The Pool Boy (Nashville Neighborhood 2)

“I’m sorry,” she cried, squeezing me fiercely. “I didn’t mean the awful things I said to you.” When she relented and pulled back, she had to wipe away her tears. “I was so scared I was going to lose him.”

I heard what she meant, the unspoken words she’d left off the end of her statement. She was scared she was going to lose Troy the way she’d lost his father. I’d never met Brett Osbourne, but he’d abandoned Jenna not long after their son had been born. He’d walked away, she’d said, because he wouldn’t be tied down. He didn’t care about anyone but himself.

My heart ached for my friend.

But didn’t she know Troy would never walk away? That he was nothing like the man he shared DNA with? He was much more like his true father—the sweet man who was sitting silently on the couch, trying his damnedest not to get emotional. Seeing his wife upset got Bill every time.

“You’re not going to lose him,” I said.

“I don’t want to lose you either,” she said. “I handled it badly, but I’ll try to do better, I promise. Please forgive me.”

I blinked, stunned. She’d said hurtful things, but I wasn’t blameless either. “And I’m sorry I lied to you. Can you forgive me?”

She considered my statement thoughtfully. “I don’t want to be kept in the dark anymore, Erika.”

Hope sparked inside me that our friendship wasn’t too damaged to recover. “Yes, you got it.”

“Are you in love with him?” she whispered.

I jolted. How the hell was I supposed to answer that? “Uh . . .”

“Because he’s in love with you.” She straightened and smoothed her hands down her pants, like she could wipe away the heavy emotion that easily. “I’m sorry, but you can’t expect me to be happy about that. You’re a lot older than him, and I’m going to need some time to be . . . less uncomfortable with the idea of you with my son.”

“I understand.”

Her shoulders lifted on a deep breath. “All I want is for him to be happy, and you’ve made his dream come true. Happier than anyone else. So . . . I can tell you I’ll try. I can try to be okay with this. All right?”

I was too floored to say anything. I simply blinked in shock.

She nodded like I’d agreed with her. “Good.” She’d said her piece, and her emotions turned on a dime. Excitement lurked in her eyes. “Let’s go, Bill. I want to get back to our seats before Stella’s show starts.”

I found Troy sitting in the alcove of Stella’s suite, deep in conversation with Ardy, but when I appeared, both men fell silent. It was odd, like they’d been talking about me. I took a seat on the bench beside Troy and gave them both a suspicious look.

Troy was oblivious. “Everything go okay with my folks?”

I nodded. “It went great. Like, really great.” I couldn’t wait to explain it to him later. “They’re so proud of you.”

There’d been tension in his shoulders, and it eased somewhat, but it didn’t disappear altogether.

I tilted my head. “What are you two scheming about over here?”

Ardy chuckled. “No schemes. We were talking about his take on ‘Reckless.’ I wasn’t sure about it, but the kid made a believer out of me.”

My mouth went dry as I stared at Troy. I was terrified to ask it, because a big part of me didn’t want to know the answer. “You wanted to sing ‘Reckless’ over ‘Power?’”

But Ardy answered before Troy could, and his tone was dismissive. “‘Power’ wasn’t the right choice for his set.”

“What?” Heat flared inside me. Was this yet another decision that had been made on Troy’s behalf without consulting him? Had he sung ‘Reckless’ because his new manager had ordered him to?

“Did you like the arrangement?” Ardy asked. “From what I heard, these two,” he pointed to Stella, still in her makeup chair, and then Troy, “stayed up all night working on it. They wanted it to be a surprise for you.”

I was grateful to be sitting down, because when the meaning of his statement hit me, I nearly fell over. This was what Troy had been doing over at Stella’s place. He’d told me they’d hung out in her studio, playing music.

They’d been working on his rendition of ‘Reckless.’

Was this why he’d lied? He’d wanted to keep it a surprise? It was a lot to process. When I peered at Troy, his eyes were cryptic. What was he thinking about?

“Yeah,” I said between hurried breaths, “I loved it.”

“Good.” Ardy was pleased to have that settled. “He recorded it. I’m not his manager anymore, but I’d suggest putting it on his debut.”

My head spun, making me dizzy. “Wait, what? You’re quitting?”

“No,” Troy said. “I, um . . .”

Ardy let out an actual giggle, finding it that hilarious. “He fired me.”