Page 26 of The Lyrics of Love

“The Carter of cooking fame.”

“That’s right. Willow and Dylan. Tenley and Carter. You’ve met Ainsley, married to Jackson, our town lawyer. Then there’s Gage.”

“The Navy SEAL who is not your boyfriend. Just protective of you. The quiet guy who is the trainer.”

“I’m impressed.”

“Don’t be. I’m just good with names, that’s all. In school, I could not memorize dates of battles or phylums and orders. Couldn’t match states and their capitals. I couldn’t tell you the difference between an adjective and an adverb, much less spell any of these things. But I have a good eye for faces and recall names well. I can match people up after meeting them only once.”

Rylie gazed deeply into Nash’s eyes. He thought he could get lost in the deep blue of hers.

“Would you go to Game Night with me this Friday? You seemed reluctant to before.”

“I thought you wanted to show me off to your friends. Like, hey, look who I’m with, this famous dude. I get now that you merely wanted to share your circle of friends with me.” He nodded. “Yes, Rylie. I would like to go to Game Night with you.”

She beamed at him. “Then get ready for cutthroat competition. Sometimes, we play guys versus girls. Other times, we break into mixed teams or partners. But we are always, always out to win. No one cheats, but the expectations for team members are high. Winners get their choice of dessert, baked by Ainsley, brought to the next Game Night.”

He liked this. Hearing about her life. How normal it sounded. How much fun he thought he would have. He really didn’t have any friends, other than his bandmates and Pops. Even then, he was truly close only to Billy. Wills and Dart were fun to hang with on the bus, but he didn’t have much in common with them.

Nash wanted to go to Game Night. He wanted to fit in with the people who were important to Rylie.

“I’m looking forward to going—and winning,” he told her.

“Oh, you sound like Jackson. He is super-smart and ultra-competitive.”

“Then maybe I need to be on Jackson’s team,” he teased.

“No. I want you on my team,” she said emphatically.

“Should I have a Team Rylie shirt made up and wear it?”

She pretended to consider it. “No, you don’t have to go that far.”

“But I am on Team Rylie,” he told her, gently squeezing her fingers. “I plan to be for as long as you’ll let me. You’re calling the shots, Rylie.”

She frowned. “No. I don’t like that. I can be bossy and opinionated, but I do not want to be in charge of our relationship. I want us to be equals. I know that doesn’t mean we equally contribute all the time. Sometimes, one person needs to give more than the other. If you’ve had a bad day, I want to do what I can to make it better. But we need equal say.”

“Partners,” he mused. “I like that.”

He really did. His marriage hadn’t been a partnership. Just a whole lot of sex and very little conversation. Nash certainly wanted to have sex with Rylie when she was ready, but he also looked forward to discussing any topic under the sun with her.

His stomach growled. “I guess that’s my way of saying breakfast was a long time ago. I skipped lunch to work on the video.”

“Dare I ask how many times you shot it?”

“You may not. But it was more than a few. I wanted it to be perfect.”

“It was,” she said softly, leaning in and kissing his cheek. “It convinced me to give us a shot.”

Nash stood, pulling Rylie to her feet. “Shall we go to Sid’s Diner for dinner?”

She grinned. “Only if you’re ready to face the Grand Inquisition.”

CHAPTER 10

“In non-tourist months, Nancy closes the diner at six,” Rylie told Nash. “During tourist season, she extends it to seven. Most of her business takes place at breakfast and lunch, no matter what time of year, but we should leave now and grab a table.”

Nash surprised her by going to his guitar and putting it in its case.

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