Dare to Dream (Truth or Dare #2) (20 page)

It’s not eloquent, but his reaction is so very Colby that I can’t help but laugh. I lead him through the house, giving him a quick tour of each room, ending with the door at the end of the hall. Our bedroom. This is the room that took me the longest to fill because I wanted everything to be perfect. The fact that we finally have a bed that no one but
I have slept in means the world to me. I wanted to buy a king-sized bed, one big enough for us to have room to sleep, knowing that the we’d both wind up migrating to the middle of the bed sometime during the night, but the size of the room wouldn’t allow that particular dream to become a reality.

Instead
, I opted for a gorgeous cherry suite, complete with two dressers, matching nightstands and  mission-style head and footboards with a plush queen-sized mattress. Figuring Colby would pitch a fit if I chose the girly linens that I fell in love with, I opted for more muted tones, ones that will hopefully invoke peace when Colby’s trying to unwind from the road. He always rolls his eyes at me when I get all “hippie dippy” on him, so I don’t bother explaining the logic behind the color scheme.

Then again, with as quickly as he has m
e lying in the center of the bed, stripping me of every article of clothing, I’m not sure he even knows what anything in this particular room looks like.

“I think it’s time I make amends for how rough I was with you earlier,” he groans, staring unapologetically at my naked body. He has nothing to apologize for, but I’m unable to tell him as much because of the lingering, open-mouthed kisses he’s delivering to my body right now.

Colby

After almost a month on the bus, it’s a strange feeling to wake up without the gentle rocking of the bus or the sounds of my band mates milling around the living area. I reach out for Lea, coming back with nothing but cold cotton. The only thing I wanted this morning was to wake up and hold her, but she’s been up long enough that the only reminder she’s been here is the faint scent of her shampoo.

“Hey, sleepy,” she giggles, walking into the room with a mug of coffee in one hand and a plate filled with pancakes in the other. “Thought I was going to have to shove you out of the bed. Don’t forget, you have a meeting later
this morning with Cameron and Pete.”

We might be home, but that doesn’t mean I’ll get any time off. Last night, Cameron pulled me aside, telling me that they have a proposition for me, something that will take my career to the next level. As grateful as I am for everything they’re doing for me, I’m beginning to question whether or not I’ll be able to keep up with the way my dream has shot off like a rocket. Then again, time will tell if having Lea here waiting for me to come home
to eases my uncertainty. She has a way of knowing what to say and when, always without making me feel as if I’m fishing for words of encouragement.

“How could I? God forbid they give me a day off,” I scoff, taking the mug of coffee out of her hands.

“Colby, don’t be like that.” She sits on the bed next to me, running her fingers through my curls. My hair is too damn long, even for me. As soon as I have twenty minutes to call my own, I need to get that taken care of. “If your heart’s not in it, they’ll notice and pluck one of the hundreds of other starving singers off a stage in some bar to take your place.”

“I know, I know,” I grumble. “But the only thing I want
ed to do today was make up for every day that I’ve missed with you. And that, my love, is
a lot
of days.”

“We’ll have plenty of time for that. Plus, I have a busy day, too.” She kisses my cheek, taunting me by running her hand up my bare thigh before springing out of the bed. “Everyone’s coming over at about eight for dinner. I know it’s late, but I figure
d none of you are used to normal human hours so it won’t be a big deal. Plus, that way everyone has time to spend the day at home with their families.”

Lea and I had talked about having this Christmas party at our place, but I didn’t think she’d do it the night after I got home. When I asked her about that in between rounds two and three last night, she informed me that we have to do it tonight because we’re leaving in a few days to go home for Christmas with the family.

She quickly dresses in leggings and an oversized sweater. She pairs the outfit with a pair of leather boots that stop just below her knee and even thought the boots themselves aren’t sexy in the least, my head is filled with images of her wearing nothing but boots similar to those in black with a high heel on them.

“Get your mind out of the gutter, Cowboy. I don’t have time for an encore of last night.” She kisses me tenderly and leaves before I can pull her on top of me.

**

Every time I think my life can’t possibly get any better, it does. If I believed in reincarnation and all that shit, I’d have to be pretty impressed with my actions in a past life because that’s the only explanation for the way my life is going right now.

When Cameron told me that
I
had to be in his office for a meeting this morning, I’ll admit that I was more than just a bit annoyed, certain that Missy was getting the day off. I was wrong. She was sitting at the table with Pete and Cameron, looking about as happy to be out of her bed as I was when I walked into Cameron’s office.

Luckily, the guys didn’t waste any time with their proposal. After seeing me on stage and seeing the chemistry between Missy and
I, they want to try something that’s never been done before. We’re going on tour again late next spring, but between now and then, we’ll be working together on an album. It won’t be like some artists who collaborate on a song or two and then do their solo stuff, we’re going to essentially be three acts rolled into one: my solo work, then a set in the middle with both of us, and then she’ll do her own solo set.

Working out the logistics took a bit longer than I had intended, so I wound up having to call Rebecca to the rescue. Because I thought this party was going to be a few days from now, Lea’s gift is still sitting in a little shop downtown and there’s no way I can do that and everything else that needs to be done to make this the best Christmas ever.

“Did you get it?” I ask, pulling out a chair across the table from Rebecca at the small diner I asked her to meet me at. She reaches into her purse, pulling out a small, purple velvet box.

“I did. I have to say, I’m impressed. She’s going to love it,” she praises, sliding the engagement ring across the table. Lea’s never struck me as the type of girl who wants some gaudy ring to be flaunted but I wanted to give her something
a bit more special than a standard diamond solitaire. I spent more than one night poring over websites for the perfect ring. In the end, I found it and the local jeweler happened to have the band in stock. I called, gave them my spending limit and credit card number. Rebecca swiped one of the few rings Lea owns out of her jewelry box to ensure it would fit and the end result is now in my shaky hands.

I shouldn’t be nervous, but fuck, I’m dying inside. She’s been my best friend for four years and I can’t wait to ask her to spend the rest of her life with me. Rebecca finally has to sna
tch the box out of my hand, opening it to show me the ring I’ve only seen in pictures.

“You think she’ll like it?” I ask nervously.

“Are ya kidding me? I think you could give that girl a cigar band and call it an engagement ring and she’d throw her arms around you as if you had just given her the Hope diamond.” She takes a sip of her sweet tea, watching as I turn the ring this way and that, watching how the diamond sparkles in the light. “Did you get the rest of her gift?”

“No, I have to do that next.”

“Okay, well then it’s a good thing I ordered for you. What time is your appointment?”

I glance at my watch and realize I have less than an hour before I have to sign away a good chunk of my life. “Forty-nine minutes, but who’s counting?”

Rebecca laughs, shaking her head at me. “You know, it’s lucky I love the both of you because it’s almost like having two fully grown children on top of the two I gave birth to.”

There are no words to express how grateful I am to both Aaron and Rebecca. They didn’t have to open their doors to me when I moved down here, but they did. On top of that, they opened their hearts and I’m pretty sure they’ll never let us go now.

My next appointment is only about two blocks away, so I button my jacket, pulling up the collar to shield me from the bitter wind. I always thought Nashville would be a warm place to live, but that’s not the case on days like today. I step into the office, giving my name to the receptionist. She makes a phone call and directs me into the third door on the left.

As I wait in the empty conference room, I pull out my phone to shoot Rebecca a quick text.

You’re really sure about this? It’s a big step, so if you’re not completely certain she’ll like it, say so now.

I stare at the phone, willing it to chime while I’m still alone.

Yes. Have I led you wrong so far? Shut up and do it. You’re a big boy now. LOL

The door opens just as I finish typing my response. I quickly hit send and shove the phone in my pocket.

**

I’m not sure why I thought my last meeting of the day would be quick and painless, it was pretty much the opposite. As long as Lea doesn’t murder me for getting home after guests start
to arrive, it’ll all be worth it.

“Hey, where’ve you been all day?” she asks, meeting me at the door for a hug and a kiss. My eyes roam over her body, glad I missed whatever happened here because even the cute, frilly apron she’s wearing couldn’t save her outfit from what looks like some sort of kitchen explosion.

“Sorry, baby. I had to get some shit taken care of and it took longer than I expected. Why don’t you let April take your place for a few minutes so you can get changed?” It takes everything I have in me to not bust out laughing at the fact that she’s covered shoulder to knees in flour and it’s turned pasty from her sweating her cute little ass off. “You jump in the shower and I’ll lay out some clothes for you.”

“Not going to join me?” she asks, trying to get close to me. I hold her at arm’s length, not wanting to be covered in the goopy mess.

“Uh, no. If you haven’t noticed, we have company and if I get naked with you right now, they’re going to come looking for us.”

“You know, that’s not the first time I’ve heard that in the past twenty four hours,” she responds playfully.

“Yeah, and Cameron came looking for me, remember? Now, get in there so we can have a good Christmas,” I say as I swat her on her cute little ass.

I send a quick text before throwing my phone on the bed. Today has taken a
huge
chunk out of my bank account, but I ignore that, telling myself that it’s all for Lea. When I called Robby at four-thirty this morning asking if he and Amanda could get down here today, he grumbled. His mood quickly changed when I explained that I plan on proposing and can’t imagine doing it without our two best friends here with us. He found the flights and I called to book them. They should already be on the ground and just about here. In that regard, it worked well for Lea to look the way she did when I got home because it keeps her out of the living room for a little while.

Robby: I think we just pulled up out front. Should I ring the bell?

Me: Nah, walk right in and I’ll be out in a second. We have to get you hidden while she’s in the shower.

I finish getting dressed and pull out a short ivory dress with billowy sleeves and a wide neckline. It’s nothing like what she would have picked since most of our friends are in jeans, but she has no clue what’s in store. She can change later, but that’ll be after she thanks me for not letting her get engaged in casual attire. “Baby, I’m going to get out there, but I left an outfit on the bed for you,” I call out before sneaking out of the bedroom, not wanting Robby’s loud mouth to carry down the hallway and tip her off.

“Hey man, glad you could make it!” I wrap an arm around Robby’s shoulder, thumping him on the back. Amanda’s cozied up beside him and the look in her eyes tells me she’s got it bad. Then again, with the way he’s holding her, so does he.

“Wouldn’t miss it
for anything. Thanks for calling me,” he responds, leaning in so only I can hear his next words. “Man, you manage to fuck this up, I’m pretty sure Amanda’s going to castrate you.”

I nod, knowing he’s not exaggerating. Amanda is probably one of the best girlfriends a girl could ask for. It took a while for me to prove to her that Lea is different from the girls I fucked around with back home. The way she’s glaring at me, I’m no longer certain that I
have
gotten to that point. The good news is I’ve known her long enough to know that she can’t act for shit and her scowl turns into a wide smile within seconds.

“Are you really doing it?” Amanda asks, clapping her hands enthusiastically when I pull out the ring.

“Yeah, but I need to hide the two of you until it’s time. Can I trust that you won’t start fucking like rabbits if I shut you in the guest bedroom? Later tonight, you can do whatever you want, but you have to behave for now.” I wink when Amanda blushes. She’s always been that way, embarrassed by the fact that anyone other than her current flame knows that she has s-e-x.

“No promises, man. You screwed up me getting my morning wake-up call today,” Robby laughs, following me
into the spare room.

I tell them my plans for the proposal and how they’ll know when it’s safe to sneak out of the bedroom. By the time I walk out to the living room, it appears that I finally have Amanda’s seal of approval.

“Hey, baby! You look fucking gorgeous! I might have to kick everyone out and see how quickly I can get you back out of that dress,” I say, placing my hand at the small of Lea’s back. Knowing that I have two important people locked away, I ask everyone to gather in the living room. Lea stares at me, confused because she’s out of the loop. About fucking time for me to be the one in-the-know.

I motion for Lea to sit down in one of the chairs, sitting casually on the arm next to her. “Lea, I’ll never forget the day my parents told me I’d never amount to anything if I spent every night driving up and down East Wash, loitering in vacant parking lots with kids who faced equally grim futures.” I glance up to see Amanda and Robby both with their
hands over their mouths to keep from laughing. The truth is, I’m pretty sure every single person who spent time up there heard similar lectures at one time or another.

“The thing is, they couldn’t have been more wrong.” I lean in, kissing Lea on the cheek. “If I hadn’t been hanging around with the rest of the hoodlums up there, I wouldn’t have been there for the moment
that you stepped out of Amanda’s car, looking around as if you were lost.” She cocks her head to the side, unable to figure out why I’m taking this trip down memory lane with everyone present.