Twenty minutes later, they were about ready to start their first set and Lily was pleased but also a bit nervous to see that the room was already three-quarters filled and all the tables taken with people waiting for them to perform. She glanced around the room, looking for familiar faces and found Dani and Wade sitting at one of the bigger tables, with the others. She finished her scan and was both disappointed and a little relieved that she didn’t see Cody and Ben anywhere. Maybe they’d changed their minds. She supposed it was just as well, because now she was a little bit less nervous.
“You ready to go?” Tyler asked them both. Mark nodded and Lily adjusted her guitar strap on her shoulder. “I’m ready.”
Tyler introduced the band, as he always did, and then Mark took his place behind the keyboard while Tyler and Lily played guitar. Lily handled the main vocals with both Tyler and Mark providing backup support. They launched into a couple of current popular covers and a few originals that were usually crowd pleasers. Lily was just about to start the last song of their first set, which was her newest original, the one she’d been fine-tuning when they were practicing at her condo. She sang the first line and then faltered for a moment as she saw Cody, Ben and Andrea walk into the room. It was standing room only now, and she watched them head toward the side bar, the only area where there was still some available space.
Lily quickly recovered and found her focus, losing herself in the music and the lyrics. This song was her current favorite. It was a love song, a bittersweet story about a love that ended too soon. People often asked her about the meaning behind her songs and while there was sometimes a clear link, a deliberate story she was trying to tell, there were just as many times where the words and melody just came to her and she didn’t know where from or what it was supposed to mean. Just that it felt right. This was one of those songs. It had made her feel deeply as she wrote it and it was her hope that it might connect with some of those who heard it, too. That was always the goal with her music. That it might reach people, and make them feel something.
She was always worried when she debuted a new song. By the time she played a song live with the band, she’d tinkered with it repeatedly until it felt finished, but she was never sure how it would be received. Audience reaction varied and often surprised her. Sometimes the songs that she wasn’t as sure about were the ones the listeners loved. When they played their last note and the song ended, the crowd was silent a little longer than usual and then the clapping and cheers came. The response to this song was the biggest of the night so far. Lily exhaled and smiled at her bandmates.
“I think they like it,” she said softly.
Tyler laughed. “Understatement of the year.” He stepped up to the mic. “Hey, everyone, that ends our first set. We’re going to take a short break and then we’ll be back on in about twenty minutes or so. Stay tuned.” He and Mark wandered off to say hello to some friends and Lily did the same. She made her way over to the table where Jess and the others were sitting. There was an empty chair next to Jess and Lily slid into it. Everyone congratulated her and then Wade teased her.
“Lily’s off to Nashville next week. She says it’s just a vacation, but after what I just heard, it wouldn’t surprise me if she never comes back. Next thing you know, we’ll be hearing her on the radio!”
“Hardly!” Lily said with a laugh.
“You’re really going to Nashville?” Lily turned at the sound of Cody’s voice behind her. They’d walked over to the table and Ben was chatting with Wade and Dani, while Andrea stood between Ben and Cody, looking annoyed that she was being ignored.
“Sit for a bit. I see some friends we need to go say hello to,” Barbi said. She and Ryan got up and Cody and Andrea slid into their seats.
“I am. I’m going to visit a college friend that lives there.”
Cody looked thoughtful. “You are very good, you know. Wade was teasing, but that last song you sang was as good as anything I’ve heard on the radio.”
That made Lily feel all warm and fuzzy inside. He liked her music. She didn’t know why, but it felt important to her.
“Thank you. You like country music?” She had pegged him as more of a rock and roll listener for some reason.
“I like your music. But yeah, I like country. Most music, really, if it’s good.”
Andrea sniffed dismissively and they both turned her way. She looked like she was sucking on a lemon. “I’ve never much cared for country music.”
That didn’t surprise Lily in the least. “That’s okay. It’s not for everyone.”
“Wade and I are off to the bar. Does anyone need a drink?” Ben asked.
“I’ll take a beer,” Cody said. “And Andrea looks like she needs another pink thing. What is that?”
“A cosmopolitan. Straight up, please.” She polished off the last sip in her glass and then handed it to Ben as if he was her personal waiter.
“Lily, what can we get you?” Ben asked her.
“Oh, I’d love a lemon twist, please.”
Ben repeated it back. “They’ll know what a lemon twist is?”
“They will,” she assured him. She always ordered them on the nights that she played.
“I’ve never heard of that. What is it?” Andrea asked. Her snooty tone dialed down a bit as she sounded genuinely curious.
“Oh, it’s delicious. It’s lemonade and club soda with a twist of lemon. I always drink that during a performance or something similar if they have it.”
“You don’t drink when you perform?” Cody asked.
Lily grinned. “No, none of us do. Not until our set is over, and usually for me, not even then.”
“Do you not drink at all? Are you an alcoholic?” Andrea fired the questions at her and Lily was taken aback. Her opinion on Andrea was that she was every bit as annoying in person as she was on the phone. How could Cody stand working with her?
“No. I have a glass of wine every now and then, but I am just not much of a drinker.”
Andrea looked skeptical. Cody didn’t seem to notice anything out of the ordinary, though. Maybe Lily was being overly sensitive.
“How long have you worked for Cody?” Lily asked. Maybe it hadn’t been very long and he just didn’t realize her true nature yet. The question seemed to improve Andrea’s mood, though.
“Five years this month. I love working for Cody, at his ranch. My office has the most breath-taking view of the mountains and fields.”
“That sounds lovely.” Lily found the thought of Andrea sharing an office and a view with Cody to be oddly depressing.
“It is gorgeous out there. Quiet and beautiful,” Cody said.
“Truly spectacular,” Andrea added for emphasis as Ben and Wade returned with their drinks and set them down.
“Thank you,” Lily said as she took a welcome sip of the refreshing beverage.
“What are you doing tomorrow?” Cody asked her.
“Tomorrow?” The question took her by surprise.
“Yes. It’s supposed to be a beautiful day. If you don’t have plans, I’d love to show you the view at the ranch. Do you ride?”
Lily laughed. “Barely. I haven’t been on a horse in years.”
“Well, if you know how to ride, it’ll come back to you. I can put you on Gracie. She’s a mellow, sweet girl. We can go for a ride across the fields.”
The only plan Lily had for the following day was to sleep in and work on a new song. Going for a ride, spending time with Cody, sounded wonderful.
“That sounds fun. I’d love to.”
Andrea stared glumly at the two of them, clearly disapproving of Cody’s invitation.
“We should head back to our spot,” Ben said as Lily realized Tyler and Mark were back on stage making some adjustments to the speakers.
Lily stood. “I should go, too. I’ll catch up with everyone later.”
* * *
Cody led the way back to their spot and they lucked out when they got there. All four seats at the bar opened up a
t once and they slid into them. Wade came too, so he could talk more with them. Andrea excused herself to go say hello to a table of girls that she knew. It looked like Lily’s band was going to go on again in a few minutes, but they were still going over what he imagined was their set list.
“So I ran into Maureen in town earlier today,” Wade said. “Did you know she’s engaged already? Seems like you two only broke it off a few months ago?”
Cody was surprised, but also pleased to hear it—which, he realized, was a sign that he’d made the right decision for both of them. “I hadn’t heard that. I’m happy for her. Maureen is a great girl. And yeah, it’s been all of three months.”
“Isn’t that something? I guess when it’s right you just know it, huh?”
Ben chuckled. “I’m not sure Cody would recognize it or not. Might help if he actually got out there more, maybe went on a date every now and then.”
Cody shot him a look, but didn’t say anything. His brother was right. He hadn’t been interested in getting ‘out there’ at all.
Wade looked at him curiously. “Well, what’s your type? I can keep an eye out for you?”
“My type? Well, if I had one, I’d say probably petite like Andrea and Maureen.”
Cody noticed that his brother seemed to tense up when Cody said Andrea’s name.
“Okay, will think on that,” Wade said, then looked curious. “But what about Andrea? Is she single?”
Cody looked around before answering, but Andrea was still off chatting with her friends.
“She is. But for one thing, she works for me.”
“Oh, right. Of course. Not a good idea,” Wade agreed.
Cody considered that for a moment, though, before saying, “That probably wouldn’t stop me, though, if I thought she was the one for me. She’s not.”
Ben smiled as Andrea walked back over to them and took the empty seat next to him.
“We were just saying that we need to find a date for Cody. Do you have any single friends that might be interested?” he asked her.
Andrea looked flustered and not pleased by the question. Before she could answer, Cody jumped in to save an awkward moment. “Never mind him, Andrea. I can find my own dates just fine, thank you.”
“I’m sure you can. Any girl would be glad to go out with you.”
Wade chuckled. “Well, there you go, then. Problem solved. Oh, looks like they are about to start again.”
* * *
Cody was mesmerized watching Lily perform her second set. Her voice had a haunting, breathless quality that drew him in, as if she was talking, or rather singing, to him directly. She looked his way often, though he knew she was looking equally across all areas of the crowd, like a good performer should. He did like the way it felt, though, when she glanced his way. He thought about the conversation earlier with Wade, about what his type was. He couldn’t help but notice how different Lily and Andrea were. Andrea was very cute, and conservatively dressed in a flattering light blue sweater that hugged her slim curves and looked pretty against her very blonde, perfectly done hair. He could take Andrea anywhere and she’d always look appropriate.
Lily, on the other hand, was all raw creative energy, with her tangle of honey-gold curls that fell to the middle of her back. Her cowboy boots were an unusual shade of blue and peeked out from under her loose, long skirt as she walked and sang. He couldn’t help but admire the snug black tank top that showed off her arms, long and lean from yoga. She reminded him of his favorite horse, Annabelle, who always wanted to go faster, and would jump over anything in her way. She was a thrill to ride. He could almost picture Lily riding her, with her long hair swinging in the breeze as they rode along. Though he wouldn’t dare give her Annabelle. He was the only one that rode her.
After they finished their second set, Cody couldn’t help notice that Lily was still full of energy. He would have thought she’d be exhausted after playing for several hours, but if anything, she seemed to have found a second wind. Ben and Andrea were chattering away next to him and he was in and out of their conversation, distracted by catching glimpses of Lily out of the corner of his eye, flitting from table to table and visiting with people. She seemed to know almost everyone. Finally, she made her way over to their side of the room and stopped by to chat.
“You all did a great job. How often do you play around here?” Ben asked her.
“On average, maybe once or twice a week. That’s enough, though,” Lily chuckled.
“I can’t imagine Wade would want you to do it more often, especially during the week?” Andrea asked.
Cody noticed Lily’s smile tighten and through thin lips she said, “No, I can’t imagine he would. He knows I would never do anything that could jeopardize my performance at the ranch. That’s my main job.”
“Well, that’s good, then,” Andrea sniffed. Cody looked at her in surprise. What was wrong with her? She was in an odd mood tonight.
“I’m tired. Are you two about ready to get going?” Andrea asked. Cody was about to protest that he wasn’t ready to leave just yet, when Lily yawned.
“I’m about ready to head out myself. That’s always how it seems to be after a show. I have a burst of energy and run around talking to everyone and then crash hard, like a windup toy whose battery just died.”
“I’m pretty tired, too. Since you’re going my way, maybe I’ll catch a ride with you, if you don’t mind?” he asked Lily.
He did know that Andrea didn’t like changes to plans, so wasn’t surprised when she immediately said, “I don’t mind dropping you off, Cody.”
Lily smiled. “Of course I don’t mind. We are next-door neighbors, after all. I’ll just get my guitar and bag and we can be on our way.” A few minutes later she returned, and they all walked out together. He carried her guitar case and put it in her backseat. Lily drove and they were home in less than five minutes. He carried her guitar again as they walked from the car and he waited for her to unlock her front door.
“I enjoyed this show much more than your first one,” he said as she pushed the door open and set the guitar inside. She laughed at that.
“Good. I’m glad our first impression wasn’t too horrible, then.”
“Not at all. You’re all very talented. You especially.”
She looked suddenly shy at the compliment.
“Thank you.”
“Is eleven okay tomorrow? For riding?”
“Oh, yes, sure. Eleven.”
“I’ll knock on your door then. Good night, Lily.” He felt the air change around them as she looked at him curiously and there was a moment, a split-second where he was pretty sure he could have kissed her. But the moment was fleeting and he lost his nerve. And started to over-think it.
“Good night, Cody.” She smiled the faintest of smiles as she shut the door.
Chapter 5
Over coffee the next morning, Lily thought about the night before and how interesting it had been. She was sprawled on her living room sofa, Hope purring by her side. Normally, she spent Sunday mornings relaxing and thinking about new songs, letting her mind drift and find lyrics and melodies that went together. Today, both seemed elusive as instead her thoughts kept returning to her confusing neighbor. The one who was too attractive for his own good, and was completely wrong for her, yet she kept replaying that moment just before she went inside, when she thought she’d felt a charge in the air and for a crazy second, she even imagined that Cody wanted to kiss her. He hadn’t, of course, and she was sure it was all just in her imagination.
But, he had asked her to go riding with him on his ranch. And she was curious to see what his ranch was like. If he had a gorgeous ranch to go home to every night, why would he choose to stay in a downtown condo instead? One that was in various states of remodeling? She knew that was just temporary and it did make sense, she supposed, that it was sometimes easier for him to be there when the work was going on. Lily was such a homebody, though. She knew she wouldn’t want to do that. She loved
climbing into her familiar bed every night, and curling up with Hope. It was why when people encouraged her to try to pursue her music more seriously, that she hesitated. Traveling all the time or even going out to sing, more than a night or two a week, just wasn’t for her.
In looking back at the previous night, too, she wondered if Andrea maybe had an interest in Cody. It would explain her less than friendly behavior toward Lily each time Cody was talking to her. She also couldn’t help notice Ben talking to Andrea and wondered if there might be some interest there, but Andrea was too focused on getting Cody’s attention to notice. She might be wrong on that, though.
At eleven sharp, there was a knock on the door, and Hope jumped off the sofa and ran down the hall to watch the door from a distance. Lily got up and opened it and there was Cody, smiling and holding two large cups of coffee. He wore faded jeans that fit well, and a button-down hunter green shirt, with a navy sweatshirt jacket over it.
“I wasn’t sure if you’d already had coffee or if you’re like me and can never have enough?”
“Never enough! Thank you. Let me just grab my coat.” She threw on a white fleece jacket over her long-sleeved, navy blue scoop neck jersey and jeans and took the coffee. She followed him to his truck, a faded big blue monster of a vehicle. It was old, but comfortable. She sipped her hot coffee as they drove out to his ranch.
“How long have you owned it?” she asked as he turned off the main road.
“Six, or maybe seven years now. I worked at other ranches for years, during school and after I graduated. Saved just about every penny that I made and kept my eyes open for the right opportunity. The Red Rock Ranch came available and it was a little bigger than I thought I could get financing for, but my father co-signed for me, which ultimately made it happen. I’m very lucky.”
And humble, too, which impressed Lily more than the size of his ranch.
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