Grace grabbed my hand as Antoni pulled the car to a stop. “You’ve got this, Aunt Liv.”
“I feel like I’m going to puke,” I admitted.
“Hot damn, no ma’am!” Antoni interjected. “There will be no hurling in that gorgeous dress or in my car.”
“You look amazing, Liv!” Katie exclaimed, turning to face me from the passenger seat.
“Look at me.” Ella gently grabbed my face between her hands. “You are brilliant, and you are beautiful.”
“And you are fierce.” Antoni reached his hand back, placing it on my knee.
I took a deep breath, my entire body trembling.
“You can do this,” Ella assured me. “Now, let’s get you in there to see Jax.”
Ella and Grace guided me out of the car, and I somehow made it inside the trailer. I felt like I was floating overhead, watching everything unfold beneath me.
I entered to the unanimous approval of the guys as they got a look at my transformation. Every hair on my head, plus some clip-in extensions, had been styled into glamorous loose waves. The makeup artist had my skin looking glowy and my eyes sparkly, framed by thick lashes. My eyes popped against the fabric of the floor-length emerald gown I wore that hugged me in all the right places. It draped off my shoulders and came up in a sexy high slit, shimmering anytime the light hit it.
“Wow,” Jax said, pulling me into his arms. “You’re breathtaking, Liv.”
I laughed nervously. “Scared out of my mind is more like it.”
“You’re going to be perfect.” He kissed me on the forehead. “I promise.”
“Guys, it’s almost time. The golf carts will be here in a moment to take us up to the staging area,” Cash announced. “You look fantastic, Liv. You all do.” His gaze flickered from me to the guys who were wearing some rocked-out suits and then settled on Ella and Grace who were decked out in their own sparkly dresses.
My eyes widened as I looked back at Jax. He enveloped me in his arms one more time and placed a tender kiss on my lips. “After the band’s set, I’ll be announcing us, and you come on out just like we rehearsed. Donut worry, okay? I got you a little something to help make today extra special. I didn’t have time to wrap it, though.” He quickly reached beside the sofa where a guitar case was standing upright.
“Are you serious?” I asked in disbelief.
“Open it,” he urged. I took the case from him, laying it gently on the floor so that I could prop it open. I gasped as I peered inside at the gorgeous Gibson Hummingbird Acoustic-Electric guitar in a rich shade of mahogany. “Pick it up.” He watched me excitedly as I gingerly picked up the guitar by the neck. “I already got it all tuned up for you.”
The light flickered across the sides of the instrument, drawing my attention to an intricate etching along its neck. Tears welled in my eyes as I realized he’d had ‘Sweet Tequila Sunrise’ engraved on it in a shimmering gold script. “Jax… it’s beautiful.”
“I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too.” I kissed him tenderly, breathing in his comforting scent.
“Alright, everyone.” Cash clapped his hands together. “They’re here. It’s showtime.”
“Are you ready?” Jax asked, his stormy eyes filled with admiration.
With one last kiss, I took his hand in mine. “Ready.”
I watched Midnight in Dallas from the side of the stage with Ella and Grace at my side. The band’s energy was explosive, and the sea of people practically roared around them. Antoni talked animatedly with Cash and Katie while Brady kept watch nearby. The further the guys got into their set, the more anxious I became.
My hands trembled as I gazed out into the seemingly endless crowd. A crowd that loved Midnight in Dallas, but would they love me? Doubt rose like bile in the back of my throat, hot and acidic, threatening to eat away at any shred of confidence I’d built up. My mouth went dry, and my entire body shivered as the opening notes of “Fortress,” the last song of their set, began to play.
“What if I mess this up?” I turned to Ella, my eyes huge with worry.
“You won’t,” she assured me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.
“How do you know?”
“Because you were always meant to be here, Liv.” She leaned her head against mine. “You’re going to go out there and slay the shit out of that song.”
“You really think so?” I asked, curling my arm around her.
“You were made for this, Olivia.” Tears formed in Ella’s eyes, and her voice wavered slightly. “I’ve known it since we were nineteen, and you used to sneak me in to watch you play at the honky-tonks. I knew this moment would happen one day, but you had to believe it too, babe. You were always meant to be here, and I’m going to be right by your side every step of the way. Always have been, always will be.”
“Are you ready, Liv?” Cash asked, placing a hand on my shoulder. I could hear the band drawing to a close. “You’re almost up.”
“Damn right she’s ready,” Ella spoke for me, and I nodded wrapping her in a hug. “She was born ready.”
“I feel like we need a group hug up in this bitch!” Antoni pulled me and Ella into his embrace as Grace, Cash, and Katie piled in. “You’re gonna kill it, honey.”
Cash smiled. “Let’s get you plugged in.”
Luca and Derek exited the stage, each giving me a hug as Jax’s voice filled the air.
“As you all know, tonight is a special night. New Year’s Eve has always been known for new beginnings, and tonight is a big one for me. I’m about to bring someone out that’s very important to me. She’s kind of my whole world. With the help of Dallas on the drums, I want to show you something dear to me that I’ve been working on. Tonight, I want to introduce all of you to Jax & Liv.” The crowd’s screams were ear-piercing as Jax’s grin flickered over to where I stood off-stage. “Please join me in giving a warm welcome to the other half of Jax & Liv, Nashville’s own, Olivia Sinclair!”
With one last deep breath, I stepped out to the roar of deafening cheers and applause and waved to the crowd. I was afraid my knees might buckle beneath me as I crossed the stage to the mic stationed beside Jax, my dress billowing behind me. He reached for my hand, and as I looked into his eyes, I felt my worries begin to melt away.
“How are y’all doing tonight?” I asked the crowd, my voice shaking slightly. Their response thundered all around me. I gulped in a shallow breath as their uproarious excitement continued, their energy bolstering my spirit. I looked over at Jax who gave my hand an encouraging squeeze. “I’m Liv, and you already know this beautiful man beside me, Mr. Jaxon Slade, and together we are Jax & Liv!” My voice continued to tremble, but the audience didn’t seem to notice as they erupted into a frenzy. Behind us, the giant screen in the middle of the stage illuminated with one of the finalized photos we’d seen at the store a few nights before. Our names were emblazoned at the top in our signature swirly script. To our left and right sides were two other jumbo-sized screens that showed us in real-time. I felt tears threatening to form behind my eyes as a flurry of emotions coursed through me. “We want to thank you for being a part of this special moment with us, and I truly can’t imagine having our debut anywhere but this magical city I’ve called home all my life.”
“Now, I get to call it home too.” Jax grinned over at me. “The song we’re going to sing for you tonight is all about what it means to be home. Sometimes home isn’t a place. It’s a someone.”
“And sometimes that someone comes along when we least expect it,” I said as Dallas counted us off, and with quivering hands, I began to strum the melody to the sound of the blaring approval of the crowd. I closed my eyes, desperately trying to center myself so I wouldn’t mess this up.
“This song is called ‘Sweet Tequila Sunrise,’” Jax said, “and it’ll be available for download at midnight tonight.”
> “We hope you enjoy it.” I looked over at Jax, and suddenly, it was just the two of us. In my mind, we were back in my living room with an open bottle of wine and the soft glow of a candle dancing across our faces.
“Rain taps on the window, and baby, I don’t want to go. I’d been living my life a lost boy, but in your arms, I’m home,” Jax sang as he gazed over at me. Our voices intertwined in sweet harmony as we reached the chorus.
“I thought home was a place, till I found you. Getting drunk by candlelight, with a hell of a view. I found home looking in your eyes. My love, my life, in your sweet tequila sunrise.”
Jax and I stumbled through the front door sometime after 3 a.m. when Brady dropped us off at my house. We plopped the guitars down in the foyer with two loud thuds.
After the show, there were several reporters waiting to talk to us about the single, and then we all spent the rest of the night celebrating back at Dallas’s new place. The champagne was flowing, and it felt so good to have all us all together again.
Our single had broken into the Top Five on iTunes within ten minutes of being released and reached number one within the hour. The performance had gone beautifully, and I practically floated off stage to the sounds of the cheering crowd. From the show and the interviews to our single making it onto the charts, the entire night still felt unreal, but nothing felt as unreal as the perfect man beside me.
I giggled while Jax kissed my neck as I fiddled with the lock, bolting it shut. Mama meowed her distaste at us from down the hall for rolling in at this ungodly hour.
“I’ve been waiting to get you alone all night,” Jax whispered between kisses, pressing me lightly against the door. Finally, he pulled back slightly so that he could take me in with his eyes. “You were amazing tonight, Liv.”
“We were,” I reminded him, placing a tender kiss on his lips. “I’m not going to lie, I was scared out of my mind when I first walked out on that stage.”
“No one would have ever known.” He slid his hands around my waist, pulling me closer. “You were right at home.” The butterflies whirled around in my stomach like they had the first night we met. “What’s going on in that beautiful mind of yours?”
“Everything. The last three months. Tonight. You. You’re more than I could have ever hoped for. This all feels like a dream.” I smoothed my hands over his chest and around his neck. “A dream I never want to wake up from.”
“I’ve felt like that a lot these last few weeks,” he said softly, “but you’re better than any dream I ever had for myself. Besides, if this was a dream, could you feel this?” His voice was low and sultry as he leaned in so close that his lips grazed mine. “Or this?” He kissed his way down to my collarbone, and my skin felt like it was on fire everywhere his lips touched.
I slid my hands beneath his shirt, trailing my fingertips along his firm chest. I traced along his v lines and slipped my fingers into his belt loops, tugging him closer. His hands traveled slowly up my body, tangling in my hair as he kissed me deeply. Breathless, we finally broke apart, and he leaned his head against mine. I pressed one last kiss to his lips before I moved past him down the hall toward the bedroom.
I heard his seductive voice call after me. “Turn around.” Slowly, I turned to face him, a soft smile playing on my lips. “Damn, I’m the luckiest guy in the world.” He closed the distance between us, crashing his lips to mine, and we tore at each other’s clothes to the soundtrack of Mama knocking the ornaments off the tree one by one.
Jax and I spent New Year’s Day basking in the afterglow of the show the night before. The internet was going crazy for Jax & Liv. Meanwhile, Cash was already fielding requests from record labels and media outlets left and right. We took this last opportunity to shut out the rest of the world and enjoy the last little bit of calm before the year started off in a full-blown storm of press, recording, label meetings, and so many more things I had yet to wrap my mind around. I still had a few things to finish up at the bakery before I could fully dive into the world of Jax & Liv, but decided they could wait one more day. Instead of thinking for one second about work, we snuggled the day away on the couch under Mama’s contented gaze.
Jax wasn’t in bed when I woke the next morning. I stretched leisurely as the light bathed me in a soft golden glow, figuring he would be returning with coffee soon. I mentally started running down the list of things I needed to finish at the shop, both excited and nervous about the prospect of taking some extended time away.
While I waited, I fumbled my hand over the nightstand to retrieve my phone off the charger.
I rubbed my eyes as I illuminated the screen. My heart immediately plummeted to my stomach when I saw seventeen missed calls, the majority of them from Ella, and twice as many unread text messages. My social media notifications were in the thousands. I slid my finger across the screen to access my messages, but before I could, Ella’s name flashed with an incoming call.
“Ella, are you okay?” I answered, my voice panicked.
“Oh, thank God.” Ella sighed into the phone. “Liv, don’t come to the store. Katie and I have this under control. We’ve already called the police on these damn paparazzi assholes, but right now it’s a freaking zoo.”
“What?” I gasped. “What are you talking about?” Suddenly, the line went quiet. “Ella, what is going on?”
“You haven’t seen it yet?” Her voice was soft with concern.
“Seen what?” I asked, my mind confused and severely under-caffeinated.
“Liv, whatever you do, don’t look at the news. Don’t get on social media, and don’t turn on the tv. I’m begging you. Please don’t. Just wait a few minutes, and I’ll be there,” she pleaded.
“What?” I asked, my blood turning to ice. I pulled the phone away from my ear, flicked it to speaker and immediately pulled up my newsfeed.
“Liv, please,” Ella begged. “Please don’t.”
My mouth went dry, and beads of cold sweat started to form over my entire body as I was assaulted by headline after headline:
Jaxon Slade debuts new project with middle-aged divorcée.
Why Jaxon Slade’s cougar mystery woman wanted to remain a secret.
Failing bakery owner, Olivia Sinclair, latches on to Midnight in Dallas Frontman, Jaxon Slade.
Benton Wyatt’s gold-digger ex-wife, Liv Sinclair, and her boy toy mid-life crisis.
My eyes flickered over the articles as phrases jumped out, slapping me hard across the face:
Washed up, wannabe country singer
Liv Sinclair’s plan to save her failing business, with the help of Jaxon Slade
Benton Wyatt’s barren ex-wife, Olivia Sinclair
“Oh my God,” I whispered. My eyes traveled down to the comments section:
She hasn’t even been divorced long. Bet she cheated on her ex to further her career.
Yuck. This woman needs a plastic surgeon. She looks OLD.
Ugh. I hate women like that. Opportunistic bitch. Jaxon deserves better. Like me. LOL
Let’s say for a second they ARE in love, which I doubt. But I know I saw an interview recently where Jaxon Slade said he wants kids. Has she not thought about this?
I felt bile rising to my throat, and I choked out a sob.
“Fuck,” Ella said quietly. “Liv, are you okay? Where is Jax?”
I looked up, and Jax had appeared in the doorway, his eyes red-rimmed and filled with concern. “I’m right here, Ella.”
Chapter 30
Jax
“Liv, we will figure this out,” I said, my chest tightening with fear.
She shook her head vehemently. “No, we won’t. Don’t you see? There is no figuring it out for me. I have to try to salvage what’s left of my life.”
“Liv, I know who did this,” I admitted through gritted teeth. “That asshole ex of yours came to see us the night of the s
how. He’s trying to break us up.”
“What?” Shock washed over her face. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t know it was him until I saw this shit today,” I explained. “He booked a meeting with us, but the entire time he was focused on me and what was happening with Jax & Liv. Now I know he was clearly up to something. He must have gone to the press to get to you.”
“That can’t be,” she cried. “He’s not the best guy, but he wouldn’t do that. At least, I don’t think he would.” She buried her face in her hands, and I wrapped my arms around her. She let herself relax for a moment before prying herself from my grasp. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
“Liv, we will get through this.” I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling a cold sweat begin to form.
“No,” she spat. “You will get through this, Jax. It isn’t your life that’s been completely turned upside down.”
She might as well have slapped me across the face for as much as her words stung. “Baby, you are my life. If your life is turned upside down, so is mine.”
“I was crazy to think this could ever work.” She rose to her feet and started pacing the floor beside the bed. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“Baby, we will get past this,” I insisted, and she whirled on me.
“We can’t,” she sobbed. “You don’t understand, Jax.”
“Then help me understand.”
“I can’t just exist in someone else’s shadow again, okay? I lived in Ben’s shadow, and now here I am in yours.” She paused her pacing long enough to gaze at me wistfully. “Nobody cares how I got here. All they see is me latching onto your coattail.”
“That’s not how it happened.”
“Don’t you see? It doesn’t matter.” She threw her hands up. “People don’t give a shit what the truth is.”
I stood, grabbing her arms though holding on to her would prevent her from slipping away from me. “I’ll put my music on hold. I’ll quit altogether. You could be a solo artist. I’ll quit the band if I have to. Whatever I have to do, Liv. I’ll do it. I’m not losing you. None of it matters without you.”
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