Country (24 page)

It was after two a.m. when they finally fell asleep, and when she woke up in the morning, he was in the living room, reading the paper, and he smiled when she walked into the room and sat down next to him with her terrycloth robe open. She felt totally at ease with him, as he did with her. He had his underwear on and nothing else. It was a comfortable domestic scene they were both enjoying to the fullest. He put down the paper and kissed her and asked her what she wanted to do that day.

“I thought we could go to Napa and have lunch up there. There are some terrific restaurants, and some very pretty wineries.” It sounded like fun to him too, and this time he drove, and she gave him directions as they sped along. She put the radio on, and one of his songs was playing, and he sang along in a strong, sexy, clear voice. She knew the song now and sang along with him, and he grinned at her at the end of the song.

“You have a mighty fine voice, Miss Stevie.” He had told her that before, but she was still shy about singing around him. “If you ever want a job with the band, just say the word.” He was teasing her, but he really was impressed by her voice. For an untrained voice, she had power and range. It was a perfect voice for country music, and she loved learning his songs. She paid special attention to the words now, knowing he had written them all.

They visited the Mondavi Winery, and had lunch at Bouchon, and then drove north to Calistoga, and drove past countless wineries on the way, and they stopped for a drink at the Auberge du Soleil on the way back. They sat on the terrace and enjoyed the view of the valley, and then they drove back to the city and had room service again. She loved the time they spent in bed together, cuddling and making love. She was soaking up his affection and love. She realized now that she had been starving emotionally for a long, long time. She had just never thought about it before. It wouldn't have changed anything if she had. She and Bill had been disconnected for too many years when he died. And as she thought about it, she realized that she didn't feel as married as she had before. The bonds that had linked her to Bill were slowly disappearing, and were being replaced by what she felt for Chase, which was pure and clean and very powerful. She had no doubts about what they were doing or how she felt about him. She was very much in love, and she knew that he was too. It was a perfect balance and an even exchange, which was something she had never had in her marriage. She had always given more. But Chase gave just as much to her as she gave him.

On Saturday, they drove to Stinson Beach in Marin County, just past the Golden Gate, and walked the full length of the spectacular white sandy beach, which stretched for miles. They had dinner at a local restaurant, and drove the winding road home along the cliffs, and looked at the lights of the city sparkling in the distance. There was no fog that night, which she said was rare in July. And the view from the bridge, on the way back, was glorious with the city all lit up. They went back to the hotel, and on Sunday they stopped at her house to pack for L.A. They were flying down that night on the plane he had chartered. And when they checked out of the hotel, she felt as though they had formed a new and deeper bond to each other. The past four days had changed everything again. Now she felt like they belonged together, as though nothing had existed before or would come later. Their relationship had been born in those four days, and she could see that Chase felt the same way. He was careful and gentle with her, and found a thousand different ways to protect her and demonstrate his love. And she was excited about going to L.A. with him, and staying in a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel, where the stars hung out, or met at the Polo Lounge for lunch or dinner. Sometimes she forgot that Chase was a big star too. He was something else now to her, the man she loved, part of her private life, and not a public person. But the moment they checked in to the hotel, three people in the lobby asked for his autograph, which brought it home to her again.

“Sometimes I forget who you are,” she said with a grin, as the manager on duty took them to the bungalow. It was one of their best ones, with two extra bedrooms they didn't need, but Chase liked to have space to move around. And this time he carried her over the threshold, to remind her that this was still part of their unofficial honeymoon. The hotel sent them a bottle of Cristal after that, not sure if they were newlyweds or not, but they did it for good measure.

They'd had champagne on the flight down on the chartered jet too. With him, she was getting used to luxuries he took in stride but constantly provided for her. The jet itself had been fabulous and an extravagantly comfortable way to travel.

“You're going to ruin me for real life,” she said as she got into the Ferrari he had rented, and they left for dinner at Mr. Chow, which was one of his favorite restaurants in L.A., but as soon as they got out of the car, they were faced with a wall of the paparazzi who flocked there to catch a glimpse of the stars who came to dine. They snapped their picture going into the restaurant. Chase strode right past them with an arm around her and escorted her into the restaurant. He paid no attention to the photographers other than a discreet wave as they walked by. It startled Stephanie for a moment, but she felt him strong and protective beside her.

“Are we going to be all over the tabloids now?” she asked, looking worried. She hadn't thought of it before. People noticed him in Nashville, and asked for autographs, but the press had paid no attention to them. Here it was different, and there was a feeding frenzy of press photographers when they walked out.

“We might be,” he said, in answer to her question. “Do you mind?”

“Of course not, I'm proud to be with you. But I might have to say something to my kids if that happens. You don't look like Laura Perkins.” He laughed as she mentioned her mythical college friend, but in L.A. they could have been together for a number of reasons, none of which Stephanie could think of now, but she'd have to think on her feet and improvise if her kids challenged her about it. She still thought it was too soon to tell them she was dating, not to mention the fact that she had fallen madly in love. She knew they would be upset about it, out of loyalty to their father.

They went to bed early that night because his meeting at the record label was at nine the next morning. He was meeting his entertainment lawyer there, and his dramatic agent, to discuss possible promotions to go with a new album. And this time he didn't invite her to join him. This was in the big leagues and not a little meeting she could go to. It was a very big deal, involving a lot of money. He promised to meet her back at the Polo Lounge for lunch. And in the end, she went to the cabana he'd rented for them, and lay by the pool all morning. She was thoroughly enjoying the hotel and being in L.A. with Chase.

He came to find her at the cabana when he got back, and he looked gorgeous as she watched him thread his way through the chairs around the pool.

“How was it?” she asked, as he sat down at the foot of her chair, and leaned over to kiss her.

“Pretty damn good,” he said, pleased with the meeting. And as he said it, two women glanced over at him and whispered something to each other. He was recognized everywhere, and Stephanie felt important just being with him. It was exciting, and still a new experience for her. And a minute later, one of them came over and asked for his autograph and told him which of his hits were her favorite songs. He heard it all the time, and she was impressed by how gracious he was to fans, who always came over at the wrong time, or intruded during a meal. He was unfailingly polite and obliging to them. After the fan thanked him for his autograph, she was smiling from ear to ear as she walked away and gave a thumbs-up to her friend.

They went shopping at Maxfield's after lunch, and Chase bought some new clothes, black leather pants that were cut like jeans, and a black leather jacket that looked great on him and that he said he'd wear on stage. Everyone knew him there, and they made a fuss over Stephanie too. When she admired a Balenciaga bag she thought was too expensive, he surprised her and handed it to her when they got in the car, along with a cashmere scarf she'd loved, the same color as her eyes.

“Chase! What are you doing?” She was embarrassed by his generosity, but touched by it too. No one had ever spoiled her that way before. What he'd given her just from a random afternoon of shopping was more thoughtful than any Christmas gift Bill had ever given her. Chase was an entirely different breed. He amazed her constantly with his kindness, generosity, courtly manners, and good taste.

“I'm just loving you, that's all,” he said as he kissed her. And the two paparazzi who had been following them as they wandered in and out of shops on Melrose snapped their picture. It was almost sure to become news or wind up on YouTube. Stephanie was becoming mildly concerned. There was going to be no way to conceal their relationship if they were all over the press, but she knew it went with the territory with Chase, and she had to get used to it, and accept the risk of it happening at some point.

Later she told Jean about it when she called her that afternoon, when they went back to the pool.

“What am I going to tell the kids, if they catch us?” she said.

“I take it you're no longer a virgin,” Jean said drily.

“That's beside the point,” Stephanie said discreetly. She was not going to discuss her sex life with her friend, no matter how close they were. “I just don't want the kids to make an issue of it.”

“You know they will. And he's a big star, Steph, it's bound to come out, and probably soon if you're all over L.A. together.”

“I can't hide in our room.” And she didn't want to. She was having too much fun with him.

“The kids will get used to it,” Jean said calmly. “They can't expect you to be alone forever.”

“I think they do.” And they didn't expect her to date a country music star. Even Michael didn't suspect, and he was dating Sandy, but Chase had told her not to say anything to him. And their relationship hadn't been as engaged when Stephanie was in Nashville, so Sandy didn't know their current status either, but she knew enough to upset Michael if she told him. So she promised Chase she wouldn't.

The matter was taken out of their hands two days later when YouTube ran a clip of them kissing as they left an antiques shop, and there was a photograph of them on the cover of a tabloid, going into the hotel. Chase was wearing a tank top with all his tattoos showing, and Stephanie was wearing shorts and sandals, and they had their arms around each other's waists. Louise called her mother as she and Chase were getting up, and they had just ordered breakfast and were sitting on the patio of their room. Louise was livid.

“What the hell is that about, Mom?” she said for openers.

“Is what about? What are you so angry about?” Stephanie was still half asleep and hadn't seen the video or the tabloid. They were on the front page.

“You're having an affair with a rock star? Do you have a tattoo yet? What kind of hypocrite are you?”

“I'm not a hypocrite. And I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Have your boyfriend show you what's on YouTube. I'm assuming you're dating him, and it wasn't a one-night stand. I'm not sure which would be worse in this case.” She was almost in tears. “How can you do that to Dad?”

“I'm not doing anything to Dad,” Stephanie said, trying to sound as calm as she could in the circumstances. “And yes, I am dating Chase Taylor. I was going to tell you about it, but I thought it was too soon. It just happened. I didn't expect it either.”

“It didn't ‘happen,' Mom. You weren't kidnapped by aliens or taken hostage. You did it. That's a decision. How can you be so disrespectful to Dad?”

“I have never been disrespectful to your father. He's not here, Louise. I am. And Chase is a wonderful man. I think you'll like him a lot.”

“I'm never going to meet him!” Louise shouted at her over the phone, sounding hysterical. “And I can't believe you're whoring around five months after Dad died. What's wrong with you?”

“Don't speak to me like that!” Stephanie shouted back, and her voice was shaking. She couldn't believe what Louise was saying to her, even if she was upset. Being called a whore by her daughter didn't sit well with her, to say the least.

“And you were in Nashville with him, I guess. You lied to us, Mom. I'll never trust you again.” She was sobbing by then, and Stephanie was crying too.

“I didn't lie to you. Nothing had happened. This only started recently.”

“Well, if you have any respect for Dad, and any decency, you'll stop it immediately.” She was still crying as her mother closed her eyes and listened.

“I'm not going to stop it. I have a right to a life, Louise. Your father is dead, I'm not. And I'm not doing anything I need to apologize for, and certainly not to you after the way you're speaking to me. Get a grip on yourself.”

“You're making an ass of yourself, and embarrassing us. I just talked to Charlotte, and she doesn't even want to come home now. For God's sake, Mom, you're on YouTube! You didn't even know what that was last year.” But she did now, in spades. It was just unfortunate that Louise had seen it, and they'd been on the front page of
The
Globe
too. Chase was listening and could guess what had happened, as he gently reached out and touched her hand to let her know he was there and how sorry he was. They hadn't been as careful as they should, and he knew better, but he was so happy with her, and they'd been enjoying each other and L.A., and had gotten relaxed and not careful enough about the press.

Louise shouted at her for a few more minutes, and then hung up, still hysterical. And Stephanie looked at him unhappily as their breakfast arrived and the waiter set it up.

“I'm sorry, baby. Do you want to go back to San Francisco today?” he asked her.