"Yeah, I'm just mad you beat me to it."
"Just think, if you'd gone to Costa Rica instead of me ..."
Ansley had forgone the trip--sorely needed after a grueling twelve-week tour--to open for country legend Aubrey James.
"You're going to love Mindy." Ah, the new assistant. "She's even more organized than I am."
"But she's not my best friend since fifth grade."
"You don't need a best friend. You have me."
"Always." Though Ansley knew ... Ty was already taking her place.
"Tell you what, as my last act as your assistant ..." There was silence for a few moments. "The Preferred Lounge is by Gate 30 on concourse B, C, and D. Where are you?"
"C."
"Get to the lounge. I don't want my wedding to be eclipsed by your funeral."
She'd laugh if Noel's concern wasn't rooted in truth. Ansley cut a glance at Blue Eyes. He exuded confidence, giving her a sense of safety. "I'm fine. Hidden in a very crowded restaurant. Besides, I've ordered. I'll go as soon as I eat."
"Call me the moment you do. And Ansley, I know you've only met Ty a few times, but you're going to love him. I promise."
The tenderness in her best friend's voice watered Ansley's heart. She wanted to love him. She wanted to love someone like Noel loved Ty.
Saying goodbye, Ansley picked up her chopsticks as Blue Eyes was served another soda, his attention fixed on the TV above the bar. Football. Looked like a college bowl game.
"Where you headed?" He asked the question without looking over at her.
She hesitated, gripping her first sushi roll between the narrow sticks. "Florida."
But his attention was on the TV as one player tackled another. Ansley knew nothing about football. She'd devoted her teen and college years to her guitar, to music.
A fact her last two boyfriends never understood.
"Business or pleasure? This Florida trip?" So Blue Eyes heard her after all.
"My best friend is getting married." Ansley's phone lit up again with her manager, Jim Rubart's, face and number.
"You okay? Man, what a day to travel."
"I'm good. Safe. Listen, did you get my email about the rehearsal schedule?" She was about to record her second album, and she planned on doing it live, with her band. Old school.
"You're all set. Found a place for you to rehearse. I have some news, too. Joe Townsend wants to produce your next album."
"You're kidding. Joe Townsend?" The man who'd won every Grammy known to man.
"He saw you on the People's Music Awards last night. Said you stole the show with your performance. Your life is about to change again, Ansley. In a big, big way."
She cut a glance at Blue Eyes, then turned to the wall. The glint in his eye, the mold of his expression made her yearn, wanting something she'd never really had before. Not even with Hank. This stranger made her want what she felt and heard in Noel's voice.
But her career was her lover. She had no time for the hassle of romance. No room for longings of the heart.
She inhaled deeply. "But I planned to do a live album with Len Davis."
"Ansley, Joe Townsend. People would kill to have him producing. Listen, I got to run. Glad you're okay. We'll talk later."
With a sigh, Ansley swallowed the last of her Diet Coke, slung the strap of her bag over her head, grabbed her guitar and scooted past Blue Eyes without a backward glance.