Daughters Of The Bride(105)

“Ballads are fine,” he said easily, reaching for his guitar.

Collins and Bryan stared at him.

“You sure?” Collins asked.

“Yup.”

“You’re mellowing.” Bryan picked up a pad of paper. “Is it an age thing?”

“Don’t make me have Wayne beat the crap out of you, kid.”

Bryan chuckled. “I’m glad you said it that way, because I’m pretty sure I could take you, old man.”

“In your dreams. And it’s not an age thing.”

If he had to guess, he would say it was a Courtney thing, along with a coming-home thing. Being back felt right. He liked the pace of life here. He didn’t miss any part of his life in LA—except maybe the view. That had been damned nice. But he could make do.

He liked being close to his grandmother. He liked the building his company had bought and how it was going to be when it was finished. He liked being with Courtney. She was that unique combination of challenging and restful. There had been a lot of women in his life. More than most men had. He wasn’t sure if that was good or bad—the volume simply was. He was ready to let that go, as well.

The change had started a couple of years ago—when he’d been seeing Shannon. Before he had realized his feelings had changed, she’d fallen for someone else. He didn’t think she was the one who’d gotten away, but he recognized he’d lost an opportunity. He wasn’t going to let that happen again. He wanted more. He wanted permanent. Traditional. A wife. Kids. A couple of dogs—although they would never be as glorious and special as Sarge and Pearl.

“You ready?” Collins asked, drawing him back to the present.

“Let’s make it happen.”

Collins played several chords. Quinn listened, breathing in the sounds and letting them sink in deep. He didn’t say anything. Collins played them again and again. On the fourth pass, Quinn played along, then made a few changes. Bryan scribbled the new chords.

Quinn played the whole thing while Collins listened, and so it went, back and forth until they had the melody nailed. They moved on to the lyrics. Quinn read through the lines.

“I think it’s over before it began rather than over when it began,” he said.

“That’s better.” Bryan played the melody and sang along.

Two hours later they had a song. It would need tweaking before it was ready, but Quinn was excited. This one had the potential to be a hit.

The guys collected their stuff. Leigh, Tadeo’s wife, had come to town and was having the band over for barbecue. He’d declined the invitation but had heard Wayne was going. As much as his assistant pretended to dislike And Then, hanging out with them was good for him. And for them.

As Collins and Bryan left, he saw Courtney walk toward the bungalow. She had Sarge and Pearl each on a leash. She waved at him.

“We’re going for a walk,” she called. “Want to come with?”

She still had her bangs. He suspected she kept them because they suited her face and not because they made her sexy as hell. Even in jeans and a T-shirt she got to him. She was a walking, breathing fantasy, and she had absolutely no clue. How could he resist that?

“A walk sounds great.” He grabbed the bungalow key and his cell phone, shut the front door and stepped out onto the path. He greeted both dogs, then took Pearl’s leash and fell into step with Courtney.

“How’s it going?” he asked.

“Good. T minus three weeks and counting.” She drew her brows together. “Why do we say T? Does it mean time?”

“I think so. We can look it up online if you’d like.”

“I expected you to just know. You seem to have a lot of knowledge at your fingertips.” She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “Like your skill with henna.”

He grinned. “That was fun.”

“It was.”

They walked west, toward the path down to the beach. The late afternoon was warm, the sky clear. Once they reached the edge of the property, there was a stone path that led down the cliff to the rocky beach below. The air tasted of salt, and the sound of the waves grew louder as they started down.

“I have to go to LA in a few days,” he told her. “I need to check on a couple of things at the house before I list it. I’m also thinking of having a party. A last hurrah.”

“You really doing it? Really moving to Los Lobos?”

“I am. I’m going to start looking for a place here.”

“I don’t know what to make of that. Won’t you miss being around industry people?”

“No, and anyone who wants to see me can come here. About the party. Want to come with me as my date?”