Page 3 of His Christmas Love Song

“Oh yeah? Well, when you’re all better, send me something,” Ryan finds himself saying.

“Seriously? Oh, that would be amazing. I will, I totally will,” Jesse says, suddenly sounding perfectly cogent. “I have a demo that didn’t go anywhere, but I’ve got about a million other songs. Some of ‘em would be perfect for your voice.”

It seems Jesse’s given this some thought. What has Ryan gotten himself into?

“Well, uh. I’ll take a listen.” He pats the kid on his good arm.

Jesse’s smile is brilliant. “Promise?”

What else can Ryan say? “Promise.”

Jesse’s smile morphs into a huge yawn. Ryan finds himself smiling at Jesse’s swift transformation into a sleepy puppy, eyes drooping and everything. “That’s good. We’re going to be so good together, Ryan. You’ll see.”

His chest tightens at Jesse’s casual certainty. “I better go now.”

Jesse blinks sleepily. “Ryan?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m glad you’re okay.”

Ryan can’t explain the lump in his throat. He nods and hustles out of there before he can do something silly like cry.

TWO

SIX YEARS LATER

The audience’s applause reaches a crescendo as Ryan strums the first notes of their encore number, “Strawberry Smile.” Jesse walks out of the wings carrying his guitar, sits on the stool that’s waiting for him, and joins in. It’s a duet, the first one they ever recorded together, and it’s still his favorite. The audience goes crazy when they get to the chorus about “his strawberry lips and strawberry tongue,” and Ryan’s cheeks get a little red, the way they always do when he sings the line about making love all night long. It’s a song about summer love, it’s got a zippy little melody, and it’s about a boy. It’s also a fan favorite. More than one couple—same gender and not—have told them they used it as their wedding song.

The last notes die away, and they take their bows to an enthusiastic crowd. It’s not a huge venue, but they sold it out three nights in a row, which is a feat for a country act way up here in Boston. It’s the last night of their tour—endless weeks spent on the road. Jesse’s exhausted, and he knows Ryan is too. They step off the stage and thank their crew, handing off their instruments to their trusted gear guys and gals, then hightail it to the dressing room.

“Great show,” Jesse says, patting Ryan on the back. He’s hot to the touch, sweat bleeding through his plain black T-shirt.

Ryan smiles back, but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “You too, Jess.”

If Jesse’s been a little worried about his plan, now he’s sure he’s doing the right thing. Ryan needs the smile back in his blue eyes, and it’s Jesse’s job to put it there.

“So, Steph already brought the car over. Our stuff is packed. What do you say we just hit the road now? I’ll drive.”

Ryan whips his sweaty shirt over his head. “Why are we spending our first free week in ages taking a road trip again?”

“Well, it’s not a road trip, exactly,” Jesse hedges. He looks away from the broad expanse of Ryan’s naked back and grabs a towel. He dries the sweat off the back of his neck and grabs a fresh shirt of his own. He’d been purposefully vague about their post-tour plans, not wanting Ryan to have time to gather reasons not to come.

Ryan pulls a clean tee over his head, runs a hand through his sweat-damp hair. He looks good, even with shadows under his eyes. He turned thirty-four on his last birthday and he’s just starting to get some serious lines around the corners of his eyes when he smiles. The problem is, he hasn’t been smiling enough lately. Cataloging Ryan’s smiles is second nature now.

“If it’s not a road trip, then what it is?” Ryan asks suspiciously.

“It’s a three-hour drive and then we’ll stop for the night. I already made sure we can check in late without a problem.”

“We can check in where late?”

“It’s going to be great,” Jesse says. “It’s a lodge with lots of little cabins, fireplaces, the works. It’s in the middle of nowhere Vermont. It’s going to be beautiful this time of year. Snow, and everything. We’ll be able to unplug and think about the album.”

Ryan grits his teeth. “I can’t fucking believe I let you fucking talk me into doing a fucking Christmas album.”

Jesse’s not so sure Ryan isn’t going to back out, which is why he wants to get some songs sketched out before the momentum disappears. “A Christmas album is the number one most requested thing from our fans. It’s a slam dunk. And if we make progress this week, we might be able to put out a surprise single this very Christmas.”

“That’s like two weeks away,” Ryan says, eyebrows raised.