Page 31 of Timeless: Encore

Once inside, Ty leads us downstairs into his new home studio. He and I have jammed down here a couple times since he’s been home. As of yet, Ty hasn’t given any indication of where his head’s at, claiming his focus is on Zoey. I can understand his position, but today’s the day. It’s time to be honest so we can figure our shit out.

God, I hope the guys are on the same page as me. I want to go back to work.

“My dudes, I hate to admit it but I feckin’ missed you.” Connor sinks into a chair by the mixing desk.

Just what I want to hear. I can’t help it, I launch myself into his lap and kiss his scruffy, bearded cheek. “You’re never allowed to fuck off to Ireland again. I don’t care if you own ten homes there.”

“You’re a lunatic!” Connor shoves me off. We make a big show of him fending me off while I attempt to mount him. “For the record, it’s just one house in Ireland. We’re getting our new place ready in LA. Looks like it will be home base for a while, so it will. Ronni’s pitching producing and potentially starring in a new series.”

My heart sinks. I look over at Jace, who leans against the wall. He gives nothing away, the bastard. “The studio turned out awesome. Maybe we should just record the next stuff here. You have enough guest rooms, we could all just stay with you.”

Ty’s horrified look is priceless. I throw my arm around him. “You look like you’re going to faint, Ty. Don’t worry, he’s just kidding.”

“All of you are welcome to stay here any time. For however long you want.” Ty pretend-chokes me. “Except you. I see you too much as it is.”

Really?His words wound me. We’ve been at each other’s houses once, maybe twice a week since he’s been back.

“My dudes, please. Let’s get down to business. Da’s going in for his procedure tomorrow, so I gotta get back home.” Connor motions for us all to sit.

Ty cuts to the chase. “My brothers, I’m just going to keep it simple. I need more time. I hope you understand.”

“Thank God,” I hear myself blurt out. “Fee is buried with everything that needs to get done for the restaurant opening. We need months to dial it all in.”

WTF? What did I just do?

“I’m cool with that.” Jace is so fucking nonchalant. He’s living just across Puget Sound and he’s been the most MIA out of all of us.

Connor breathes out a sigh of relief. “Aye. That’s grand. The thought of going back out on the road right now? Feck no. But I do miss writing and recording. And playing if I’m honest. I want to come up with a plan so the kids can be with us. One that lets us take a lot of long breaks. I don’t ever want to be gone for years at a time again.”

Well, that’s somewhat encouraging. I’m going to re-text him the buses I found tonight. “Ty, do you want to start writing? I have a few ideas.” I’m suddenly nervous. Around a dude I founded the band with. A guy I lived with for a decade on a tour bus. “No pressure, just fun?”

“Yeah, I have a ton of stuff to demo.” Ty smiles at me, making me feel slightly better. “Let’s start in the new year, though. I want to finish our hiatus. To finish clearing my head.”

“Is that what they’re calling it now?” Jace snarks.

“He’s clearing something.” Connor’s hearty laugh is contagious. We all join in.

When the laughter dies down, Ty takes a deep breath. “Well, it brings up something I need to tell you. Zoey and I are getting married sometime in the next couple of weeks. We just decided this morning, so I don’t have the exact date. It won’t be a big wedding. Just her family. Carter. All of us. The girls. The kids. I think that’s it.”

“Fucking awesome!” I can’t help but jump up and hug Ty. If we have to take a few extra months off, at least we have a wedding to go to. That means we’ll all be together.

Ty wrestles himself from my grasp. “Before we set the date, I wanted to check in with all of you to figure out what’s most convenient for everyone.”

“Dude, whatever day you pick, we’ll be there. Text me when and where.” Connor clearly has his family situation on his mind. “Seriously. Congratulations. I’m sorry but I gotta jet. Duty calls.”

I’m bummed when he leaves. The entire meeting was a measly couple hours. Not how I pictured the day going. I’m dying to spend as much time as I can with my band, so I propose a surefire way to drag it out. “I’m hungry, feel like cooking, Ty?”

His eyes light up. “Sure. I think I have the fixings to make crab rolls. Homemade chips?”

Jace and I take seats to watch Ty cook. It’s funny how alike he and Fiona are in the kitchen. It calms him. Soothes. He’s always been an anxious person. Huh. I wonder why I never made that connection before. I can’t wait to talk to Fee about it later.

“Sooooo…” I can’t help but try to bring Jace back into the fold. “Double wedding? Alex and you. Ty and Zoey. Perfect, right?”

Jace looks around the room. “Uh…nah.”

Ty has his ingredients organized and starts assembling. “I’m sure Zoey wouldn’t care. I mean if we’re all in town.”

“See!” I make voodoo fingers at Jace. “Married life is awesome. Join us. Join us.”

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