Confidante

Chapter 7

Later that night they are lying in bed, legs intertwined and arms embracing one another.

"Are you happy?" Rayna asks him.

Deacon cranes his neck to look down at her. "Happy? Are you kidding me? I've never BEEN happier. I feel like I have happiness shooting at me from every direction," he laughs. "And from such mundane things, like reading to Daphne or taking Maddie to camp. Who would have thunk it?" he jokes.

She cuddles up on his chest. "I like seeing you like this. I can't believe how much has changed in the past two days. I feel like, like we're exactly where we're supposed to be." Deacon smiles and pulls her closer. "Is it weird for you to be here, in this house, in this bed?"

"Ray, I'm here with you, that's all I care about. It doesn't matter to me which bed I'm sleeping in."

"Can I tell you something?" she asks, continuing without waiting for a response. "I've always slept on that side of the bed, in your spot. It made me feel closer to you. Plus, I could never imagine rolling to the right and finding anyone else there but you."

Deacon lets out a happy sigh and grins, gesturing to where she is laying on his left. "You know, for the past 14 years I've been sleeping on that side of the bed for the very same reason."

She looks up, smiling shyly, managing to still be surprised by his affection for her, even after all of these years. "I guess we really are back where we're supposed to be."

"It really doesn't matter to me where I am, as long as I'm with you." He tenderly caresses her arm.

"Would you be willing to live in this house? Say, six months from now? Would you feel at home here?"

He thinks about her question, tossing the pros and cons around in his head. Sure, she had shared a life here with Teddy, but also one with the girls. This was their home. It was part of them. Her marriage to Teddy may haunt some of these rooms but they were more than cancelled out by memories of the girls' childhoods, as well as moments of his daughter's life that he'd missed. He hadn't grown up in a happy home himself, but the girls had. He wasn't willing to take that from them.

"The house is just a house to me Ray. And I don't want Maddie and Daphne to have to deal with any more changes. You've made a home here. But I wouldn't balk at redecorating," he added. "I've always kind of liked that, at the cabin, it was something we'd worked on together, like our music. "

"Is that why you never changed it?"

"I guess that's part of the reason. I also never felt the need. It wasn't like I spent much time there. But, yeah, I liked having a visual reminder of what we'd built together...and what I lost. I liked knowing that what we had was real, not imagined, and it helped to keep me sober."

She processes that for a moment. "Honestly, I didn't have much say in how this place was decorated. It was mostly Teddy and a little bit of Tandy thrown in." She lets that settle for a while. "Let's redecorate!" she perks up. "I'm dying to get rid of those hideous plaid couches! I've just never gotten around to it. This house has always felt like a compromise to me, not a collaboration. "

"What about those portraits?" She continues.

"They're okay," he shrugs. "I dunno. They seem a little too idyllic, though, not at all like the girls I know. They don't really capture their spirit. "

"That's basically what Maddie has always said. She hates'em. Daphne thinks she resembles a fairy, though."

Deacon smiles and kisses Rayna. "Of course she does!"

#

Deacon pulls himself away from Rayna early enough the next morning to shower and finish a cup of coffee so he can take notes on the morning routine. Having lived with Rayna for 11 years, he's not surprised by the organized chaos of the morning and pitches in as much as possible.

He heads off for soccer camp with Maddie just as Juliette is arriving for a Highway 65 meeting. Both share a wide grin upon seeing each other.

"What?!" he asks her, feigning defensiveness.

"Oh nothin'. Just fancy meetin' you here so early."

He smirks at her. "Heard you had a little sleepover of your own the other night."

"We did." She reaches out and hugs him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "You deserve happiness Deacon. All of you," she adds, giving Maddie a squeeze as well.

Maddie elbows him lightly. "We're gonna be late!"

Juliette can't help but notice his expression. She's never seen him look happier.

#

Juliette heads into the kitchen to meet with Rayna and Bucky about her next tour.

"Looks like things went well with Deacon. Dare I ask how things went with Luke?"

"Not so great," Rayna admits. She fills Juliette in on the demands that Luke's making.

"Well you know what I would do," she says sassily.

"Tell him to shove it?"

"So, maybe you should do the opposite of that."

Rayna sighs, quietly accepting the current state of affairs.

#

Deacon shows up at rehearsals an hour later and asks a few people if they've seen Luke. He's told Luke is in a meeting so he gets starting with rehearsals, completely unsure of what to expect when they finally meet up, and whether he even still has a tour to rehearse for.

Luke finally catches up to Deacon just as the band is breaking for lunch.

"I guess you heard about me and Rayna," Luke says, jumping right to the chase.

Deacon is thrown off guard by his directness and not sure how to respond. "I had Maddie and Daphne this weekend, so, yeah, Rayna told me."

Is he supposed to say sorry? Is Luke fishing for information? He's not certain.

"How are things going with Maddie? I can't say I'd ever forgive a woman for something like that, keeping my own child from me. Not trying to make you feel bad but, I just don't think she's the woman I thought she was."

"Yeah, well, I wasn't the man she thought I was. I feel like she did the best she could for our daughter, given the situation."

"Well, at least you have a relationship with Maddie now. Sounding great out there, by the way." Luke slaps him on the back and walks off.

Deacon tries not to be bothered by Luke's words, knowing he's probably just trying to get into his head. He finishes out rehearsals, making sure to give Luke nothing to complain about, and heads off to spend the afternoon with his daughter.

Sorry, another short chapter but just building up to the meatier stuff! Although, next chapter will be nothing mostly fluff. Planning to fit that "first date" in before the big Wheels Up tour.

Still happy to hear your thoughts! Thanks so very much for those of you who reviewed. It's always appreciated!