NB: THANK YOU every reader and reviewer for your kindness and genuine interest and excitement about a new story! I really appreciate it. I'm excited that y'all are excited to be taking this journey with Deacon, Rayna, the whole crew..even Daphne...and me. The song in this chapter is called 'Nothing But Trouble - Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors' - All copyright to them. PLEASE KEEP your LOVES/HOPES/HATES/COMMENTS/FAVORITE MOMENTS OR LINES/FAVORITES/FOLLOWS and WHATEVER ELSE coming...Enough talk, y'all are here to read the story...enjoy chapter two..

CHAPTER TWO

"It's open!" Rayna yelled from the lounge room. She looked at the blank page of her notebook and frowned.

"You do know that you're gonna invite some stranger into your home one day if you're not careful, right?" Tandy greeted, dropping her car keys on the kitchen counter.

"Relax," Rayna drawled. She chewed the end of her pen and waved her cell phone. "I knew it was you. I mean, considerin' all the times you got diverted to my message bank…It was only a matter of time before you showed up on my doorstep."

"Oh, so your phone works?" Tandy asked, sarcasm heavy in her tone.

"I've been busy,"

"A text would've been fine."

"Sorry,"

"You're not sorry,"

"No, I guess I'm not," Rayna laughed. "I've been a little busy."

Tandy walked over and sat on the arm of the lounge that Rayna was sitting on. "What are you doin'?"

"Goin' crazy is what I'm doin'!" Rayna exclaimed, chucking the notebook on the floor.

Tandy pursed her lips.

"I'm sorry, I'm just…With the tour on hold, I've finally got some time to be focusin' on my record and…my head is everywhere."

"Ok…" Tandy tried.

"This was supposed to be a good thing. A way of findin' my sound, findin' my voice…Doin' my music on my terms, you know?"

"Mmhmm, I thought that's what you got Edgehill to finally agree to? They did let you hire Liam after all."

"Marshall agreed, but then he got fired and I swear this new label exec is bent on makin' my life hell-"

"You mean Jeff Fordham?"

"Yeah, Jeff-" Rayna started, stopping mid sentence. "Hang on, how do you know him?"

"Word travels…" Tandy shrugged. "From what I've heard he sounds like a real business type, a charmer. Apparently he's not too bad on the eyes either-"

"I've got a few less friendlier ways of describin' him." Rayna said bitterly.

"I'm sure you do." Tandy hid her smile.

"He's threatenin' to release my 'Greatest Hit's' album if I don't hurry up this whole recordin' process,"

Tandy smirked and walked into the kitchen. "Rude.."

"I know!" Rayna fumed, following her. She exhaled heavily and ran her hands through her hair as she watched Tandy turn the kettle on. "Anyway, enough of that. Right now, I should be happy with my label. They're lettin' me be home with my girls and my sister for the next few weeks…"

"How is Juliette?"

"Ok, I guess. I think all she's really doin' is restin'…" Rayna replied, taking a seat on a stool. "I left her a couple of messages to let her know that I was thinkin' of her, prayin' for her...that kinda thing."

"You did?"

"Mmhmm,"

Tandy opened a cupboard and pulled out two cups.

"I think it'll take a little bit for her to be ready to get back up on the stage again. Recoverin' from somethin' like this is a lot easier said then done."

"Well, despite the circumstances…It is nice to have you home."

"It's good to be home,"

"Hey," Tandy smiled, handing Rayna a cup. "I was actually wantin' to talk to you about somethin'."

Rayna frowned.

"What happened in Louisville?" Tandy asked, watching Rayna carefully.

"What'd you mean what happened in Louisville?" Rayna asked, hiding the surprise on her face and the unease in her voice. Her mind began to run, entertaining every possibly question and thought that crept into her head. Was it about Maddie? Did Tandy know about her relationship with Deacon? Is this what that was about? She didn't want to know.

"Well," Tandy started, leaning against the counter opposite Rayna. "Daddy sure won't talk about it so I'm takin' things into my own hands and askin' you…"

"Tandy,"

"Rayna, I know he went to see you in Louisville. He left a meetin' to catch a plane get there before your show started."

Clumsily, Rayna lifted the cup to her lips, taking a long sip of coffee to hide her expression. She let the liquid burn her throat as she thought about the last conversation she'd had with her Father. Five weeks ago felt like a lifetime ago. He'd said his share of nasty words and she'd said hers too. Even Deacon had managed to get a few words in. They hadn't spoken since. She hated that her Father had used the truth about Maddie's paternity as a means to blackmail her into doing what he wanted. She hated that he didn't seemed fazed by the pain and the havoc he'd put her through. She loathed it all.

"Rayna?"

"Tandy," Rayna started, realising she had been ignoring her sister. "I don't know what you're talkin' about."

"I know y'all have never seen eye to eye, but you've always been civil. Since Louisville, you've backed out of every family dinner I organize."

"You make it sound like I'm home all the time! I've been tourin' in case you haven't noticed. When I have been home you've invited us to, what? One dinner?"

"And you asked if Daddy was gonna be there, made excuses and didn't come." Tandy countered.

"Tandy, I love you…" Rayna sighed, running a hand over her face. "But I really don't want to do this."

"Ok, fine," Tandy backed off, holding her hands up. "I'm just worried about you, the both of you."

"You can quit worryin'…I know where he stands and he knows where I stand. That's all there is too it-"

"Hey,"

Pulled from conversation, they both looked up in the direction of the voice. Tandy raised an eyebrow and Rayna smiled giddily, subtly avoiding Deacon's gaze in an attempt to draw attention away from her sudden excitement.

"Hi," Tandy smiled, shifting her gaze between Deacon and Rayna as he nodded.

"Hope you don't mind…Your message said you were home," Deacon broke the silence, waving his cell phone before gesturing to the front door. "So I let myself in."

Tandy cleared her throat and shot Rayna a pointed look. "You're able to send him a message and not me? Really?"

Rayna ignored her.

"I can go if I'm interupptin'-" Deacon started, rocking on his feet.

"-No, you're not…um.." Rayna fumbled, putting her cup down on the counter.

"I was just leavin'," Tandy slowly, gauging if she'd said the right thing from Rayna's reaction.

Rayna nodded. "She just was leavin',"

"Well, my guitar in out in the car so I'm gonna run out and grab it," Deacon replied, promptly leaving the room and the awkwardness behind.

"Ohhh," Tandy whispered, realization hitting her hard as her eyes lit up.

"What?! No ohhh, there's no ohhh, Tandy!" Rayna gulped, standing to her feet, as her tone got defensive. The only people that knew she was dating Deacon were the girls. Daphne. Rayna hoped with all her might that her sweet little daughter hadn't gone and opened her sweet little mouth. If Tandy knew, she would not let her live this down.

"Yes, there is."

"No, there's not!"

"There's a big ohhh," Tandy smirked.

"I have a record to finish and I need songs. Deacon writes music, I write music, we write good songs together. I can't help that."

"Yeah, I'm sure that's the only good thing y'all are doin' together." Tandy goaded, fanning her face as she narrowed her eyes. "No wonder you're not talkin' to Daddy,"

"I don't even have words-"

"You can deny it, but I see it on your face!" Tandy cried, waving at her.

"See what?!"

"See that Deacon's doin' a lot more than just makin' sweet music with that guitar of his."

Rayna flushed and her mouth dropped. "You are bad…"

"Sweetie, that ain't even the best of what I could say to you right now." Tandy smirked, grabbing her car keys when she heard the front door open.

"Bye," Rayna drawled, gesturing for her to leave as Deacon walked in.

"I'll call you," Tandy replied before shutting the front door.

"What the hell was that?" Deacon asked warily, putting down his guitar case.

Rayna laughed. "That was my sister bein' my sister…"

- NASHVILLE -

"No! Listen, listen, listen…" Deacon shushed, straightening his posture as his fingers let go of the strings of his guitar.

"Deacon," Rayna stifled a laugh, trying to grab the guitar off him. She leant forward and he pulled away, making them both laugh. "You're not helpin'!"

"I am so helpin'-"

"By scribblin' out my lyrics and messin' around on your guitar?" Rayna asked, feigning frustration.

"I'm helpin' you by forcin' you to take a break." Deacon smiled.

Rayna rolled her eyes.

"Darlin', nothin' good is gonna come from this," Deacon gestured loosely between them. "If you don't loosen up."

"I am loose…" Rayna frowned, looking up from her notebook.

Deacon shook his head. "No, you're not. Come on, aren't you supposed to be takin' a break with this tour bein' on hold and all? I thought we'd be spendin' some time together..."

"Babe, a postponed tour does not mean that I don't have an album to be workin' on…"

Deacon sighed, resting his guitar against an armchair as he stood up.

"Ok, fine. I was hungry anyway…" Rayna mumbled, standing quickly before walking to the fridge. She jumped when she felt Deacon's arms wrap around her waist. He smiled and she grabbed a tub of yogurt out of the fridge. Deacon chuckled when Rayna tried to free herself from his hold. "What are you doin'?"

"Holdin' you," Deacon replied.

"I know that!" Rayna laughed, dragging him with her to a drawer to get a spoon when he wouldn't let go. "But I'm tryin' to eat and you're getting' in my way."

"…I'm helpin' you relax," Deacon murmured, kissing her neck and pulling her body closer to his. Rayna shivered, her body instinctively leaning back into his. Clumsily, Rayna dipped the spoon into the tub of yogurt and lifted it up to her mouth. Deacon started humming and he rested his chin on her shoulder.

Rayna smiled when she recognised the melody. "I haven't heard you sing that one in years…"

"Blue-eyed baby, you're the queen of my afternoon." Deacon sang low, lazily swaying them back and forth. Rayna went quiet, smile wide as she listened to him sing. "Rollercoaster, rock and roller…You are the perfect melody."

"I've got nothin' but trouble, baby," Deacon grinned, his eyes meeting Rayna's as she looked up at him and sang a soft harmony. "You've got nothin' but time. So we got two hearts beatin' for a good ride…"

Deacon kissed her shoulder and Rayna dropped the spoon into the yogurt tub and placed it on the counter. She turned around in his arms to face him and he smiled when he noticed that her cheeks were red.

"Do you really wanna help me relax?" Rayna whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Deacon grinned, leaning down to capture her lips with his own.

Rayna responded eagerly, pulling his body closer to hers when he kissed her again. Their hands and mouths wandered, hearts hammering harder with every kiss. Caught in the moment, Rayna shrieked as she felt her feet leave the ground. Deacon's hands were on her waist one second and she was sitting on the countertop the next. Deacon's hands began to make the slow climb up her legs and Rayna's breath hitched. Leaning against the counter between her legs, he pulled her body close to his and kissed her slow and steady. His fingers moved to the buttons at the bottom of her shirt and she smiled into the kiss, her own fingers mirroring his actions. Rayna's cell phone rang and the sound echoed through out the whole kitchen.

"Leave it," Deacon murmured against her mouth as he ran his hands up and down her back.

"I-" Rayna started, stopping short when he kissed her again. Reluctantly, she pulled away, leaning back on the counter to grab her cell phone. She looked at the screen and groaned. "I need to take it."

Deacon exhaled heavily. "No, you don't,"

"It's Bucky, it could be important." Rayna replied, hitting answer before lifting the cell phone to her ear. "Hey, Buck."

Deacon took a step backwards and sighed.

"You? He? Hang on, what did you just say?" Rayna spluttered, jumping off the counter. Deacon grabbed the spoon out of the yogurt tub and began to eat it. Hastily, Rayna put the phone on speaker, sliding it onto the counter so she could do the buttons of her shirt back up.

"He seems pretty adamant that that's what he wants," Bucky spoke up.

"He wants a release date, a track list…Hell, he wants the masters for the whole damn album…and I haven't even finished recordin' it, let alone writin' it!"

"Ray, I'm on your side here. You know that, right?" Bucky asked.

"What does he want next? My soul?" Rayna replied grimly, shaking her head as Deacon slowly ate through her tub of yogurt. She mouthed. "That's my yogurt."

"What? I'm hungry…" Deacon chuckled.

"I don't know about your soul, but I know what he wants with that song." Bucky replied.

"We'll see about that," Rayna mumbled to Bucky as she looked around the kitchen for her car keys. Bucky said his goodbyes and she hung up the phone.

"Ok, wait," Deacon spoke up, watching Rayna run around the kitchen. He grabbed her hand as she flew past him. "Hold on, hold on, hold on…What's the matter?"

"Jeff is about to cop a mouthful off of me is what's the matter," Rayna replied angrily.

"What? Why?"

"You know that duet? The one you and I wrote? The one we sang in Louisville?" Rayna asked, nodding when he realized what she was talking about. "He wants it on my album-"

"That's great..." Deacon spoke slowly, immediately regretting his choice of words when Rayna eye's grew wide. "I thought you wanted it on the album..."

"But I've gotta sing it with Luke." Rayna finished, crossing her arms as she pursed her lips.

"Luke?"

"Oh, don't pretend like you don't know who I'm talkin' about now." Rayna sighed.

Deacon looked at her blankly.

"Luke? You know, Luke Luke…"

"Wheeler?" Deacon scrunched his nose up, realisation flooding his face. "You're kiddin'?"

"No, I'm not kiddin'." Rayna shook her head as she picked up her cell phone.

"You're not considerin' singin' our song with Wheeler, right?"

"No. So, I've gotta go on down there and tell him that as much as I appreciate his input…I've already got plans for that song."

"You're goin' down there now?"

"I've got to. Last thing I want is him gettin' some bright idea to release a press statement about a Rayna Jaymes and Luke Wheeler duet. That'd just be perfect."

Deacon laughed. "Well, I'm sure it'll be fine. I mean, you hardly know the guy. He probably thinks he's doin' the right thing by you and your album by wantin' to be involved."

"I hope so," Rayna blew heavily.

He leant over and kissed her cheek.

"Shoot!" Rayna exclaimed, looking at the clock on the wall. "It's Friday."

"Friday?"

"I'm supposed to pick up the girls this afternoon from school." Rayna threw her head back in frustration. Now she was going to have to wait a whole weekend to sort out this album business.

"I can pick them up?" Deacon suggested, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I mean, only if you want me to. It's just a thought."

"I don't wanna put you out by askin' you to do that."

"Ray, it's ok. You're not forcin' anythin' on me when I'm the one that's offerin to do it. I'm sure we can find a way to fill in time while you do what you gotta do."

"Babe, that'd be so great, thank you…" Rayna relaxed, looking from Deacon to her cell phone.

"It's fine,"

"Only if you're sure..."

"We've gotta start somewhere." Deacon replied and Rayna smiled, acknowledging the double meaning in his words. They were yet to talk about a lot of things; dating ground rules, the girls, Bucky, the media, Maddie. Maddie was definitely something they needed to talk about, but they both knew now was not the time.

"I'll call the school and ask them to let the girls know you're pickin' them up today."

"Sounds good."

"I'm sure they'll like it a lot more than their Mom turnin' up anyway."

"Darlin', if it was me...you're the only one I'd want turnin' up." Deacon grinned, wrapping her in his arms.

Rayna blushed, her body overcome with a fire that shot up through her bones. She loved how he made her feel, what he did to her, how he looked at her and held her close. Without even trying, he completely undid her. She kissed him hard, taking him by surprise. He wanted to kiss her again but she pulled away.

"What was that for?"

"Just wanted to, " Rayna smiled coyly, brushing hair out of her eyes.

"Well, whenever you just want to...I'm open to it happenin',"

"Babe, I've just gotta-" Rayna hesitated, trying to find the right words. "You know my girls, they're good girls...but sometimes they have a way of backin' you into a corner and-"

"Ray, I've known them their whole lives...I think I can handle it,"

Rayna's eyes widened. "If you say so."