“We could do that if you like? If you’re up for an adventure?” Cody suggested.
“Are you? I’d love to try it but only if that’s what you want, too.”
“I’ve never had a chef’s tasting menu. Let’s go for it.” Paul took their menus away and returned a moment later with small glasses of wine and what he called an amuse bouche, a bite of something in a giant white spoon.
“Tuna Tartare, compliments of the chef,” he said as he set them down.
Two and a half hours later, they both leaned back in their chairs, completely full and sated. Cody couldn’t remember when he’d last enjoyed a meal more. Paul had brought out course after course, all of it delicious, even though half the time Cody wasn’t entirely sure what he was eating. Lily loved everything, too. She was an adventurous and enthusiastic eater, which made sharing a meal with her fun.
They also talked and laughed about so many things as they ate and sipped the different wines that Paul brought to match each course. He noticed that Lily never finished her wine, though. She just took a few tastes of each one and mostly drank her water, which the busboy refilled often. They both enjoyed the dessert too which was a plate with a sampling of four different pastries.
“That was wonderful,” Lily said as Cody signed the credit card receipt and she slowly eased herself out of her chair. “Aren’t you glad we’re walking home?”
He grinned. “Yes, that was a good idea.”
Lily was unusually quiet on the walk home. Cody wasn’t sure if she was just really full or if there was something on her mind.
When they reached her front door, she invited him inside and they collapsed on her living room sofa.
“That was so good. Thanks again.” Lily smiled as Hope jumped up beside her and she scratched behind her ears. The little cat purred loudly then walked across Lily’s lap and rubbed her head against Cody’s hand.
“She likes you! She wants you to pet her.”
Cody patted her head gently and the purring continued. Hope then flopped down between the two of them and closed her eyes.
“Must be nice to be a cat,” Cody said.
Lily laughed. “I know. I think I read somewhere that they sleep about twenty hours a day.”
“I feel like I could sleep that long too right now.” Cody smiled. He wanted to be wide awake but his eyes felt heavy from the huge meal they’d just had and the very comfortable sofa.
“I’m tired, too.” A strange look flashed across Lily’s face and got Cody’s attention. He sat up and looked in her eyes.
“Is there something on your mind?”
Lily swallowed nervously. “I wasn’t going to mention this tonight because I worried that you might get the wrong idea and I didn’t want anything to ruin this night,” she began.
He didn’t like the sound of that.
“I got a phone call today, from Nashville. A record company invited me to meet with them on Monday.”
“You’re going to Nashville again? This Monday? For how long?”
“I’m flying there and back the same day.”
“That’s crazy.”
“Well, I was just on vacation.”
“So what does this mean? You’re going to move to Nashville?” He had a sinking feeling that she might have to, and that she would.
“I don’t want to move there. I want to stay here, in Riston. But I do want to hear what they have to say and see what my options are.”
“Well, congratulations. This is the dream, right?”
Lily looked uncertain. “It’s Laura’s dream. I’ve never really thought it was mine. Not seriously, anyway.”
“I told you you were good. It will be interesting to hear what they offer—and what you decide to do.”
“I’m excited to meet with them,” she said quietly.
Cody leaned in and kissed her softly, tenderly on the lips. “I know you are.” He stood up. “I’ll let you get to sleep. We’re both exhausted and I’m sure you’ll be busy this weekend getting ready for your big day on Monday.
“What are you up to the rest of the weekend?” she asked.
“Ben and I are having dinner with our parents tomorrow night. They think that is their big anniversary celebration, the four of us going out.” He had thought of asking Lily to join them, to meet his parents, but given this news, he decided to wait instead. He didn’t want to get his parents hopes up, or his own, if Lily wasn’t going to be sticking around.
“Oh, that sounds fun.”
“I’ll probably stay at the ranch Sunday night. I have some work on the stables I want to do and it will be easier to just stay there and head into the office in the morning.
Lily looked sad for a moment, but then she smiled and matter-of-factly said, “Well, I guess I won’t see you until Tuesday as I won’t be back until very late Monday night. If you’re around on Tuesday, that is?”
“I’ll be here. I’ll look forward to seeing you when you come home.”
Chapter 14
Lily didn’t hear from Cody all weekend, not that she really expected that she would. She kept busy, visiting her Aunt Gillian on Saturday, and practicing with the guys at Mark’s house Sunday afternoon. It was a rare weekend where they didn’t have any gigs booked. She shared her Nashville news with them and they were both thrilled for her.
She was surprised by how much she was missing Cody even though it had just been a few days. She’d grown used to seeing him almost every day. He’d reacted pretty much how she’d expected that he would. She knew he was happy for her but also that he was pulling back until he knew how whatever happened in Nashville and what she decided to do would affect them.
She barely slept Sunday night. She tossed and turned worrying that she was going to oversleep and miss her flight. But there was no traffic that early in the morning and she made it to the airport in record time. Her flight was long but smooth and she arrived on schedule in Nashville. There was a driver waiting for her, with a luxurious black Lincoln Town car and she was delivered to the front door of Anvil Records ten minutes early.
The front desk receptionist was friendly with a thick southern drawl.
“I’ll let Peter know that you’re here. Please have a seat.”
Lily settled gingerly on one of the stiff, black leather chairs and looked around the room. There were guitars on the wall and autographed record albums behind glass frames. There were so many famous names that she recognized. She looked down at her outfit and hoped she was dressed appropriately. How did one dress for a meeting with record executives? Lily wasn’t at all sure, but opted for business casual. She wore a long, navy skirt and a pretty rose pink sweater and brown cowboy boots. The outfit was one of her favorites. She loved the color combination. It usually lifted her spirits and gave her confidence and that was something she sorely needed at the moment. Her mood kept shifting from excitement to terror. She was nervous about the unknown, wondering what they had in mind for her.
At ten past three, a smiling, middle-aged man wearing wire-rimmed glasses and a t-shirt and jeans came into the reception area.
“Lily Donahue?” he asked, looking around the room. There were two others also waiting, but they were both guys. Lucy stood and shook the hand that he offered.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
“A pleasure. Thank you for coming in to see us.” As if she’d had a choice. This was a meeting she couldn’t possibly miss. She followed him into a large corner office where there was a woman in her thirties sitting at a small table with a notepad in front of her.
“Lily, this is my assistant, Emily. She’s going to be part of our meeting. Have a seat.”
They sat around the table and Peter leaned back in his chair.
“So, Lily, what’s the goal? What do you want to do? Do you want to be a country music star? A singer-songwriter? Or do you prefer to be behind the scenes, writing the music and then having someone else sing it?”
“I enjoy singing,” she began carefully. “I sing in a ban
d with my brother and a friend and we play a night or two a week at local pubs. That’s fun for me. It’s where I get to play my new music, which is what I really love. Writing the songs.”
“So you don’t want to be the next Carrie Underwood?”
Lily grinned. “No, I really don’t have any interest in that.”
He chuckled. “Well, that’s unusual and refreshing.” He steepled his fingers together and rested his chin on them, thinking.
“Any plans to move to Nashville?” he asked finally.
Lily hesitated. “No. I’d prefer not to.”
“Where is this Riston? Must be a nice place.”
“Idaho. And it is. It’s my favorite place in the world.”
“Okay, then. Here’s what I’m thinking…”
* * *
Cody’s weekend was long, and lonely. He was surprised by how much he missed Lily. He thought about her constantly, wondering what she was doing and what was going through her mind. He had a nice time with his parents and brother on Saturday night, but he kept wishing that Lily was with him. He was sure that his parents would love her. They had no clue at all about the party. He and his brother were looking forward to that surprise this coming weekend.
Cody did a lot of soul-searching on Sunday. He took Annabelle for a long ride across the fields, letting her go as fast and as far as she wanted. By the time they trotted back to the stables, they’d both had a good workout and Cody had made a decision, of sorts. He knew how he felt, and he needed to talk to Lily and see how her trip went and what she was thinking. He hoped that they might be on the same page, at least about what really mattered.
Monday, while Lily was up in the air somewhere on her way home, Cody did something he normally hated to do and avoided whenever possible—he went shopping.
* * *
Lily stopped by Cody’s condo on the way to work on Tuesday. She knew that everyone at work would be wanting to know what happened in Nashville and she wanted Cody to be the first person that she told. She knocked on his door and it took him a while to answer. When he finally did, she saw the reason why. He had just gotten out of the shower and was standing there in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. He grinned when he saw her.
“Well, this is a nice way to start my morning. Come in. I’ll be right back, have a seat.”
Lily sat on the sofa and didn’t have to wait long. Cody was back a few minutes later, in jeans and a button-down white shirt. His hair was still wet, but now it was combed back and was no longer dripping. He pulled her up and into his arms and gave her a kiss that took her breath away.
“I didn’t want to get you all wet before, even though I was dying to do that. So, tell me about your trip. How did it go?” They both sat on the sofa and Lily told him all about her meeting with Peter and what they had decided on. Cody looked stunned and thrilled by her news.
“I really thought you might be moving to Nashville. That they would talk you into doing what you said you didn’t want to do, touring, the whole nine yards. Not that I could blame them. You are good enough for that.”
“I couldn’t be happier about how this worked out.”
“So they want two of your songs to start, the one you sang and the one of yours that Laura sang?” Lily nodded. “And you’ll just send them songs to consider and if they like them they’ll represent them?”
“Yes. It’s really perfect for me. They sign most songwriters to an in-house contract where they work for them full-time, live in Nashville and are paid a draw against royalties. Peter said that’s what most prefer.”
“But not you.”
“No. We’re both happy with this arrangement. I did agree that they have exclusive first rights to consider any of my songs. If they don’t want them, then I’m free to send them elsewhere.”
“I’m thrilled for you, I really am. And I have to admit I’m happy for me too, that you’re staying. I was prepared either way.”
“You were?” Lily wasn’t quite sure what he was talking about.
Until he got down on one knee and pulled a small black velvet box out of his pocket. Her eyes immediately started to water.
“Lily, you have no idea how much I missed you these past few days. I know this might seem really fast but it feels right to me, and I hope it does to you, too. I look forward to seeing you, think about you when you’re not around and love spending time with you. Being with you. Lily, I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life hanging out with you, if you’ll have me? If you think you might love me, too?”
“I do! Of course I do. I’ve missed you like crazy, too. I’ve never been in love before and I didn’t realize it at first, but I think it’s true. When it’s the right person you just know.” He slipped the ring, a gorgeous round diamond in an antique platinum setting, onto her finger. And then he kissed her. For a long time.
When they finally pulled apart, she looked at him curiously. “So, you didn’t know what was going to happen in Nashville. But you still bought the ring. Were you still going to give it to me if I said I was going to move there?”
He nodded. “I was. I figured we’d just have to find a way to make it work. I’d rather see less of you than not see you at all. I can’t imagine my life without you in it.” He spoke with such sincerity and the love in his eyes was breathtaking to see. Her tears spilled over and she laughed as they ran down her cheeks.
“I love you so much,” she said as she went to kiss him again.
Epilogue
How are you getting Cody’s parents to the barn and keeping their party a surprise?” Maddie asked. It was the night of the party and the barn was full of guests who were trying very hard to be quiet. Lily and Andrea were keeping a close watch so they could let everyone know when his parents were almost at the door.
“They think they are going to a surprise sixtieth birthday party for his father’s best friend,” Lily said.
“And another couple is driving them here so we could better control what time they arrive,” Andrea added with a smile. She and Lily were getting along much better now that Lily and Cody were engaged and she was officially dating Ben. Ben, of course, had to immediately drop the other girls he was seeing, but he was fine with that.
“Is that them? I think I recognize Cody’s mother,” Maddie said. Sure enough, in the distance they could see four people walking toward them.
“They’re coming!” Andrea spoke just loudly enough to get everyone’s attention. “Positions everyone.”
Lily flipped the switch, turning off all the lights while everyone moved toward the side walls so they wouldn’t be seen.
“How odd. It looks so dark in there,” Cody’s mother said as their footsteps approached the front door. Lily flipped the switch and everyone yelled ‘Surprise!’ as they walked in.
“What’s all this?” Cody’s father asked in confusion. “Where’s Bill?”
His best friend, Bill, who his father thought the party was for, stepped forward and said, “Happy Anniversary!”
Cody’s mother looked around and took in the balloons and banner that said “Happy Anniversary” across it.
“This is all for us?” She sounded in a daze.
Cody and Ben came over and gave them both hugs.
“I can’t believe the two of you did this for us, and managed to keep it a secret!”
“We wanted to do something special for you,” Cody told her.
His mother smiled and looked around until she saw Lily, then pulled her over for a hug. Lily had met his parents earlier in the week, when Cody invited them to dinner and they shared their big news.
“Thank you. All of you. But Cody, you know you’ve already given me the best gift possible?” Her eyes were twinkling and Lily knew what was coming.
“Thank you for finally settling down and getting engaged!” She smiled happily and then her eyes landed on Andrea and Ben who were standing close together and smiling. “And with any luck, we’ll have your brother sorted out soon, too.”
The party was a huge success. Hours later, as Lily leaned against her front door, giving Cody yet another last kiss, he surprised her.
“How would you feel about not having a huge wedding?”
“What are you proposing?”
“What if we just elope next week? Go right down to town hall and get married? Then we could move into the ranch and rent out your condo, too, if you want?” Lily knew that Cody’s condo had been rented and the new tenants were moving in soon. She really didn’t want to wait, either, if she didn’t have to.
“I’ve organized so many weddings that I honestly don’t care about it for myself. But, I do like a party and you know your mother is going to want to invite all her friends to something. What if we just do it twice?”
“Twice?”
“Yes, we can get married next week. Then plan a huge party a few months later, like a regular wedding reception. We can even do the ceremony again in the church if your mother would like. I might like that, actually. But, I don’t want to wait either…let’s get our lives started now.”
“Town hall it is, then!”
“I love you, Cody.”
“Not as much as I love you.” He grinned, and pulled her close to him again. “And I think I need another last kiss.”
* * *
Thank you so much for taking this trip back to the ranch to visit with the Westons and their friends. Read on for a sneak peek of Amelia Adam’s story, Welcome Wagon, which is up next. And if you’re curious about elderberry syrup, I’ve included a recipe here as well. It really is amazing stuff!
If you’re curious about Lily’s friend Laura, and her story, read on for an excerpt of Nashville Dreams.
Click here if you’d like an email alert when it releases.
Sneak Peek Welcome Wagon
Cute Cowboy Page 10