First, so sorry this update is so long coming. Had a bit of writer's block and work has been bananas.

CHAPTER 18

New York

Juliette's Hotel Room

Deacon smiled to himself while Juliette continued to squeal and jump around. Edgehill was caving on two of Juliette's new demands. That meant four of his songs would be on the album, maybe a fifth if Marshall Evans decided on thirteen tracks as opposed to twelve. It did feel good to know more of his music was about to be released.

Juliette cocked an eyebrow as she asked what his plans were for the rest of the afternoon. He shrugged but Juliette smiled knowingly. She asked what was going on between he and Rayna.

"We are working things out."

"And what exactly does this mean?"

"It means, we are workin' things out."

Julliette huffed and said she deserved specifics, "It means, we're back together. We're doing what we use to do and working through our problems together." Deacon turned to leave the hotel room and headed back to his own. The truth was, they were more than just working things out. They were almost back to themselves again. They spent their time together talking through everything. He was still angry and hurt and about a million other things but he could talk about it with her now.

And they'd talked about a lot of things. They'd talked about her marriage, his random relationships, his fears on his sobriety, and her fears about the same. They'd listened to close to a hundred demos from potential new artists. He helped her narrow down the songs for the new album before she and Liam made the final cut. She'd even helped him finish a song he'd started with Juliette that was lacking something. T

The truth was, he was finally at peace again, the kind that he only had when he was sober and with Rayna.

Deacon's Hotel Room

2 hours later

Deacon groaned into Rayna's mouth, causing a shiver to go through her. His hand cupped her breast through her shirt as his other hand reached down to waistband of her skirt.

Rayna pushed his hand away and broke the kiss. "We agreed."

Deacon leaned into Rayna, seeking out her kiss again. Her lips pressed against her again, talking against her. "We can un-agree."

Rayna happily laughed, leaning into his kiss once more. She drew away just as quickly, "Nope. We agreed. We have two weeks left on the tour and that we would use this time to work on us…sans the sex."

He suggested they could always change their mind.

Rayna smoothed out the crease Deacon had just created in her shirt. "Nope this was your idea. And we are sticking to it."

He put his head down for a second before lifting it back up, "Fine."

She reached her hand to stroke his jaw, enjoying his 'scruff' as she always called it. She looked into his eyes for a minute before verbalizing her thoughts. "The lawyers called today."

"and?"

"The wait period for a married couple with children is over. So as soon as we get back to Nashville, its time to start hashing out everything."

Deacon asked how she felt about it and she admitted she had no clue, "I can't imagine being in Nashville and not getting to tuck in the girls or see them." Her lip quivered as she tried to stop herself from crying.

"I'm sure you will still see them a ton, way more than when you are on tour. Even when it isn't your time to be with the girls, you can go to Maddie's games and Daphne's dance practices."

She nodded silently, wiping her eyes. "Yeah." She sniffled and admitted he could come too. "Only if you want to though, I don't want to pressure you at all."

Deacon admitted he would like that. "I want to be a bigger part of her life. And Daphne's."

She smiled at the sentiment, "Deacon James Claybourne you are a good man."

Rayna's cell phone started ringing and she grimaced, "Its Teddy."

The Next Morning

Deacon took a seat on the floor beside Rayna, handing her a cup of coffee. "So Teddy wants you two to alternate weeks in Belle Meade? So like, you live there with the girls one week and move out and Teddy comes in?"

Rayna nodded and admitted it was a short term solution. "The girls need some stability. And all their friends live in the neighborhood and their school is literally within walking distance."

Deacon asked where she would live on the off weeks.

She shrugged, "I don't know. Tandy offered me one of her extra bedrooms but I am thinking I need some place that is my own."

Deacon opened in his mouth to say something, but Rayna quickly changed the subject, "Actually last night Teddy mentioned something else. He was hoping that the three of us could have a conversation."

Deacon cocked an eyebrow, "The three of us?"

Rayna nodded slowly, "Yeah. He um…he knows that you the truth about Maddie and he wants to…"

"Wants to make sure I remain Uncle Deacon?"

Rayna looked deep into Deacon's eyes, trying to figure out what he was thinking. She pressed her lips together and kept looking at him intently. She finally broke the silence, asking what he wanted.

Deacon let out a soft smile and admitted didn't know, "it all feels really overwhelming right now."

"Overwhelming ?" Rayna asked feeling a sense of dread.

"I feel responsible for Maddie in a way I haven't before. I think about you, about us and it feels so right, it is right. But there are two kids involved now and half the time I feel like I'm still twenty."

Rayna smiled brightly and admitted sometimes she still saw him as twenty too. He laughed huskily causing her to hit him on the leg.

"You know I love you right?"

Deacon's eyes sparkled, "Yeah, I may have had some idea."

3 nights later

"You're selling the house in Nashville?" asked Rayna, clearly confused.

Deacon shrugged, "I told you I was selling the house before we came on tour. Remember the fight in the front yard with the sign."

"Yeah I just thought… you hadn't brought it up since the tour started so I just thought you'd changed your mind."

Deacon put his hands in his pockets, clearly nervous. He admitted he was planning on living at the cabin.

"The cabin?"

Deacon looked up at her, "Actually I was thinking you could live at the cabin with me."

Rayna opened her mouth to say something but no words came out. Deacon smiled, "We lived there for years and since the girls are going to be staying at Belle Meade, it isn't like we need more room."

She smiled widely, "Seriously?"

Deacon swallowed again, unsure why it was taking so long for her to say 'yes.' He nodded, "Seriously."

He caught her in mid flight. He grabbed the back of her thighs as she jumped up and wrapped her legs around his waist. She kissed him in a series of pecks on the lips, repeating 'yes' between each kiss. She wriggled against him as he maneuvered to sit down on the couch, with her legs still around him. She put both of her hands on his face, stroking his jaw and asked if he was sure. "This is a big step and I know you're trying to sort out everything."

Deacon leaned in to kiss her again, "I'm sure."