A Cowboy's Song

by Megan Ryder

  Now they were standing by her brand-new grill, that she had forgotten she had, and were debating how to cook the steaks. Just because her brother had a Y chromosome somehow entitled him to know how to operate a grill. He couldn’t even use the microwave. Thank God Ty seemed to have a brain and was controlling the cooking. They might actually have something edible for lunch.

  But that left Piper trapped in the quicksand chair with her parents giving her the concerned parental look. She sighed. There was nothing for it. She’d have to muddle through and pray dinner was ready sooner rather than later.

  “Spit it out, Mom. We’re not getting any younger.”

  Her mother frowned harder. “I don’t know if I like this new you. You’re a little sassier than you used to be.”

  Piper cast her mom a sideways glance. “I was always like this. I just didn’t always say it. Out loud, at least.”

  Her mother huffed. “Well, how is Ty settling in? He seems to be figuring it all out. Darren is pleased with his progress.”

  Piper glanced over at Ty and Colt laughing at the grill. “He’s still a little nervous about everything but it’s only been a week. It helped that you were there Friday night to support him.”

  “He has a strong voice and had a unique take on our song.” Her father mused. “You two sounded good together. You should consider doing more duet work. The crowd responded well to him.”

  Piper stifled a frustrated sound. Why couldn’t they ask about her and her performance? Now was as a good time as any to share something that had been kicking around inside of her. “I was actually thinking of taking a break, some time off to recharge and think about what to do next.”

  Her parents stared at her, shock written plainly on their faces. “Piper, that would be disastrous. I mean, your last album wasn’t great, but it wasn’t that bad. If you don’t follow up now, you might just fade away and be forgotten. Then where would you be?”

  “I’m tired, Mom. I just came off a grueling tour and am just not ready to dive back into the studio yet. None of the songs I’ve heard are right for me. Not right now. I need a break.”

  “It’s Ty, isn’t it? You’re going to spend your time helping him get ahead, to the detriment of your own career. You’ve always had the good ear and now you’ll work with him to build him up instead of you,” her father stated flatly.

  Piper cocked her head, thinking about his words. “No, I think that would be a mistake too. Ty doesn’t really want me too involved. He’s worried that people will think he’s using me to get ahead. He wants to do this on his own.”

  Her father snorted, shooting an angry glance at the grill. “He’s already got what he wanted. He can afford to say that. He got your manager, the recording studio, interviews lined up. The rest would have been up to his talent anyway. Face it, Piper. He’s already used you and got what he needed. Now he wants to distance himself, especially now that you’re stepping away from the business. If you walk away, you become a detriment, not an asset. He’ll find someone else to attach himself to, like your brother, or another rising star.”

  “Ty isn’t like that,” Piper insisted, though she had to wonder. He had been insistent that she reconsider what she did with her career, and not keep putting herself out there for him. Maybe he didn’t want to link them so closely because she was a millstone right now, sinking while he was rising.

  “I hope not. But don’t make any decisions based on him. Remember the last time, when you thought about reducing the length of your tour to be home more with Robert?”

  “I should have done that anyway, since most of my dates weren’t sold out anyway,” she muttered.

  “That’s not my point. You were making career decisions based on a partner who didn’t have your best interests at heart. I don’t want you to make the same mistake again. Your father and I always made decisions together, but we were partners on the road, in business, and in the family. You and Ty have solo careers. Separate. Don’t suppress yours for him.”

  Piper sighed and wiggled her butt to get out of the chair, not wanting to hear anything more. But the damned bug had been planted in her brain, and it was an earworm she’d not soon forget.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Ty paced the small antechamber of the business offices where Piper’s business manager worked. Piper was sitting in a chair, flipping through a magazine as if she didn’t have a care in the world, and maybe she didn’t. She wasn’t the one about to give an interview. Or maybe she was so used to them that it was all old hat to her. But the last time he gave an interview was to John Sheridan of the local newspaper when there had been a string of cattle killings attributed to the wolves coming up from Yellowstone and he had wanted to talk to the ranchers in the area about how it had impacted them. He knew how to talk about cattle, wolves, and ranching. Music was a horse of a different color. And this wasn’t just any old interview, any more than Friday night had been a casual sing-along.

  “Ty, sit down and try to relax. It will be fine. Take a few deep breaths, let them out slowly. Like meditation.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me? Do I look like the kind of guy who meditates? You spent too much time with Sierra and the girls at the spa, I think.”

  She flinched as if he had physically struck her and he sighed. He sank into the chair next to her and took her hand in his. “I’m sorry. I’m being a dick. I’m just stressed.”

  She gave a small smile and nodded. “Just be yourself, well, a little more charming, and everything will be fine.”

  The door opened and a tall, rail-thin woman stepped through the door. She eyed Ty like a side of beef, appreciatively, sizing him up as if he were her next meal. Piper stood with him and held out her hand to the woman.

  “Chelsea, nice to see you again. So glad you could take the time to meet with Ty.”

  If he wasn’t mistaken, there was a faint hint of frost in Piper’s words, but she was acting friendly enough. The dark-haired reporter shook Piper’s hand, holding it for the briefest of moments, then took Ty’s, holding it much longer, with both of her hands.

  “So, you’re the new superstar who’s going to resurrect Piper Raines’s career. Well, I just can’t wait to hear all about you. Shall we?”

  She just about pulled him into the interview room and closed the door firmly behind them, leaving Piper in the antechamber. He wasn’t sure why, but he felt like he’d just dived into the shark tank and the water was chummed. Now he understood why Colt warned him about Chelsea Hammersmith. He settled in the chair opposite her and got comfortable.

  She smiled, baring too-white teeth that seemed a shade too large for her mouth. “You seem to have come out of nowhere to electrify the country music scene, Ty Evans. Tell us a little bit about yourself.”

  He relaxed a bit. The question seemed innocuous and he could slip in a bit about Redemption Ranch and maybe get some publicity for their new guest quarters, a nice twist to help everyone out. So, he gave a condensed version of his life In Montana, his brothers, the town. She asked a couple of follow-up questions about his brothers and life on the ranch, nothing too serious, and he found himself relaxing and regaling her with tales from calving and The Rock.

  “But you didn’t always live on the ranch, did you? When you were twelve, your parents and your younger sister were killed in a tragic accident, when a trucker lost control in a snowstorm.”

  Blood roared in his ears, almost drowning out her words, and his body froze, ice cold like the Montana winter that took his family from him so many years before. Her smile resembled a shark’s, all toothy whiteness and victory, a glint of malice in her eyes, as if she knew she had scored a direct hit. He concentrated on his breathing like Piper had tried to tell him in the small office before the interview. Breathe in, then out. In. Out. Slow, steady. Focus.

  When he thought he could speak without giving in to the rage and pain coursing through his body, he leveled the steady look on her. “I am not discussing my family.”

  She raised one
incredibly thin, over-plucked eyebrow and gave him a smug look. “I can run the story with or without your comment. The information is public knowledge. It will be shared. It’s up to you how you spin the story.”

  He lunged to his feet, the chair clattering to the floor behind him. He towered over the woman, who didn’t seem at all intimidated by his presence. The door opened and Piper rushed in and took in the scene at a glance. She came to his side and laid a hand on his back, rubbing gently.

  “Ty, what happened?”

  “I’m. Not. Discussing. My. Family.” He spoke the words through gritted teeth, fists aching from being held tense at his sides.

  Darren came through the door at that moment, and no doubt heard everything. “Ms. Hammersmith. Are you okay?”

  Ty whirled and glared at Darren. “Is she okay? Are you fucking kidding?”

  Piper put a hand on his chest and physically pushed him back until he moved toward the back wall. Quietly, she said, “You were standing over her, and it looked like a threat. It could be considered one, especially in today’s world.” She stroked a hand over his chest, standing in front of him to block anyone from seeing them. “Focus on me, not her. Eyes on me, Ty. I know it is a difficult subject, but you had to know someone would bring it up.”

  “It’s off limits. Forever.”

  She shook her head. “Nothing is off limits.”

  He stared down at her, the reality of the situation settling in on him. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  Darren chose that moment to come over. “Ms. Hammersmith says she has all the information she needs for her interview and thanks you for your time. I think I convinced her that you didn’t mean her any harm and were just startled by her topic change.”

  “So, she won’t use the story?”

  Darren gave a short laugh. “Are you kidding? That’s gold. Kid overcomes tragic past. Hell, you’ll be even more in demand after her story. She just put you on the map, if you didn’t piss her off too much. It could go either way. Though, I wish you had told me about this. We could have handled it all differently.”

  Ty only shook his head in disbelief. “What kind of world do you live in where tragedy and personal lives are mined for other people’s enjoyment?”

  “Boy, you need to get with the program, here. We’re selling more than music. We’re selling you. And your story just got a whole lot more interesting. Explain it to him, Piper.” Darren turned and stalked out of the room, leaving Ty and Piper staring at the ruins of the interview and quite possibly their lives.

  *

  Ty stalked out of the brick office building and into the blinding sunlight, only to run into a crowd of tourists standing around and snapping pictures at one of the bars next door sporting a guitar. He ran his hands through his hair and glanced in both directions, trying to decide which way to go. God, he hated this town sometimes. Too many people. Too many buildings. Too much of everything. He couldn’t think, breathe. It was all too much.

  A herd of people jostled him and carried him several steps before he could weave his way out and plaster himself to the stucco wall of a gift shop advertising Elvis and Dolly Parton paraphernalia. He leaned against the wall and let out a deep breath. The sun beat down on him, the heat warming his skin, so much warmer than Montana this time of year. Of course, he was also burning up from inside, the anger sizzling along his nerve endings until he feared he’d scorched his entire life, career, and relationship with Piper.

  “Well, that didn’t go as planned, did it? Or were you out getting souvenirs for your family?”

  He opened his eyes and saw Piper standing in front of him. He sighed. “Did you tell them?”

  Her eyes widened for an instant, shock registering in them, then she pulled her arm back and hit him in the bicep. He flinched and rubbed his arm. “Ow. What was that for?”

  “How could you even think that? I would never betray your confidence like that.”

  He scrubbed a hand down his face and took a few steps away, ashamed that he even thought she could have done that. “I’m sorry. I know you’d never do that. It’s just…how did they know?”

  They started walking down the sidewalk and he tucked his hands in his jeans. Piper walked by his side, but somehow, she seemed so far away. “It’s a matter of public record, right? Trust me, these reporters are masters at research. And what they can find, they use to surmise and make assumptions to try to push you into admitting something. It’s the game.”

  “The game sucks.”

  She shrugged. “But there are good points, aren’t there? The music, the songs, the people.”

  He looked down at her. “I thought you didn’t like that.”

  She gave a wry smile and linked her arm in his, leaning into him. “I love the music and even singing. I could do without the crowds and the travel.”

  “But it’s part of the job,” he parroted her words back to her. “You know, I’m really getting sick of those words. We had a lot of shit jobs on the ranch that I didn’t like but it was still nothing like this. We still had respect for people.”

  She pulled away and stopped him, turning him around. “Hey, I resent that. You may not like some aspects of being in music, but we’ve treated you with nothing but respect. My family, Darren, everyone has gone out of their way to kiss your ass, Ty. Trust me when I say that very few new acts get anything like the attention that you’re getting. You’re damned lucky with the recording label, the interviews, the exposure. You should be grateful.”

  “Hey.” He held up a hand, trying to stop her tirade. “I am grateful. It’s been a great opportunity and the recording of the song will be a gift for Tara and West I could never have given alone, not to mention the money we’ll get going forward that we could apply to the ranch. All great things. It’s just everything else. I guess I just never expected these other things.”

  “No one expects the reality of this life until they’re in it. Some people sink and some swim. It all depends on how bad you want it, and who you surround yourself with. Maybe you need to figure out what you want, Ty. If this is the life for you or not.”

  She turned and headed back toward the recording studio, leaving him standing on the sidewalk, alone in the crowd of tourists, feeling like a stranger in a strange land.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Piper stormed back into the office. Why couldn’t Ty understand this was the life? As if shoveling shit and herding cows was an improvement on playing music and singing. Granted, both lives had their challenges and their downsides, but how dare he judge her life and question what she did for a living?

  Piper steamed as the elevator rose to the fifth floor.

  Darren’s assistant met her at the elevator and brightened as soon as she saw Piper. “Ms. Raines. I wanted to go over some ideas Mr. Hawkins had to increase visibility for the new song. Do you have a minute?”

  Piper hesitated, not really in the mood to talk to anyone, and just wanting to go home and be left alone. But if she went home, she would have to face Ty and that would probably be another difficult discussion at worst, chilly at best. So, she pasted on a fake smile. “Sure. What was he thinking about?”

  She followed the perky young woman, who really wasn’t much younger than her but seemed it based on her wide-eyed enthusiasm and determined cheerfulness. Life hadn’t had a chance to give her a reality check. Darren joined them about ten minutes later and they started discussing recording options and next steps for appearances.

  “Darren, vet the reporters better. No more family background questions for Ty.”

  Her business manager was already shaking his head, the dark hair not moving even with the vigorous movement. “No way. I spoke with Chelsea and calmed her down. She’s running the story, saying it was pure gold. Other interviewers will pick it up and want the scoop. It’s a great story and can only put a spotlight on him until we can get his music in front of them. Then the music can speak for him. Even if I say no-go on the questions, they’ll still dig. You know this, Pi
per.”

  She sighed, wishing there had been another way to protect him, wishing she had warned him. Damn it. “Try to minimize the damage. He won’t talk about it and he’ll take off.”

  “Then we’ll find someone else to sing that duet with you.” Darren’s voice turned hard and businesslike. “Look, that song was gold for you, Piper. The acoustic version at the wedding made you look human, vulnerable, likable. You two reminded people of your parents, and people are dying for a romantic love story to follow. You’ve never been more popular.”

  His perky assistant nodded. “You’re trending everywhere. Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Spotify. All sorts of sites. Your sales are up too. This has been great for your career.”

  Piper scanned the reports the younger woman handed her, shocked by the numbers she was seeing. She posted on her social media sites every day, as she had been instructed, and she also had some help with other posts, but the sales numbers and listens on the music sites were higher than they had been in a long time.

  “We have to capitalize on this. The record label is willing to go forward with the duet with or without Ty. They’d prefer the romance you two created when you sang together but we could find someone else to sing with you.”

  Darren’s words slowly penetrated and she lifted her head. “Wait, it’s Ty’s song. You can’t take it away from him.”

  “Not exactly. The contract gives it to us. We don’t need him if he’s going to be trouble. He can go back to herding cows and singing in local honky-tonks if he wants. If he won’t play ball, we’ll focus on you. You’ve always been our focus, Piper. He was a means to an end.”

  A noise at the door made them all turn. Ty stood in the doorway, staring daggers at all of them. He then turned on his heel and stormed away. The papers slid from Piper’s suddenly bloodless fingers. What had they done?

  *

  When Piper finally made her way back home, Colt’s truck was parked in the driveway, the same truck he had let Ty borrow the day after they had bonded, so Ty wouldn’t feel so beholden to other people for rides. The fact that it wasn’t in her empty garage sent a chill down her spine. She got out of the car and thanked the driver and walked to the door. Just inside, she saw his duffel bag and guitar, packed and ready to leave. But no sign of Ty. She heaved a sigh of relief. At least he hadn’t just left. She still had time to convince him to stay.