Page 38 of Flawless

They were all calling after me, trying to apologize, to reason with me, but I wasn’t hearing it. I’d made this mess by listening to them. I just hoped Rylee would give me a chance to clean it up.

Chapter Fourteen

Rylee

I would have been having a good time at the bar opening, if not for the fact my boyfriend was an idiot, who apparently didn’t have a mind of his own.

He’d been blowing up my phone, trying to apologize, but I wanted to stew in my anger a little longer before I talked to him.

“Hey, pretty lady. What do you think? Did I do good or what?”

Easton Hart had been an icon in country music long before I broke into the business, and didn’t need a bar bearing his name to prove it.

He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and I leaned into him, smiling. “You did good, my friend. Real good. Where’s that gorgeous wife of yours? Why isn’t she here tonight?”

His eyes dimmed and he put a little distance between us. “Her mama hasn’t been doing well, so she’s back home with her family.”

His wife, Lyla, had been a model, who came from oil-money. Even after having their three kids, she was still stunning. Friends had dubbed her ‘uptown girl’ after Billy Joel’s old song, claiming she was slumming with Easton, who was a good old country boy with humble roots. But they’d been together ten years and seemed to be making it work.

“The kids are with her?” I asked, trying not to be too nosy as I sipped my margarita.

“Yeah.” He cleared his throat. “I miss ‘em all like crazy, but she’s doin’ what she’s gotta do and I respect that.”

“Hey,” I said, leaning in. “You guys aren’t having trouble, are you?”

I didn’t want to pry, but considered Easton a good friend, and wanted to help, if I could.

A look of pain flashed across his face before he schooled his expression. “All good, honey. All good. But tell me about that new man of yours. He’s Eden’s brother, right?”

“Yeah.” I took another sip of my drink, questioning whether I should open up about the argument we’d had tonight. “His name’s Cam. He’s a sheriff in Oklahoma.”

He nodded. “Yeah, I saw that online. Y’all have been getting a lot of attention.” He chuckled. “Kind of like me and Lyla when we got together. We couldn’t have been more different, obviously, so people were curious.”

“I don’t think Cam appreciates the attention,” I admitted. “But he knows it comes with the territory.”

He took a sip of his beer before asking, “So, is it serious? Or are y’all just havin’ a little fun?”

I couldn’t help but smile when I said, “Oh, we’re having fun. And it’s serious.” I frowned. “Or at least I thought it was until he called me up tonight. Made it sound like he was having doubts just because his friends thought I was too young to get tied down. Or I’d meet someone more my speed here in Nashville. Total B.S., but it sounds like he bought it. And this isn’t the first time he’s been second-guessing us for the same dumb reasons.”

Easton laughed, raising his beer. “Man, do I feel his pain.”

“You feel his pain?” I demanded. “What about mine? You’re supposed to be my friend, remember? That kind of means you have to back me up.”

He smirked. “You know I would, but I went through the same thing with Lyla when we met. She wasn’t a whole lot younger than me, but she was a freakin’ supermodel. And she comes from old money. Her whole family hated me. Didn’t think I was good enough for her.” He shrugged. “Truth be told, they still don’t.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

Easton toured around the world and sold out stadiums. He’d won countless industry awards, had numerous gold and platinum records to his credit, and had made a ton of money.

“Believe it. To them, I’m still the white-trash country bumpkin who defiled their little princess.”

I winced. “That’s harsh.”

“It is what it is.”

“Easton,” I said, curling my hand around his forearm. “Lyla’s crazy about you. Anyone can see that. And you have three beautiful kids together. It doesn’t matter whether or not her family approves of you. You know that, right?”

“Yeah, sure.” He glanced up at the stage where another band was preparing to perform. “Doesn’t make it any easier though.” He shook his head. “Anyways, enough about me. Back to you and your man. Give the guy a break, Rylee. It’s not easy, stepping into our world.”