Page 201 of The Song We Lost

My fingers fist in his shirt while his forehead rests against mine and our breathing turns ragged almost immediately. Emotion swells so hard in my chest it physically aches. A tear slips free before I even realize I’m crying and Luke catches it gently with his thumb before pressing a soft kiss against my forehead. Then he just holds me there against him while laughter and music drift across the property behind us.

chapter 50

luke

. . .

By mid July the property is in full swing, and everyone is doing what they can to contribute. The orchard trees are heavy with leaves and fruit now and every window in the main house stays open late into the evening letting music and laughter drift outside with the warm summer air. Iris has started sleeping longer stretches which means Cole finally looks slightly less like a ghost, and Bailey smiles easier now. Not all the time, but enough that I notice every single one.

Things between us have started to solidify since her birthday, our anniversary. It’s not perfect. We still had hard days. Bailey has joined me on two joint therapy sessions and those days are heavy, but also important. We both know we need to talk through this, work our way to the new version of us that we both want. We all still had moments where grief crashed through the middle of otherwise normal afternoons and left us wrecked for the rest of the night.

But we were trying, together this time, and somehow that changed everything.

I’m helping my dad repair one of the tractor wagons, when Rachel’s SUV pulls into the driveway.

Dad glances over his shoulder. “That woman scares me.”

I laugh quietly. “She scares everyone. That’s kind of her job.”

Rachel climbs out wearing sunglasses and heels she has no business wearing here. Bailey appears in the front doorway almost immediately, smiling when she sees her before hurryingdown the steps barefoot through the grass. And fuck. That still gets me. The fact that Bailey still runs toward people she loves after everything she’s survived.

Rachel hugs her tightly before the two disappear into the house together.

About twenty minutes later the back door swings open again.

“Luke!” Rachel shouts.

Dad mutters, “Told you. Terrifying.”

I wipe my hands on my jeans before heading toward the house. Rachel stands in the kitchen holding a coffee like she owns the place while Bailey leans against the counter beside her eating watermelon directly from the cutting board.

Rachel looks me up and down critically. “You look… healthy.”

“Thanks?”

“I just wonder if emotionally stable Luke can still play like he used to.”

Bailey chokes on her watermelon and Rachel grins before her expression shifts slightly more serious.

“So.” She crosses her arms. “Dave’s officially fucked.”

I blink once. “Well alright then.”

Rachel looks deeply pleased with herself. “Kacey’s interview exploded exactly the way I expected.” She takes a sip of coffee casually. “Turns out giving a pissed off woman documented proof of industry manipulation, paparazzi coordination and management misconduct creates excellent television.”

Bailey places her watermelon rind on a plate and wipes her hands on a tea towel, moving closer to me.

Rachel shrugs. “Everybody wins. Kacey got her fifteen minutes and Dave’s probably going to spend the next decade trying not to get sued.”

I lean back against the counter slowly. “How bad is it?”

Rachel’s eyes sharpen slightly. “Bad enough several artists are not so quietly changing management companies.”

Bailey goes still beside me.

“What about you?” she asks carefully.

Rachel waves her off. “I’m fine. I documented everything before things blew up and I don't tread in the murky waters with assholes like Dave.”