Текст книги "Following Me"

Автор книги: K. A. Linde

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Текущая страница: 18 (всего у книги 19 страниц)

BEEP.  BEEP.  BEEP.

Devon’s chest slowly rose and fell with the strange beeping noise.  It clouded her already fuzzy thoughts, and it seemed to take over her consciousness.  She tried to concentrate, but she found that tended to intensify the annoying sound.  Instead, she thought about the placement of her body.  Five fingers on the right hand.  One.  Two.  Three.  Four.  Five.  And five on the left hand.  She could feel all ten of her toes, up to the balls of her feet, and across her arch to her heel.

Her face felt right but also wrong.  It didn’t hurt, but it didn’t feel normal either.  Her tongue felt solid, and her lips felt heavy.  When she thought about her cheek, it only seemed to throb more, so she stopped.  Her throat was dry, like she had swallowed cotton balls, and she started coughing at the thought.

Someone was at her side, taking her hand and slowly lifting her head off the pillow.  She began to breathe easier.  Devon remembered her eyes then, and they opened to the harsh lights.  She blinked a few times, allowing her eyes to adjust, and then she squinted at her surroundings.

She was in a hospital.  That much was obvious.  White curtain, white bed, white floor.  Sanitation heaven.

She saw that it was Brennan holding her hand.  That made her smile despite her being in the hospital.

“Hey, Belle,” he said, bringing her hand to his lips.  “Good to see you’re finally awake.”

“I said no hospitals,” she said immediately.

“I didn’t hear you when you were unconscious,” he said with a sad smile.

Devon giggled.  “Fair point.”

“How are you feeling?” he asked, taking a seat in the chair next to her.

“I’ve been better,” she whispered.

“Are you in much pain?  They gave you some painkillers, but I don’t know if they have worn off,” he asked, concerned.

“I’m doing okay.”  She squeezed his hand.  “What happened?”

“You don’t remember?” he asked with a frown.

“I remember, uh…Reid showed up.  You guys got into a fight.  I told him that we were over…and that’s about it,” she said, biting the side of her lip that wasn’t swollen.

“That’s about what happened.  You passed out.  When he pushed you into the wall, I guess it upset your already delicate condition.  I scooped you up and drove you straight here.  I was, uh…going to call the cops, but I was worried you might kill me when you woke up.  I thought I’d leave that decision up to you…if that’s what you want.”

“No hospitals.  No cops.   No court.”

“I know, but you’ve already broken two of those,” Brennan said.

Devon narrowed her eyes.  “No cops.  Just because you keep breaking the rules doesn’t mean I want to involve the police.”

“I’ll break every rule to keep you safe.  The doctor said it was really good I brought you in,” he said, pushing her hair back with one hand.  “You’ve been out of it for a while.”

“So…Reid just left?” she asked carefully.  She was tired of being afraid of where he might turn up.  She was beginning to see why the restraining order was a good idea.

Brennan shrugged and scratched the back of his head.  He chuckled softly and looked away from her.  “He was here earlier.  They had to reset his nose.  Seems he managed to break it in two places.”

Devon giggled with him.  “I wonder how that happened.”

“I guess he was unlucky when he ran into my fist,” he said.  “Anyway, he tried to come see you.  I hope you don’t mind that I showed the restraining order to the nurses.  He was escorted out of the building.”

“Oh!  The nurses escorted him out?” Devon asked.

“Uh…the cops escorted him out.”

“Brennan!  No cops!”

“I wasn’t letting him anywhere near you.  It’s not like they arrested him…like they should have.”  He bent down and kissed her lips.  “I’m just glad you’re safe now.  I don’t care if you press charges.  I just care that you’re safe.”

“I’m glad I’m safe, too,” she said even though the injuries on her body told her that she didn’t feel that safe.

Brennan leaned his forehead against her hand as he sighed softly.  His lips found her hand, then her palm, and then the inside of her wrist.  “You know what I’m going to do when you’re feeling all better?”

“What?” she asked.

His lips traveled up to her elbow.  “I’m going to kiss away every bruise and every scar and every headache.  I’m going to kiss away every thought of heartache,” he whispered.  His kisses were now reaching her shoulder.

“You…you are?” she asked through gulps.  When the beeps on the machine picked up speed, she tried not to blush.

“Yep.  I’m going to kiss every inch of your beautiful skin, so when you look at it, all you see is me.”  He stopped his kisses and stared down into her eyes.

“All I see is you already,” she responded huskily, trying not to let her mind stray to all the things she wanted to do to his body.

“I’ll be a happy man every day that is true.”

He bent forward and kissed her lips.  Devon reached her arms up and wrapped them around his neck, anchoring them together.

Someone cleared her throat, and Brennan pulled back from the kiss.  Devon blushed and looked over to see Hadley and Garrett standing together in the doorway.

“Hope we’re not interrupting,” Hadley said, planting her hands on her hips.

“Course not,” Devon said.  She looked back at Brennan.  “I didn’t know you called them.”

Brennan shrugged.  “I thought they’d want to know you were here.”

“Of course we wanted to know you were here.”  Hadley tossed her oversized purse on the floor and rushed over to Devon’s side.  “You came to visit me when I was here.  I couldn’t imagine not visiting you.”

“It’s good to see you,” Devon said with a smile.

“Do you guys mind giving us a minute?” Hadley asked, shooing them out of the room.

Brennan kissed Devon’s forehead once more.  “Want anything from the cafeteria?”

She smiled.  Always thoughtful.  “Jell-O.”

He chuckled.  “You’re in the right place for that.”

Hadley waited for Brennan to walk out of the room and close the door.  “Oh my God, I can’t believe what happened to you.  How are you feeling?  I’m so sorry I’ve been so completely self-absorbed.  I had no idea any of this was going on.  Don’t kill Garrett or anything, but he told me what happened with you and Reid.”

“He did?” Devon asked, her stomach twisting at someone else telling her story.

“Yeah, but don’t hate him.  He was worried about you, and he stayed up all night.  When I woke up, he told me about it, and I was completely flipping out.  I tried calling you, but you didn’t answer.  He said you weren’t with Brennan, so I didn’t even try him.  I probably should have.”

“I was, uh…worried that Reid might come after me at Brennan’s, so I didn’t want anyone to know where I was.  Sorry, bad move on my part.”

“No apologies,” Hadley said, brushing off her apology.  “I can’t blame you for anything.  Look at you.”

“Ha!  Yeah,” Devon said with fake enthusiasm.

“Garrett also told me about what happened between you two,” Hadley said softly.  “He wanted to clear the slate.  He said you were pissed at him and wouldn’t forgive him.  I don’t blame you for that either, Dev.  I’m sorry he did that though.  The, uh…drugs really messed me up.”

“What happened to you, Hadley?” Devon asked, wondering if Hadley would finally open up to her.  “I never thought you would be someone to get caught up in drugs.”

Hadley sighed heavily and tugged at her ponytail.  “It started casually with some friends.  It wasn’t a big deal, but then, I was sneaking around everywhere and…it became a bigger deal than I ever let on.  Then, the stuff with Garrett not knowing and his parents on top of all the pressure at work…it just spiraled out of control.”  Hadley took a deep breath before continuing.  “But I’m going to get better, Dev.  That night with Garrett…I was paranoid, thinking he was cheating.  I was angry all the time.  When we got into our fight on the Fourth of July, I’d snorted some coke before the event.  I was always too nervous around his parents.  I shouldn’t have gone off on him or his dad.  I think my behavior pushed him over the edge.”

“It doesn’t matter, Hadley,” Devon said, reaching out for her.

Devon hated that her best friend felt responsible at all for what had happened.  Hadley had been selfish, but cocaine was addictive for a reason.  It was hard to kick.  Devon was just glad to see Hadley recovering.

“It does.  My therapist said that I should try to right the wrongs in my life.  I’m really sorry for not being there when you needed me…when you came to me for help.  Even if you didn’t ask for help, I should have known.  And I’m sorry for Garrett’s behavior.  He and I have a lot to talk about and work out, but I really want to try with him, Dev.”

“I know,” Devon said.

“He said he wanted to talk to you for just a minute…that is, if you’ll see him,” Hadley said.

“Um…sure.”

“Alright.  Let me go get him,” Hadley said, standing.  “I’m glad you’re doing better, Dev.”

“Thanks, Hadley.”

When Hadley reached the door, she turned around and faced Devon with a devilish smile on her face.  “I wish I had been there when Brennan beat the shit out of Reid.”

Devon laughed and shook her head.

“I think I would have taken his balls if I knew what he had done to you,” Hadley said.

“I believe you wholeheartedly, Hadley.”

Hadley laughed and walked through the door.

A couple minutes later, Garrett shuffled into the room with a sheepish look on his face.  “Hey, Devon,” he said tentatively.

Devon sighed and looked out the window.

“I don’t know if Hadley told you that I told her,” he said awkwardly.

“She did.”

“Oh, good,” Garrett muttered.  “I wanted her to know the truth about what I did because it was wrong of me under any circumstances.  I shouldn’t have kissed you.  I shouldn’t have…cheated on her.”

Garrett cleared his throat when she didn’t say anything.  He started again.  “I messed up, Devon.  I was your friend, and I messed that up.  I know that I’m part of the reason you’re here.  I’m not even going to ask for your forgiveness because if I were in your position, I think I’d have a hard time forgiving me.”

Devon sighed and turned to look at him.  He looked just like Hadley had said, like he hadn’t slept all night.  She wondered if he had been worried.  Her heart softened some at the thought.

“So, while I don’t expect you to forgive me, it doesn’t mean I’m not going to try to be better.  All I’m asking for is the chance to try to earn your trust again.  I don’t think it’s fair to ask for more than that, but I’ve never been sorrier.  I hate seeing you like this,” he said, gesturing to the bed.

“Okay,” she said softly.  “It’s okay.  We’ll, uh…get through it…get past it.”

Garrett beamed like she had just handed him the keys to a brand-new sports car.  “It’s really good to hear that.”

“Can I ask just one question?”

“Of course,” he said hesitantly.

“Why would you answer my phone and tell Reid where I was?”  She looked down at her hands to keep from crying again.  She was tired of crying.

“I didn’t mean for him to know where you were.  I’ve replayed that phone call a million times in my head.  I was so pissed that he was calling you.  You’re my friend, Dev.  I didn’t want to see you upset.  I just told him to stop calling you, that you were working at Jenn’s and that Hadley and I were taking care of you.”

“Oh,” she said.  Hearing his explanation made it so easy to believe him.  He looked too genuine to be lying.  “I guess that’s how he knew I was in Chicago.”

“Yeah, only because I mentioned Hadley.  I was stupid.  I didn’t think he’d be so determined to find you,” Garrett said.  “I hope I can make it up to you.”

The door swung open then, and Brennan walked in, bringing a big smile to her face.

“They only had cherry.  I hope that’s alright,” Brennan said, holding Jell-O out in front of him.

“Cherry is my favorite.”  She took the bowl when he handed it to her.

“I’m going to find Hadley,” Garrett said, nodding his head toward the door.  “I hope you feel better, Devon.  I really do.”

When their eyes met, unspoken words passed between them.  She smiled slightly at him, and he returned the gesture.

“Thanks,” Devon said just before Garrett walked out.

Brennan lounged and kicked his feet back in the uncomfortable hospital chair as Devon ate her Jell-O.  As everything was with Brennan, their time together in the hospital was effortless.  He occupied her time while she waited for the doctor to discharge her.  He told her stories about following his dad around the hospital when he was growing up.  She told him about her parents’ music, how her mom and dad worked together to shape and flow the song, how they had tested them out on her when she was younger.  That was before she had decided to take another turn with her life.

BEFORE SHE KNEW it, the doctor was there, checking her vitals and prescribing her more painkillers.  Then, he sent her on her way.  The medicine really worked, and she was laughing by the time they reached Brennan’s Jetta.

“Let’s get you back to bed.  I think you could use another twenty hours of sleep.”  He shook his head as he helped her into the car, and then he shut the door.

When he sat down in the driver’s seat, she rested her head on his shoulder.

“Sleep sounds nice,” she said.  “Will you sleep with me?”

He laughed.  “Is that an invitation?”

“Open invitation.”

“Oh man, I’m going to keep those painkillers around.”

“You don’t need them,” she said, sliding her hand down the front of his shorts.

He rested his hand over hers and moved it to his thigh.  “I’ll take you up on that when you can think clearly again.”

“I’m thinking very clear right now,” she said through giggles.

Brennan shook his head and laced their fingers.  “I’ll believe that when you can walk unaided.”

“Fine.  Your loss.”

“I’m not losing anything.”

She smiled.  “That’s true.”

“Your mom called while you were in the hospital.”

“She did?” she asked, confused.

“On your cell.  I saw it light up.  Are you going to talk to her?”

Devon sighed and nodded her head.  “Yeah, I am.  But maybe after I’ve slept.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” he said, squeezing her hand.

BRENNAN DROVE THEM to his apartment and helped Devon up the stairs.  As soon as they walked through the door, he picked her up and carried her into the bedroom.  Sleep was pulling her under by then, and she let him help her into more comfortable clothes.  They both crawled into bed, and he held her tight against his chest.

“Brennan,” she whispered, feeling sleep drawing closer.

“Yeah?” he asked, kissing her shoulder.

“You’re going to be here, right?  You know, after this?” she asked.

“Belle, I’m going to be here for everything.”

Brennan held Devon until she fell fast asleep.

Devon dreamed only of Brennan’s face and the way he looked at her the first night they had spent together on the boat.

It was the first night she remembered what happiness felt like.

“I’m so proud of you,” Brennan said.

Leaning down, he kissed Devon on the mouth.  She returned his kiss full-on, wrapping her arms around his neck.  He lifted her off her feet and spun her around until she threw her head back and started laughing.  He buried his head into her shoulder and kissed her there.

When he finally put her back on her feet, Devon said, “I can’t believe I did it.”

“I can.”

“Three months ago, I never would have gone through with this,” she told him.  “Gah!  Three weeks ago, I wasn’t sure I could do this.”

“I knew you could do it.  I’m glad you proved it to yourself though,” he said, pressing his lips to hers again.

She closed her eyes and sighed.  “Me, too.  It feels pretty awesome.”

Devon pulled out the little piece of paper that showed her permanent restraining order against Reid.  They had just finished their hearing in court.  Reid had showed his face.  His daddy had gotten him a good lawyer, but when she brought out all the pictures of the physical damage that had been done to her body, the medical records, and the surveillance video from Jenn’s, it was pretty clear what would happen.

Devon wasn’t looking forward to the trial.  But in the end, she had to think about everything he had done to her.  This could ruin his life, but he had brought this upon himself.  Reid was facing up to a year in prison if convicted of domestic battery.  Devon expected he would get probation if his lawyer got what he wanted.  Though, if Reid ever stepped foot near her again, he might end up in prison anyway.  Devon was just tired of all the negativity.  She wanted to be rid of Reid, and now, she was.

“Come on, let’s get out of here,” she said, slinging her arm around Brennan’s waist.

Brennan guided her back to his car.  She felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.  She had won.  She had beat Reid.  It wasn’t even just that.  She had proven to herself that she was strong.  She had proven that she was better than her old life with Reid.  It felt good.  She never knew how strong she was until it was all she had.

“Mind if we take a detour?” Brennan asked.

“I don’t have anything to do today,” she said, leaning her head back against the seat.

Life post-Reid was way better than she had ever thought it could be.  She had to attribute a lot of that to Brennan, but she liked to give herself the credit, too.  She knew though that without his help, it might have taken her longer to get her act together.

When she had spoken with her parents, they were mortified that she had endured so much at the hands of the man she had been dating.  She thought they blamed themselves for pushing her and Mason together and then for not seeing what happened with Reid.  But how could they blame themselves for what the men had done and what she had allowed to occur?

Her parents had tried to make up for it by offering to help her in any way they could.  On their recommendation, she had started seeing a therapist in the city.  Her mom was anxious to see her and take care of her.  Before the conversation was even over, her mom had sent an email to Devon with a plane ticket home, so she could visit soon.  Devon actually planned to use this ticket.  Now that she could be honest, she was looking forward to spending time with her mom.

After everything with Reid, her mother was worried about where Devon would go and what she would do.  Her mother didn’t like the idea of Devon being back at Wash U with Reid, so Devon had finally told her parents that she had decided not to go back to school.  She thought it would be best to at least take off the semester, so she could dedicate herself to recovery.

Her parents had offered to get her an apartment in Chicago since she had decided to stay, but Devon had declined.  Hadley and Garrett had made it clear that she was welcome in their place for as long as she wanted.  She didn’t like being alone, so that worked out for her.  Plus, it gave her the opportunity she needed to spend more time with her friend, like she had wanted to from the beginning, and then she could begin to rebuild that bond with Garrett.

Brennan had also told Devon that she could stay with him, but she had turned him down as well.  As much as she liked Brennan, she couldn’t let her life revolve entirely around a guy again.  He had accepted her response with grace.  It didn’t really matter anyway since she spent so much time with him.  The distance just helped ground her and give her space when she needed it.

“I can’t believe school starts in a couple weeks, and I won’t be going back,” Devon said, staring out the window.

“You could still go back if you wanted,” Brennan said.

He was always encouraging her to go back.  She knew he wanted her to finish her degree, and when the time was right, she wanted to finish it.  But now wasn’t that time.

“I don’t think so.  I can’t go back to that just yet.  I need to get myself right first.”

“I know.  I just don’t want you to think that you shouldn’t go back…”  He trailed off with an awkward pause.

She caught his meaning and turned to face him.  “Do you think I’m staying because of you?”

“I don’t want that to be your reason.”

“I want to be with you.  I want to be in Chicago with you, but I’m not staying for you…if that makes sense.  I know I need to finish college and get a job and all that.  I just feel like I’ll never really do any of that well enough if I’m not well enough mentally.  That’s why I’m staying.  This is what I need,” she tried to explain.

“Okay.  Good,” he said, smirking at her.  “That’s what I wanted to hear.”

Devon relaxed back into the seat, feeling better now that she had explained herself.  Therapy had helped with that.  She found herself explaining everything to people.  It was better than holing up inside of herself and being terrified of what she might say.  At least now, she had a sense of control over what went on in her life.  Brennan seemed to like it.  He was her number one supporter.  He always encouraged her to express her feelings and listened to her opinions.

“So, where are we going anyway?” she asked.

“You’ll see.”  He smiled at her secretively.

Devon narrowed her eyes.  “Is it a secret?”

“You could say that.”

“Can I guess?”  She bit her lip and tucked one foot underneath her.

“No,” he said.  “I’m not giving anything away.  You’ll like it…I think.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” she said.  She crossed her legs pretzel-style and stared out at the changing landscape.

Brennan pulled off of I-94 and started veering through the streets.  The area was nice, and Devon found herself admiring the beauty and simplicity of life in the suburbs.  Her parents lived in the suburbs, and while this was nothing like southern Nashville, it had the same feeling.

“This area is beautiful.  Where are we?” Devon asked as they crested a hill.

She sat up taller in her seat and stared out at the shore of Lake Michigan.  It stretched for miles and miles past her line of sight.  It was gorgeous and glorious in its magnitude.

“The North Shore.  Evanston,” he told her, driving down the hill.

“Wow,” she breathed, transfixed on the passing scenery.

Brennan slowed to a stop in front of a large all-brick house on a plot that bordered the lake.  “This is where I grew up,” he said softly.

Devon’s eyes left the house and landed back on Brennan.  “This is…your dad’s house?” she asked, feeling overwhelmed that he would bring her here.

“Yeah.  It was.  Mine now…I guess,” he told her, pulling into the driveway.

After the car came to a stop, Devon opened the car door and slid out of the seat.  Brennan popped the trunk and pulled out his guitar case.  Devon smiled.  She liked seeing him with that.  He had been playing and singing to her a lot more when she was at his place.  It relaxed her and brought her back to the first gig she had ever seen him perform.  She had been so caught up in him and his music that she had left the venue.  She hadn’t trusted herself to be with him then.  Her feelings were too strong even at that time.

They walked up to the front door, and Brennan just stood there with the key in his hand.  He took a deep breath and slid the key into the slot.  He turned the door and immediately disabled an alarm system.  Devon cautiously stepped inside, feeling almost as if she were trespassing.  But this was Brennan’s home.  He owned it.  It belonged to him.  It was somehow still a part of him.

He stood next to her, his muscles tensed, as he breathed in the emptiness that was once a home.  She could tell this was hard for him.  He had told her before that he only came up here to mow the lawn.  She didn’t know the last time he had been inside.

Devon reached out and placed her hand in his own.  She squeezed gently, just letting him know she was there.  She was there for him, just like he had always been there for her.

“I should have had someone come in here to clean beforehand,” he said wistfully.  It should have been the last thing on his mind, but the only thing he could concentrate on.

Devon didn’t even notice that the house needed to be cleaned.  She was too busy admiring the house itself with its massive high-vaulted ceilings, enormous fully furnished living room with a fireplace, and the twelve-person dining room table with antique china held in a nearby glass cabinet.  The foyer opened to a spiral staircase, leading to a balcony upstairs.  And that was just the view from the entranceway.  Devon couldn’t imagine what else lay beyond.

“It’s beautiful, Brennan,” she said, awestruck.  She had been raised in a big house, but this was Brennan’s house.  It felt different.

“Thanks.  My dad really cared about the place.  He took good care of it after my mom left.  I guess I was in the fifth grade when that happened,” he said with a shrug.  “The house was too big for just the two of us.  I think he wanted more kids, but he loved my mom too much to remarry.”

“Is that why she thought he would leave her money?” she asked softly.  She would have never asked that before, but now, she felt it was better just to get her questions out of the way.

Brennan faced her with a smile.  “I think so.  I’m glad he didn’t leave her anything though.  She didn’t love him anymore.  She didn’t deserve it.”

“No, probably not.” Devon wrapped her arms around his middle and held on to him tightly.  “I’m so sorry about your dad.”

“Me, too, Belle.”

He kissed the top of her head, and he let her hold him until they both had their emotions back under control.

“Come on, I’ll give you a tour of the house, but first, I want to show you something.”

He took her hand in his and walked them down a long hallway.  Devon peeked into an open door on the left and saw a kitchen that was bigger than Brennan’s apartment in the city.  It had all dark cabinets, granite countertops, and stainless steel appliances.  Devon gawked as she passed.

They entered into a sunroom framed with full-length glass windows.  The entire room stretched out to the length of the house.  It opened up onto an adjoining balcony that had wicker rocking chairs and a porch swing.  The balcony had a set of stairs that led down to a covered rectangular pool.  Beyond that was the entire expanse of Lake Michigan.

“Oh my God,” she gasped.

“Pretty nice view, right?” he asked.

“Pretty nice?” she stuttered, turning to face him.

He was already staring at her.

Brennan dropped his guitar case on the porch, and then he bent down and kissed her, crushing her to him.  His lips were hot on her.  She threw her hand around his neck with abandon.  All her thoughts stilled, and there was only the two of them.  She was lost to the rest of the world, and for once, that was the right way to be.

They kissed like that until Devon pulled away.  Breathless, her chest rose and fell heavily, and when he smiled, her insides ignited.

Grasping her hand again, he picked his guitar case back up, directed her down the set of stairs, around the pool, and down a large set of stairs to the shoreline.  She kicked off her sandals before she sank her feet into the dark sand.

“Thanks for coming with me.”  He set his guitar case on the last step and then took a seat next to it.

Devon sat down on the step and stared out at the beautiful backdrop.  “I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

“I, uh…wanted to try something,” he said, “if you’ll humor me.”

He reached for his guitar case, unlatched the lock, and pulled the guitar out of the container.  It was the same one he had played on the night of his open mic performance.  He had another one that he usually played at home, but she liked this one better.  He picked at the strings and adjusted them until they were in tune.  She watched his hands strum the guitar with precision.  She had never thought she would be interested in a musician.  She tended to steer clear of them, but as with everything else, Brennan was different.

Brennan started humming the final song that he had played at the show, “Moving Forward.”  She had heard it dozens of times over the last three weeks, and she knew all the words.  Now, it made her heart happy rather than sad.  He had known her pain even before she had allowed him in.  That kind of chemistry and intuition astounded her.

He paused in the song, but he let his fingers continue to pick out the tune.  “Will you do me a favor?

Devon nodded.

“Take the higher octave on the chorus?”

Devon stared at him.  He wanted her to sing?  She hadn’t let herself sing anywhere, except the car and the shower, in years.  She wasn’t even sure if she still had a good voice.  Music called to her but in lyric form only.  She wasn’t an artist.

She shook her head.  “No, Brennan, I don’t sing.”

He smiled like he didn’t believe her.  “Humor me.  No one else can hear you out here.”

Devon looked around the shoreline.  He was right.  No one else was outside right now.  The house was empty, practically deserted, and only the lake was before her.  Still, she could hear herself.

“What if I sound terrible?” she whispered.

“Then, I’ll make fun of you, and we can try again,” he said with a laugh.

She rolled her eyes at him before she turned back to face the lake.  She breathed in and out, letting the air calm her nerves.  Her eyes closed just as he picked up the chorus once more.  His smooth voice filled her ears softly, like he was waiting for her to harmonize with him.  She could sense that he was about to stop, so she dug up the courage to join him.

Her voice was shaky at first.  She didn’t use it enough anymore.  But she still sounded like herself, like she had when she used to sing for her parents, when they had told her she was going to be country music royalty one day.  Brennan’s song fit her voice better.  They blended together with the music.  They each felt every painful memory encapsulated in the words and sang them back to each other with more emotion together than they ever had separately.  It was peaceful and healing.  When the song ended, Devon opened her eyes and smiled.

“You were beautiful,” he said, letting his hands rest on the guitar.

“Thank you.  It’s been so long since I’ve sang anything.”

“Fooled me.”

“I’m a fool for you,” she said with a giggle, leaning forward to kiss his lips.    Devon sighed, debating if she could go through with what she was thinking.  Plucking up the courage, she asked, “Do you mind…if I try something?  You know…since we’re here.”