Thank you for all the comments! They are encouraging :)

SEATTLE

Deacon felt his blood pressure rise as he looked at the pictures Juliette had pulled up on her computer. It was Rayna and Liam at some Vegas bar. They were all over each other: in one picture his hand on her thigh, in another she was whispering in his ear with his hand on her back. The story that went along with the pictures detailed the night before. Instead of attending a pre-planned birthday dinner with her management team, she blew it off without a word. The article claimed everyone at the party waited for over an hour for their guest of honor to show and that they eventually got word she had other plans.

The article mentioned the election for Mayor and one of the pictures with Teddy and Peggy. The article didn't even mention him at all. He gave the computer back to Juliette before storming out of the hotel room.

St. Thomas Catholic Church

Deacon rubbed his bloodied knuckles as he recited the words he knew so well, "Hello, my name is Deacon and I'm an alcoholic." Two of the women there seemed to recognize him as did the leader. The other group members didn't appear to know him from Adam. He told his story quickly then sat down, listening as some olive-skinned woman told the story of the last few months. She'd been sober for 193 days. Her two teenage kids were having trouble believing that she'd stay sober and her ex-husband had yet to give her benefit of the doubt. Try twelve years of your life.

KeyArena

Deacon could hear Rayna's voice booming through the playback as he approached the side stage. He listened to a few songs, growing more and more annoyed. Liam was an awesome player but he hung on too long during the bridge of 'Changing Ground' and Liam played 'Alone Again' with more jazz than country.

He watched as Rayna sang leaning against Liam's back, the now infamous high-kick thing they did was just stupid. It was rehearsal, why the hell do they need to do a high-kick for sound check? Then she sang two of her new songs. The song was more rock-and-roll than anything she'd ever done before. It was raw in a way she hadn't been in years. He watched as she smiled at the end of the song, a real smile. One that was directed towards Liam. One that use to be reserved for him. But like everything else with Ray, he was quickly becoming nothing more than a memory.

Rayna's Hotel Suite

Deacon continued to bang on the oak door, knowing security was probably on their way. Finally he heard Rayna groan his name before the door swung open. She was dressed in an old t-shirt and shorts. Her hair was in disarray and her eyes were red. She'd been sleeping. The hand on her hip was a sign that she was ready to fight. Deacon pushed the door open as Rayna's face went from confusion to anger.

Deacon waited for a minute before angrily asking "what the hell was going on?"

Rayna shock her head in disbelief and in her sarcastic twang answered, "Well it looks like breaking and entering to me."

Deacon huffed for a minute before giving her a warning. "Ray...I am serious."

Deacon listened to her rant and rave about the time and him barging into her hotel room. He felt his voice shake with anger when he told her she "knew damn well" what he was talking about. Silence filled the room before he continued. "Are you sleeping with Liam?"

Rayna shook her head in disbelief, "I don't see how that is any of your busi…."

"Ray I'm serious. Are you sleeping with Liam?" He knew he was holding his breath but couldn't make himself breathe.

Rayna met his gaze for a minute with a question, "Why do you care?

"Why do I care?" Deacon repeated.

"Yes, why do you care?, asked Rayna getting more annoyed. When she realized Deacon was trying to find his words, she continued. "You know you have some nerve."

"Oh do I?"

Rayna spit back, "Yes you do…You attack me every chance you get, you criticize me, you can't wait to tell me how else I've disappointed you or failed you. You pick Juliette else's side over mine every chance you get…and now you're barging in here…."

Deacon cut her off again, "Oh God, this has nothing to do with Juliette."

"Really? Cause the only reason you are on this tour is because of her. In fact, ever since she offered you a job, you've completely changed."

Deacon accused her of being jealous but Rayna denied it. The two went back and forth for a while before Rayna let out a frustrated groan. "Why are you here? To accuse me of cheating on my husband or accuse me of being jealous of the girl who you replaced me with?"

Deacon opened his mouth but Rayna got angrier. "Get out. I don't need this, especially now. " He looked at her surprised for a moment before realizing it was better to go, for now. He slowly walked the distance to the door and was unsurprised to hear Rayna slamming the door behind him.

9 Hours Later

Rayna's Dressing Room

Deacon sat in the darkened corner near the bathroom, waiting for Rayna to come back after she signed autographs. He wasn't surprised when Liam, followed a second later by Rayna walked into the room. They were so caught up in their conversation, neither looked over in his direction.

Deacon listened as the two went back and forth about Rayna changing labels. "The tracks weren't ready to go out," "Sorry I was just trying to help." Liam occasionally leaned into Ray but she never leaned back.

"If you want to stay in something that's stale, old, and boring, go for it. Maybe that's your thing."

Rayna looked up at him and asked what that meant.

"Think of Edgehill like your marriage, the only way to get through it is by fantasizing about someone else."

He say her tense then strained to hear her say, "Look can we just not bring Deacon into the conversation right now."

Liam responded fine before asking if she wanted to go out tonight.

Rayna admitted she did, "anything to keep from going back to that hotel room alone." Liam nodded, walking out of the dressing room before Deacon cleared his throat.