Page 3 of Nashville Lights

I just hope it lasts.

“What about Kade? Is he still with that girl none of you liked?”

“No, thank God. He just recently ditched her. We’re all so relieved.”

“Well, it’s good he got rid of her, then. But it sounds like you like Travis and Vaughn’s girlfriends? You approve?”

“Not that they consult me on these things,” I laugh, “but yes. They’re both beautiful, inside and out. Even if I have to yell at the boys for being late all the time because they spend so much time in bed, I have to admit they’re writing the best songs of their careers. Gigi is really good for Vaughn. Then there’s Ruby of course, my newest artist and now sister-in-law-to-be. She’s a major talent.”

Dakota’s silent for a beat. “That must be so busy for you, Rox. Managing both the bandandRuby. How do you juggle it all?”

“It’s busy,” I admit. “It requires a lot of patience and even more caffeine. Plus I’m thinking of taking on two other new artists.” I sigh, stretching my neck out and hearing it crack. “I swear I feel like I’ve aged ten years on this tour.”

“Sounds like you definitely need a break. Do you ever get any time for yourself? I mean, when’s the last time you went on a date?”

I have to think for a minute, it’s been so long. “Um...maybe, like, over a year ago? I went out with that drummer from Austin once, but then we hit the road again. Oh, and there was that sound engineer who basically stalked me but he wasn’t my type at all. Kade ended up firing him and threatening to kill him. Anyway, I don’t really have time, Dee.” It’s true. I absolutely do not have time for dating. “There’s also the small matter of spending 24/7 with my three extremely overprotective older brothers.”

“I hear that.” Dakota definitely gets it.

Even before I started managing the band, I’d always avoided getting serious with anyone. Not that I could ever tell Dakota the reason why.

“Well, I know you think of them as surrogate brothers,” Dakota says, “but in fact my boys are not related to you at all, and three of them are eligible bachelors. None of them—aside from Tobias and he doesn’t count in that way—are in a relationship right now. So you can take your pick.”

“Stop.” But my stomach flips. I do not want to talk about Dakota’s single brothers. “Seriously, I love Luke and Leo, you know I do, but they are not going to settle down any time soon. They have new girls every time I talk to you.”

“It’s true.” I can practically hear Dakota’s frown. “They both seem allergic to commitment. Plus, whoever one of them dates is going to have to put up with the other one. The two of them are practically inseparable.”

Luke and Leo are identical twins who used to speak their own secret language when they were tiny boys. “Yeah, maybe they could date two girls who are identical twins. That might be the only solution.”

“Poor girls, is all I can say.” Dakota exhales a pained laugh. “So, I guess that just leaves Nate.”

Heat creeps up my neck and warms my cheeks. I’ve never been able to bring myself to tell her about my secret kiss with her oldest brother all those years ago. I figured itwas just a teenage crush and the torch would burn itself out over time.

I guess I’m about to find out.

“Things are complicated for Nate right now,” she says. “He’s got a lot going on.”

I know what she’s talking about. Kade and Nate have always been close and they check in on each other regularly. When we were kids, they were best friends. They’re the same age, almost exactly. Kade is three days older. Kade has filled me in on some of what’s going on in Nate’s life and, even though I don’t know all the details, it sounds like a lot.

I don’t push Dakota on the details now. I know I’ll get the entire lowdown over the weekend. “It must be nice having him back home again.”

Kade and Dakota have both kept me up to date with Nate’s house on the farm, which he built himself. It took him a long time to do it, but he moved in a while ago and now lives there full-time. “Oh my god, Rox, it’ssucha cool house. It was good timing, too, considering he’s now got full custody of Daisy.”

“I heard about what happened from Kade. He went to the funeral. It’s so awful, Dee.”

Around six months ago, Nate’s best friends and business partners, whose names were Jed and Laney O’Leary, died in a head-on car crash on a rainy night. They were both killed instantly. The only thing that made the whole story a little less tragic is that their six-year-old daughter Daisy was at home that night with a babysitter. Kade told me Jed andLaney had been out to dinner on a date night, their first in almost a year.

They named Nate in their will as the legal guardian of Daisy. So Daisy’s been living out on the farm with Nate and the whole Boone clan ever since the accident happened.

“Nate’s so good with her,” Dakota says. “Daisy adores him. They’re really cute together. You’ll see when you get here.” My stomach does another one of those light flips. “And Ma of course loves having Daisy around. Your Aunt Lou, too. But it’s still hard, as you can imagine. Nate’s trying to process everything and make sure Daisy is okay, while also working on his business—without his business partners—andhe’s also overseeing a lot of the workings of the farm. I’m not sure how he’s holding it all together, but you know how Nate is.”

“Yeah.” Idoknow how Nate is. Stoic, steady, always trying to do the right thing by everyone else. He’s been a workaholic ever since his dad died of a heart attack when Nate was seventeen. As the oldest of five kids and the son of a devastated widow who needed him to step up and take control, Nate did exactly that.

It’s why he left the farm for a while, to build his property development company. After his father’s heart attack, it was up to Nate to make sure they didn’t lose the house and the land. The farm was struggling back then. He had to somehow make enough money to ensure his mother could stay in her family home and that everyone got fed.

I see the sign for Sugar Mountain Farm Road and takethe turn. I know from my memories that the dirt road is 1.2 miles long. “How’s the farm going?”

“The farm’s great. Nate’s been pouring money into the place, which obviously helps. And with Nate’s help, Luke and Leo have really been working some magic. They’ve both really stepped up and they’re both really good farmers, as it turns out. The farm is more profitable than ever. They’re diversifying the land and getting into some new areas. You’ll see when you get here. And Tobias and I…well, we’ve been busy too. I can’t wait for you to see it.”

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