Deacon
He walked up to the motel room and put his key in the lock, opening the door. He flipped on the light as he walked in, closing the door behind him. He put his guitar case on the credenza and tossed his duffle onto the bed nearest the door, then crossed over to close the curtains. When he looked back around the room, he noticed it was nicer than a lot of the rooms he normally stayed in. The motel was pretty new and the room looked brighter than the usual rooms that had dark walls and dark bedspreads on the bed, along with dark wood veneer furniture and dark carpet. Lots of white and pastel blue in this one. He laid on the bed farthest from the window, his head sinking into surprisingly soft pillows. He reached into his back pocket for his phone.
"Hey, baby," he said when she answered, a smile crossing his face. He was starting to feel very relaxed already.
"Hey. How did things go tonight?"
"Good. Good crowd. Made a few changes to the setlist but I think I'm pretty set on what we'll do when we hit Toby's tour." He sat up, afraid he'd fall asleep, his feet hitting the floor. "How's things going there?"
"You know. The usual midweek fire drill." Rayna was home for several days before she headed back out for her weekend dates. He had to admit he missed that and was looking forward to having some of that schedule when he hooked up with Toby. Toby had some mid-week dates though, so it wouldn't be as often as Rayna could do, but it would help. "Today was all laundry and repacking and working with Susie on the wardrobe for the weekend. We pull out in the morning."
"Where you headed this weekend?"
"Charlotte and Raleigh. Next week is a longer week though. Louisville, Indy, Chicago. 2 shows in Chicago. And Watty's coming to Chicago."
"Sounds good." He paused. "How's Maddie?"
"Good. She keeps asking where you are though."
Is she trying to make me feel bad? "Well, tell her I miss her and I'll see her as soon as I can." He didn't want to think that Rayna might try to guilt him or pressure him. Then he thought he was probably overreacting. He just missed being with Maddie. One of the best parts of touring with Rayna was that their schedules were always the same. It made being a dad to his daughter easier. But he also felt a sense of space that he hadn't expected when he started touring for himself. He had never really wanted to be apart from Rayna before but he could see that it could be a good thing to have some different paths to follow. The only problem with it, that he could see, was Maddie.
"We're both looking forward to that," she said, her voice soft.
He cleared his throat. "I love you, baby," he said, really feeling the loneliness he sometimes felt being away from her. "I miss you too."
"When's the next time you'll be home?" She had his schedule, just like he had hers, but it was turning into somewhat a ritual for them, a touchstone in a way. Knowing – and acknowledging to each other – that the time apart wouldn't be for long.
"Two weeks. And then I head to Chicago to meet up with Toby's tour."
"Exciting stuff." She paused. "There's no one who deserves this more than you, Deacon. I hope you know I mean that. Even though I miss you terribly I love knowing you're getting to do what you love."
His chest felt tight. They'd be able to work through this. They had to. He was sure of it. "Knowing you got my back means everything, Ray," he said, meaning it. "So, uh, look, I'm beat and I gotta get on the road early tomorrow. I'll see you soon."
"Good luck. And I love you."
"Love you too, baby." When he disconnected he felt tears on his cheeks.
His second Huntsville show was cancelled due to an electrical fire in the back of the bar. He knew Rayna was in Tallahassee so he decided he would surprise her. It was a long drive and he got there after her show had started. He stopped by her hotel first and knocked on the door to her room. After a moment the door opened to Hannah, Maddie's tour nanny. Maddie adored Hannah, a middle-aged woman who was a widow and whose children were grown. Hannah loved being on tour with them and adored Maddie as well.
"Deacon!" she cried, a huge smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye. She reached out to give him a motherly hug. "I didn't know you were coming down."
He smiled back and walked into the room as Hannah shut the door behind him. "I didn't either, but my show tonight got cancelled, so I just thought" – he shrugged – "I'd surprise Rayna and Maddie." He nodded towards the bedroom. "She still awake?"
"Barely. We were reading and she was close to nodding off. But I know she'll be so excited to see you."
He walked around to the bedroom Maddie shared with Hannah. "Maddie, honey, you awake?" he whispered.
"Daddy!" she squealed, sitting up in the bed, instantly wide awake. He walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, capturing her in his arms as she threw herself at him. She pressed her lips on his cheek. He held her close, just letting himself feel her little body and smelling the fresh scent of soap from her bath.
He leaned back and looked at her, smiling broadly. "How's my sweet girl?" he asked.
"So good," she said. "Since you're here." She was a smart little girl. It amazed both him and Rayna how articulate she was at her age. It made him proud though.
"Well, I wanted to stop by to see you before you went to bed. Before I see Mommy."
She frowned. "I wanna go," she said, pouting.
He shook his head. "It's time for you to go to sleep. I'll be here in the morning, I promise."
She didn't look happy about it but finally said, "Okay." He held her close again, kissing the top of her head.
"You have good dreams, sweetie," he murmured. He got her tucked back into the bed and even though she was still pouting a little, he could also see her eyelids drooping and knew she'd be asleep probably before he even left the room.
"I love you, Daddy," she said, her voice already sluggish with sleep.
"I love you too, baby girl." He sat until her eyes closed and he heard her even breathing and then he got up and walked back out into the main room in the suite. "She's asleep," he said to Hannah. "I'm gonna go over to the arena."
Hannah smiled. "I know Rayna's gonna be so happy to see you," she said.
He stood far enough back on the side stage that she wouldn't see him. He didn't want to distract her while she was on stage. She looked good, dressed in a pair of gold colored leather pants that showed off her long legs and a gold sequined sleeveless top. Her hair, as always, was loose around her shoulders, and he could see the sparkle of her jewelry even from where he stood. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Bucky.
"Hey, Deacon," Bucky said, looking a little surprised to see him. "I didn't realize you'd be here."
"Had a cancellation in Huntsville and thought I'd come down here and catch her show," he said. "She don't know I'm here. I wanna surprise her."
Bucky smiled. "She'll be glad to see you. How are things going for you, by the way?"
"Good," he said, nodding. "Starting with Toby in a couple weeks."
"Yeah, that's right. Well, good luck to you." He smiled again and held up a hand as he walked closer to the stage.
Her show was fantastic, as always, and he was pleased to see that the new guitar player was fitting in well. She still made comments sometimes about how he wasn't perfect, but he could also tell the guy was better than she was giving him credit for. She was using the set list they'd put together, which meant she would end on It's My Life and then come back with Already Gone as her encore number. He thought about how far she'd come since they'd first started out. She had reached her goal, headlining sold out arenas with her high energy show. He watched her interaction with Gary, the new guitar player. It was subtly different from the interaction he had with her on stage, which made sense. Still, Gary's vocals meshed with hers seamlessly where they needed to.
She had finally gotten to It's My Life and he watched her finish the song, then wave to the crowd before she headed off the stage before the encore. Bucky was waiting for her, as usual. She would normally stand off stage just for a minute or two before going back out. He stepped forward from the back of the crowd. When she saw him her face lit up. She handed her mic to Bucky and then hurried over to him, throwing her arms around his neck.
"Deacon!" she cried. "What are you doing here?"
He wrapped his arms around her, loving how she felt against him. "Came to see my girl," he said, kissing her. "You look great out there."
She kissed him back. "Thank you." She looked at him with a tiny frown. "But didn't you have a show tonight?"
"Yeah, but the bar had a fire in the back, so they had to close. I thought I'd drive down and surprise you 'stead of going back to Nashville by myself."
"Well, I'm sorry you had to miss a show, but I'm so glad to see you here." She looked around. "I've got to go back out for my encore, but you'll still be here, right?"
He nodded. "Absolutely."
She took a step and then turned back. "You want to go out there with me?" She looked at him hopefully.
He thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I think you're good. Plus I don't got my guitar with me." She looked disappointed for a moment, then put on a smile as she turned to head back out on the stage.
Rayna
She couldn't believe she was wrapped up in Deacon's arms. She had not expected to see him and it had been a wonderful surprise when he had stepped out from the crowd backstage. She reached up and ran her hand over his cheek. "You should get some sleep, babe. I know you've had a long day."
He leaned in to kiss her, letting his fingers trail down her arm. "Seeing you perked me up," he said with a smile. "But I do have to say this bed is pretty damn soft. Not what I'm used to. So I'm pretty sure I'll be asleep quick."
"I think you should go to sleep then. We don't have to wake up at a certain time since we're headed back to Nashville." She could tell he was stifling a yawn.
"You don't mind?" he asked.
She shook her head. "I'm just happy you're here. With me." She reached up and brushed his hair back with her fingers. "Sleep well, my love."
He smiled. "I'm with you. Makes all the difference."
She watched as he closed his eyes and she was pretty sure he was asleep the second he did. Having him next to her was a gift. Him driving all that way touched her. It had been hard – for both of them – being apart as much as they were. It had led to little fights and disagreements about their professional lives and how that would work. She didn't want it to be that way. She wanted to only be supportive, letting him navigate this new landscape for himself. But she had to admit she was looking forward to his time with Toby ending and him coming back to her. She thought he might want some time off before getting back into the groove of being her bandleader again. He'd been on the road an awful lot and it might be nice to just have him be there for support and so he could clear his head. Then after the tour was over they'd figure out how things would work going forward.
She sighed contentedly. She felt good about where they would go from here. She could manage this.
When she woke up the next morning, she was surprised Deacon wasn't there. It made her wonder for a second if she'd dreamed the whole thing, but she saw his duffle in one of the chairs in the room. She listened for a moment and could hear Maddie's happy laughter and then heard her squeal piggyback, Daddy. She smiled to herself and then rolled onto her side to check the time. It wasn't even 9 AM but she felt rested, so she got up and pulled on a t shirt and some shorts. She peered in the mirror and ran her fingers through her hair and then opened the door to the living room in the suite.
Deacon had Maddie on his back and her little arms were wrapped around his neck. At the sound of the door opening, she squealed, "Mama, look! Daddy's here!"
She smiled. "I see that. Isn't it a nice surprise?"
Deacon looked over at her apologetically. "Sorry if we woke you up."
She shook her head. "You didn't. I know Maddie's happy to have you here though."
"Happy!" Maddie shouted.
He walked over, Maddie still on his back, and gave her a quick kiss. "I'm happy to be here too," he said with a smile. She put her hands on his face and drew him back in for a more lingering kiss. "I hope you don't mind but I ordered some breakfast."
"That's wonderful." She looked around. "Where's Hannah?"
"Taking things down to the bus. Well, she has someone taking them down and she went down to supervise. She's gonna get breakfast in the dining room. Said she wanted us to have some family time." Just then there was a knock on the door. He turned. "Maddie, let your mama take you so I can get the breakfast." She reached out and plucked Maddie off his back and then he went to the door to let room service in. After the room service person left, she put Maddie down. Deacon smiled. "Breakfast for my girls," he said.
Not without an angry protest, Rayna left Maddie on the bus with Hannah so she could ride back to Nashville with Deacon. It had been a while since they'd had that much concentrated time together and she wanted to take advantage of it. Deacon, however, was particular about what he didn't want to discuss – no discussion about tours. If we can't be in my truck for 8 hours and be able to talk about other things, something's wrong with us. If she was honest, she had thought it might be a great time to talk about that kind of thing, but if the conversation went south it could be uncomfortable. So she had agreed.
It had turned out not to be that difficult to find other topics to discuss. They talked a lot about Maddie and whether she should go to pre-school in the fall – they would wait a year. They listened to country radio stations on their drive and talked about the music they heard and what ideas they'd had for new material – they were anxious to write together again. They reminisced. It felt like the early days, when they could talk about anything, just enjoying each other's company.
They'd fallen silent for a few minutes. She turned and looked at him. "Remember when you bought the cabin?"
He glanced over and smiled, a smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes. "I do. I was nervous about doing it, but it was your dream house. I remembered you talking about a dream house and it just seemed like that was it." He paused. "Plus I wanted you to know I was all in on turning things around." He sighed. "Course we know how that went."
That was true. "But it was such a grand gesture. And it was just what I wanted. Then we made it into a place for us." She looked out the window for a moment, then back at him. "We spent some amazing times up there, you know?"
He nodded. "Yeah, we did. It's been mostly good." He looked over at her. "We both got a couple days. Why don't we go up there?"
She hesitated for only half a second. "I think that's a great idea." It had always been a good place for them and she thought maybe then they could talk about the future, both professionally and personally. She had hoped he would suggest it when she brought it up. She smiled. "I'm all in." He reached across and took her hand, squeezing it gently. I think this is just what we need.
Deacon
They pulled into Soundcheck so that Rayna could get Maddie and head home. When he'd gotten them situated, he got back into his truck to drive to the house. He was glad to have a few minutes of solitude as he drove. It wasn't that he hadn't enjoyed having Rayna along for the ride with him – because he had – but it gave him a minute to kind of collect his thoughts. He was glad she had agreed to go up to the cabin for a couple days. It wouldn't have surprised him if she'd said no, but he was glad she had not. The cabin usually was like a balm for their souls, whenever they spent time there. He wasn't foolish enough to think she wasn't going to want to talk about tours but he thought it would be a better conversation to have in a place where both of them could get some space if they needed it.
He knew she was going to ask about him coming back to her tour at the end of the 6 weeks with Toby. He had said specifically that the topic was off the table while they drove back. Actually, he hadn't been that specific, but he had said he didn't want to talk about tours – either hers or his – on the ride back from Tallahassee. He didn't want them to fight in the small confines of the truck. He didn't have anything lined up – yet – after Toby's tour, but Rita was confident that either Toby would want to extend or that she'd find another tour for him to get onto. She had intimated that she had a couple possibilities lined up but hadn't wanted to be more detailed than that until she knew for sure. The idea of it was exciting. He wasn't ready to put the brakes on his solo career. He just wasn't sure how Rayna would feel about it.
It was late when he pulled into the drive to the house. He parked and went over to Rayna's car, gently lifting a sleeping Maddie out. "Let's try not to wake her," Rayna whispered and he nodded. Hannah had already dressed her in her pajamas, knowing they would get in after Maddie's normal bedtime. Rayna opened the back door and held it open so that he could bring Maddie in. Then he carried her up the back stairs and laid her carefully in her bed, after Rayna pulled the covers down. She then covered her up and they crept out of the darkened room.
When he'd closed the door, he looked at her. "You need to go downstairs for anything?" She shook her head. He smiled. "I'm beat. Wanna go to bed with me?"
She grinned. "I would love to."
It had been several weeks since they'd been together and he'd been too tired the night before to do anything more than fall asleep. He was still really beat from the drive, but he needed to feel her skin against his. He needed to be able to touch her and for her to touch him. He needed to be inside her. They undressed quickly and crawled into the bed from opposite sides, meeting in the middle. He pulled her to him, feeling her skin warm and soft against his own. He leaned down to kiss her, his hand resting on her waist. She gripped his upper arm lightly as she let herself give in to the kiss, which grew more heated almost immediately. He moved his hand up her back and then over to her breast. He cupped the soft flesh and let his thumb run back and forth over her nipple, until it stood at attention. He spent a little more time fondling her, then let his hand drift back down to her ass. He was already fully erect, ready for her.
He pulled his lips gently from hers. "God, I love you," he whispered.
Her hand stroked his face. "I love you too," she murmured. She shifted slightly, pressing against him.
He moved his hand and inserted two fingers inside her. She moaned, as did he, feeling how wet and ready she was for him. He withdrew his fingers and then moved on top of her, hovering for just a second before he entered her, a little roughly. She moaned again and he started to move inside her and she was moving to his rhythm, creating an exquisite friction that was exciting both of them. She was murmuring incoherently. He gazed down at her face, her eyes closed, her skin pink, her lips moving slightly with her breathy moans. She was beautiful, he'd always thought so, but especially when they were making love. She opened her eyes then and seeing him watching her, she smiled. He leaned down then and took her lips with his, as she opened her mouth to him.
Her hands trailed down over his back and down to his ass. She lifted her pelvis, rubbing against him. Her movements started to quicken and he followed suit. He knew he was ready to let go but he wanted her to come first. "Come for me, baby," he whispered in her ear. She tightened herself around him, pushing against him even harder, wrapping her legs around his back, and then suddenly she cried out and he could feel her pulsing around him. He let go, murmuring her name over and over, letting himself feel the release. He was always amazed that 15 years in she still excited him more than he'd ever thought possible. She fulfilled him in a way he'd never thought he could feel and, if anything, it had just gotten better over time. They were both breathing hard. "Good god, I love you," he muttered into her ear.
"I love you too," she whispered back, holding him close. When he rolled away from her, she smiled, then reached out and put her hand on his cheek. "I've missed you, Deacon. I've missed us."
He smiled back and pushed her hair off her face. "Me too, baby," he said. "Me too." He put his arms around her and kissed her forehead. "Sweet dreams, baby." She smiled, then rested her head against his shoulder. Within minutes they were both asleep.
Over the years he'd found that by the time he was within 30 minutes of the cabin on the lake, whatever was going on, whatever was dragging him down, whatever problems needed solving, he would feel a little more in control. There had been times in the past when his demons had chased him there and when that happened, the cabin wasn't a refuge. There had certainly been times, when he was at his lowest, when Rayna had brought him there and it could be a place to heal. During the worst of times, it could just be the place where he ended up. That had been the case on that day when Rayna had shown up and told him she was pregnant with Maddie.
Since then, the cabin was a safe place, a welcoming place, a haven and yes, a refuge still. It was a place where he and Rayna could just be a husband and a wife with their little girl – a family. There was peace in that. A peace they sometimes both needed. It wasn't often, when they were on the road, that they would take a couple days to head up to the cabin. There was too much else to do when there were days off. But they needed this. They both knew it. They needed the time away to focus on them, stripped of who they were in public. So as they got closer, he felt himself start to relax, and he reached for Rayna's hand, glancing over at her with a smile. She smiled back and he thought about how pretty she looked. Her face was still a little flushed from their morning lovemaking. Without her makeup she looked so young. Dressed in just a pair of shorts and a Bluebird t-shirt she looked at ease.
"I'm glad we're doing this," he said.
She nodded. "Me too. I'm glad you suggested it. It'll be nice to be away from all the...stuff back in Nashville."
He didn't really think they were actually getting away from any of the 'stuff', just transplanting it to a different location. But he wasn't going to go there just yet. He smiled. "Yep." He got to the unmarked road off the state highway that led to the cabin and turned left. One of the things that was so nice about the place was that it was both secluded and rural. No cell phone service, poor TV reception. They'd only put a phone line in since Maddie was born. And the road was still gravel. The perfect getaway.
Rayna
She could practically feel the stress leaving her body the farther they got from Nashville and the closer they got to the cabin. It was truly her favorite place, as long as she was there with Deacon. When he'd first gotten it, she had been concerned that he was doing too much, making big gestures right out of rehab. But he'd found the place that was so close to her dream that she had a hard time being annoyed or worried for long. As they turned off the main road and started down the gravel road around the lake, the bouncing of the truck woke up Maddie.
"Are we there?" she demanded, grouchy from her nap. She had fallen asleep practically as soon as they'd left the Nashville city limits.
She turned to look back at her daughter in her booster seat. "Yes, sweetie, we're almost there," she said, with a smile.
"I wanna swim," she said.
"I'll take you in the lake soon as we get there, sweet girl," Deacon said. The water would still be chilly since it was the very end of May, but Maddie would still want to do it. Just then they rounded a curve and turned into the dirt driveway that led to the house. Now that the trees were leafing out, the house was only barely visible from the road, surrounded as it was with trees and flowering bushes.
The front of the house was unassuming as it faced the road. It looked like any other little house and gave the appearance of being an actual cabin. It was the back side of the house that was so spectacular and made it dreamy, at least in her opinion. There was a long, covered porch that overlooked the lake, along with a small screened in portion at the far end of the house. There were double sliding doors from the porch to the great room that gave both a stunning view of the lake as well as brought in lots of natural light. The front of the house was dark, with small windows running along the face of the house. The back of the house was the polar opposite.
Coming in through the front door took you to the small living room, dining room, powder room, and laundry room, as well as the stairs to the second level. Across the back of the house was the huge great room and the primary bedroom and bath. Upstairs were 2 additional bedrooms and another bathroom. The porch though was the best part. It was long and wide and was the perfect place to watch the sunset over the lake and the best place to sing or even just talk. It was a beautiful day and the lake was smooth as glass. It was her favorite place on the planet.
"Baby, you coming?"
She suddenly realized she'd been lost in her thoughts. They were parked next to the cabin and Deacon had Maddie in his arms already. She looked over and smiled. "Yeah. Sorry. I was just thinking how glad I am to be here." She opened the passenger door and stepped out onto the ground.
Deacon put Maddie down on the porch and she ran down to the glass doors. "Gotta pee pee!" she shouted. She couldn't help but smile.
Deacon hurried down to open up and let Maddie in. She took her time walking down the porch and then stood looking out over the lake. It was warm, with a light breeze. The skies were blue with light puffy clouds. She heard the door open and turned to see Deacon. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "You okay, baby?" he asked. "You seem sorta quiet."
She nodded. "I'm just happy to be here. I always feel so much better here. I feel relaxed already."
"I'm gonna go get our bags. Maddie's gonna wanna get into her bathing suit."
She smiled. "Yes, she will. You better hurry." She watched as he headed towards the car. Then she turned and walked into the house. "Maddie? Where are you?"
In the end, the two days were magical. They had quality time with their daughter. They laughed and had fun together. They sang and even did a little writing together, which had been unexpected. As it always did, writing together led to an enhanced intimacy. As Deacon held her in his arms, she felt an explosion of emotions and suddenly tears were rolling down her cheeks. She turned and rested her chin on his chest.
"What's the matter?" he asked, a frown on his face as he wiped the tears from under her eyes.
She smiled. "Nothing. Nothing at all. This has been so much more than I'd even hoped it would be and I just don't want to do anything to change that."
"I don't either, baby, but..."
She put a finger over his mouth to shush him. "I don't want anything to spoil our time here. This should always be our safe place. The place where the rest of the world ceases to exist and the only thing that matters is us. And our family."
He seemed to contemplate that for a moment and then he nodded. "Okay. I agree." He gently drew her head down on his chest and kissed the top of her head. "We'll do that."
She knew they couldn't put off talking about the future forever, but maybe they could put it off a little longer. The time would come though when they'd need to figure out how they meshed their lives together, especially if Deacon was able to really make things work for his own career. And she still wanted another baby and wanted it sooner rather than later. But for now she just wanted to be wrapped up in their own little cocoon for another day.
Deacon
The two days at the cabin had been nice. Maddie had had a great time and had been distraught when it was time to leave. He had reminded her that there was a pool at home and that seemed to satisfy her. Rayna had been more relaxed and he'd had to admit that it had felt a lot more like the early days, when life had been simpler and they'd just been living on love. When it had become apparent that she was the one with the bigger career upside, he'd been fine with just being on stage with her. They wrote almost all their songs together and he sang back up. A number of their songs were written as duets and that had not changed much over the years. He would tell anyone who asked, back then, that he was happy supporting her, but the truth was that he'd often wondered what if. What if he had been the one the labels were interested in. What if he had been the one who'd attracted all the attention. What if he had been able to stay sober.
At the end of the day, that had been the stumbling block for him. Not the only one, certainly, but it was the one that had stayed with him, even after he did get sober, the thing that music industry executives remembered. When he had first talked to Rayna about doing an album on his own, she'd been encouraging, even when he got rejection after rejection. He wondered sometimes if she wasn't secretly relieved, since it meant she didn't have to make any adjustments. She'd never said it, never even hinted at it, but he knew her better than anyone. So when she had started to get a little irritated when he did finally get a record deal and it started to become obvious it would be at odds with her plans, he could tell that she was less than enthused, even if she didn't want to admit it. He didn't think it was just because it was inconvenient for her and he wasn't even sure she knew herself what was at the bottom of it.
Rita had come to the last couple shows to see the set list he'd put together for Toby's tour. She'd listened to his sound checks, when they would run through the actual songs they'd use, and then the shows themselves in order to gauge audience reaction. The only change she'd asked him to make was to add The Long Road to the setlist for the tour. It was a song he'd written back during some of the tough times he and Rayna had gone through, back when he sometimes felt pissed off about where his life was taking him. It wasn't completely autobiographical, but there were hints of some of the frustration he felt in it. He'd been a little reluctant to include it, but it always got good reception when he performed it and Rita had been a little more directive than she normally would be. She usually left setlist decisions to him but in this case she'd pushed harder.
When Rayna had suggested they postpone any tough conversations during their brief visit to the cabin, he realized it was a good idea. Being with her, without having to acknowledge who they were, was refreshing. They were just a husband and a wife, along with their daughter. A family. It was the most important part of his life – being a husband and a father. He thought they'd really needed that reminder, or at least he had. No matter what else was going on that was the core of it all and it had helped to be reminded of that.
But they were home and back to real life. At least for a day or so. He had a little more of a break than Rayna did and he'd agreed to go on the road with her at least for the upcoming weekend. Not as a performer, but as her husband. He would stand on the side of the stage and watch her perform and be there to do a post-mortem, as she liked to do, and then he could sleep next to her for a few more days. At least that was his plan.
While they were eating lunch his phone rang. When he picked it up he saw it was Rita. He looked at Rayna. "It's Rita. I need to take it," he said. Without waiting for her to respond, he got up from the table and walked back into the butler's pantry, leaving her with Maddie. "Hey," he said when he connected.
"I hope you're enjoying the time off," Rita said, skipping pleasantries. In the short time he'd known her, he'd learned she wasn't one for small talk. She was very focused on business, which he'd learned was good for him. "I wanted to let you know that I've got leads on a couple of artists who may be looking for an opener once you've wrapped up with Toby."
He smiled. "Really? Who?"
"I don't want to say just yet, in case it falls through, but they're both bigger stars than Toby. One of them is top level. But I'm still working on details, so until something's nailed down, I'd like to keep it quiet."
He frowned. "Then why tell me?"
"Because I want you to be prepared." Her voice sounded clipped and terse, as though she didn't like him questioning her. Another thing he'd learned about her, but it still could be annoying. "You need to make sure Rayna understands you might have something else in play come August."
"Okay," he said.
"Oh, and I got you a bus. Belcourt is fronting it, so we'll have to pay them back, but I think you'll appreciate that more."
"Wow, that's great." It was great. It meant he wouldn't have to drive between locations in his truck and that he'd have more space and storage for himself and the guys. "I'll let the guys know."
"It'll be waiting for you at Belcourt's office building. You'll meet up with Toby in Chicago. You'll be there the day before and we'll walk through everything. Then you'll have soundcheck at the United Center at 3 on the day of the show. 30 minutes. You'll go on at 7:45 for a 40 minute show."
"Sounds great." He hoped he sounded nonchalant about it. It wasn't that playing arenas like that was unusual, but he'd never done his own set at one. Rayna liked doing multiple nights at the Chicago Theater when she went to Chicago, but he was just in her band then. This was the big time and he was anxious to make a good impression. He just didn't want to sound anxious.
"Alright. I'll see you in Chicago." Then she hung up. He stood and looked at the phone, still a little blown away by what he was stepping into. There was some anxiety but mostly he was just pumped to get the chance.
"Good news, I hope?" He looked up to see Rayna.
He nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I think so. Maybe we can talk about it tonight."
She screwed her face up. "Why not now?"
"Um, no reason really, but I just thought maybe we'd wait til Maddie's gone to bed tonight."
She narrowed her eyes slightly. "Is it something that's going to be a problem?"
He sighed. "I guess it depends on what's a problem to you." She didn't say anything but after a moment she turned and walked back to the kitchen. He sighed again and followed her. "Ray," he started.
She waved him off. "No, we'll wait, since that's what you want." She looked at him, her face void of much emotion. "Susie's going to be here soon to go over wardrobe, so we'll just...wait." She turned towards the dining table, where Maddie was still sitting. "Maddie, come on, sweetie. It's time for your nap."