Restless Heart (15 page)

“I know you have, and thank you, but—”

“Oh, Destiny, I’ve got so many more ideas! For one thing, you really need to start Twittering.”

“About what?”

“About anything. Your fans want to know what you’re up to on a daily basis.”

“What fans?”

“The ones you’re going to get when I pimp your social-networking pages and get more people to friend you.” Grace was up and pacing now. “That will help create a built-in fan base.”

“Sounds like you have it all figured out.”

“I do. Where are we at with choosing the first single from your new record?”

We
? Destiny couldn’t help but grin. Her sister might be jumping the gun, but it was kind of nice to feel a whole new level of support from someone other than Nick, Miranda, Max, Nessie—and, of course, Seth.

“The first single’s going to be ‘Restless Heart,’ and we’re hoping to get some airplay. The A and R reps at the record label are already working with promotion and marketing, so . . .”

“What about branding you?”

“I’m sure they’ve got everything covered, Grace. They have a whole creative team on it.”

“But I know how you operate, Destiny. I’ve known you your whole life. I could be the glue that holds you together here in Nashville and with you on the road. I can take care of details and take charge whenever you need me . . .” She stopped pacing and looked at Destiny. “Trust me.”

“I do. But, Grace, I barely make enough money to support myself.” She took a deep breath. “Look, I know everyone thinks I’m rich because I signed with Sundial, but my advance needs to be used for business expenses, and the money I make at Back in the Saddle barely pays the bills. I can’t hire an assistant.”

“I have it all figured out. All I need is free room and board. I have a little nest egg saved up from moving back home this past year. I thought maybe I could find some kind of part-time work in retail, or a restaurant . . .”

Destiny nibbled on her bottom lip. “Well, my boss at the bar and grill
is
looking for another waitress.”

She didn’t mention that business was stronger than ever on nights when she took the stage. Ralph was grateful.

“Perfect.” Grace clapped her hands. “Then we’re all set. Unless I’m forcing you into this?”

“Are you kidding? You’re
totally
forcing me into it.” Destiny broke into a grin. “But I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’d love to have you here with me.”

“Yeah!” Grace pumped her fist in the air. “But when you make it you have to pay me the big bucks.”

Destiny laughed.

Grace raised a salon-arched blond eyebrow. “I’m dead serious. Never underestimate the power of a personal assistant.”

“Are you going to drive me crazy?”

“No doubt. But I’ll do an amazing job, and I’ll handle everything.”

Destiny could just imagine the many things Grace would take charge of, her toenail polish to her wardrobe. She’d want to dress Destiny right down to her underwear and want to throw away everything in her closet like an episode of
What Not to Wear
.

Still . . .

Destiny gave her sister a hard hug. “I’m glad you’re here. I’ve missed you so much.”

“Same here. And I’m sorry it took me this long to get over being mad at you for leaving. It was just—I felt abandoned. During all those times we had to move . . . we still always had each other.”

“Yeah, to argue with,” Destiny tried to joke, but her voice cracked.

“I mean it, Destiny. You deserved more support than any of us gave you, and I know Mom feels as terrible about it as I do.”

“Just Mom?”

Grace shook her head. “Who knows about Daddy? He’s never been one to talk about his feelings. But you know he loves you. He loves all of us.”

“Including Mom?”

“Definitely. I just don’t know if love is enough, where those two are concerned. I never realized how different they were.”

“Maybe they didn’t, either.”

Grace sighed. “I just hope they can figure things out now that I’m gone.”

“Do you have to go back home and get your stuff?” Destiny asked, thinking she might be able to catch a ride to Wilmot to pay Seth a quick visit.

“Not for a while. I loaded my car down with as much as it would hold.”

“So you were sure I’d agree to this?”

Grace grinned. “I’m pretty persuasive. And that’s going to work on your behalf. You just made another giant leap toward stardom, Destiny Hart.”

And away from Seth
, Destiny couldn’t help thinking.

P
lease don’t tell me that you’ve got good news and bad news,” Destiny told Miranda as she slid into the chair opposite her manager’s desk.

“Why would I say that?” With her reading glasses perched low on her nose, Miranda leveled a curious gaze at Destiny, who shrugged.

“People say it sometimes.”

“Well, I only have one piece of news for you today.”

“Is it bad?” Destiny had been to countless meetings here in the last five months, and she’d walked into every single one of them feeling as though the bottom was about to drop out.

So far, it hadn’t.

But in the too-good-to-be-true scheme of her life these days, it was probably only a matter of time.

“Now why,” Miranda said, “would I ask you to drive all the way over here on a holiday, no less, just to hear bad news?”

Today was Veterans Day, and every time Destiny thought about it, her father popped into her head.

Now that Grace was living here in Nashville with her, she had no way of knowing how things were going back home. Mom always sounded the same on the phone—cheerful and wistful—and Dad never seemed to be around to say hello.

Destiny wanted to ask about the state of their marriage, but somehow, she could never bring herself to do it. Maybe she was afraid of what the answer would be, and she wasn’t ready to hear bad news.

But good news? She was always ready for that.

“So what’s going on?” she asked her manager, grateful, as always, to have someone like Miranda in her corner. She understood Destiny’s core small-town beliefs and values, and would never steer her away from that comfort zone.

“Ever hear of
Cowgirl Up
?”

“You mean that reality show on Country Music Television?”

“That’s exactly what I mean. Do you watch it?”

Destiny shook her head, wondering where this was going. She knew enough about CMT’s version of
The Bachelor
—which involved country girls trying to win the heart of a city slicker—to hope that Miranda wasn’t going to ask her to be a contestant.

Grace—who had been working tirelessly to get her sister’s name out there in every which way—would probably say the exposure would be priceless, and she’d probably be right.

But Destiny’s heart wasn’t up for grabs. She and Seth had managed to see each other three times over the last month—twice when he’d come to hear her sing here in Nashville, and once when they’d met halfway for a quick lunch date.

Since schools were closed for the holiday, he’d driven into Nashville late last night, and was waiting for her at this very moment in a coffee shop down the street.

“The next season airs in January. The producers have been looking for a new theme song for the show,” Miranda told her, “and it looks like they’ve found it.”

Destiny’s breath caught in her throat. “What is it?”

Her manager broke into a broad grin. “It’s ‘Restless Heart,’ Destiny.”

“I . . . that’s . . .” She shook her head in wonder. “Am I dreamin’?”

“No, Destiny, you most certainly are not. It’s really happening. All of your work in the studio has paid off. This is huge. The song will be available for download on the CMT Web site. And now that the album is in the can, we’ll ship your single to radio stations to coincide with the start of the new season of
Cowgirl Up
. I really think you’re going to have a hit on your hands. Now, go on . . . get out of here and go celebrate!”

“I’m planning to.” She thought of Seth waiting for her. “Why don’t you come along, Miranda? My . . . boyfriend is in town, and you could meet him . . .”

Boyfriend
. The term didn’t do justice to the depth of her relationship with Seth, but she’d taken to calling him that lately, for lack of anything better.

“You can always call him your lover,” Grace had slyly suggested, which made Destiny blush.

As much as she loved having her sister around, she hadn’t welcomed Grace’s regular analysis of her burgeoning relationship with Seth. According to Grace, they were perfect for each other, and were destined to live happily ever after “and make me a maid of honor and an aunt.”

Just how she expected Destiny to do that—while becoming a country-music superstar, with Grace as personal assistant extraordinaire—hadn’t been clear.

“You’ll figure it out,” she’d said with a shrug. “You guys love each other. Love conquers all, right?”

Grace made it sound so simple.

Besides, the only L word that popped up regularly in conversations between Destiny and Seth was “leave”. . .

As in, “I wish you didn’t have to . . .”

Meanwhile, Miranda was saying, “I’d love to join you, but I’ve got piles of work to get to. You’re not the only one who believes in giving one hundred percent.” She winked at Destiny. “But tell that boyfriend of yours that I’m looking forward to meeting him some other time—and that he’s going to be seeing even less of you. But if he loves you, he’ll understand that this is once in a lifetime.”

“He does,” Destiny assured her on her way out the door.

But,
she wondered, as her heels clicked on the hardwood floor of the corridor,
do you mean he does love you, or that he does understand?

She wasn’t sure about either of those things.

She could tell he’d been disappointed when Miranda’s summons interrupted their leisurely morning, but as she’d tried to explain, when your manager calls, you come running.

And boy, had it ever been worthwhile today.

Overtaken by excitement once again, she wished she could beam herself to Seth’s side to share the news. The best she could do was pick up her pace, practically running by the time she hit the lobby.

“Either you just had a very bad meeting,” said the receptionist who sat behind a small circular desk there, “or a very good one.”

“Definitely good,” Destiny said with a grin, and paused to quickly sign herself out of the building.

“Are congratulations in order?”

“Definitely.”

“Then congratulations!”

“Thank you!” Beaming, Destiny pushed through the door and out into the brilliant autumn morning, where a light fall breeze toyed with her hair.

A stone’s throw from Sundial Recording Studios, Miranda’s office was in the heart of Music Row, a semiresidential neighborhood. Mature trees and vintage brick buildings lined the lovely streets, where private homes were nestled amidst the publishing houses, recording studios, and quaint old houses that contained offices for lawyers, agents, and managers. Here and there, colorful banners announced a hit record or award for the studios’ artists.

It wasn’t the first time the thought had occurred to Destiny, but it was the first time it actually seemed likely.

Waiting on the corner for the light to change, she adjusted the portfolio strap that was digging into her shoulder. She did her best to wear a dignified expression as she stood in the crowd of Music Row executives, but it was all she could do not to bounce impatiently.

When the light turned green, she forced herself to walk, not run, down Sixteenth Avenue. Only when she turned the corner did she pick up speed, covering the short block like a track star and bursting into the café where Seth was waiting at a table for two.

“You’ll never believe it!” she shrieked, hurtling toward him.

“What? What happened?” He was on his feet in a flash. “Are you okay?”

“I’m great!” She told him the news in a rush, and he threw his arms around her.

“It’s finally becoming a reality, Seth! ‘Restless Heart’ is going to be on TV and the radio! Is that the craziest thing you’ve ever heard, or what?”

“Destiny, it’s amazing.
You’re
amazing!”

“After all these years, it’s finally coming together! My very own song!”

“When do I get to say I told you so?”

She grinned. “Feel free to say it right now.”

“Great. I told you so.” He pulled out the chair opposite the one where he’d been sitting. “Here, sit down. What can I get you? I’m afraid they don’t serve champagne here, but they make a mean latte.”

“You know what? I’d rather have champagne. Let’s go over to Back in the Saddle. Grace is working the lunch shift and I can’t wait to tell her.” Seeing a spark of disappointment in his eyes, she hesitated. “Is that okay with you?”