Deacon sat at the kitchen island in Rayna's kitchen listening to the preliminary tracks that Avery had sent over from the session. It sounded good so far. He was halfway through his duet with Maddie when he heard a knock at the door. He looked up to see Teddy standing there.

"Hey," Deacon said as he opened the door. "Rayna just called, she's on her way back with the girls, something about shoes for a concert."

"Thanks," Teddy said, awkwardly, as he walked into the kitchen. "Is that you with Maddie?"

Deacon looked over at the laptop where the track was still playing. He hit pause to stop the music. "Yeah, she did a great job. Thank you for bringing her...I'm thinking she didn't just come on her own."

"I think she wanted to, she just...it's a lot for her to deal with," Teddy responded, leaning against the kitchen counter.

"Can I get you something to drink?" Deacon offered.

Teddy shook his head. "I'm good, thanks."

Deacon looked down at his phone. "Well, she texted about fifteen minutes ago when they were leaving the mall, so…"

"How are you…how are you feeling?" Teddy asked.

Deacon shrugged. "Okay, I guess. Some days better than others. It all seems pretty unreal, to be honest."

"Yeah," Teddy replied. He looked over at Deacon. "Your dad's gone, right?"

"Yeah," Deacon replied. "Yours?"

"Yep," Teddy answered. "He...he died when, I guess Maddie was about three, before Daphne was born."

"Were you close?"

Teddy shook his head. "No. He...he was a drunk. And not a very nice one. We...well, we didn't have much of a relationship."

"Yeah," Deacon replied. "Me too."

"How old were you?" Teddy asked.

Deacon was quiet for a minute. "I'm not sure. It was after I moved up here, been here for a couple of years, I guess. Maybe 23 or 24?"

"So, you didn't see him before?" Teddy asked.

Deacon shoved his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. "No, I hadn't talked to him since before I came up here. He...he was pretty awful. Hit my mom, hit my sister, hit me a few times. I don't know, I guess part of me was glad I got out of there, but another part of me was ashamed I left them there."

"My dad, he got sober, but I just never trusted it," Teddy shared. "He called a few times those last months, but I never...I just couldn't get past all of the other stuff that happened."

Deacon looked over at him and nodded wordlessly.

"But, I felt bad...still do," Teddy continued. "I was really sorry later that I never resolved things with him. I...I told Maddie that. I mean, not all the other stuff, but just that I regretted not being there when it was his time."

Deacon looked over at him. "You're a good dad. You've done a good job raising her up."

Teddy nodded. "You too, Deacon." He looked around the kitchen. "So, are you living here now?"

Deacon shook his head, a slight smile on his lips. "No. Spendin' a lot of time with them, but no."

"Why not?" Teddy asked. "Don't miss out on this, Deacon. You and Rayna...even during the good times, I think I knew that this is how it would play out. Sure, she loved me the best she could, but you are her true love. Don't let any of this other stuff get in your way."

Deacon shrugged. "I'm not sure how the girls would feel about it. This was your home, I just want to make sure they're good with it."

Teddy let out a short laugh. "It hasn't been my home for a long time, Deacon. Hell, Wheeler was practically living here."

"Daddy!"

Teddy turned to see Daphne come through the door and give him a big hug. "Hey, honey. Did you find the shoes you were looking for?"

"Definitely," Daphne replied. "Mom even let me get them with a little bit of heel."

Rayna walked in the door. "Not too much, though."

"I'm sure they'll look great, honey. You and your sister ready to go?" Teddy asked, as Maddie walked in.

"I need to go grab my other backpack," Maddie said. "I'll be right back."

She headed upstairs while Daphne described the plans for her class camp out to Teddy.

"You two have a good chat," Rayna said, her voice low as she came next to Deacon.

"Yeah," Deacon replied. "I think we've come to an understanding about one another."

Rayna leaned in and kissed him. "Just another thing I love about you, Deacon Claybourne."

"Bye, Mom. Bye, Deacon," Daphne said as she went out the door with Teddy.

"See you later, honey," Rayna called after her.

"See you later," Maddie said as she came down.

"Have a good time, honey," Deacon said.

"Thanks," Maddie said, her voice quiet.

Rayna stepped in and gave her a hug. "Have fun with your dad, honey."

They watched as the girls got into Teddy's car and headed down the driveway.

"So, any thoughts on our evening?" Rayna asked.

Deacon held open his arms. "Just come here."

She stepped into his embrace and he pulled her close.

"Mmmm….this feels good," she said as she snuggled into his chest. "I love coming home to find you here."

"I love being here," he replied.

She looked up at him. "Good. Cause that's right where I want you, babe."

Rayna heard her phone buzz and picked it up. It was Tandy. She looked over at Deacon sleeping on the couch next to her and got up and moved to the kitchen.

"Hey, I finally caught you," her sister said. "It feels like it's been nothing but voicemail and texts for the past couple of weeks. How did the Opry go? Thanks for the awesome photos of the girls. I did listen. Y'all sounded amazing. I really wish I could have been there."

"It went really well. The girls were so good," Rayna replied.

"And Deacon came," Tandy said, her voice trailing off.

"He did," Rayna answered.

"And how was that?" Tandy asked.

Rayna leaned against the kitchen island, trying to decide how to respond.

"It was very special," she finally said.

"Have you seen him since? How are things between you?" Tandy asked.

Rayna paused, trying to decide how to respond.

"Rayna, what's going on?" her sister asked.

"Yes, he's been around," Rayna replied. "He's here right now, actually."

"Oh," Tandy responded. "And how is it?"

"It's been…" her voice caught.

"Rayna, what's wrong?" Tandy asked, her voice serious.

"He's sick, Tandy," Ranya revealed. "Really sick. Cancer. He told me after the Opry."

"Oh, Rayna," Tandy replied. "I'm...I'm sorry. What...what are you doing?"

"We're doing what we can," Rayna answered. She really did not want to go into it with Tandy about the liver transplant. She didn't need to hear her sister say anything about how Deacon had it coming to him. "But, it's very hard."

"Do you need me to come to Nashville? How are the girls?" Tandy asked.

Rayna sighed. "They're doing okay. And I think we're fine now. He might...he might need surgery, but we're not quite sure when that will be. Can I let you know?"

"Of course," Tandy replied. "And...tell Deacon that I'll be thinking about him. I'm thinking about all of you."

Rayna ended the call and stood there in the dark kitchen.

"Who was that?" Deacon asked from the shadows, his voice thick with sleep.

"My sister."

"Oh," Deacon replied.

Rayna crossed over to where he was standing and pulled him into her arms. "She could tell something was wrong, so I told her. But just that you're sick."

"Oh," Deacon repeated.

"Deacon, you don't have to carry this alone. The people we love, the ones who love us...they would want to know."

Deacon moved away from her. "I'm just not ready for that. Can you please understand that?"

She moved back to him, this time coming up behind him, her arms encircling him. "I can respect that. But I just worry you're carrying too much. Let me help you, babe."

Deacon turned around to face her. "You are. You're helping me in the best way anyone can right now."

Rayna finished putting on her lotion and came back into the bedroom to join Deacon.

"So, how long did you and Teddy have to hang out alone today?" she asked as she pulled back the covers and slid under them.

"I don't know...maybe 15 minutes or so," Deacon replied.

"Sorry about that," she said as she slid down, her head on the pillow.

"No, it was okay. Teddy and me, turns out we have some common history."

Rayna turned on her side, facing him. "What do you mean?"

"Complicated stuff with our dads," he replied.

Rayna nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. I mean, different, but in some ways, the same."

"It must have killed him for Maddie to have a drunk for a dad," he responded. "After everything with his dad."

"Honestly, I do think that was part of it," Rayna said. "He never talked about his dad. I never met him, but his mom told me some stories."

"I think he feels pretty bad about not fixing things with his dad before he died," Deacon said, his voice quiet.

"How about you?" she asked, her hand on his arm.

Deacon shook his head. "Nah, I have a lot of regrets in my life, but that isn't one of them."

Rayna moved closer to him, her body alongside his. "I was thinking I'd go over and see Juliette tomorrow. I've got a baby present to take them. Do you want to do with me?"

Deacon stared up at the ceiling. "I don't think so, Ray. I don't think I could handle it."

She slid her hand across his chest. "Okay."

He rolled on his side, facing her. "So, what is going on with Teddy?"

Rayna sat up, her back against the headboard. "We should actually talk about that."

"Yeah?" Deacon replied, rolling back on his side, propping his head up on his arm.

"It started a few weeks ago. I was at the office and got a delivery. It was a diamond necklace from Jeff Fordham. For Maddie."

"Maddie?" Deacon asked. "That doesn't make any sense."

"So, I went to see him and he told me that Teddy had signed a contract for Maddie to record with Edgehill."

The smile faded from Deacon's face. "What the hell?"

"Well, clearly, I got her out of it, but getting to the bottom of it, well, Teddy has made some choices lately that just made me realize that he wasn't necessarily the person I thought he was."

"What do you mean?" Deacon asked as he reached over to take Rayna's hand.

"He got into some mess with Jeff Fordham. Who blackmailed him. About being with hookers."

"Teddy?"

Rayna nodded. "Yep, Teddy."

Deacon sat up and pulled her close to him. "Oh, babe. I'm sorry you went through that, that I wasn't there for you, for Maddie."

Rayna stared straight ahead. "So, I told him the girls would be living with me full time, that he needed to get some help."

"Has he?"

Rayna shrugged. "I think so, but I feel like something's up with him. He's acting squirrelly. Teddy's never had much of a poker face."

Deacon shook his head. "I should have been there," he said again. "I've missed so much and…"

"You're here now, babe," she replied. "You're here now."

"But how is Maddie handling it?" he asked. "I know she's been pressin' you about recording, touring and stuff."

Rayna was quiet.

"Ray?" he asked, his eyes searching hers.

"I didn't tell her," she replied. "I didn't want to hurt her with the idea that Teddy would use her that way, but I also knew she'd be disappointed about the contract. But, Deacon, I will not have our daughter working for people like Jeff Fordham."

"No, I get that, but she's going to find out, someday, Ray. It's probably better if it comes from us," Deacon responded.

Rayna looked over at him. "You're probably right. But, not right now, okay?"

Deacon nodded. "Okay."