“I don’t know. It just popped into my head.” I shrugged, laughing at the disbelief on her face.
“You knew it already,” Seraphina said. “You had to.”
I threw up my hands. “Okay, yes. I heard Delphine teasing you about Bertha, the ugly keyboard that you bring on vacation.”
“She hates Bertha,” Seraphina said. “It’s very hurtful. Especially since Bertha saves my arms from carpel issues.”
We were all laughing as the server brought our drinks.
I took a sip of Chianti. Kind of dry for my taste, but good enough.
“What’s the name of your new song?” Tyler asked. “And are you going to give it to Ivy James?”
“It’s called, “Or Something Like That Anyway.” And I already sent it to her. In fact, she may have texted me already, but I’ll check later.”
“Does she ever hate them?” Tyler asked.
“I wouldn’t say hate. But sometimes she doesn’t think they’re right for her.”
“That makes sense,” Seraphina said.
“Interesting title,” Tyler said. “My mom says that all the time. Usually after she says something too personal.”
I stared at him for a moment. “She said it the other night. That’s where it came from.”
Tyler’s mouth dropped open. “No way. Oh my God, that’s the coolest thing ever. Can we hear it?”
“Maybe some time. We’ll see what Ivy thinks. Wes thought it was good. We recorded it today in Wes’s studio and sent it over to her.” I turned to Seraphina. “Ivy’s coming next week to spend some time with Wes and me. We’re hoping to do some writing.”
“Oh, that’s nice,” Seraphina’s expression had shuttered into something protective.
“There’s nothing between them but friendship,” Tyler said. “I already asked.”
Seraphina went pink. “That’s none of my business. Or yours, Tyler.”
“Sorry, Mom,” Tyler said, not sounding at all repentant.
The server arrived with our pizza, which gave Seraphina a moment to recover her composure.
We ate. Tyler applied himself to the meat lovers with serious dedication. Seraphina took small bites of her barbecue chicken and asked me about Ivy—how we’d met, how long we’d been writing together. I told her about the early Nashville days, two broke musicians in a city full of them and how we’d met at The Meadowlark Café.”
“I’ve always wanted to go there,” Seraphina said.
“It’s a very special place,” I said.
“Hunter says we can meet Ivy when she’s here,” Tyler said, adjusting a piece of pepperoni before taking a bite.
“I’ll probably make a complete fool of myself,” Seraphina said. “Are you sure she wants to or has time?”
“She’s always happy to meet friends of mine and fans,” I said. “Plus, your mom’s her type of person.”
“How so?” Tyler asked, leaning into the table.
“She likes other boss ladies,” I said.
“The other kids and I noticed you were on Second Chance,” Tyler said, super casual.
“How do you know?” I asked, embarrassed.
