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  Tug let out a low whistle. “That’s tough. Especially when you still love her.”

  Luke looked over at Tug. “How do you know that?”

  “It’s written all over your face. Every time you talk about her it’s as if the sun has come out from behind the clouds. If it ain’t love, then I don’t know what it is.”

  “You’re right, Tug. I’ve never stopped loving her in all these years. It drives me crazy though. Why was I so stupid? How could I have let her slip through my fingers?”

  Tug let out a harsh laugh. “Give yourself a break, Luke. You were barely twenty-four years old when you were scooped up by the record label and brought to Nashville. You got your head turned around by all the bright lights and the attention. It happens.”

  “Did it happen to you?” Luke asked. Although Tug had never discussed it with him, Luke had the feeling Tug had been through something similar. He could hear it in his voice.

  Tug made a face. “Yeah. It did.” He looked down at his ring finger and wiggled it. “There used to be a ring on that finger. Hard living drove her out of my life. She passed away in an accident before I could win her back.” His eyes were filled with torment. “I’ll regret it for the rest of my life. This business does a number on a person. We’re thrown into a world where everything is new and different from our regular lives. It takes strength not to get chewed up and spit out.”

  “How did you come back from it? You’re so well-adjusted,” Luke said, marveling at the way Tug had turned his life around. He was a solid guy with an impeccable reputation in the business. And he had served as a mentor for Luke.

  “God had a lot to do with it. He never left me. You know that expression about it always being darkest before the dawn?” He let out a harsh chuckle. “For me, the darkness enveloped me. I seriously thought about ending it all after losing Annabelle. Just when I was on the brink of self-destruction, I found myself crying out to the Lord. And He answered me. He saved me in every way imaginable.”

  Luke felt a feeling of shame wash over him. “I haven’t had a relationship with the Lord in quite some time.”

  “And why is that?” Tug asked, reaching for his beer and taking a sip.

  Luke cradled his ginger ale between his hands. “I don’t know,” he said with a shrug. “I’d traveled down such a dark path. To be honest, I didn’t think I deserved to have God in my life. My faith had always taught me that my relationship with the Lord would last my whole life long. But after my entire life went over a cliff, I felt a great deal of shame and embarrassment. I didn’t think I deserved God’s forgiveness.”

  “Why would you ever think that, Luke? God’s love is endless. He forgives those who want forgiveness.”

  “You’re right about that,” he said, shooting his friend a grin. “I’ve started going to church again on Sunday mornings. And I’ve been talking to Him again. Not just asking for things but talking to Him about the things I want to do. My hopes and dreams. My fears.”

  “That’s a huge shift, Luke. I honestly think it’s near impossible to turn your life around without incorporating faith into your life. What do you do when the bottom falls out of your world if you don’t have the Lord to lean on?”

  Luke let out a sigh. “I learned that the hard way. I won’t make that mistake again.”

  “So, now that you’ve given up the pills and alcohol and you’re back in the studio working on music, there’s only one thing missing from the equation.”

  “Rain,” Luke said in a terse voice. “Sweet, beautiful Rain,” he murmured.

  “So, what are you going to do to about it?” Tug asked. His eyes were like laser beams as they swept over Luke.

  Luke threw his hands in the air. “I wish someone would give me a road map to her heart. I feel as helpless as a little baby. I have the feeling she’s just passing through town. From what she said, she’s here with her girlfriends. My time to connect with her is limited.”

  “You had her love once, didn’t you?”

  Luke nodded. “We were head over heels for one another. Our relationship was great. I think both of us figured one day we would get married and settle down.” He grimaced. “I made a lot of promises to her when I moved to Nashville for my career. I still can’t believe I let her down so badly.”

  “It sounds like you’ve been beating yourself up a lot about this, Luke. At this point it’s a waste of time. If you want to move forward with Rain you’re going to have to pull out all the stops. Reach for the brass ring and don’t let go. Show her you’re a changed man.”

  A changed man.

  In his heart, he knew he wasn’t the same man who had crashed and burned under the hot glare of the Nashville glitz and bright lights. He had grown and matured over the last few years. He was ready to cherish and adore Rain for a lifetime. His feelings for her had only blossomed during their years of separation.

  Tug was right. If he wanted Rain back in his life, Luke couldn’t afford to sit on the sidelines and wait for her to come to him. He needed to grab the bull by the horns and show Rain what an awesome future they could have.

  Forgiveness was a cornerstone of his faith. But it was something most people struggled with in their lives. Clearly, Rain was having trouble even hearing him out.

  Luke sucked in a deep, steadying breath. He was going to have to dig down deep to win Rain back. For Luke, there wasn’t any other option. Living without the love of his life wouldn’t be living at all. He would always be yearning and hoping and dreaming of a life with Rain. His lovely Rain.

  He nodded at Tug. “You’re right. I need to show her, not just tell her.”

  Tug clapped him on the back. “That’s the spirit! How are you going to do it?”

  Luke grimaced. “I don’t know. But I’m going to figure out a way because I need Rain in my life. Not just for now, but for always.”

  **

  Rain slept in the next morning until a little after ten a.m. She woke up to the smell of sausage and eggs wafting in the air. A knocking sound on her bedroom door caused her to sit up straight in bed. “Come in,” she said, hoping she wasn’t holding up the other girls.

  “Breakfast is here!” Cassidy’s voice called out from behind the door.

  “Breakfast?” Rain asked out loud. Room service was expensive. It wasn’t wise to blow their budget on their second day in town. Rain scrambled out of bed and pulled on her navy-blue robe. She quickly made her way to the door, wrenched it open and walked toward the smell of the food.

  The other girls were sitting at the dining room table, helping themselves to a wide array of breakfast foods. Eggs. Sausage. Belgian waffles. An assortment of fruit. Oatmeal.

  “What is all this? And how much is it costing us?” Rain asked, feeling a little Grinch-like with her questions. She didn’t want to be stingy, but she wasn’t rich and successful like Bridget. This wasn’t in her budget. They were going to be on the road for ten weeks so she couldn’t afford splurging on their second day of the trip.

  “It’s not costing us a thing,” Lark crowed, taking a huge bite of a croissant.

  “Uncle Zeke to the rescue,” Bridget said, pouring herself a large glass of orange juice. “It’s so sweet of him to do all of this for us.”

  “He sent a note along with the room service, but we didn’t open it since it was addressed to you,” Jessica explained. She reached for the note, then handed it to Rain.

  Rain flipped open the note and smiled. She looked at her friends then began to read it out loud. “I’m so proud of you for facing your fears and singing at the Bluebird last night. I can’t wait till you take the country charts by storm.”

  There was an immediate reaction at the table. Everyone began talking at once and peppering her with questions. “You sang at the Bluebird last night?” Cassidy asked.

  “That’s incredible, Rain. It’s every aspiring country singer’s dream.” Bridget held up her hand so Rain could give her a high-five. “Way to go!”

  “What happened? Tell us! A
nd don’t leave out a single detail,” Jessica implored her.

  Rain sat down at the table and began making a plate for herself. She was starving. Four pairs of eyes were studying her. “Okay, I’ll tell you. My uncle surprised me after dinner by taking me to the Bluebird Café. Unbeknownst to me, he’d signed me up for open mic night. And he’d stashed his guitar in the back seat of his car so I could use it.”

  “Did you actually get up there and sing in front of a crowd?” Lark asked, her features creased with surprise.

  “I did,” Rain said, her chest bursting with pride. “I can’t believe I did it, but I did. And the crowd was very appreciative of my performance.”

  “Sounds awesome,” Bridget said.

  She bit her lip. “It was…until it wasn’t.” She darted a nervous glance around the table. She didn’t want to mention Luke, but she wanted to be straight with her friends. “I ran into Luke.”

  Shocked gasps rang out at the table.

  “How was it seeing him?” Cassidy asked.

  “It was hard. Even after all this time it felt like a shock to the system to see him standing in front of me.” She shook her head. “It would have been much better if I’d felt nothing. Emptiness. But my heart was beating so fast I could hear it thundering in my ears. And I was trembling. He approached me wanting to talk but I walked away. He followed me and tried to explain his actions, but after all this time it rang hollow. Thankfully, Uncle Zeke rescued me and we got out of there before he could say much more.”

  “That’s intense,” Lark said.

  “Let’s not talk about Luke anymore.” She faked a wide smile. “Let’s finish eating breakfast and focus on our agenda for today. The city of Nashville awaits us.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Cassidy said, reaching for some fruit and oatmeal. “I’m not letting this food go to waste.”

  The girls all laughed. They all enjoyed a great meal. After they finished eating, everyone got dressed. They had decided to go to the Nashville Parthenon in Centennial Park. It was a full-scale replica of the Parthenon in Athens, Greece.

  It was a beautiful local attraction. They took pictures on the grounds and had fun exploring the interior. Even though they knew their feet were firmly planted in Nashville, it almost felt as if they were in an exotic land.

  As they finished their tour of the place, Jessica and Rain took up the rear as the other ladies made their way outside to the lot.

  Suddenly, Jessica stopped walking. She pulled Rain aside. “I need to talk to you for a moment.”

  “What’s up? You look so serious. Is something wrong back home?” Rain asked. She hoped Jessica hadn’t gotten bad news from Treasure Harbor.

  “No, it’s nothing like that. Luke called me earlier. Based on your conversation, he deduced I might be here with you in Nashville.” She shifted from one foot to the other. “Rain, this isn’t easy for me. You’re my closest friend, but Luke is my cousin. I hate taking sides.”

  “I never asked you to take sides,” Rain said in a defensive voice.

  “I know you didn’t, but that’s how it felt. I’ve been stuck in the middle.” She let out a sigh. “I told Luke we were coming here. He’s outside waiting to talk to you.”

  “What? Jessica! I can’t believe you did that!” Rain shook her head in disbelief. What had come over Jessica? Didn’t she know that she didn’t want anything to do with Luke?

  “I’m sorry for blindsiding you, Rain, but you two need closure. Spend some time with Luke. Listen to him. And then maybe you’ll be able to move forward in your life.” Jessica shook her head. “Because if you don’t, you’re going to be stuck in limbo for the rest of your life.” Jessica leaned in and pressed a kiss against her cheek. “We’ll see you later at the hotel.”

  Rain watched Jessica beat a fast path toward the parking lot, leaving Rain in the dust. She craned her neck just enough to spot her hopping into the SUV with the rest of the ladies and roaring away. Luke was standing about one hundred feet away in the lot, staring right at her.

  Rain began muttering to herself. She was in shock. Had she really been ditched by her friends? Clearly all four of them had been in on this. Did they expect her to hang out with Luke today as a way of achieving closure? She let out a harsh laugh. After everything that had happened between them she wasn’t sure they could do that in a whole year.

  She pushed open the door and walked toward Luke with her head held high. He was smiling at her, she realized. What in the world did he have to grin about? Did he think this was an easy path to forgiveness?

  “Rain. You have no idea how good it is to see you again.” His eyes sparkled. She couldn’t afford to look too deeply into the depths of his eyes. If she did she’d be a goner. Been there, done that. Rain wasn’t traveling down that road again. Fool me once! Luke wasn’t going to play her for a fool again.

  She folded her arms across her chest. “What is this all about, Luke? Now you have my friends ditching me so you can talk to me?” She let out a tutting sound.

  He took a sudden step closer to her. There wasn’t much distance resting between them now. She felt goosebumps pop up on her arms.

  “It’s about making amends. Or at least trying to. I’m an imperfect man, Rain. And I fell hard. Considering what we meant to one another, I’d like to bridge the gap.”

  “Why now?” she asked, wondering about all the nights when she’d cried herself to sleep after not hearing from him. She had given him every chance to explain himself years ago, but he’d maintained a stony silence for months. It had slowly broken her heart into bits.

  “Because tomorrow isn’t promised. I had a friend who was killed in a car wreck last year. He had his whole life ahead of him. Matter of fact, he was getting married in a few days to his sweetheart.” Pain was etched on Luke’s face. “We lost him because of a drunk driver who didn’t have the sense to take an Uber rather than get behind the wheel. His fiancée, Shelby, lost the love of her life. And Waylon never got to say goodbye. He was killed on impact.”

  Rain knew the story well. It had been plastered all over the media. Waylon Arlington had been a big country singer, one who had risen from obscurity to the heights of the music industry. Rain remember seeing pictures of his grieving fiancée and his parents at the funeral.

  “I’m sorry for your loss,” she said in a soft voice. “Losing someone is always harder when it comes out of the blue. It’s harder to process.” Rain flashed back to when one of her childhood classmates had died over summer break of pneumonia. It had been a terrible blow to hear the news.

  Luke’s jaw tightened. “We’re here on earth living on borrowed time. Only God knows when He is going to call us home. I don’t want to waste a minute of my time feeling anguished over the past. The very foundation of our faith rests on forgiveness. I’ve had to learn to forgive myself for my weaknesses. I’d like you to try to forgive me for the pain I caused you.” His eyes were moist. She knew from a lifetime of knowing him that his words were sincere. His voice rang out with truth.

  His words hit home in the once place she couldn’t deny or push away.

  As a woman of faith, she struggled with the knowledge that she was still harboring anger toward Luke. The past hadn’t been buried. She still hurt. Her heart bled. And she was still carrying the weight of it on her heart. Jessica was right. How could she truly move forward if she was clinging to past hurts? Oftentimes, Rain stopped in her tracks and asked herself what God would want her to do. In this case, it was crystal clear.

  He would want her to forgive Luke. Or at least do her very best to try.

  She nodded at him. “I’d like to forgive you. Being here in Nashville is our first stop on a ten-week road trip. Maybe my being here in town isn’t by chance. Perhaps there’s some divine intervention involved.”

  The corners of his mouth twitched with merriment. “God is good, Rain. By bringing you here to Nashville, he brought me the desires of my heart.”

  Rain’s cheeks felt rosy. Luke sure knew how to lay
in on thick. Charm was one of his best assets. He had it in abundance. Along with his talent, it had help catapult him to the top of the country music charts. Everyone loved Luke Avery.

  “Where do we go from here?” she asked. Now, she was stranded with Luke with no plan of action, no means of escape and a host of questions.

  “Well, for starters, I’d love to show you around a bit. It’ll give us a chance to talk and clear the air.”

  “Okay,” she said in a begrudging tone. She wasn’t at all sure about this. Was she letting him off easily for all the thing’s he’d done?

  It’s not your job to punish him. A voice sounded in her ear. For so long now Rain had deliberately refused to open the lines of communication between herself and Luke. She’d wanted to hurt him the same way he’d wounded her.

  Enough! It was enough. She wasn’t a vengeful person and she didn’t want to be. Forgiving Luke didn’t mean she absolved him. It could never erase what he’d done.

  All it meant was that she was extending grace to him. One soul to another.

  She took a deep breath. Like it or not, it was time.

  “Amazed”

  by Lonestar

  Chapter Four

  Before she could change her mind, Luke led Rain to his hunter green truck in the parking lot. He moved toward the passenger side and held the door open for her. Her movements were halting and jittery. She reminded him of a wary bunny rabbit. He’d messed up so royally with her in the past. It was evident that she no longer believed in him.

  Luke didn’t know what Jessica had said to Rain to make her agree to talk to him, but he would be eternally grateful to his cousin. He’d been carrying a torch for Rain ever since their disastrous breakup. Seeing her in person only confirmed his feelings. He loved this woman with every breath of his being.

  Always had. Always would. Even if they never saw each again in this lifetime, he would keep on loving her.