Chapter 7:

The smell of coffee awoke Rayna from her slumber the following morning; she looked at the man lying beside her. He was the perfect man to share a life with and she was glad that they had gotten back tougher. Last night he has made love to her promising her that he would always be there for her no matter what happens or how hard things got. Her thoughts were broken when the bedroom door opened and in walked Maddie with two cups of coffee followed by Daphne who was carrying two glasses of milk. Rayna slowly sat up in bed, thanking the havens above that both her and Deacon had gotten dressed after their night of passion earlier that morning before drifting off to sleep again. Deacon must have felt the sudden movement and slowly opened his eyes, looking around what was going on. He sat up as he saw the girls nearing the bed, handing both him and Rayna a cup of coffee. "Morning my beautiful girls" said Deacon with a smile taking the mug from Maddie. "Morning" came it from both girls both made it clear that it was too early to be this chirp. Rayna leaned over and gave him a quick kiss before turning to the girls again. "Why don't the two of you hop into bed with us, it's still early" said Rayna moving so that there was space for the two girls. "Mom, are you sure seeing as your boyfriend is in bed with you and I am sure you don't want children in bed with you" said Daphne with a grownup voice. The other three looked at her with a smile and wonder where she had heard that. "Well Daph, I would love to have all three my favorite girls in bed with me" said Deacon moving so that she could crawl in between the two of them. Maddie sat down on top of the bed watching the three of them with a smile on her face. "Hon, come get in its cold and you are not better yet" said Rayna lifting the blanked for her to get in. "It's fine mom, I am still sick and don't want to get the rest of the house sick also" said Maddie grabbing the blanked that lay at the end of the bed. "You already made me sick, so get into this bed you will not be sitting under that blanket" said Rayna lifting the covers. "Yes mom" said Maddie getting into the bed next to her mover. She crawled a bit closer to her mother, and Rayna slide her arm around her daughter's middle without saying a word. "So Aunty Tandy will come get you just after ten this morning and take you to dads" said Rayna. "But mom I want to go with you" said Maddie. "Hon, it is going to be a long boring day I promise as soon as they done I will phone and you two can come brighten up my day" said Rayna. "I might even pick the two of you up for some ice cream on route to the hospital" said Deacon with a smile. Both girls just nod their heads and started to randomly talk about some new TV program that they were watching the other day. Deacon and Rayna knew that the girls were trying to distract them from what would be happening later in the day.

It had just reached mid – afternoon when Rayna awoke to the sound of hills clapping on the corridors close to her room and a voice that would make any man desire her. The hospital room door opened and in walked none other than Juliette Barnes. She was dressed to perfection as always the case with her, but the look in her eyes told Rayna that today was the day she would meet a whole new side of the country crossover star. "Juliette, to what do I have the pleasure of your visit" asked Rayna looking up at her visitor. "I have to hear from your 14 year old child that you are sick and in hospital" answered Juliette raising her voice a bit. Rayna was taken aback by this, she was sure that she never even thought of informing Juliette about what was going on. "It's a family matter" said Rayna not wanting to give her the satisfaction of enjoying that she cared. Juliette slowly sat down in the chair next to Rayna bed and look at the mega star. "Rayna, you are family even when it looks like you and I are one anthers worse enemies, I would have been here to help with the girls or keep the media at bay or just to bite you some shit to get you to smile" said Juliette not moving her eyes from the bed. Rayna slowly took her hand and giving her a smile that so many paid to see but only close people saw really. "Thank you, I thought of calling but you have been busy with your own matters" said Rayna. "If you talking about the fact that I am a home recur, that is old news dear" said Juliette. Rayna could see that it bother her more than she was showing, this whole situation was taking a toll on her. "Why did you sleep with a married man if you don't mind me asking" asked Rayna.

"Charlie never told me that he was married before we got into that bed, and now I feel like some used thing" answered Juliette. "What are you going to do" asked Rayna wondering how the hell she was going to get out of this one. "I have no clue, Edge Hill is saying that they feel maybe they should step away from the matter and my publics are avoiding my calls" answered Juliette getting tears in her eyes. "I have a business proposal then for you, if you open to hear it from a Country Queen in a hospital bed" said Rayna. Juliette smiled up at her and made her more comfy in her seat, folding her arms to listen to this. "I am all ears Ms James" said Juliette. "There is this young upcoming label in the marked, it is run by two sisters who know a hell lot about the country music scene, you will be their new artist but as with the other artist you will also be involved in the label, if you are up for it" said Rayna with smile. "Sure, what is the label called" asked Juliette playing along. "Highway 65 Music" answered Rayna leaning back in the hospital bed. Juliette was silent for a moment before a smile came over her face. "We have a deal, when do I sign" asked Juliette.

The hospital door open and in walked Tandy just in time to hear the last part of the sentence. "Sign what" asked Tandy walking through the door not seeing who was seat in the chair. "We just got a new artic Ms Juliette Barnes" said Rayna with a smile. Tandy turned to see the well know singer sitting in the chair next to her sister bed smiling like a cat that got cream. "Welcome to Highway 65" said Tandy shaking her hand. "We will sort out the paper work later this week, I am sure you need your rest Ms James" said Juliette starting to feel a bit uncomfortable in her seat. "I will have my lawyers send over the documents before end of business tomorrow, no need to slow things down just cause I am in a hospital bed" said Rayna. Both women laugh at that and looked at her as she sat lake a queen on a thrown. "So, what are we going to do with the Charlie thing" asked Tandy sitting down on the bed. "I didn't know you run a publisher company to" said Juliette. "We feel that our artist is friends, so we are going to try and figure out what is the options that we can follow" said Rayna with a smile. "We are going to need coffee and food" said Tandy. "That is why you have me" said Deacon from the door way. He had taken the girls for ice cream, before dropping them with Teddy. As Teddy made the decision that it would be better for the girls to stay with him while their mother was in hospital. "Deacon, have I told you lately that you are the best man on earth" said Tandy. "Nope, but I am not sure Bucky will agree with that" said Deacon with a smile. "So what can we order from Deacon Delivery service" asked Juliette. "Anything, as I will be sticking you" answered Rayna. Juliette smiled and started to talk with the others about what would be for dinner. It was finally decided that they would be having pizza and had sent Deacon to buy some. Just before he was about to walk out the door again he stopped and turned back walking to the bed. "Deacon, what is wrong" asked Rayna when he stood next to her. "I just wanted to tell you that I love you" answered Deacon leaning down to give her a kiss before walking out the door. Rayna turned a light shade of pink as she watched him walk out of the door.

"You know he is a good man" said Juliette. "That he is, and I am just sorry I wasted so much time before I realized it" said Rayna. "Let's get back to the matter at hand before she starts telling us how much she loves him and how deeply" said Tandy with a smile to her sister. Rayna just rolled her eyes before she started to talk about how they would handle the Charlie situation. They sat visiting for a few more hours enjoying dinner tougher before the visit was broken by Dr Lexie Grey walking into the room with a look of worry on her face. She was dressed in a pair of scrubs not her usual business like outfit and her brown hair was tide back making her look so much younger than what she really was. "Evening" said Lexie closing the door behind her to give them some privacy. "Evening Lexie, I would like you to meet my sister Tandy and our dear friend Juliette" said Rayna from the bed. Juliette has made herself comfy by placing one of the tables in front of her and putting her feet on the bed. "Nice to meet you all, could I speak to you and Deacon for a moment" asked Lexie. "You can speak in front of them they are family blood or no blood" answered Deacon placing his hand on Juliette shoulder to keep her in place as she was attempting to get up. Lexie node her head and turned to Rayna. "Rayna, I have received the test results back from the labs, it looks like we were correct you have ovarian cancer but we also picked up a virus in your lungs" said Lexie.

"What type of virus" asked Juliette knowing that anything that affected your lungs can affect your singing. "It's call the Grey stone virus, it's a bacteria that forms in your lungs and grows into stones" answered Lexie. Everyone in the room looked like they were told she had a few weeks to live, this was not what they expected it to be. "What are her options" asked Tandy taking control of the situation as always. Lexie took a breath and looked down at her notes before she spoke again. "The first step is to get her into surgery and remove the cancer as well as the stones that have already formed in her lungs, after the surgeries we will have to start with a treatment plan that will involve radiation and strong medication" answered Lexie. "How long will I be out of doing anything" asked Rayna with tears in her eyes. "Rayna, you will not be able to sing within the next 8 to 12 months, and the medication that we will be treating you with for the virus is stronger than any cancer medication meaning you will be bed ridden for a while at lease" answered Lexie. This was harder than she ever thought it would be. "Ok, so the surgery for the cancer it is just to remove the growth right" asked Juliette. She wants to also get much info as possible to be there for the girls and Rayna. "Yes, but we will have to look at maybe removing her uteruses also" answered Lexie. She knew this was a difficult decision to make for any women, as it meant that Rayna would not be able to ever have children again in her life. "Take it out, Deacon and I have two daughters it is more than we could have ever asked for and I want to be there to watch our children grow up and be wonderful women" said Rayna taking Deacon hand in hers. She knew that he support her no matter what she decided, even if it meant no more children for them in the future. "Ok, I will make a note of that on the file" said Lexie writing a note on the file. "How soon can the operations are done" asked Rayna. "You are scheduled to be done, first thing tomorrow morning but there is another matter at hand" answered Lexie. "What might that be" asked Tandy wanting to get everything in order. "Rayna, your medical aid will be paying for your stay in the hospital as well as for your cancer treatment and the surgery to remove it, but they will unfortunately not be paying for the treatment of the virus as it is still an unknown one for many of the countries around the world, the other thing is you medical aid is also running low when it comes to medication for your heart" answered Lexie. Rayna gave a small scream; she had not planned for any of this to happen when she made the move. "How is that possible" asked Juliette looking at Lexie and Rayna. "When Deacon and I were in the accident, I had a small heart attack after it had happened, now I am on medication for it however when I made the decision to leave Edge Hill and start me own record label I have to move to a cheaper medical aid, hence the reason we are now in this situation" answered Rayna. "How much are we looking at" asked Deacon wondering how they are going to get themselves out of this one. "We are looking at just under 8 million" answered Lexie. All four in the room went dead silent, at Lexie answer. Both Deacon and Tandy knew that they didn't have that type of money even if they sold everything. All Randy money was tied up in Highway 65 and making sure her children was looked after. They could never possibly ask Juliette to pay for this as they knew she had a lawsuit going on with Charlie wives lawyers about her having an affair with his wife. "Lex, what about your appointments" asked Rayna wondering how she would pay that as well. Lexie smiled a small smile at the Queen of Country before she spoke again. "In the 14yrs that you have been coming to see me and my mother have you never paid for any of that appointment, no you haven't because we believe that you are family to us and we could never take money from family" answered Lexie. "Why did Teddy then pay when he came" asked Rayna with a smile. She knew that neither Lexie nor her mother really liked the mayor of Nashville very much. "Your ex-husband is an ass if you don't mind me saying so, so he did pay and he paid double a few times but what is a few 000 between friends" answered Lexie with a smile. "I will pay for the treatment as well as anything that is needed extra for Rayna care" said Juliette. They all turned to look at her as the words left her mouth, did they just hear right. "Juliette that is a lot of money and I am sure you will need it for the lawsuit" said Deacon looking at his friend. "Rayna, would have done the same for me besides I have been thinking of selling some of my properties and get something smaller, as I am out of town on tour and don't want to leave a big house empty anymore, as for the lawsuit with Charlie wife she will have to face the fact that her husband got into bed with me know he was married to her, so she needs to deal with him" said Juliette.

"Guys, I need to run into my next surgery I will see you in the morning Rayna" said Lexie making her way out of the hospital room. There were just something that she didn't need to know about her patients and their families.

The four in the room were silent for a moment taking in everything that has happened in the last 15min. "Hold on, if you sell your house where the hell are you going to stay till you find a new smaller place" asked Tandy. "I am sure there is a penthouse to rent somewhere" answered Juliette. Rayna looked at Deacon who node before she spoke again. "Juliette, we might have an option for you in exchange for your help, there is a loft on top of our garage that we are not using or going to use anytime soon" said Rayna. "It is two bedroom, one bathroom with your own entrance and living space, all the rooms are sound proof" said Deacon. "You guys will have some at the house for the girls, if Juliette is up for it" said Tandy. "How much is the rent per month" asked Juliette not wanting to seem to eager already. "Rent free, as you will have to stay in the main house for a few months" answered Rayna. "Then I will take the place most defiantly, now will you please excuse me I need to go pack, speak to my lawyers and change my schedule for the next two months" said Juliette getting up from her seat. "Why clear your schedule for a few weeks, last time I checked you are going out on tour in two weeks' time" said Tandy. "I was going on tour, but it had been put on hold with the whole Charlie thing and now with Rayna being sick and my family needing me there is no way in hell that I am going on tour" answered Juliette. She said her goodbyes to everyone, promising to return in the morning for the surgery.

The following day, the mid afternoon sun shined through the corridors of the hospital, as Rayna got pushed down it to surgery. Deacon was walking alongside her making sure she was ok. Just as they were about to enter the theatre he stopped the bed. "Babe, what is wrong" asked Rayna looking up at him. "I need to do this before you go in there" answered Deacon. "We have 10min" said Lexie from the other side of the bed. "Rayna Elizabeth James, I love you with all of my heart and want to spend every single day for the rest my life loving you, please could you do me the honor of becoming my wife" asked Deacon. Rayna was crying by the time he said every single day. "Yes, I will marry you" answered Rayna. Deacon smiled at her and placed a kiss on her lip, before standing up right again. "Go get them tiger, your ring will be waiting for you when you wake up" said Deacon. "I love you" said Rayna before they pushed her through the doors. Deacon stood there watching as the women he loved got pushed into surgery with a smile on his face before turning around to go be with his daughters.