Brown Eyed Girl (15 page)

“
What sis?”

“
Promise me that you’ll be here with me for Christmas. I won’t be making any Christmas party in Houston this year.”

“
Where will you be?”

“
It doesn’t matter where I’ll be. I just want to make sure you’ll be here with me. Please, Drake, we’re all we’ve got.”

“
I’ll plan for it, if it means that much to you.”

“
It does,”
she said.

He heard her try to stifle a yawn. “Are you tired?”

“
Yeah, it’s been a long day, and I’m beat.”

“
Go get some rest. I promise I’ll be there for Christmas. I love you, Tiff.”

“
I love you too, Drake. Thanks.”

<><><>

Tiffany ended the call and got up to put her empty plate in the dishwasher. She heard Red’s bedroom door open and looked up. He walked into the kitchen wearing soft faded jeans and a clean, white tee shirt, his hair still damp from the shower.

As their gazes met, he stopped and shook his head. “I still can’t get over the difference your hair has made. How’d it go with Drake?”

She smiled brightly at him. “I made him promise to be with me for Christmas. I’m not going to Houston this year.”

“You know, after you left, my family decided they wanted to have Christmas here, so if you and Drake want to join us, we’d love to have you.”

Tiffany grinned. “I’m accepting for the both of us. How much banana pudding should I bring?”

“
At least double what you brought here today so we have leftovers. It’s our family rule that whoever’s house gets used and abused gets to keep them.”

“
That sounds fair.”

He nodded. “That’s why I volunteered my place again. I won’t have to cook for days. Did you get enough to eat?”

She patted her belly. “Yep, it was better than it was for lunch. Excuse me,” she said, covering her mouth as a small belch escaped. “Two beers and a belly full of food, and I’m not very good company.”

“
Why don’t you go on to bed, Doc? We can start moving your things first thing in the morning.”

“
I’m sorry, Red. I know this is an inconvenience for you.”

“
It’s worth it to get you out of that place. Besides, I don’t sleep much,” Red told her.

Tiffany sent him a shocked look. “Me either, I hardly ever sleep past four a.m., whether I have to go to work or not. But right now, I feel like I could sleep for ten hours straight.” She covered another yawn with her hand and let Red walk her to her bedroom. Before closing the door, she gave him a hug. “Thanks for everything, Red.”

He hugged her back tightly. “Good night, Doc.”

Tiffany changed into her L.S.U. flannel lounger pants and tee shirt then crawled under the down comforter on the queen sized guest bed. It was only ten fifteen, but it seemed later—she supposed because of the day’s drama. She stretched out on the luxuriously comfortable bed, and was asleep within minutes.

<><><>

Tiffany’s eyes popped open in the darkened room, blinking several times to get her bearings. She stretched out on the soft bed, trying to remember why she wasn’t in her own.
Red
. The digital clock flashed four a.m., causing her to release a frustrated groan.
Why
couldn’t she get a full night’s sleep? She functioned well on five hours or so, but wondered how much better she’d perform on a full eight hours.

Tiffany washed her face and rinsed her mouth then stared at her reflection in the mirror. She fluffed her curls, amazed at how quickly the change made her feel like her old self.

Wishing she’d remembered to pack her latest medical journal, she slipped her robe over her lounger set and stepped into her slippers, before setting off in search of reading material. Tiffany tiptoed into the living room and picked up a Forbes magazine on an end table. She cringed at the articles in it, and put it back. As she walked over to the kitchen to get a drink of water, she noticed a soft glow of light shining out from under a door in the hallway in the opposite wing.

Tiffany tiptoed over and stood listening to the soft strumming of a guitar. She gave the door a gentle push and peeked inside. Red sat in his office chair, jean clad legs propped on his desk and crossed at the ankles, his chest bared and brawny, as he strummed John Michael Montgomery’s
Hold on to Me
. She smiled, recognizing the song they’d danced to at Jackson and Giselle’s wedding.

Tiffany shivered, remembering how good Red had looked in his classy black tux, and realized he may well look even better half dressed. Clearly, he’d retained any and all physical attributes since Vivienne had snapped those photos of him posing at his pool. She hadn’t seen anyone that buff since she and some co-workers saw the Chippendale dancers last year.

Tiffany watched his fingers skillfully manipulate the strings of the guitar, listening as long as she dared, before making her presence known to him. Reluctantly, she took a deep breath and spoke.

“
Red?”

He jumped slightly before grinning up at her. “Well, hell, Doc. Look at us...Sleepless in Lake Coburn.”

“
How long have you been up?” she asked.

Red propped his guitar against the desk and stood. “Since around three.”

She nodded. “I was looking for some reading material, but I don’t need it now. Is this what you do when you can’t sleep?”

He slipped his tee shirt back on. “Among other things.”

Trying not to show her disappointment that he’d covered his upper torso, Tiffany leaned over his desk. She picked up a tablet covered with lyrics in a masculine handwriting. “Are you writing a song?”

“
I’ve been trying to write one for my mom and dad’s forty-sixth wedding anniversary next month. Two weeks I’ve been working on the damn thing, and that’s as far as I’ve gotten.”

She read the words silently. “This is pretty good, Red. Who’s composing the music?”

“
I’ve already got the tune down,” he said.

“
Could I hear it, please?”

He nodded and began strumming a beautiful melody on his guitar then began to sing the words he’d written.

I was alone once, no hope for love in sight

Until your love saved me from the lonely night

My heart stops beating; my world could rip in two

When I think how close I came to never having you.

“
This is the chorus,” he said.

A love like ours doesn’t happen every day

Written in the stars, perfect in every way

I thank the Lord for the lifeline that he threw

the day he heard my prayer, and led me straight to you.

“
That’s beautiful,” she told him.

Red nodded. “Thanks, but I can’t seem to think of anything else. I keep trying to imagine what my dad would say to her, or about her, and it’s like everything is said already. He’s a man of few words.”

“
Maybe that’s the problem. This is not just his story, it’s hers too. You should have a verse from her point of view now and have it sung as a duet.”

“
Did you take song writing in college?” he asked, thoroughly impressed with her reasoning.

“
No, I’m just a romantic at heart. Now that I’ve heard their story, it’s a little more personal for me.” She began to scribble a few more lines then finished it and smiled. He played the music once more and she began to sing:

I can’t imagine the kind of world this would be

if your sweet love had never rescued me.

The man they chose for me – no kind of man at all

I can’t be happy without your love’s sweet call.

Red looked at her in amazement. “I can’t believe you just wrote that in under five minutes.”

Tiffany smiled then pulled up a chair next to him. “You’ve already done the hard part. Now you have them grow old together and it should be sung in harmony.”

He nodded and began experimenting with a few words. He came up with half of a line and Tiffany finished it for him. They continued to work together until they had the final verse for the song. Putting their heads together, they harmonized the last verse.

We’re growing older, our lives are now entwined,

Our hearts so joined, can’t tell what’s yours or mine.

With lives so rich, so full of laughter and love

It had to come straight from heaven up above.

A love like ours doesn’t happen every day

Written in the stars, perfect in every way

I thank the Lord for the lifeline that he threw

For the day he heard my prayer and led me straight to you.

Thank God he heard our prayer and led me home to you.

He strummed the last notes and grinned up at her. “Hey Doc, we just co-wrote a song.”

She smiled. “I believe we did. Think it’s any good?”

“
It’s good enough for Mom and Dad’s anniversary, and I know they’ll love it.”

Tiffany tapped one long fingernail on the top of Red’s mahogany desk. “You know, it would be wonderful if all of your siblings could have a part in it. Can you write scores for other instruments? You’d need the piano, a fiddle, and the bass guitar. Are there any other musical instruments lurking around in your family?”

Red took a swig from a glass of water. “That’s about it. Kenneth and Brandon don’t need my help for their parts – they can hear it once and play along just fine. It’s really the piano part I’d have to come up with and I don’t play the piano.”

Tiffany shook her head. “I can’t help you there, but I bet your sister Annie could come up with something. I know Drake could.”

Red stood beside her. “But the difficult part is finished. You have no idea how relieved I am to have this done.”

She pushed her hair back from her face and smiled again. “I’m glad to be of service. It’s the least I can do for you, helping me out the way you did. What time is it, anyway?”

He checked his watch and grimaced. “Five-fifteen.”

Tiffany grabbed her head and groaned. “God, it makes me
crazy
not being able to sleep through the night.”

Red leaned his guitar against his desk. “I know what you mean. I thought about taking something to sleep, but some of those products have some scary side effects. I’m afraid I’d get up and cook a meal while I’m asleep, or something.”

Tiffany laughed. “I’m afraid I’d go shopping for the ingredients. With my luck, I’d wake up naked in the middle of the street.”

“
Showing off that yellow rose tattoo of yours,” he added, with a hint of amusement in his voice.

She grinned, but avoided meeting his gaze. “I keep hoping something will kick in one day, and then I’ll catch up on all the years of sleep I’ve lost.”

“
Maybe it’s the stressful situation with Tanner, and when you’re back in your own place it’ll be better.”

Tiffany shook her head vigorously. “That’s one thing I can’t blame on Tanner. I’ve been like this since college.”

“
It’s the same with me.The only time I got enough sleep in college was when I was hung over. Jackson thought I drank a lot because I liked beer, but hell, I just needed the sleep.”

Tiffany giggled and rolled her eyes. “That is the poorest excuse for drinking I’ve ever heard.”

Red grinned. “You know, you have the greatest laugh, Doc. It sure would be nice to hear it more often.” He reached out to touch her curls. “And I still can’t believe the difference your hair has made.”

Tiffany fluffed her hair with both hands. “It’ll be nice not to waste an hour straightening my hair every morning.”

He lifted a finger as though just thinking of something. “Does this mean you’ll be coming to the club opening?”

“
Probably. Will your family be there?”

Red placed his guitar back in its case. “Some of them. My folks don’t usually do grand openings. They don’t like the crowds.”

“
I can’t even
imagine
what it must have been like to grow up with parents like yours.”

Red smiled as though lost in the past. “I knew by the age of seven or so that we had it better than our friends. I’d get home from school and there were warm cookies, or donuts, or something like that waiting for us. What still amazes me is that my parents hardly ever argued. They would disagree about things, don’t get me wrong. Every now and then things would get icy between them for a few days, but they never yelled or called each other names. They compromised.”

Tiffany stood up and pulled her robe closer to her. “I never heard my parents yell at each other, either. They’d have had to be in the same room to do that. Drake and I were raised by our nanny. Now
she
would have warm cookies waiting for us when we got home from school. Melinda...we called her Melin for short, was more like a mom to us than our own mother was.”