“Wow,” Tripp said.
“She was gorgeous,” Cash went on. “Red hair, sparkling eyes—not exactly how I pictured her, but I was just so happy to see her that I didn’t really care. I had my guys bring her backstage, and then I was all over her in the car on the way back to my hotel.”
Tripp nodded.
“I don’t act like that,” Cash said. “You were right about that. But I was just so glad to have her back in my life. I wanted everything all at once. This is the girl I thought I wasgoing to marry.”
“I get it,” Tripp said.
“But then afterward,” Cash remembered, feeling that same sense of panic. “I mentioned something to her that I’d said to her online once, about wanting to write a song for her. And she stared at me like I was from Mars.”
“It wasn’t her,” Tripp murmured.
“The big twist,” Cash said. “And of course I scared her off with my wild talk before I got to know anything about her. She bolted, and I never saw her again.”
“That was Cody’s mom,” Tripp said, shaking his head.
“Yeah,” Cash said, nodding. “I checked with the box office the next day. My girl had never picked up her ticket.”
“I’m sorry,” Tripp said. “That’s awful.”
“I still check the site once in a while,” he said. “But she never replied. I guess she’s married with kids by now, and probably doesn’t even listen to the music anymore. She’s moved on.”
“But you can’t?” Tripp asked. His normally dancing eyes were filled with sadness.
“I want to,” Cash said. “I’ve tried to tell myself that I can learn from my mistakes. If I ever find love again, I’ll be honest and I’ll communicate better.”
“Bella,” Tripp said softly.
“I’m doing my best with her,” Cash admitted, not even wanting to pretend he wasn’t falling for Cody’s guardian. “I’m trying to be honest with her about my shortcomings, and make sure she knows how I feel.”
“Seemed like you were doing great for a while there,” Tripp said.
Cash was grateful for his brother’s honesty.
“She pulled back from me tonight,” Cash said, nodding. “And I don’t even know why. But I can’t mess things up with Cody by pushing her.”
“You’ll get there,” Tripp said, nodding.
“Maybe,” Cash said. “But not everyone in the world is lucky enough to find something like Mom and Dad have. And I’ve already been so lucky with the music. Maybe it’s asking too much to want a fairytale at home too. I’ve got Cody now. That’s a miracle, and it’s more than enough.”
The brothers gazed out at the starry sky together for a long time after that, their breath clouding in the cold night air. Eventually, Tripp headed back to his place, and Cash went back inside to stare at the ceiling and think about Bella Wood.
20
BELLA
Bella sat beside Cody the next night on the cold, tile floor of theGetting to Know Youroom at theSugarville Grove Animal Shelter.
This was their reward after spending the whole afternoon cleaning cages and helping the director to organize the weekend’s food donations, and it was the best part of their volunteer duties.
“He’s very shy,” Karen said softly as she came in with a massive golden retriever. “Carl’s an old man, and we think the last few years were hard ones. Someone found him out on the highway on his own.”
Bella’s heart threatened to break as she observed the big animal. He was the kind of dog you expected to see leaping to catch a tennis ball, or lolling on his back begging for tummy rubs in a pet food commercial—not half-fighting the leash to get away in his distress about being introduced to new people.
“You two can sit and talk quietly,” Karen said. “Let him explore and see if he’s curious about you. Even if henever approaches, it’s good for him to hang out with you and see that it’s safe to spend time around people.”
Bella had done this “job” back in college, and she was familiar with the concept. She hoped Cody wouldn’t be too disappointed. He had probably been hoping he’d be wrestling with a crew of little puppies.
