“If you don’t get to the point soon, I’m gonna scream, and if I scream, we’re gonna have two crabby, cryin’ children on our hands. So, you better—”
“She named me their guardian.”
Nat shut her mouth, her teeth snapping audibly as she stared at Asher, who stared right back. There was no use trying to hide her shock—she couldn’t stop her eyes from nearly bugging out. And even if she could, it didn’t matter because he’d be able to read her anyway. Besides, the last thing he needed was her walking on glass around him. That had never been their way, and he wouldn’t want to be handled with kid gloves, despite the fact that his world had been rocked not once but twice in less than a week.
“I would’ve thought your sister knew at leastoneperson more responsible than you.”
Asher breathed out a laugh, though she knew there wasn’t much humor in it. “Yeah, me too. But you know it’s just us. Which means it was either me or the in-laws.”
Nat scrunched up her nose, having heard enough stories from Aubrey to know the Haywards were the exact kind of people Nat despised. The exact kind her Daddy had attempted to mold her into—elitist snobs who got ahead using their power. “Then you weredefinitelythe better choice.”
“I’m not so sure.”
“C’mon, Ash, you’re great with them, and they love you.”
“They love me ’cause I give them ice cream for lunch. Clearly I don’t know what I’m doin’. At all.”
“You’ll figure it out.” Nat said the words, though there wasn’t much conviction behind them.
Truthfully, she had no idea how he was going to do this. Not just the how—as in, howhe’d find a way to raise two kids with absolutely zero experience. Buthow—as in, how was he going to leave his life in Nashville behind? How was he going to leave behind the promise of a mega career and, instead, make a life back in the hometown both of them had run from? The music scene in Havenbrook wasn’t exactly booming, which meant he couldn’t pursue his dreams here. The label interested in signing him would want him producing music in a studio and going on tour—the former, something Havenbrook certainly didn’t have, and the latter made nearly impossible with the kids.
Accepting the role of guardian to June and Owen like his sister wanted meant all his aspirations would come to a dead end.
“I’m gonna have to,” he said. “The other option is the Haywards, and if that happens, they’ll whisk June and Owen off to Connecticut, and I don’t know if I’d ever see them. I don’t think it’d even faze Nathan’s parents to cut me completely out of the kids’ lives.”
Nat could hear the pain in his voice, just at the thought of not being able to see his niece and nephew when he wanted. Yes, he’d resided in Nashville the entirety of both June’s and Owen’s lives, but he traveled back to Havenbrook as often as his schedule allowed, and Aubrey, Nathan, and the kids had made a couple trips to Tennessee to visit him as well. No longer being able to see them on a whim would absolutely kill him.
“Well, you don’t need to worry about that, right?” Nat said. “Because Aubrey wanted you, and that’s all that matters.”
“I hope so.”
“What are you gonna do about everything else…the meeting with the label? Have you heard from your manager?”
“Yeah, Carla’s called. Sent some flowers. The meeting’s on hold for now, and she told me to take my time.” He blew out a laugh. “Somehow, I don’t think she meant eighteen years to raise kids, though.”
The thought of being tied down like that made Nat’s skin itch. She adored those kids, but hanging out with them once in a while and being in charge of raising them were two different things.
“So, what happens now?”
“There’ll still be a hearing, but…” Asher blew out a long breath and shook his head, returning his gaze to hers. “How long are you plannin’ to stay?”
Without him saying a word, she felt his unasked plea as loudly as if he’d shouted it in her ear. He still wanted her here, by his side. She could stay for a while. Most of her upcoming shoots could be rescheduled—except for the one at the end of the month in Ireland. That was an opportunity not so easily rearranged.
Before she could respond, Asher’s phone lit up on the coffee table, vibrating across the wood as Cole Donovan’s name flashed on the screen.
“Shit, a call from him this late can’t be good,” Asher mumbled before answering the phone. “Hey, Cole. What’s up?”
He listened for a few moments before his eyes lifted to meet hers. She had half a mind to reach over, snatch the phone from him, and put it on speaker, just so she could hear the full conversation. But instead, she behaved herself, all the while straining to listen to Cole’s side.
“They don’t waste any time, do they?” Asher asked.
Nat leaned even closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder in an effort to decipher what Cole was saying. Unfortunately, all she could make out was the hum of his voice, not any of the actual words he was speaking.
“Can they win?” Asher asked, his tone making Nat’s head snap up.
His brow was furrowed, his eyes shadowed with concern. She gestured to his phone, miming that he should put it on speaker. Fortunately, they’d been perfecting their telepathic language for years, so Asher knew immediately what she was saying without saying it. He held out the phone between them and pressed the speaker button, catching Cole mid-sentence.
“—judge is ultra conservative, but your sister was specific in her wishes. She and her husband named you in their wills, and we also have the video. Hopefully that’ll be enough to tip this in your favor.”
