A/N: This is my first shot at writing a Nashville fic. It's Deacon and Rayna centered, but don't worry other characters will pop up. It starts off as being Ruke, but I promise you Deyna is endgame. I did something different with this fic. I've always felt like Deacon never got the respect that he deserved as Maddie's father and it was just used as a plot point. I've also always felt like Deacon needed to grow a set and stand up for himself every now and then. There were also a couple things the writers did that I didn't agree with and I decided to rectify that here. This starts out the night that Deacon and Luke both proposed but it gets completely AU from there. I try to fill in the blanks using flashbacks, but if I need to I will do chapters that are based in the past. Anyway I hope you guys enjoy my take on Nashville.

Chapter 1

Rayna stared at the two rings on the counter in front of her. Each style of ring represented the personality of the man that had given it to her. The seven karat sparkler that Luke had slipped on her finger in front of fifty thousand fans was bold and ostentatious just like he was. The diamond band that Deacon had pressed into her hand after he begged her to give him a shot reflected his plain and simple nature. The men that had given her the rings represented different things too.

Deacon was her past a tale littered with empty whiskey bottles, unreached dreams, and broken promises. Any future she could have with him would be uncertain. In the back of her mind she would probably always be waiting for the bottom to drop out again. Luke represented an uncomplicated and stable future. She'd be able to depend on him and he would always be there for her. She didn't have any of the baggage or painful memories with him that she had with Deacon. She could deal with the lifestyle he led if it meant security for her and her girls. She'd married for stability once before and she could do it again.

Still though there was an undeniable passion when she was with Deacon that nothing else she'd ever known had come close to matching. They were fire and gasoline together burning hot, fast, and bright. They'd come close to burning each other to the ground on more than a few occasions. The most recent had been the car accident that had robbed her of two weeks of life and almost left her daughters motherless. Maddie was the age she'd been when she'd lost her mother and she shuddered when she thought about how close history had come to repeating itself.

Maddie that was another thing she had to take into account. She'd already disrupted her daughter's life so much and she owed her some sense of normalcy. So no matter how badly she ached to be with Deacon she just couldn't there was too much uncertainty when it came to him. There always had been and there always would be. But still the magic they created when they were together was something that she couldn't forget no matter how hard she tried.

Her mind wandered to the last time they had given into that passion.

Rayna stood on the front porch of Deacon's house. Given the status of things between them at the moment she wasn't exactly thrilled to be there. She knocked on the door impatiently.

Deacon opened the door in a t-shirt and pair of jeans. He looked surprised to see his old flame. "Ray, come on in. What are you doing here?" He opened the door wider to allow her entry.

"I came by to talk to you about a few things." Rayna walked into the house and took a seat on the couch.

"Can I get you some tea?" Deacon didn't wait for her answer. He poured them both a glass of sweet tea and brought it back into the living room.

"Thanks," Rayna smiled at him.

"You said you wanted to talk." Deacon sat on the edge of his chair with his elbows resting on his knees.

"I just wanted to thank you not only for what you went on tv and said about being Maddie's father, but for what you did in the lawyer's office today. You didn't have to let Teddy continue to be a part of her life. I know that it means a lot to him and it means a lot to me too." Rayna told him.

"She's my little girl, Ray. She loves him. He was all she knew for the first thirteen years of her life. I wasn't gonna cut him out regardless of how I feel about him." Deacon shrugged. It had been the right thing to do.

"I just know it can't have been easy for you and I'm grateful to you for putting our daughter first." Rayna leaned forward and met eyes with him.

"I'm sorry that things got so out of hand the way they did. I never meant for it to go that far." Deacon apologized.

"You were right though. You did have a right to have rights to your daughter without having to answer to anyone else." Rayna could acknowledge that he'd had a point.

"So, how are things with you and Wheeler?" Deacon asked awkwardly. He didn't know what to say to her or how to act around her anymore.

"Up in the air I guess. He said that he needed some time." Rayna shrugged her shoulders. "Deacon, things don't have to be this awkward between us. We mean a lot to each other and we share a daughter. We need to make this work for her sake."

"You're right," Deacon grinned. "Whatcha got goin on tonight?"

"Nothing, the girls are with Teddy and other than going up to the hospital I don't have anything else on my plate." Rayna replied.

"What do you say you and me write together for old time's sake?" Deacon asked.

"I'd like that a lot." Rayna smiled at him.

Of course with them songwriting was never just songwriting and before the night had ended they'd ended up in bed together.

Rayna sighed and collected both the rings from the counter. Thinking of that night of steamy passion with Deacon was enough to sway her resolve that she couldn't be with him.

"You're quiet this morning. You'd think you were preparing for a funeral instead of a wedding. Your album just dropped at number one and you got engaged you should be on top of the world right now." Tandy stood at the counter slicing up fruit.

"I just have a lot on my mind that's all." Rayna grabbed a piece of the fruit Tandy had cut.

"Anything you want to talk about?" Tandy arched her eyebrow.

"Deacon stopped by last night after the show and he proposed to me too." Rayna squinted her eyes. She knew how her sister felt about Deacon.

"You're kidding me right? How stupid and selfish can he be? What is this a monkey see monkey do type thing? He can't just let you be happy without trying to destroy it." Tandy scoffed and pointed the knife in her sister's direction.

Rayna lowered her sister's hand. "Be nice, he is Maddie's dad and my first love."

"He's barely Maddie's dad and he's never been good enough for you." Tandy stated bluntly. She pinched the bridge of her nose.

"He's Maddie's dad he has joint custody with me. And you never gave him a chance. You are our father's daughter." Rayna pointed out to her.

"Something that daddy offered to stop for you, but you wouldn't let him. Forget what I think. You know how I feel on the matter. What do you want?" Tandy tried another approach.

"Luke has all these really great qualities. He's successful, he's caring, and he's stable. Deacon well he's Deacon there's not much more I can say for him than that. I don't know I guess it would help if Deacon and I could be within spiting distance of each other without either fighting or being wrapped up in each other's arms." Rayna sighed.

"What's going on between you and Deacon now?" Tandy stared her down.

"The night that we settled Maddie's custody thing I went over to his place and one thing led to another like it always does. We had a little fling before Luke got hurt and I don't know. I just know that Luke doesn't make me feel like I'm on an emotional roller coaster every time I look at him." Rayna banged her head on the counter lightly.

"You have your answer then. You never learn when it comes to Deacon. Deacon and you have never not been Deacon and you. You're stuck with each other for life, but the only way you're ever gonna make it as parents is if you set some firm boundaries with him. Are you gonna tell Luke?" Tandy patted her hand comfortingly.

"Am I going to tell Luke that I slept with Deacon while he left me hanging in limbo? Absolutely not I'm a grown woman I don't have to answer for that. Am I going to tell him that Deacon proposed and kissed me? Yes, I can't start a marriage off with a lie like that. You saw what happened the last time I kept something that big to myself it ended up blowing up in my face." Rayna replied.

"I still say that you did what was best for Maddie by keeping her from Deacon. She grew up in a happy healthy environment." Tandy couldn't just let the subject drop.

"Don't you have somewhere to be like up at the hospital visiting daddy?" Rayna rolled her eyes.

"I'll go see him once I'm done with you." Tandy wasn't that easy to get rid of.

Lamar was in the cardiac intensive care unit at Vanderbilt Hospital after he'd suffered a heart attack during a meeting with Teddy. Emergency open heart surgery had saved his life, but he'd lingered in a coma for weeks before finally coming out of it.

"No go see him before they throw him out for his bad attitude. He's always more manageable with you. I have some things I need to take care of anyway." Rayna rushed to get her sister away from her.

Luke was in the stables brushing his horse after his morning ride. Rayna watched as the muscles in his broad back rippled with his movements. There was no denying that he was a very attractive man, but being attracted to him wasn't the problem. The problem was the jumbled mess in her heart and her head where he and Deacon were concerned.

"Hey, there you are. Sorry I had to run out on you like that earlier." Luke greeted her with a bright smile.

"It's no problem I just stopped by because I was hoping that we could talk." Rayna smiled back at him.

"We didn't do much talking earlier. Have a seat." Luke plopped down on a hay bale and patted the spot next to him.

Rayna sat down next to him. "So that was some proposal."

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to pressure you or put you on the spot like that. If you need time to think about it I understand." Luke looked at her tenderly.

"It's not that. Deacon came by the house after the show last night and he proposed too." Rayna rushed the words out of her mouth.

Luke rubbed his hands over the fabric of his jeans. "I can't say I blame him. It would be impossible to lose you twice. If I have my way about it that's exactly what's gonna happen."

"It's complicated there are always going to be feelings there between Deacon and I." Rayna offered.

"You and Deacon have been intertwined with each other since I've known you. I have this thing tonight for Edgehill if you wanna come that's fine and if you don't I understand that too." Luke left the ball in her court.

"Ray, that you?" Deacon was in the process of packing up his gear to take to the bluebird.

"Yeah, it's me." Rayna stepped into his line of sight.

Deacon looked up and gave her a sexy grin. "Hey, I didn't think I'd see you this soon."

"Deacon, please don't smile at me like that you're only gonna make this harder." Rayna pleaded with him.

Deacon got up off the floor and took her hands. "Come on, Ray, give me a chance. Things have gotten better for us. We finally worked out how we can all be parents to Maddie." He thought back to the day that they had finally settled Maddie's custody.

Rayna and Deacon sat across from each other in her lawyer's conference room. Rayna was dressed in her usual diva fashion meaning she looked damn good like always. Deacon had cleaned up in the sense that he wore a dress shirt with his jeans for a change. Teddy sat at the corner of the table with his lawyer scowling.

"Mr. Claybourne, Ms. Jaymes, Mr. Conrad, we have the custody arrangement prepared for your signatures. Let me just go over it to make sure that it is satisfactory for all of you." Rayna's lawyer began. "It's been established that Mr. Claybourne is indeed the biological father of Maddie Conrad. We've changed her birth certificate to reflect that. Joint custody will be split between Ms. Jaymes and Mr. Claybourne and Mr. Conrad will still have visitation rights and legal guardianship." He slid an agreement over to each party.

Deacon's lawyer slid the agreement over to him.

Deacon looked it over and nodded his head in satisfaction. He'd been the one to start this. After Teddy had gotten up in arms about Maddie being at his house for guitar lessons while her other grades were slipping he'd known that he had to do something if he wanted to be a part of his daughter's life in a meaningful way.

"Happy now, Deacon?" Teddy spit out hatefully.

"Teddy, don't start." Rayna warned him.

"It's not about being happy it's about being fair. If you could have been fair it wouldn't have come to this." Deacon signed the document in front of him.

"Fair? I'm losing my daughter. I'm the only father she's ever known. How is that fair to me or to her?" Teddy angrily scribbled his name across the document.

"You decided that you had more of a right to my daughter than I did. That's what's not fair. You stole everything from me. You got years with her that I didn't get." Deacon fired back.

"Don't do this here, you two. Try to behave like rational adults. This agreement not only works well for all of us it's what's best for Maddie." Rayna signed the copy of the agreement that was in front of her.

"That's all we are co-parents. And that's the way things are gonna have be from now on." Rayna's heart broke as she saw the hurt flash in his eyes.

"Ray, I'm playing at the Bluebird tonight I have a song I want to play for you. Just come and listen to it. That's all I ask." Deacon squeezed her hands tighter. He took a chance and kissed her.

Rayna kissed him back for a moment before she pulled away. "We're not kids anymore, Deacon. We can't just sing a song and magically make all of our problems go away. Luke can give me a stable future without all the messy baggage that we have in our past." She pulled her hands from his and walked out the door before he said anything else that would make her want to stay.

Deacon was taking a breather in the alley behind the Bluebird before his set started. He was more than a little surprised when a big black Escalade pulled up and Luke got out from behind the wheel.

Without warning Luke walked up and punched Deacon in the mouth. "Why can't you leave her alone and let her be happy?"

Deacon ran his tongue over the inside of his lip and tasted blood. "Why can't you?"

Luke was already back in the car and driving away.

Deacon spit blood out of his mouth and then he smiled to himself. There was only one reason that Luke would have been that pissed off. He walked back into the Bluebird to get ready for his set.

"Dad!"

"Uncle Deacon!"

Maddie and Daphne both ran over and wrapped their arms around him.

"What are ya'll doin' here?" Deacon planted a kiss on the top of both their heads.

"The girls heard that you were playing tonight and they just had to come. I thought it would be nice to get out and do something with them." Teddy offered Deacon his hand to shake.

Deacon shook his hand. "Teddy,"

"Deacon," Teddy nodded his head. The two seemed to have a bit of a truce in place.

"Have any of ya'll heard from Rayna today?" Deacon asked out of curiosity.

"No I haven't heard anything from mom. She's probably too busy with Luke." Maddie's rolled eyes said exactly how she felt about the man.

Teddy's cell rang and he answered it. "Yeah, I understand, I'll be right there." He hung up. "Listen, girls, I have to go for a little while. I will be back as soon as I can. Deacon, can you keep an eye on them?"

"Yeah, I got 'em it's no problem." Deacon agreed.

"Maybe we should go sing with him so he can keep a really close eye on us." Daphne suggested.

Deacon and Teddy locked eyes for a moment and then they both nodded.

"One song and you get someone to record it for me if I'm not back in time." Teddy squatted down in front of Daphne.

"You've got it, dad." Daphne giggled.

Teddy pulled both the girls into a hug. "I love you girls, behave yourselves." He made his way out the door.

"What do you say we get some food in ya'll? I can't have you going up on stage hungry." Deacon put an arm around each girl. He led them over to the table he was sitting at. He flagged a waitress down. "Can I get a round of root beers here?"

"Deacon, are you still gonna hang out with us even when mom marries Luke?" Daphne asked innocently. The little girl didn't realize what a loaded question that had been.

"Of course I am, Squirt. Maddie is my daughter and you're her sister and you come from your momma that makes you family to me. We will still hang out together all the time. You can't get rid of me that easily." Deacon reassured her.

"At least someone cares about what we want and how we feel." Maddie rolled her eyes so far back that it was a miracle that they didn't stick like that.

"Maddie, I'm sure that it wasn't meant to come across that way." Deacon was still a little unsure with her, but he was learning as he went. He'd pretty much just lied to her face. He couldn't imagine what Luke had been thinking by not running his proposal by those girls first. It wasn't just the girls it was his own kids he'd left in the dark too.

"Try to say like you believe it, dad." Maddie's attitude was in overdrive.

Teddy came back in just as the girls took the stage with Deacon. He could grudgingly admit that he was good with him. The truth was he'd probably never like the man, but he had a little respect for him because of the way he treated Daphne.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to my two singing partners for the night Maddie and Daphne Conrad. They are gonna run me out of a job in no time flat." Deacon strummed the opening chords for A Life That's Good on his guitar.

Stupid that one word kept running through Rayna's head as she snuck into the back of the Bluebird through the service entrance. She'd gotten all dressed up to go to that event with Luke, but she just couldn't fight the pull that Deacon had on her. She had to at least hear this song before she decided anything. She had shown up just in time to hear most of his song with the girls.

She watched now as the girls climbed down off the stage. Deacon began to strum a haunting melody on his guitar.

"My broken promises broke your heart time and time again. I let everything fall apart I was such a fool back then. But you loved me once I know so many sorries ago." Deacon started his song.

The words resonated within Rayna. She'd felt that way so many times. He'd get drunk, break his promises, and then apologize over and over. It was a cycle they had been stuck in with no end in sight.

"So here I am and I just pray that you will listen long enough to hear me when I say. This brand new man won't let you down if you let me show you I know how to love you now." Deacon's voice sounded hauntingly beautiful. His eyes scanned the crowd looking all over for a certain redhead.

Rayna was cut to the core. She could hear the raw emotion in his voice as he pleaded for another chance. But in the back of her mind all she could think about was the endless cycle of broken promises and drunken rages.

"There was a time when I held your hand I would have died to keep you safe. That's why it kills me that I'm the man that put those tears on your face. I don't blame you for moving on and maybe all of my chances are gone." Deacon's eyes filled with unshed tears as it hit him that she probably wasn't coming. His eyes stayed glued to the door anyway in hopes that he was wrong.

The stark truth of what he was saying hit her like a shotgun blast to the chest. He'd been far from the only one to make mistakes in their relationship. She'd lied to him about his child, he'd had a disease that it'd taken him awhile to beat. Some days she kicked herself for giving up on him.

"Well, here I am and I just pray that you will listen long enough to hear me when I say. This brand new man won't let you down if you let me show you I know how to love you now. I see that look in your eye you're scared and I understand why. So am I.

"But, here I am and I just pray that you will listen long enough to hear me when I say. This brand new man won't let you down if let me show you I know how love you now. Girl let me show you I know how to love you now." Deacon bowed his head when he finished singing. He blinked the tears from his eyes and looked up with a smile on his face. He had to put on a brave face for the girls.

Rayna fled the building with tears streaming down her face when she saw Deacon get down off the stage and shake hands with Teddy. No matter how much she wanted to choose him and let him prove himself to her she just couldn't. It was better for everyone involved if she chose a life with Luke. Maybe if she told herself that enough times she'd start to believe it.

Luke was mugging his way down a red carpet. He posed for pictures with his fans and stopped to answer questions from reporters. He was dressed in an expensive black suit with his best boots and black cowboy hat. He turned to look over his shoulder when he heard a din of activity behind him. A huge smile came to his face when he saw Rayna walking towards him.

"I didn't think you were gonna show." He put his hands on her hips and let his eyes drink her in. She was the most beautiful woman that he'd ever seen in his entire life.

"I love you for what you've always been to me." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. She flashed her engagement ring for the reporters to take all the pictures they wanted.

"Come on, let's go on in." He put his hand possessively in the small of her back and guided her into the venue.

What followed was a blur of handshakes, business talk, and people generally kissing Luke's ass and talking about how great he was.

Rayna stood off in a corner of the room with a glass of champagne in her hand. She looked around and knew right away that she'd made an absolutely horrible mistake. The only thing she could do now was tough it out and hope for the best.

Scarlett walked in the front door of Deacon's house using her key. She dropped her smallest suitcase right by the front door. She was far too tired to do anything else with it. She would bum a t-shirt and pair of pajama pants from Deacon for the night. She'd just gone through the road trip from hell with Gunnar and Avery and all she wanted to do was sleep. She needed to forget that this day ever happened.

A small lamp on the end table flipped on and startled her.

"Scarlett, what the hell are you doing back here?" Deacon had been sitting around in the dark since getting back from the Bluebird.

"I decided not to leave after all. Why are you sitting around in the dark like some type of creepy person?" She arched her eyebrow. She wasn't really sure that she wanted him to offer her an explanation for that.

"Woman problems," He picked up his nearly melted icepack from the table and pressed it to his mouth. He didn't know which hurt worse his pride or his heart.

"She's engaged to another man, I'm thinking that's enough to keep it from being a problem ever again." She sat down on the couch beside him.

"Don't say anything that's gonna make me feel any better now." He scoffed.

"So you want me to lie to you and give you false hope then?" She was tired and her sassy side was coming out to play.

"No, I don't want false hope. As long as she isn't married to him I still have a chance. I ain't giving her up without a fight this time. She just doesn't know that she wants me to fight for her yet." He replied stubbornly. He wasn't gonna give up on her that easily. She just didn't know what she wanted yet.

"You really don't know when to give up do you?" She laid her head on his shoulder.

"No, I don't. If it's worth having it's worth fighting for." He kissed the top of her head. "I'm glad you're staying Maddie and I would have really missed you around here."

"I'm glad I'm staying too. Someone has to be a buffer between you two. You'd be lost if I weren't here to interpret teenage girl for you. I can't let her suffer because of your lack of social skills." She laughed and closed her eyes.

Deacon just sat there quietly lost in thought. He'd find a way to win Rayna back and then Luke better watch out.

A/N: Here is the first chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.