Chapter 38

Nicole

“Did you hear about the hot new music store owner?” Heidi asked me two days after Mason had breezed into the store, told me he loved me, and left. He’d sent me a text a few hours later, saying he was thinking about me. I’d responded that I missed him and was thinking about him. And that was that. I hadn’t heard from him since. Heidi had told me to give him time. Everything would work out the way it was supposed to.

“Since when do you pay attention to anything that has to do with that store?” I asked. I couldn’t remember a time when Heidi had ever needed to go there.

“Since Cindy told me about it yesterday. Her kids take piano lessons there.”

“I didn’t realize the business was for sale.” The last time I’d been there was with Mason. Since returning to Desert Springs, I’d purposely avoided the music store because of the memories associated with it.

“Apparently so,” she said, plucking a dead flower off a potted plant. “The owner and his wife decided to move to Alabama, where their grandkids live.” She removed another wilted blossom. “I thought maybe you could take a few things over there that you’ve made, see if he’d be interested in selling them in the store.” At what was no doubt an uncertain expression on my face, she added, “What would it hurt to try? The worst he can do is say no.”

“True. Okay, I’ll do it after work.”

“Why don’t you go now? I can handle things till you get back.”

“Are you sure?” At her nod, I selected a set of glass coasters and prints to take with me. Heidi grinned the entire time, leaving me to wonder what she was up to.

I arrived at the store at the same time as several mothers with their young kids, and I followed them inside. They walked to the back of the store and disappeared through another set of doors. A guy my age was standing behind the counter, writing something down on a piece of paper. His messy black hair had purple streaks in it, and his eyebrow held several hoops.

At my approach, he glanced up. “Hi. Can I help you with anything?”

I flashed him an uncertain smile, feeling out of my element here. I was used to selling things in Blooming Love, but this was nowhere near the same thing. “I came to talk to the new owner.”

“He’s not here right now. Is it something I can help you with? Or you can leave a message and he’ll get back to you.”

I handed him my business card. “I’m Nicole McCormick, part owner of Blooming Love, the floral boutique.” I quickly added the last part, so he didn’t think I meant an online dating website. “I’ve created a line of music-themed items I thought your boss might be interested in including in his inventory.” My mouth was dry; my palms, not so much.

I set the coasters on the counter, along with the selection of prints. “I can leave these with you and he can get back to me one way or another.”

The guy inspected them. “These are really good. I think I’ve heard about them. Aren’t you donating a portion of the proceeds to charity?”

“That’s right,” I said, smiling. At least word of what I was doing was getting out. I’d already landed a few orders because people who knew someone who’d battled an addiction were excited that I was helping the charity.

“I’ll be sure to tell him as soon as he returns. There’s a chance he might be interested. You never know.”

I thanked him and returned to Blooming Love, on the way back grabbing a couple of sandwiches from the deli as lunch for Heidi and me. The store was busy when I arrived, and I didn’t have a chance to talk to her until near the end of our workday. At one point her cellphone rang, and she disappeared into the back. She returned five minutes later, grinning like a cat who’d singlehandedly caught five canaries.

“Change of plans for tonight,” she said.

“We’re not seeing a movie?”

“Nope, we’re going to Mike’s Bar.”

My eyebrows shot up in puzzlement. “You want to go to a sports bar?” Since when did she like sports, other than watching her boyfriend play touch football?

“Turns out they have live music on Thursday nights. Well, more like it’s open mike night.”

This was even more baffling. “Since when do you like singing in front of a crowd? Or have you been taking music lessons on the sly?” The Heidi I knew and loved wasn’t a good singer. Not even close.

“No, but a friend of mine is singing tonight, and I want to be supportive. And I want you to meet him.”

I groaned. “You’re not trying to set me up again, are you? You promised me you wouldn’t do that anymore, because you and Cindy suck when it comes to finding me Mr. Right.”

She gave me the puppy dog eyes that always did me in. “Please? You won’t regret it. It’ll be fun. And if it isn’t, then we’ll leave.”

I let out a deep sigh. “Fine.” Given that I’d been hiding away in my house for so long, working hard on my designs, I figured it was time I returned to real life.

“I’ll pick you up at seven,” she said, and walked away smiling.

It turned out that Mike’s on Thursday nights was super busy. Heidi and I squeezed through the crowd to the front of the room. On the stage, a twenty-year-old girl was belting out the lyrics to a Kelly Clarkson song. As I listened, I realized Kelly had been right when she’d pointed out that whatever didn’t kill you would only make you stronger. Loving Mason and walking away from him hadn’t killed me. It had made me stronger. It had been the inspiration behind my line of gifts, which had become popular. It had inspired me to donate a portion of the proceeds to a charity that helped individuals and families dealing with addiction. It had made me a better, stronger person…even though I missed him.

The final notes of the song faded away, and everyone applauded as she left the stage. Then the emcee strolled up to the mike, wearing a navy T-shirt with MIKE’S BAR on the front in white. “Okay, next up we have someone many of you may recognize, though he won’t be playing the instrument you expect. And he’ll be singing a song he wrote.” Instead of introducing the singer, the man stepped away from the mike, and Mason emerged from the shadows and walked onstage.

The girls next to me started screaming, and I could’ve sworn one of them was about to faint. I glanced around, searching for the rest of the band. If they were here, they were well hidden.

Mason sat at the keyboard and adjusted the mike to his height. Then he began playing and singing a ballad, and I instantly melted. I’d never heard him sing before, other than when he sang backup vocals in the band. His voice was rich and deep and soulful, and filled every part of me with hope and longing.

I gripped Heidi’s arm. Was I dreaming? This wouldn’t be the first time I’d dreamed about him since walking away from him all those months ago. Although this would have been the first of my dreams where not only was he singing, but he was singing a song I’d never heard before. A song about loving someone and letting them walk away. A song about regretting it every day of his life.

“Did you know he was going be here?” I whispered to her.

She winked at me and went back to watching him as he sang, “I need you tonight.”

The song finished and the crowd erupted into applause, with some of his fans surging forward to get closer to him. I could only continue staring at him, my head spinning with all kinds of questions.

Mason didn’t seem to notice the applause. He was watching me with the same love in his eyes I had seen so often. He stood up from the piano bench, his gaze still locked on mine.

Heidi nudged my arm. “Go talk to him,” she said. When I didn’t move, she nudged a little harder.

That was all the prompting my legs required. Before my brain knew what I was doing, I stumbled toward him.

As I grew closer, I caught some of the questions being tossed at him: “What are you doing here?” “We’ve heard rumors the band’s splitting up—are you?” “Is it true that you’re the new owner of the music store here in Desert Springs?”

The last one got my attention, and my step faltered for a second.

But Mason ignored the questions, his focus solely on me as he pushed through the last of the crowd separating us. From the heated look in his eyes, I half expected him to kiss me in front of everyone.

But instead of turning it into a moment worthy of a Hollywood movie, Mason leaned in, his warm breath brushing my cheek. “Let’s get out of here so we can talk.”

“I’m here with Heidi.” I turned around, but she was no longer where I’d left her. I scanned the area, searching for signs of her. Then I realized what had happened: apparently my best friend had set me up, bringing me to the bar where Mason would be playing, and then she’d bailed. Which meant that if he really was the new owner of the music store, she already knew that.

I looked back at Mason, who was grinning. Yup, those two had definitely been talking since he kissed me two days ago—maybe even before that.

“Heidi knew you were performing tonight, didn’t she?”

“Yes. And she might have helped me out with a few other things.” He winked.

Mason rested his hand on my lower back, and I’d be lying if I said my body didn’t respond to his touch. He led me through the crowded bar, thanking his fans but making it clear that we were leaving and not stopping to socialize.

His car sat in the parking lot, but that wasn’t where we were headed. The sky was cloud free, with stars twinkling down on us. The warm summer night hugged us, though the temperature was comfortable after the heat inside the bar.

Mason threaded his fingers with mine, but he still didn’t kiss me. Part of me wanted to kiss him right there. But I held back, sensing he really did wish to talk to me first.

Or maybe that was all he wanted to do.

My chest tightened, squeezing my insides like a python crushing life from its prey. Maybe he had come to his senses and had finally moved on—even if only two days ago he’d declared he still loved me.

Still holding hands, we walked to a nearby park and sat on a wooden bench overlooking the water fountain. White spotlights around the circumference shone up through the water, making it glimmer.

“So is it true?” I asked. “Are you the new owner of the music store?” His home and the band were in L.A., which was why I had a hard time believing it.

He nodded. “The papers were finalized the other day.”

“What? Why would you want to invest in a business so far away from where you live? Won’t that be tough to manage, especially since you’re on the road so much?”

“Nope. I’ve officially moved here. I needed to get away from L.A., and this town has grown on me.”

My heart came to a complete standstill. Holy shit. Mason was living in my town? “It does seem to have that effect,” I said numbly. This had to be a dream. And like with the rest of the ones I’d had about him, I would wake up and he’d be gone. “So you mean you’ll be commuting back and forth between here and L.A. when the band records the next album?” I laughed. “Because that’s gonna be one hell of a commute.”

“I sold my loft, and there won’t be any more albums for me. I’ve left the band.”

I blinked, positive I’d misheard him. His music meant everything to him. His bandmates meant everything to him. They were his family. “But why would you do that? You guys were on the verge of making it big! That’s always been your dream.”

“It was,” he said, not a hint of regret lining his face. “But as much as I loved playing and touring with the guys, it wasn’t healthy for me. I’m a recovering addict. I’m facing enough challenges as it is without making things more difficult for myself.” He stroked his thumb against my cheek, a sweet reminder of what we’d once had between us. “But more important, you weren’t there with me. Once you left, it wasn’t the same anymore. Everywhere I went, I saw you. I missed you, Nicole…but I also missed who I was while I was staying here with you.”

“So you’ve really left the band?” I whispered, still unable to believe it was true.

“It hasn’t been made public yet. I broke the news to the band last week. I wanted to tell you first.”

Oh God. They must be freaking out. How could they go on without him?

“What’s going to happen with the band? Are they splitting up?” It would be a damn shame if they did. They’d all worked hard to get where they were.

“No. They’re replacing me. A friend of ours, Tomas York, is going to step in. He’s a brilliant drummer.”

I nodded like a bobblehead figurine, the shock from his news still confounding me. “You’re really living here?”

With a small nod, he smiled.

A longing surged through me to kiss him, to make sure he wasn’t a mirage.

“I’m so sorry for how much I hurt you, Nicole,” he said, voice low and intimate. “I’m hoping you’ll give me a chance to make it up to you. But I want to do things differently this time.”

“Differently?” That didn’t sound good. “What do you want to do differently?”

“Us.”

“Us?”

“We’ve never been on a date. Not a real one, at least. Our relationship moved fast from the time I first showed up on your doorstep. We made out, we had sex, we fell in love—but we’ve never dated. We’ve never been a real couple.” He leaned down and ran his lips along my jaw. “I want to be a real couple with you. I want to date you and prove to you that I’m worth taking a chance on.”

I didn’t have the opportunity to answer before his mouth found mine. The kiss was unassuming and brief and sweet. “Will you go out with me, Nicole?”

As great as the kiss had been, it wasn’t enough. My lips crashed against his—and it was like we had never been apart. A tiny whimper escaped me as my tongue slid against his. His fingers knotted in my hair, keeping me close, the other hand pressed against my back. My body ached for him, but I didn’t want to rush this moment. Everything about it was perfect.

I don’t know how long we had been kissing—it wasn’t long enough, if you asked me—but eventually I pulled away and fought to regain my breath.

My answering smile to his question was as bright as the full moon. “Yes, Mason. I’d love to go out with you.”