Authors: Mari Carr
Bella grinned at his joke. “I work for you because of the awesome health insurance.”
They all laughed, then Mama Lewis asked Zac and Noah to grab some more chairs. After a bit of plate shifting, they were all squeezed around the huge dining room table, multiple conversations going at once. It was as loud as a rock concert and every bit as much fun.
Dani soaked it all in as she took another bite of Mama Lewis’ homemade scalloped potatoes. Sunday dinners had been her favorite part about living here. With so many kids, most of them teenagers who were constantly in and out, Mama Lewis made only one demand of them. On Sunday afternoon, come hell or high water, they would all have their butts in a chair at the table to come together for a meal. It was the only day of the week where they were all home at the same time to talk, catch up, settle arguments and discuss the chore schedule.
Though she’d been away a long time, sitting there at that table, Dani felt as though she’d never left.
Once they’d put a fairly substantial dent in the mountain of food, they slowly started rising, most of the guys heading for the living room to watch baseball, while the women cleared the table.
Dani had begun to help, but was interrupted when Jett came into the dining room and gave her a quick head jerk toward the front door. She followed him out onto the porch, where Blake was sitting on an old wicker rocking chair. Jett and Dani claimed the porch swing as Dani glanced toward the house.
“Aiden and Bryson are watching the game with the others,” Jett said, clearly aware of her concern.
Blake leaned forward. “What’s going on, Dani? Jett said you were having some trouble with your dad.”
Quickly and quietly, Dani filled Blake in on the letters, text message and phone call from her father.
Blake listened intently until she’d finished. “So you haven’t seen him at all?”
Dani shook her head. “No, but I’ve sort of felt like someone’s been watching me since I’ve gotten back in town.”
“What?” Jett asked, obviously upset to just be learning that tidbit.
“It’s probably paranoia. Right, Blake?” Dani hoped the police officer would set her mind at ease about it.
Blake tilted his head. “Maybe, but I think you’d be smart to listen to that voice and make sure you’re never alone in public. At least until you see what your father wants with you.”
“What he wants?” Jett asked hotly. “The guy is threatening her.”
Blake shrugged. “We don’t know that, Jett. I’m not sure the law would recognize his contact as such. The only thing he’s said is he wants to see you again. Finish things right. And while that day of reckoning comment is definitely ominous when you consider the past, there are some who might read it as your dad wanting to make amends, to set things right.”
Dani shook her head. “No. That’s not what he wants.”
Blake raised his hand quickly. “I agree with you. But I’m playing devil’s advocate. I’m not sure you have enough to request a restraining order. In fact, there’s not enough here for you to take any sort of legal action right now.”
It wasn’t the news Dani wanted to hear, even though it was exactly what she’d expected. She’d learned at fifteen, she was on her own when it came to issues with her dad. “So the plan remains the same. I contact him, set up a meeting in public and find out what the bastard wants.”
She didn’t want to return to Nashville with the shadow of her dad still looming over her. She wanted the terrifying calls and the messages to stop.
Blake rocked slowly in the chair. “Before you proceed with that, let me do some background checks on your dad. See if I can find a current address, place of employment, previous records, stuff like that. We need to know exactly what we’re up against before we seek the man out.”
“We?” she asked.
Blake grinned. “There’s not a snowball’s chance in hell you’re meeting that guy without reinforcements. Jett and me. Wouldn’t hurt to have those two giant bandmates of yours along as well. Intimidation might be enough to scare the guy off. Especially when he sees how many bad-ass protectors have your back.”
Dani laughed, looking down in an attempt to hide the tears that filled her eyes. She was touched by Blake’s kindness.
Blake rubbed his chin. “You said he’s been in jail again since you left?”
Dani nodded. “I found something on the Internet when I Googled his name. An article about his arrest for assault and battery.”
Blake ran a hand through his short, dark hair. “Well, if he’s been in prison twice for felonies, he’s facing the
three strikes, you’re out
law.”
“What’s that mean?” Dani asked.
“It means if he steps over the line again and commits a serious crime, he’s facing life in prison. It’ll be game over.”
Dani got the feeling Blake meant that information to be comforting. Like all she had to do was wish for dear old Dad to fuck up again. Unfortunately, that idea wasn’t reassuring. She didn’t think her dad gave a shit about the possibility of spending the rest of his life in jail. Right now, he seemed wholly focused on her. And until it all played out, Dani wasn’t safe.
Their conversation was interrupted when Chloe stepped out on the porch. “There you guys are. What’s up?”
Blake smiled as he stood and joined his fiancée. “Getting some fresh air. We didn’t miss dessert, did we?”
Dani was grateful to Blake for dodging the question, protecting her secret. So far no one had mentioned her father. Probably because they knew it was such a painful subject for her. Bryson and Aiden had return flights back to Nashville tomorrow. She’d simply say she wanted to spend more time with Mama Lewis, bid them farewell at the airport and make plans to see them at home again next weekend.
Hopefully by then, she would have gotten Russell off her back and out of her life.
Chloe started back into the house with Blake, then glanced over her shoulder. “Mama’s looking for you, Dani. She’s in the kitchen.”
Dani rose from the porch swing. “I’ll go see what she needs. It was nice talking to you, Blake.”
He nodded once. With any luck, he’d discover something about her dad that she could use.
As Dani passed by the living room, she peeked in. Aiden and Bryson were kicked back on the large sectional with Caleb and Justin, beers in hand, bitching about some call the umpire had made. They were settled in for the duration of the game.
Dani continued to the kitchen, surprised to find Mama Lewis alone, sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee.
“Where did everyone else go?” Dani asked.
“The girls are out back, soaking up the sunshine and a bottle of wine while looking at bride magazines. Chloe is planning an October wedding.”
“That’s a nice time for a wedding.”
Mama Lewis nodded, then gestured to an empty chair at the table. “Care to join me?”
Dani grabbed her own cup of coffee, and then took the seat as she glanced around the room. “You got new cabinets.”
Mama Lewis smiled. “Yeah. The boys put them in for me a couple of years ago. I like the white. They brighten the room.”
She agreed.
“How are you, Dani? Are you happy?”
Dani smiled. “I am. Very much so.” For nearly a half an hour, she filled Mama Lewis in on everything she’d done since leaving New Orleans, telling her about the people she’d met who had helped her along the way.
“I’m so sorry I never got the chance to meet Stella. Sounds like she was a wonderful person.”
Dani dashed away a tear. “She was. In a lot of ways she reminded me of you. I think the two of you would have loved each other.”
“I love her for finding you and keeping you safe. Benji too, though I’ll admit he sounds like a character.”
Dani laughed. “Oh my God. You have no idea. You’ll have to come visit me in Nashville sometime and I’ll take you to the club.”
Mama Lewis reached over to take her hand. “I’d like that very much.”
“So would I.” Suddenly Dani regretted letting her fear keep her away for so long. So many wasted years.
“Aiden and Bryson are very nice. Have the three of you been performing together for long?”
“Three years,” Dani replied. “But we’ve been writing music together for six.”
“How long have you been in love with them?”
Dani blushed. “That obvious?”
Mama Lewis squeezed her hand gently. “I’ve had a bit of practice reading the signs lately. You noticed the family has grown quite a bit in your absence.”
“Justin’s relationship is—” Dani started before stopping suddenly. What the hell was it? Besides extremely unusual and infinitely fascinating.
“Is what?” Mama Lewis prodded.
“Different.”
“That it is. But it works. Ned and Bella were made for my Justin. But it’s not
his
relationship you’re worried about, is it?”
Dani shook her head. “Aiden, Bryson and I are sort of new to this. So new, in fact, I’m not sure it’s even a thing.”
Mama Lewis released her hand and picked up her cup of coffee, taking a tiny sip before saying, “Oh, that’s wonderful. There’s nothing more exciting than the beginning of a new love affair.”
Dani agreed it was exhilarating. And terrifying. “You don’t think it’s strange? I mean, despite Justin’s relationship, three people together isn’t exactly a normal thing.”
“If it feels right to you doesn’t that make it normal?”
Before she realized it, every fear Dani had experienced since she’d woken up this morning came pouring out. “The thing is, I’m not sure it’s smart to start something like this. We just signed a contract that is going to tie the three of us together for the next several years. What if it doesn’t work out? What if it goes bad? We’d be stuck, forced to work in very close proximity, living together on a tour bus.”
“That’s definitely something worth thinking about. But every relationship in the world comes with risks. Have you talked to Bryson and Aiden about it?”
“No. We haven’t talked about anything. It just happened. Last night.”
Mama Lewis smiled. “Wow. That
is
new. I assume by
it
, you mean sex?”
Dani’s cheeks went hot, but she nodded. “Yeah.”
“But the friendship, the love, that’s not new. And that’s a very good foundation, Dani. Many successful couples have started with much less. Strangers meeting in a tattoo parlor. An employee going on a date with her bosses.”
Dani laughed as Mama Lewis described how Caleb and Justin met their lovers.
“Or you could have faced what Chloe and Blake did. Finding each other after years apart and having to overcome the betrayal and broken hearts that accompanied their first time around.”
“What about Jett and Carissa?” Dani asked.
“You and Jett were always such kindred spirits. Like you, he fell in love with his best friend. All I’m saying, Dani, is every relationship starts out with barriers, problems that feel like good reasons to walk away. You could certainly take the easy road, play it safe and break things off. But you’ve never been a quitter.”
Dani appreciated Mama Lewis’ compliment, but at the moment, she felt very much like a coward. For so many reasons. “I’ve never told them about my dad. Bryson and Aiden think my parents died when I was young.”
Mama Lewis’ brows creased. “Why haven’t you told them?”
Dani swallowed heavily. “When I left New Orleans, I never intended to come back.”
Dani caught Mama Lewis’ hurt expression and she reached out to hold the woman’s hand. “I wanted to see you again so badly. I love you, Mama. But when I left here, I was Dani Patton and nothing more than a helpless victim. In my head, all those things are tied to this city because he’s still here. No one knows about my past. When I’m in Nashville, I’m Dani Lewis, a singer and songwriter, a strong, independent woman. I like that Aiden and Bryson see that woman instead of the weak one.”
“You took our name.”
Dani could see the pleasure that gave Mama Lewis. She nodded. “I loved you all so much. I hated leaving, so I decided to keep a part of you with me.”
Mama Lewis smiled. Dani saw the sheen of tears in her eyes. “Thank you, darling.”
Dani swallowed heavily, unable to speak for a moment.
Mama Lewis was the first to break the silence. “You realize you’re not one person or the other, Dani. You can’t separate who you are into two parts and call them different people. All of those traits have combined to make you the person you are. The woman Bryson and Aiden love.”
“Maybe so, but I can’t make any commitments right now. Not until I sort out my past.” Dani bit her lower lip, and then told Mama Lewis the rest. “He’s found me.”
“Your father?”
Dani nodded. “He’s sent me messages, called. He wants to see me.”
The troubled look in Mama Lewis’ eyes seemed to mirror Dani’s own fears. “Are you going to?”
“Yes. Jett has suggested I invite him to meet at the Royal Lunch. Jett plans to be there and Blake will be close by as well. I don’t know what he wants, but I refuse to spend the rest of my life wondering, hiding.”
“You need to be careful, Dani. Are you sure you don’t want Aiden and Bryson there as well? There’s strength in numbers.”
Dani shook her head. “No. I can handle this on my own. I’m already putting two people I care about at risk. I don’t plan to add Bryson and Aiden to that list. I’ll just take care of unfinished business and then…with any luck, everything else will fall into place.”
“I hope it’s as simple as that.”
“But you don’t think it will be?”
Mama Lewis gave her a sad smile. “I think old habits die hard. You’re used to taking care of yourself, Dani. But you don’t have to do that anymore. Things are easier with the ones you love by your side.”
Dani jumped when she heard a deep voice behind her.
“Sorry,” Bryson said, stepping into the kitchen. “Hope I’m not interrupting. I lost rock, paper, scissors.”
Mama Lewis laughed. “So you’re here to grab the next round of beers?”
Bryson nodded, but he wasn’t smiling. He was looking at Dani. “Everything okay, bird?”
“Yeah,” she said, striving for a breezy, lighthearted sound. She failed miserably. She got the feeling he’d overheard some of their conversation. Problem was she didn’t know how much.