. He had been honest earlier when he told Rayna that it was good to spend time with Maddie and, of course, with her. It was nice to know that she felt the same way.
He hated to admit it to himself but that night, combined with the message that Rayna had sent him afterwards, had caused him to let his guard down a little. It had given him back that little spark of hope that he had done his best to squash. And earlier today when he was talking to her it had seemed like she was letting hers down a little too but now, Deacon knew he had been stupid. She had already made her intentions clear. They would interact for Maddie's sake but they would not be romantically involved, no matter how much it hurt them to be apart.
Deacon opened his hotel room door and walked over to the bed. He lay down without bothering to change his clothes, running his hands through his hair a few times, before shutting his eyes, clearing his head, and trying not to think about the empty space beside him in the bed as he was falling asleep.