"Howdy," I managed to get out, sticking to the Tennessee part of the plan. A series of "Hi"'s and "Hello"'s followed and even a little wave from movie-star girl.
Wow. This was fun.
"You must be Evangeline," the older woman said. "We've heard all about you from Genevieve." My eyes flicked to Gen who beamed a Gen-type smile back at me, but I saw the look of disapproval the older woman shot towards Nick and felt my heart sink. "Not from Nick though," she added, maybe explaining the disapproval away with those words?
"Haven't seen you all week, Ma," Nick answered, carrying on with his coffee pouring task.
"No excuse, we have to hear all about the excitement from our soon to be daughter-in-law," the woman said. "The least you could have done was pick up the phone, Nicky, and tell us you had a new friend."
I tried, I really did, but the smile was not going to be contained and unfortunately the giggle following it wasn't either. Nicky? New friend? This woman was gorgeous.
"Angel," Nick said in a low voice. "Wanna tell us what's so funny?"
"Oh, he calls her 'angel'. How lovely," the woman threw in and my giggles hiccoughed into a strangled laugh. Gen's fiancé, whom I hadn't been formally introduced to yet, let out a cough which I think was meant to be a laugh by the look of the smile on his face. Gen just sniggered at his side, adding to the cacophony of hilarity in the room. And the older gentleman, obviously Nick's father, hid behind a well placed hand at his jaw. But I saw it. There was a curve to those lips hiding there.
"Really, Mama," the movie-star woman declared, "you're embarrassing him."
Nick's mother made a tsking noise and shook her head. "He's embarrassed me. So, Nicholas, are you going to introduce us?"
"Yes, please do, darling," movie-star - sister? - added. "We're dying to hear her sing."
"She is not going to put on a performance just for you, Katie," Nick shot back. "Eva's tired and needs to rest. She's had a hell of a week."
"I'd sing if I had a guitar," I offered, because that's just what I do. I sing.
"Oh, we've got your guitar in the car," Gen offered and then shoved at her fiancé. "Go get it, honey, would you?"
"Only if you say please," he said teasingly, his head tipped down placing his lips an inch above hers.
"How's this?" she asked innocently and then proceeded to give him a barely decent kiss on the lips right in front of his family.
"Get a room, you two," Nick threw in, putting full coffee cups on the kitchen table between us all.
"You'd think they were in love or something, wouldn't you, darling?" Katie said, picking up a coffee and taking a sip, not even looking at the snogging pair across the way.
"At least they tell us what's going on in their lives," Nick's mother added, taking her own coffee cup and simply holding it.
"Give the boy a break, Liz," the older gentleman - Dad obviously - said. "They've obviously just woken up, let them both warm up to us. We can be a bit frightening en masse like this." He offered me a friendly and apologetic smile as he leaned forward to take a cup off the table.
"Yes, did we wake you up, darling?" Katie asked with faux innocence. "I do hope we didn't disturb."
"Oh you disturbed all right," Nick muttered, moving around the table to finally come stand beside me. He handed me a cup personally and when I took it, wrapped an arm around my shoulder and hauled me tight against his side. Staking a claim even when surrounded by family. I stared down at my cup and battled a frown.
Nick's brother walked back in the room with the Breedlove in its case. He placed it along the far wall and joined the rest of us.
"So, Eva, as my lackadaisical brother won't do it, allow me. I'm Dominic, the older brother and the more intelligent one."
"Don't forget handsome," Gen chimed in with a smirk.
"Thank you, sweetheart. How could we forget that?" Dominic replied, giving her a shoulder squeeze and a light kiss on the temple. "This is our younger sister Katie," he indicated movie-star woman who smiled and again waved. "And these two wonderful people are our parents, Elizabeth and Jacob Anscombe."
Both the two older Anscombe's smiled welcomingly, blinding me with their good looks. If Nick and Dominic managed to look as good as their father when they reached his age, then they'd be very lucky indeed. I smiled back to everyone, accepting their open friendliness with as much Tennessee grace as I could.
"And I believe you know my Genevieve," Dominic finished. The way he said my Genevieve left me in no doubt that Dominic was very much like his younger brother. Proprietary. I smiled at Gen, who was simply shining under Dominic's gaze and words. Is that what it would be like to have Nick call me his?
"Hi, y'all," I said softly, still Tennessee-ing it. "It's nice to meet you."
"Oh," Mrs Anscombe gushed, "the pleasure is all ours. Genevieve tells us you're a Country singer, is that right?"
Nick groaned quietly at my side, making me flick a glance up at him. He winked at me and then took a casual sip of his coffee to cover it up. I returned my attention to his mother.
"Yes. I live in Nashville," I added, unsure why, but it just slipped out.
"Oh," she said clearly a little confused and I was thinking disappointed. "I thought maybe you'd moved back here."
"No. I have a band back home."
"So, who were you playing with last night?" Mr Anscombe asked politely.
"Some old friends I used to play with before I left NZ and one new member who was between bands and prepared to play with us for a few months while I'm here."
"No plans to change bands then?" he asked, sipping his coffee in the same casual way Nick did, as though trying to hide his expression.
I did have plans to stay here and sing with my new/old band, but although I'd approached the guys about it, I hadn't had a chance to say anything to Nick. And even though everyone was being so friendly and welcoming, I just didn't feel right about talking "future" with Nick in front of everyone here. I struggled to find an answer that wasn't a lie, but that didn't give too much away.
It was Nick who came to my rescue, but most unexpectedly.
"When and if Eva returns to Nashville I'll be going with her."
The room buzzed with electricity. I didn't realise a group of people could be so wired when simply standing there. A jolt had shot through me at Nick's words. Sure, he'd indicated his desire to chase me wherever I went, but I had not expected him to admit it so boldly to his family. With me at his side. Truly I had thought they were all just words. Clearly I'd been wrong. I blinked up at Nick, no doubt my mouth hanging open, as I tried to come to terms with this now very public declaration of where he stood. I was stunned. Flattered. Excited. And darn scared.
"You're what, darling?" Katie was the one to break the silence. She sounded pretty shocked.
"He said he's leaving for Nashville," Dominic spoke in a level and authoritative voice. I wondered what he did for a living, I was guessing lawyer, what with that suit he'd had on and the court room persona he seemed to now effect.
"Only if Eva goes back," Gen offered quietly. I thought perhaps she may have been intimidated by Dominic's court room voice, but then dismissed it when I chanced a glance at Mr and Mrs Anscombe. Gen had read the tone of the room and one look at Nick's parents told me all I needed to know.
They did not like the idea of their son throwing his life away to chase after a cowgirl.
I thought it might be best to intervene and the first words that came to my mouth were this, "Well, I won't be going back for a while, I'm waiting for my father to die."
Oh darn it all to hell. Did I have to say it like that?
All eyes turned to me and several blinked, stunned.
"Um, I mean, I'm looking after my father while he battles cancer and it may take a while before... well, you know. That's if we can find him again, because my Aunt has kidnapped him in an effort to scare me off and lay claim to his estate. Which isn't much, he's a pensioner and only got a small amount of money put aside. But that doesn't co
ncern my Aunt, she's determined to get her hands on it, even if my father has written his will out to my brother, who is behind bars at Mt Eden Prison. My Aunty Jessie doesn't care, she and her dumbass sons think they can browbeat my Dad into changing it in favour of them. And in the process scare me off back to Tennessee. Clearly they've forgotten just how much of their crap I've had to live with growing up, this is nothing new and doesn't faze me in the slightest. I'm not going anywhere."
I stopped, made a little choking sound and then looked toward Gen for help.
"Well, look at that," Gen drawled. "It's catching. I never knew I was contagious."
Dominic started laughing, not that cough sound he made earlier either, a genuine double over and clutch your stomach laugh. Nick and Katie soon joined him, both of them shaking with laughter and in the case of Katie, having to dash away tears. I wasn't quite sure if I should laugh or cry. What a disaster. This couldn't have gone worse if I had tried.
"Well, in that case," Mrs Anscombe said, with that beautific smile on her face breaking into the increasingly louder and louder guffaws, "you've got time to sing us a song then." And she promptly clapped her hands together delightedly as though it was Christmas and walked out of the room towards, what I guessed was, the lounge.
Mr Anscombe offered me an amused smile and a wink and followed his wife, then the rest of the laugh-a-minute crowd traipsed after them. Until finally it was just Nick and me left in the kitchen. I was still holding my coffee cup, staring at the ground but not frowning. No, I was stunned. Shocked. Mortified even.
"What the darn hell was that?" I squeaked at Nick, who was still shaking with mirth.
He turned me toward him and wrapped his arms around my shoulder.
"That," he said with emphasis, " was you Tennessee-ing my folks with Country style." He shook his head and offered up another laugh to punctuate that statement. "Welcome to the family, angel. There's no escaping now. None of them will let you go, never mind me. You're trapped, cowgirl."
He leaned forward and laid an almost chaste kiss against my lips. "Totally fucking trapped."
Chapter 16
You Just Don't Feel That If You Haven't Completely Given Your Heart To A Man
"But..." I managed to get out, before Nick grabbed his own mug and herded me towards the lounge after his family. "How...?" I asked, still struggling for words.
"You're adorable, angel," Nick said softly in my ear, his arms still wrapped around my waist, his face resting against my cheek as he propelled me forward. "Is it any wonder you've won them over so easily?"
"I haven't won anyone over," I argued, because who would be won over by a blathering cowgirl?
"Oh, you've won them over, all right," Gen muttered - again sniggering - to the side of the doorway we'd just come through.
Dominic was just taking a seat in an armchair at her side and about to haul her into his lap, I was thinking. Katie was in a matching armchair across the way and Mr and Mrs Anscombe were taking seats on the large sofa that dominated the room. It was a nice room, comfortable and welcoming. I would have liked to have taken more time to look at Nick's choice of décor and decoration, but my audience was waiting and seemed eager to hear a song or two. How do I get myself into these situations?
Nick led me to a large square foot stool, which was high enough to sit on, just right for me to swing a guitar over my knee. He deposited me on the seat, with a curt, "Sit!" command, as though I was some sort of pet dog, and then walked back towards the kitchen. I watched him go with a furrowed brow, then thinking it wouldn't look good to let his family see my anger, turned my frown towards the ground. That's why I didn't see Nick return with the Breedlove in his hands until he held it out beneath my nose.
Oh, okey dokey then.
He retrieved his cup of coffee off a side table and went to stand across the far side of the room, legs crossed at the ankles, shoulder resting against the wall. The picture of casual ease. I held the Breedlove on my knee, but hadn't placed the strap over my shoulder or started tweaking the pegheads - my normal pre-singing routine - just kind of sat there stunned. This was all a little unusual to say the least.
Plus I was hungry. That coffee hadn't hit the spot at all, if anything it was festering in the bottom of my belly and I desperately needed something solid to stop it bubbling back up and out.
"You said you'd sing, angel," Nick pointed out. "Changed your mind?" He seemed inordinately amused. I flashed him my sweetest Tennessee smile.
"Of course not, I'm just hungry, sugar." That received an arched eyebrow. I might have been laying on the Tennessee a little thick in my effort not to glare at him.
"Oh, I'll cook us some pancakes afterwards," Mrs Anscombe declared with much enthusiasm. It seemed she lived to feed her grown children. I kind of liked that.
"I like pancakes," I said quietly, lifting the guitar strap over my shoulder and settling the Breedlove into place. I didn't see everyone's immediate reaction to my words, but when I lifted my head again, after playing with the pegheads, everyone was beaming those smiles at me as though I was the best thing since sliced bread. And they hadn't even heard me sing this morning yet.
Right. Okey dokey.
"So, any requests?" I asked, thinking it best to get the ball rolling.
"Thunder Rolls," Gen said immediately, making me smile. She had a thing for that song.
"How about one you've written, angel," Nick suggested softly from his corner of the room.
"Oh, yes, darling," Katie added. "I'd love to hear your original work."
So, that's how I came to play about six of my personal favourites from those I'd written over the past eight years. Each song an individual showcase of my life to date. Some of my earlier work centred around not fitting in, always feeling like I didn't belong. Then as time passed it became more of a honky-tonk tune, what with all the places I played at earning my name and reputation around Nashville. Not to mention the mischief I constantly got up to. I was very much a cowgirl-in-the-rodeo-ring those first few years. Towards the end, they became more settled, a little bitter-sweet. Because although I'd found a niche for myself in Nashville, there was always something missing, some part of me - and it was fairly obvious I was sure to everyone here that that missing part was connected to my heart - that I had left behind. The last song I sang was a poignant heartbreaking tune and it wasn't until I was halfway through that I thought I really should have stopped three songs ago, because this one was written about New Zealand, and I think it said a little too much about me. At the time I'd written it, I told myself it was because I missed the people, the environment and atmosphere, and that I even missed my family - although that's a fair stretch to imagine - but I'd obviously missed a something - or someone. And when I wrote that song I hadn't realised it.
Eight years I'd been gone. The first four I thought of Nick constantly. His face the one I saw in my dreams. His arms I pretended were wrapped around me when in another man's embrace. The last four, I'd managed to curtail that lovesick and pathetic behaviour. But it wasn't until I sang that song in Nick Anscombe's lounge, in Auckland, New Zealand, in front of his entire family, that I realised I hadn't stopped thinking of him at all. He'd just shifted to my subconscious, letting me believe I'd moved on when in fact I never had.
I finished the song feeling stunned and quite fragile. Waking up to a truth such as that can have a significant effect on you. I felt a little lost and a whole lot nervous, that the Anscombe's had seen through the words directly into my heart. Silence met the end of the song, which only increased the belief that they'd seen me and I suddenly had the urge to run. To pack my bags and leave the problem, that is my feelings for a man I spent one night with eight years ago behind me. To forget it, or at least try to, and to just give in to Aunty Jessie, let her care for Dad, forgo any relationship that I may have with him at the end, to protect my heart.
Because I'd bared my soul to these people, most of whom were strangers, and I felt naked and raw and quite sure that there was
no way Nick could feel the same way. Who would? I was a romantic fool, and I'd just bled my heart out through a song. Country music always tells a story and when you sing it, you have to believe it to make the magic work. But I'd never felt so connected to a song as I had that last one, right then. Never felt so visible through the words spilling from my lips.
My head stayed down, I'm sure I was frowning, I don't really know, because my heart was beating a drum roll in my chest and my only thought was to hide or escape.
"That was simply stunning," Mrs Anscombe said, a little awe lacing her quiet words.
"Beautiful," Katie added. I still didn't look up. Maybe if I'd acted normally, as though it was just a song and nothing else - like it had always been in the past for me - they wouldn't have kept talking. They would have moved on and left the stories I'd sung about alone. But my behaviour clearly encouraged their continued interest.
I only had myself to blame.
"What made you write that last one?" Mrs Anscombe asked softly.
"It's just a song," I whispered, head still tipped down.
"I felt like I was living it with you," she continued, saying the words every singer wants to hear, but in that instant I dreaded.
"Eva's very talented," Gen offered. I think in her own way trying to deflect everyone's desire to dissect my words.
"Poignant," Katie said, hitting the nail right on the head.
"I've never heard a song sung like that before," Mrs Anscombe added and I wished I was somewhere else. Even facing off against Levi right now would have been preferable.
"Obviously there is someone in your past who meant a very great deal to you," Mrs Anscombe surmised and without pausing she went on. "You sweet girl, you've lost a piece of your heart."
Oh, if only the ground had opened up and swallowed me. If only I'd worn my cowgirl hat to hide behind. If only I had sung Thunder Rolls or one of Garth's other beautiful and equally moving, but nowhere near as soul baring as mine, songs. If only.
I felt a little sick to the stomach. I really think I was struggling to hold that coffee down, because before I knew it I muttered a barely audible, "Excuse me," and ran from the room, Breedlove still clutched to my chest holding my mortification inside.
Sweet Seduction Serenade Page 17