Crazy Dreams (10 page)

Baker sighed. “You’re all grown up, Ember. If you like him, then no one can keep you away from him. I’ll have a little chat with Dallas about your relationship with Stone. Whether he likes it or not, Dallas is in for a rude awakening.”

“You’re the best big brother a girl could ask for,” I told him.

“Dallas is too. He’s just worried about you. He loves you,” he commented.

“I know. I just wish he’d let me live my own life.”

“That’s not his way. Not until sense gets knocked into him,” Baker laughed. “Okay, I’m going to be there in an hour. We’ll talk more then.”

“Okay. Bye.”

I hung up, thankful for a man who actually believed I could make my own decisions. At least Baker was on my side.

When he texted me that morning, I was more than a little surprised that he would be visiting so soon, but his text explained he was ahead of schedule on his little trip.
Little
was a relative term. He’d been gone since Christmas, leaving his friends and family behind. He was a mess after Rainey died. If I ever thought my pain from her death was bad, his was catastrophic. He was so in love with her, so utterly enamored of her
;
he had a hard time letting her go. She was his whole world, and she had been for a long time, whether he realized it or not.

He never got over her when she left town, and he made it his mission to woo her as soon as she moved back to Casper, Maine. He didn’t let go of her, either, not when she ran away, not when she told him about her cancer. His was a true love. I’d been more than a little jealous when they got together two years ago. It was obvious in everything he did that it was all for her. I wanted to find love like that.

I was still looking, and I had no idea what would happen with Stone, but I wondered if he would be like that, one hundred percent supportive and caring. I liked to believe he would be. Love did that to people; it made them change. Everyone retained a part of who they were, but love,
real love
, turned people into a more caring, more passionate version of themselves. That’s what I told myself, anyway.

There were always exceptions. I’d seen enough of my girlfriends in college get smacked around to know that love sometimes turned people violent. I never quite understood the girls who stayed in relationships like those. They were scary, sure, but no one would ever lay a hand on me. I didn’t need someone to save me, like Dallas obviously wanted to. I was capable of taking care of myself.

I sat on the couch, impatiently waiting for Baker to show up. He finally broke down a few months ago and bought an SUV, something he didn’t really want to do, since he loved his motorcycle. But even the bike got tiring when he was traveling so much. So he had a Suburban now. He carried a bit more stuff with him, too, since he actually had the room.

A knock on the door surprised me, and I glanced at my phone, realizing the hour had passed without me even noticing. I looked through the peephole and spotted that familiar blonde hair. I yanked the door open and hugged Baker.

He lifted me off the ground and spun me around, not stopping until we were both laughing and I told him I was going to throw up. He set me down, holding me at an arm’s length and looked me over.

“You look great, kiddo,” he declared.

I hated the nickname from every single person in my life except him. “Thanks. You don’t look too bad yourself.” It was true. Baker had a tan and he looked truly happy. The smile on his face proof enough he was healing. Whatever he was doing on the road, it was working for him. “Where’ve you been the last few weeks?”

“I was driving through Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. There are some great touristy spots, and I spent a fair amount of time in Atlanta.”

“Oh yeah? How was that?” I asked, gesturing him to come inside.

He stepped back. “Let’s go for a drive. I want to have you all to myself for a bit before Dallas comes home.”

“Sure. Let me grab my purse,” I said, running to my room. I returned, locked the door and then we walked to his Suburban together.

“You’ve grown up so much. How was college?” he asked as we go into his SUV.

“It was okay. Dramatic, but it’s better than modeling, I guess.”

He started the engine and pulled the shifter in Drive. “You guess? Are you thinking of going back to modeling now?”

“Oh no. I want to keep as far away as I can from modeling. What I meant was that I’m not really all that happy with school. I still don’t know what I want to do for the rest of my life. Nothing seems to fit. Except singing with Stone. But that’s hardly a career.”

He gave me a sly look. “You’re singing with Stone? Rainey always told me you had a beautiful voice.”

“No she didn’t,” I replied.

“Really. She said you never really liked to sing much, but she heard you a few times and thought you had a lot of potential. She was so proud of you.”

I swallowed hard. “I know.”

We were both silent for a full minute, neither of us wanting to delve deeper into talking about Rainey. It was still too raw, especially for him, I knew.

“So tell me about Atlanta,” I suggested to change the subject.

He smiled. “It’s so different. Growing up in Maine, we’re used to back roads and two lane highways… Atlanta is the exact opposite of that. There’s so many people, and they’re all not southern at all. I expected the whole
bless your heart
attitude, but it’s just not the same. On the outskirts of the city, people act a little more southern, but in the heart of the city, there’s hardly any difference between there and Boston. It’s interesting.”

“That’s fun. Maybe I’ll be able to go into Atlanta this summer,” I commented.

“There’s definitely a lot to do, so you wouldn’t be bored for a minute. It’s not really my scene, but I liked it. I’ve been ready to move on for over a week now, though, so coming up to Nashville to visit you is just what I needed.”

“How long are you staying for?” I asked.

“I’m not sure, honestly. I’m actually thinking that when I leave here, I’ll be heading back to Maine.”

I was actually surprised. “Oh? I didn’t think you’d ever go back.”

“I was always going back. I just didn’t know when that would be. And I feel a little like the last six months have been eye-opening. I’m not sure how happy I’ll be, but I’ve got family back in Maine. And they’ve all been supportive of this trip to find myself.”

“Yeah, I get that. You’re a different person now, too. That may surprise them,” I told him.

Baker raised his brow at me. “What do you mean?”

“You’re not quite as lighthearted as you were once were. You’re not the jokester. You take things a bit more seriously now. There’s nothing wrong with it, but everyone back home remembers how funny you were, how you were always the clown. And now you’re just more grown up. It could be a shock for them.”

He seemed to ponder my words, but didn’t reply. I hoped I didn’t offend him, but I wasn’t going to apologize. Everyone back home would notice the change in him right away, so he should know what he was up against going back.

Personally, I liked the change in him. He seemed more adult now, as if he’d lived a lifetime. Before, he almost seemed immature. It wasn’t a bad thing; I just always wondered if he would ever take things seriously. Of course, he took his dedication to Rainey seriously. He lived his life for her, every waking moment. And when she started to get sick again, he was there, taking care of her.

Baker never hired a nurse. Instead, he cared for my sister himself. He proved his worthiness then, and I would be eternally grateful for the way he comforted my sister at her lowest point. When she passed, he comforted me, too.

“Even though she’s gone, she’ll always be with us,”
he said to me at the funeral. He whispered the words in my ear when I couldn’t stop crying. It was in that moment that I realized the depth of his love for her. Even when she was gone, he had faith that she was still a part of our world. I’d been inspired.

“So what have you been singing with Stone?” Baker asked as he pulled into a restaurant.

I wasn’t all that hungry, and I really wanted to text Stone, but I decided to wait. “It’s a song he wrote, actually. I’ve pretty much fallen in love with it, too. He said he wanted me to sing it with him, but now that he doesn’t have a place to live, I’m not sure what he’s going to do.” I was actually worried about Stone and what would happen to him now that Dallas kicked him out.

“Don’t worry about him, Ember. Stone will be just fine.”

“How can you be sure?”

He laughed. “Just trust me.”

I didn’t trust anyone, not after the way Dallas treated Stone. And all because he was interested in me. Stone didn’t deserve to be punished for liking me. It pissed me off that Dallas acted that way.

Baker and I ate lunch, talking about what we’d done so far over the summer. He was genuinely interested in my life, and I was interested in his, too. We were definitely just like brother and sister. Our conversation felt natural, not rushed or forced.

“Let’s take a drive,” Baker said when we were back in the vehicle.

I agreed, though only because I had no desire to see Dallas just yet. Baker drove us to the outskirts of town. When he pulled into an apartment community, I asked him where we were.

Then I saw Stone’s big truck parked in front of one of the units. “What’s going on?”

Baker just smiled and parked next to Stone’s truck. Then Stone appeared in front of the SUV with a huge smirk on his face.

I jumped out and walked over to him. “What’s going on?” I asked again.

He nodded to Baker, who got out more slowly. “Baker helped me get a place.”

I whirled around. “What?”

“Do you really think I’d let this kid be out on his ass?” Baker asked me.

I opened my mouth and then shut it. Probably best to keep my opinion to myself.

“Want to see the inside?” Stone asked me, holding out his hand.

I grabbed it, entwining our fingers together. “Absolutely.”

Stone led me into his new place, which happened to be fully furnished. He showed me around. It was small, but very nice. The second bedroom was set-up like a studio. All his music equipment was spread out in the room, making it seem much larger than it was.

“This place is fantastic,” I told him. “How’d you get in?”

“Baker called me after you called him. He still won’t tell me how he got my number, but he said he knew someone at the admin office here and had already called them. They had this place open and so I took it.”

“How did you afford it?” I asked. I knew Stone wasn’t exactly rolling in it.

“Don’t you worry about that,” Baker said from behind me.

I turned and he was leaning on the door jamb. “You’re something else,” I murmured. I walked over to Baker and gave him a hug, thanking him. He was so sweet.

He didn’t even know Stone and he helped him out. I was surrounded by amazing men.

Stone

Baker’s generosity was heart-warming. I felt guilty at first. He paid the deposit and half my first month’s rent. He assured me I could pay him back at my leisure, but the real payment would be me taking good care of Ember. I’d promised him I would.

“This place is really nice,” she commented.

It wasn’t as flashy as Dallas’s place, but it would definitely do for now. At least it was a place to live.

“I have more good news,” I told her.

Ember was sitting on the couch in my living room. “What’s that?”

“We’ve got a show Friday night.”

She furrowed her brow. “What does that mean?”

“It means the two of you are going to be singing together in a bar,” Baker explained.

She jumped up. “What? Tell me you’re kidding! I can’t sing in front of a crowd. I have to get my nails done. I think I need a trim, too,” she said, wrapping the ends of her hair around her finger.

I walked over and put my hands on her shoulders. “Calm down. You can do it. You’re going to be great. And you can do whatever you want, but you’re already gorgeous.”

“Aww,” she whispered, pressing her lips to mine.

I was lost in her kiss. It was like wildfire, starting slow and building, causing fire to spread through my entire body.

“Ahem!” Baker cleared his throat, distracting me.

“Shit. Sorry,” I said to him, but my eyes were focused on Ember, who looked thoroughly kissed and was fully lost in the moment. It took her a minute to come to her senses.

“Sorry, Baker,” she said, her cheeks flaming.

“Okay, love birds. You two hang out. I’m going to have a little chat with Dallas. He should be wondering where you are by now, Ember. I’ll let him know,” he said, turning to leave. “Stone, take good care of my little sister.”

“Yes, sir,” I replied. We had an understanding, and he respected me enough to trust me with her.

Of course, I had no idea whether or not I’d be able to keep my promise, but I was willing to try.