Page 25 of Sweet Music (Sugarville Grove #7)

BELLA

B ella had a bad feeling.

It had started this morning with whispers at the diner when she stopped in for a cup of coffee. She tried not to worry about it, figuring that she and Cody had been pretty serious gossip fodder ever since Cash got back into town, and she would just need to get used to it.

But as she walked into the library, Lois shot her a sympathetic look from behind the circulation desk, and Bella couldn’t shake the feeling that this was something new.

It wasn’t until she overheard two of the young moms gathering for the toddler story hour that she finally understood.

“Not the real tour bus?” Mindy Chalfont whispered.

“It was,” Pam Westley replied, her eyes sparkling. “Elena Lopez said she saw Hank Warble and Pete Sagar buying creemees at Stone’s Throw. ”

Hank and Pete were in Cash’s band. And if the tour bus was in town… well, that could only mean one thing.

Cash was leaving.

Her stomach twisted at the thought, and she glanced at her watch.

But Cody was already in class by now and she couldn’t exactly pull him out for something like this, could she?

Plus, today was the last day of school before the Christmas break, so it would be better if he got to spend the day with his friends, especially if she was about to break some bad news to him.

So, Bella decided to just buckle down and focus on work.

She kept her phone in her hand during his lunch break, and when she didn’t hear anything she relaxed a little.

If Cody wasn’t texting, then the kids at school weren’t talking about it, so he could enjoy one more day and they could talk about it when he got home from school.

Then he would have the whole winter break to adjust to the idea.

It was good to worry about Cody, because it kept her from picking apart her own feelings about Cash leaving.

On Cody’s behalf, she felt furious that Cash would let the band come to pick him up without talking to the boy first about what was happening. Though she and Cody both knew he wasn’t going to stick around forever, the two of them still had plans that Cash would clearly be breaking.

Maybe it will be easier for me when he leaves. I can build up my resistance to his charm while he’s away, and then when he comes back I won’t fall back into thinking I’m in love with him again .

But she wasn’t sure it was possible. How could she have helplessly lost her heart to the same man twice?

The door swung open, and she steeled herself to talk honestly with the boy. But she could tell by the look on his face that he already knew.

“He’s leaving,” Cody said flatly.

“I heard in town that people had spotted the tour bus,” Bella said, nodding.

“Did he message you?” Cody asked.

“No,” Bella said quietly. “How are you feeling?”

“I don’t know,” Cody said, scowling. “It’s fine, I guess. He has to work. Everyone’s parents have to work, right?”

Bella nodded.

“But he didn’t even say anything,” Cody said after a moment. She could hear the hurt in his voice now.

“He’s not used to being a dad,” she ventured. “Maybe he just needs a little practice communicating.”

Cody nodded, but his eyes narrowed like he didn’t buy it.

She could hardly blame him. She didn’t really believe it herself.

“Come on,” she said. “Put your stuff down while I fix your snack. I got more of those pretzels, and I’m not going to burn them this time. Probably.”

That earned her a half-smile. Cody slumped off to his room and she heard his backpack hitting the bed.

She headed into the kitchen and put some frozen soft pretzels in the oven, thinking about how the last time she’d done this, Cash had stormed in and turned their lives upside down.

It was hard to believe that it had only been a few weeks ago.

Now instead of feeling nervous excitement at the prospect of seeing Cash, she figured they were both just feeling a little sad.

He’ll come back to see Cody, she told herself. I think.

The two of them had hit it off so thoroughly. How could he not?

“It’ll be okay,” Cody said as he stepped into the kitchen with her. “He’ll be back.”

“I was just thinking the same thing,” Bella said, smiling up at the boy.

“And besides,” he went on. “We’ve got the Lawrences now, and they’ve got about a million family things they want us to come to.”

It was true. Now that Cody had been taken in by Cash’s family, his world had gotten a whole lot bigger and more interesting, having his dad be away wouldn’t be as big of a deal as she was making it.

“They love you,” she said honestly.

“I love them too,” he said, eyes on the floor, but the corners of his mouth pulling up. “It’s nice to have a big family.”

“Hey,” Bella offered. “Maybe we can go back and visit the dogs tomorrow.”

They had done a few more volunteer visits to the shelter over the past week. And Cody had begun to develop a real bond with the older retriever from their first trip. Last time they went, she couldn’t tell which one of them had been more excited to see the other.

“Sweet,” Cody said, breaking into a real smile.

The kid was resilient, she had to give him that.

There was a knock at the apartment door just as the oven dinged telling her the pretzels were done. Cody jogged out to answer before Bella could say a word, and she decided to give him a moment alone, in case it was his dad.

Please let him explain gently, and know how much it hurts Cody to see him go…

But by the time she had the pretzels out of the oven, Cody was jogging back in.

“It was just Mrs. Waters,” he said. “She got a piece of our mail.”

“Oh,” Bella said, expecting him to hand it over, but noticing that Cody’s hands were empty.

“It was for me,” Cody said shrugging. “Just junk. I have my guitar lesson tonight, right?”

“It’s the last one before the holidays,” Bella said. “But if you’d rather not go in case your dad wants to see you, that’s totally understandable.”

“Nah,” Cody said. “Let’s get out of here. I’ll feel better if I’m playing.”

“Yeah?” Bella asked.

“Definitely,” Cody told her.

Cody was strangely quiet all the way to Burlington. Bella couldn’t help noticing that he wasn’t scrolling his phone in the car the way he so often did.

Why haven’t you called or texted him, Cash?

But she wasn’t in control of what Cash did, only of herself. And she was doing her best to be there for the boy in the way he had asked—driving him to Burlington so he could soothe his sorrows with the music he loved.

During the lesson, she walked the quaint streets of the city. It was no Sugarville Grove, but there was snow on the ground, and decorations brightened the store fronts. She just wasn’t feeling the holiday spirit tonight like usual.

She passed the music shop where she had purchased Cody’s Christmas gifts last month. Thank goodness Evelyn had allowed her to hide them at the library. The apartment was far too small to keep any surprises.

The bookstore normally called to her when she was waiting for Cody. But tonight, she just wanted to walk, so she passed by the warm glow of the big glass windows with barely a second look for the crowded shelves and velvet sofas inside.

As the wind picked up, she pulled her scarf up to cover her mouth and nose.

It was impossible to walk these streets without thinking of that night so long ago, the night Cody had been conceived in this very city.

We were so close, Cash, she thought to herself. Why didn’t I go backstage? We could have talked to each other. We might have figured it out.

But she had been a coward then, ashamed to be a mousy, modest nerd in a rock star’s world, even for a few minutes.

And it was probably for the best. He was the kind of man who would have always broken her heart, one way or the other, and she would do well to remember that. After all, he’d spouted the same lines to Harper in person that he’d said to her online .

But it’s still a good lesson, she told herself. I won’t be a coward ever again. Not when it counts.

Being honest with Cody tonight hadn’t been easy, and she could sense that he was going to have a rough adjustment to his dad being away, even after only spending a few weeks getting to know him.

But she felt good knowing they had talked about it out in the open.

The conversation he had with Cash, whenever it happened, was going to be a better one because Cody would have already worked through some of the hurt ahead of time.

He’ll feel better after his guitar lesson, Bella reminded herself. He always came out looking lit up with happiness.

But this time, when she came back to the old building where Cody’s lessons were held, he was already waiting for her downstairs, looking as glum as before.

“You finished up early?” she asked him.

“Yeah,” he said, not looking at her. “I didn’t really feel like jamming.”

“How was it?” she asked.

“Fine.”

She didn’t dare ask if he’d heard from his father.

Shame on you, Cash Law, she thought to herself as she drove them home in silence. How dare you ghost your boy like this?

But that was normal for him, wasn’t it?

They drove home in silence, and when she parked the car and checked her phone, she finally had a text from Cash asking if she would please have Cody get in touch with him.

She sighed with relief, glad that the man wasn’t going to chicken out of talking with his son altogether. She wasn’t really sure why he was messaging her and not Cody, but she sent him a quick reply letting him know she would pass along the message.

“Cody,” she told him. “Cash just texted me. He wants you to call or text.”

“Okay,” Cody said flatly.

He’s a teenager, she reminded herself. Like Cash said, teen boys don’t like to show emotion.

They headed up to the apartment, and she busied herself getting ready for bed, not wanting to invade the boy’s privacy if he was going to be talking to his dad.

But when he turned off his lights without telling her anything, it was hard not to feel a little hurt.

It’s his business, she reminded herself. He and his father have plenty to work out, and the last thing he needs is me sticking my nose into every single aspect. We’ll talk tomorrow.