All I Ever Wanted(11)

"It's only been a week," Jimmy said. "I don't know if rehearsing will get easier, but we'll get better," he added, but didn't sound too convinced either.

"At least we can't get worse," Jesse said, drawing a dark look from Oliver. "Wait, maybe I should rephrase that. . . ." 

"Yeah, I'm not so sure about that." Oliver scrubbed a hand down his face. "I have to be honest and agree with you guys on one thing. We can't re-create what we did thirteen years ago. We need some modifications."

"Good." Grady felt a wave of relief.

Oliver nodded. "Grady, I think you should reconsider giving Arabella a call."

"What? No!" Grady shoved his fingers in his damp hair, trying to chase away his inner doubts. If they had Arabella on board-No, don't go there. "I just can't."

"Can't and won't are two different things," Oliver argued.

"You just don't get it." Grady felt tension building at the base of his skull. Damn, it had been hard enough seeing Arabella in some of the videos of their tour they'd binge-watched. What would it be like seeing her in person? He couldn't even imagine, but his brain went there anyway. Did she still have that gorgeous, cinnamon-colored hair? That endless energy? A sweet smile that lit up the room when she walked in? "Hey, let's call it a day," Grady said, suddenly feeling completely drained.

"Grady!" Oliver said in a pleading tone. "Come on, man. It's still early."

"Well, personally, I think it's just about beer-thirty," Jesse said, still favoring his knee. "I need to ice this thing soon or it'll be the size of a melon. I'll hang out for a while, but no more dancing."

"You mean no more flopping around," Oliver said as he grabbed a water from the minifridge.

"I'm willing to stay," Jimmy offered.

"Okay," Grady said. "You guys hang out here if you want to, but I'm going to go inside and do some paperwork. Devin wants to talk about having merchandise available before the concert and I need to get back to him."

Oliver didn't look pleased, but he nodded. "Well then, let's get started early tomorrow."

"I have to give a guitar lesson in the morning," Jesse said.

"I'll be staying up late working on Mom's song," Jimmy said. "I'm not at my best early in the morning."

"You guys suck," Oliver nearly shouted. "Okay . . . how about one o'clock so you can get your lunch in. Wouldn't want anybody to be low on blood sugar."

Jesse raised his hands. "Dude, I think you're low on blood sugar. Grab a Snickers bar or something."

Grady had to chuckle. "Hey, I'll let you guys figure it out. Shoot me a text. See ya tomorrow." He gave them a wave over his shoulder. Truth was, he could put off the call to Devin until later, but he felt exhausted both physically and mentally. While Grady had known that this Heartbeat reunion   would pose some challenges, he hadn't realized how much he would be thinking of Arabella. Last night he'd had an erotic dream about her that had felt so real, when he rolled over in the morning, he'd expected her to be lying in bed with him. He longed to pull her warm, willing body next to his, bury his face in her silky hair and inhale her light floral scent that always drove him nuts.

"How fucked up is that?" Grady mumbled under his breath. "Still hung up on someone who walked out without looking back. Not even a backward glance."

He once again wondered what it would have been like if that groupie hadn't barged into his dressing room that night. Would he and Arabella still be together? Married by now?


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Have kids?

The thought hit him with an odd pang of . . . longing? Wasn't the ticking biological clock supposed to be a woman thing? I'm only fucking thirty-four, Grady thought as he reached into the fridge for a bottle of water but snagged a bottle of beer instead.

With a sigh, he twisted off the cap and sat down on a stool at the kitchen island. He'd updated the room with granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and a six-burner state-of-the-art stove he barely used. The kitchen used to be the hub for the Heart family, and now the house seemed to echo with loneliness.

"Well . . . hell." After the loss of his mother, Grady had wondered if it was such a smart decision for his mental health to keep the family home, with its constant reminders of the good times they'd shared as a family, but they just couldn't sell it. After a lot of discussion, Grady had offered to buy his brothers out of their shares.