Chapter 29

CHAPTER

TWENTY-NINE

H arry sat in the recliner across from his desk, in his home office in Coral Canyon. Though he’d been living in his house for a week now, he still experienced bouts of disbelief that this had become his life.

He’d imagined it for a couple of years now. He’d planned it. He’d looked at a dozen houses before buying this one.

But it still felt a bit surreal to him sometimes. This was one of those times, as he listened to Uncle Morris finish his outline for the following week’s concerts.

Three. Harry had to do three of them, and the total travel miles came out to less than twenty-five—and that included getting there and getting back to his house.

His time wouldn’t be wasted in travel. He wouldn’t have to go through security lines. The record label wouldn’t be paying for first-class flights or huge teams of people to put on a massive stadium show.

No, Harry would have his band—which would barely fit on some of the stages in the restaurants, coffee shops, and venues around Coral Canyon and Jackson Hole where Adam and Morris had arranged for Harry’s live-streamed world tour—his guitar, and himself.

The set list included half new songs from the third album, which was simply titled Legacy , and half bestselling and well-loved songs from his first two albums.

His father usually played a few songs with him, as did Uncle Otis, and with all the members of Country Quad only minutes away now, Harry had added three of their best songs to his set list.

Five shows would include them. His father would perform at all of them, as would Bryce, and as Morris looked up, his eyebrows reaching for his hairline, Harry had one more thing he wanted to add to the setlist.

Him and Belle.

“How does it look?” Morris asked. “We’ll kick things off on Tuesday night at Devil’s Tower. They have a great stage, and it might all be downhill from there.”

Harry grinned, because the Youngs had filled Daily Grind for a New Year’s family talent show, and that stage would barely fit him and his guitar. “You’re probably right.”

They were playing the coffee shop on Friday morning, which would allow for different time zones around the world to tune into the live-stream. No, Harry wasn’t a morning person, but he could be up and ready by nine a.m. when he was getting paid a lot of money to do so.

And Saturday night, Harry and his band would be at The Branding Iron. Big places—hot spots—around Coral Canyon, and Harry had a one-sheet for each of them as well. He’d work in the venue and why he loved it, how it contributed to the fabric of small-town Coral Canyon and thus, himself, throughout the concert.

The film crew had tested their cameras and angles at all three locations already this week, and Harry’s fingers tightened around his phone. “I’m working on one more thing,” he said, drawing his daddy’s attention as well as Uncle Morris’s.

Adam too perked up from where he sat, his ankle resting on his knee. He looked up with only his eyes, his own tablet laying in his lap, now being ignored.

Harry met his gaze, swallowed, and faced his manager. “Belle used to be in country music.” His voice scratched across his vocal cords and the back of his tongue, and he cleared it to make it smooth again. “I want to ask her to play and sing a single song with me.”

Silence pressed down into the office. Daddy finally broke it with, “Will Rebel allow that?”

Harry looked at Morris, who’d taken a seat behind the professional desk where Harry hoped to write a lot of music. “I don’t know. They don’t have a problem with me singing Country Quad songs or including you and Bryce.”

His phone buzzed against his thigh, but he didn’t look at it. Belle had found an apartment near the cute, quaint downtown street that housed the post office, Aunt Georgia’s bookshop, clothing boutiques, and the Boot Barn where Harry had once bought his back-to-school cowboy boots with Ev, back when she was still his father’s girlfriend.

She could move in anytime, and that day was tomorrow. Harry couldn’t believe how much his life had changed in a single month, and he quickly closed his eyes and thought, Thank you, God, for hearing me.

“You’ve asked her?” Morris asked.

“I plan to this weekend,” Harry said coolly. “She won’t have to do every show. She could join the tour when we go to Jackson in a few weeks. She has friends and co-workers there.”

Well, sort of. She’d confessed to him that she didn’t have many friends, and she’d put in her two weeks’ notice on Monday.

When Harry had asked her what she’d do for work here in Coral Canyon, she’d said. “I’m still working through that,” with a smile.

“Let me step out and call Don,” Morris said. Donald Summers approved anything relating to Harry’s tour, and he’d been lax and casual about the setlist in the past. Harry could only pray he’d be that way again.

“Perhaps you should ask her right now,” Daddy said. “Things between you two seem serious already.”

“I mean, sure,” Harry said. “I’ve been interested in her forever, Dad. It’s not like I only met her a few weeks ago.”

Daddy’s frown didn’t budge, and Harry worked hard not to roll his eyes. “Maybe the timing is right now,” he said. “And I really like her.”

“So you’re serious.”

“Of course,” Harry said. “I’ve never dated if it wasn’t serious.”

“Oh-ho,” Daddy chortled, tossing a look to Adam. “What about Iriana? When you broke up with her, you told us it was never anything serious. That you knew that from the beginning.”

Harry did roll his eyes now. “Right, I knew that. Just like I know this relationship is serious—and has been since the beginning.” He watched his father. “What? You think I don’t know how I feel? You don’t trust me to make this kind of decision?”

His daddy’s face softened, and he ducked behind his cowboy hat. “Of course I trust you.”

“You think I’m too young, then.”

“I think you’re still finding your feet, yeah,” Daddy said. “Not that you’re too young, but that you’re very…hungry, Harry. You’re starving for this life, and I don’t want you to snatch up the first woman that comes along simply because she’s there.”

Harry’s first instinct was to argue back, but instead, he sat still with his daddy’s words. After several long seconds, where Morris’s muted voice filtered back to them from further inside the house, Harry finally nodded. “Okay,” he whispered. “I hear you.”

Daddy nodded, his throat working as he swallowed too.

“Perhaps singing and working with her will show you a different side of her,” Adam said, giving his input. He rarely did, so Harry perked up and listened. “Allow you to truly get to know her in a unique way.”

“That’s a good point,” Harry said slowly. Belle didn’t volunteer a ton of information, and Harry did allow her to pass whenever he asked her something she didn’t want to talk about.

She paid him the same favor, but sitting in his office, thinking of her and talking about his relationship with her, he absolutely wanted to know everything about her. He wanted to get to a point where neither one of them had to pass, because they’d talked through everything that mattered to both of them.

“Should I text her?” he asked. “She’s moving here tomorrow.”

“Does she need help?” Daddy asked.

Harry shook his head. “She says she doesn’t own much, and Bryce and Reggie are coming. With the four of us, we should be fine.”

“Momma is making dinner,” Daddy said. “We’ll come see the place about five-thirty.”

Harry’s pulse leapfrogged, but he nodded. “I’ll let her know.”

“Your mother has already texted her,” Daddy said. “That’s how I know it’s happening.”

Harry looked up from his phone, where he’d been about to text Belle the far easier message about his momma bringing her food tomorrow night. “She texted Belle?”

“Apparently. ”

“How’d she get her phone number?”

“I suppose she asked her,” Daddy said, a guard in his voice now.

Harry wasn’t sure why, but that sent irritation spiraling through him. He glanced over to Adam. “Do you have her number?”

“No, sir,” Adam said.

Harry indicated his assistant. “If Adam doesn’t have it, then Momma doesn’t need it.”

“You’ll need to talk to her about that,” Daddy said.

“Daddy.” Harry reached up and rubbed his eyes.

“Or Belle,” Daddy said. “Last time I checked, she was a grown adult—five years older than you, in fact—and could make her own decisions about who she gives her phone number to.”

“He’s not wrong,” Adam said.

“Adam.”

“You’re not either, Harry,” he said. “If you don’t like it, you should talk to Belle.”

Harry shook his head and started a message to his girlfriend.

Morris and I are putting the final touches on my live-stream world tour, and I’d love to perform with you. Can we talk about that tonight when I come to help you finish packing?

“All right,” Morris said as he re-entered the office. “Don’s on-board with it, as long as it’s not one of the new songs from the album.”

Joy pierced Harry’s heart, and he nodded. “Okay, no problem. I’m asking her now, and I’ll talk to her about it tonight.”

“It shouldn’t be hard to add one song to the setlist,” Morris said. “We’ll have two mics and stools for Bryce anyway, and he can just walk out and she can walk in.”

“That’s what I was thinking,” Harry said as he tapped to send the message he’d already typed out. “We have one more thing, don’t we?”

Harry glanced over to Adam, who once again looked away from his tablet.

“We do?” Daddy asked.

“I’m also unaware of another item,” Morris said.

“It’s Boston,” Adam said, and he reached into his briefcase bag and extracted two identical folders. “Harry would like him to be the tour physical facilities manager starting in Week 2, and we’d like your eyes on this contract before Harry approaches Boston and Maverik.”

Daddy had his homicidal-cowboy look down pat as he took the folder Adam handed him without looking away from Harry. “You want to hire your cousin?”

Harry didn’t hesitate as he said, “I sure do. He’s home from college for the summer, and I know no one else sees it, but he’s not happy to be living at home.” He nodded to the two-page document in the folder. “That actually offers him a place to live, right here in my basement.”

“Harry,” Daddy said in his warning tone.

“He’s twenty, almost twenty-one years old,” Harry said. “An adult.” He looked down at his phone, wishing Belle had already responded with an enthusiastic Of course! I’d love to play for you and with you during your live-stream concerts!

She hadn’t.

“And I know exactly how he feels.” He looked up at his family members. “How Joey feels, and Cash, and Bryce, and…and all the ‘extra’ kids in this family.”

“There are no ‘extra kids’ in this family,” Daddy said. “You all belong right where you are.”

“I know that’s how you see it,” Harry said. “How all the uncles see it. But the truth is…we don’t always feel like that, and Boston has it worse, because he’s not actually a Young at all. He feels even more like an add-on, an extra, someone who could just as easily be discarded as included.”

“This is a great contract,” Morris said, his voice somber and quiet. “Have you spoken to him about this at all?”

“Have you mentioned it to Mav?” Daddy asked, finally flipping open the folder.

Harry shook his head. “I’ve said nothing to either of them. I simply saw Boston at my welcome home party, and I’ve been texting him this week.”

“We think he’ll be thrilled and say yes,” Adam said. “Simply based on the conversations Harry has had with him.”

“Don’t you need a job?” Daddy asked Adam.

Adam simply smiled at him with all the professionalism in the world. Adam too had found an apartment in Coral Canyon, as Harry didn’t need or want live-in help. “I’m still plenty busy, sir, especially arranging travel and security for Harry during the next three months of the online tour. ”

“He’s helping with the coordination of the band’s travel too,” Morris said.

Adam nodded at him too, but Harry did wonder where Adam would fit once the tour ended. He didn’t have to know right now, and Adam had said he was a grown man and could figure out his own employment, whether he stayed with Harry or not.

“When are you going to talk to Boston and Mav?” Daddy asked.

“If you think the contract looks good,” Harry said, and he had a feeling the contract was generous and amazing and Boston would snap it up and sign it immediately. “Then I’ll text him and Mav and invite them to breakfast with me and Adam tomorrow morning. Then, we’ll help Belle move into her place, and apparently, we’re having dinner with y’all.”

He still wasn’t happy about that, and he felt like he needed to make a list of all the things he needed to talk to Belle about.

“I think it’s an amazingly generous contract,” Daddy said.

“Great,” Harry said, and he nodded over to Adam. “Will you please text Boston and Mav and set up breakfast?”

“Perhaps Sunday, sir?” Adam asked, already swiping on his phone. “Belle is planning to be in Coral Canyon by nine, and a breakfast before that will require you to be…awake at an hour when you’re usually not.”

Harry just wanted it all done, but he supposed one more day wouldn’t matter. “Sunday is fine,” he said. “You could send them the contract in advance, so they can review it before we meet.”

“I’ll get it done.” Adam stood and left the office, presumably to collect his laptop, where he liked to conduct his business.

Harry’s phone buzzed, and he glanced at it to find Belle’s name there. “Oh, she’s responded,” he said.

We can talk about it , she said. But I’ll tell you right now, I’m not sure I’d be comfortable doing that.

Which part? he asked. Playing with me on the tour, or playing one of your songs for me?

Both , she said. Harry, I left that life behind a long time ago.

But you still play , he said. Playing, singing, songwriting, and music meant a great deal to him, and it had to her at one time in her life too. He wanted to share that with her.

He craved it, and Harry reminded himself that music was very personal. He didn’t share everything with everyone, because it would expose a deep part of himself he was still exploring.

Think about it , he said. And tell me what you want for dinner tonight, and I’ll get it before I come help you pack.

She didn’t answer right away, and Harry looked up to find Morris packing away everything he’d gotten out to show Harry how the first week of the tour would go. He jumped to his feet and rounded the desk to hug his uncle. “Thank you, Uncle Morris. I would be lost without you.”

“You’re welcome, son.” Uncle Morris gripped him back and grinned at him as he stepped away .

Harry met his daddy’s eyes as he stood, and he said, “I’ll talk to Ev about what she’s texting Belle, okay?”

Harry nodded, and then he hugged his father too. “I really like her,” he whispered. “I promise I’m not going to lose my head with her, okay?”

“Mm.” Daddy hugged him and then pulled back, taking Harry by both shoulders. “But falling in love is a little bit crazy, and it’s okay to let yourself feel all of those things too, okay?”

“Does it make you crazy?” Harry asked. “Because I feel kind of crazy when it comes to Belle.”

Morris chuckled and said, “Love absolutely makes you crazy,” right before he left the office and then the house.

Daddy gave Harry one of his rare grins and echoed something Adam had said earlier in the meeting. “He’s not wrong.” He dropped his hands and fell back a step to pick up his phone and stuff it in his back pocket. “And it’s kind of fun to go a little crazy for someone you’re falling in love with,” he added. “So try to enjoy it—if that’s what this is.”

Harry nodded, and he managed to walk his father to the front door too. It closed, and Harry stood there facing it, wondering if he’d started falling in love with Belle yet.

“Of course you have,” he muttered to himself. And it had only been spurred forward by her saying she wasn’t going to buy a house here, because he had one, and if they got married….

Harry had the fantasy of a wife and family right there, almost within his grasp, and he’d thought plenty about it .

Now, he just needed more time, more experiences, and his feelings to be more solid and certain to know if his future was Harry and Belle Forever.