Love Songs And Lullabies

“I wanted to talk to you about what happened. About what was about to happen before I fainted.” Her stomach was in knots, but she had to know how he felt. If he had feelings for her, everything would truly be okay.

Sawyer stood up and rubbed the nape of his neck. “I am so sorry about that, Piper.”

She could feel her hope rising. “Don’t be sorry.”

“Dean thought it would be a more dramatic ending if you didn’t know it was coming. I wasn’t so sure about it, but I’m the new guy around here. I’m just trying to make a good impression.”

Piper’s heart sank. “Dean told you to kiss me?”

“He told me to make it look like I was going to kiss you. Obviously he doesn’t know about what happened between us, but he thought since Kelly Bonner was all about you and me being a secret item, we could really add fuel to the gossip fire.”

So it had all been for show. Not real. There were no hidden feelings being revealed. Piper felt a strange amount of anger build in her chest. “So, whatever someone tells you will help your career, you’ll do it. No questions asked, huh?”

Sawyer grimaced. He had basically accused her of the same thing a few months ago. “I should have clued you in on what was going to happen. Given the stuff that’s gone on between us, I should have told you,” Sawyer replied.

The stuff. Piper felt like a fool all over again. This didn’t change what needed to happen, though. In the end, there was only one solution to her problem.

With her heart in her throat, she stood up to look him straight in the eye. “Sawyer, I’m pregnant.”

CHAPTER FIVE (#u74104fa4-2cf5-5fce-87e2-9871c226404a)

“EXCUSE ME?” THERE was no way Sawyer could have heard Piper correctly. The word pregnant could not have come out of her mouth. She had the stomach flu. Maybe she was delirious.

“The fans want us to be together, Dean said that going on tour together is the right thing to do for both of us, and the smartest move we can make is to give people what they want.”

Sawyer’s eyes couldn’t get any wider. His mouth snapped shut. What in the world was she talking about? He could have sworn she’d told him she was pregnant, but now she was talking about what was best for their careers?

“Did you just say you’re pregnant?” he finally managed to get out.

Piper began to flit around the room. Her arms flailed as she spoke. “I found out this morning at the hospital. Did you know they test for pregnancy without even asking? If you need an X-ray, they run a pregnancy test. Just like that. Then, the doctor walks in and drops the bomb—‘You’re pregnant!’—and you’re supposed to take that all in and leave with your prescription for prenatal vitamins like it’s no big deal. But let me tell you, it is a very big deal. It’s the biggest deal ever.”

“You’re pregnant.” Sawyer didn’t know what else to say. He needed to sit down. His mind was racing. He plopped down on the couch and stared straight ahead. Piper was pregnant and he was the father.

How were the two of them going to raise a baby? Sawyer didn’t have time to take care of his dog in this new life; how was he supposed to be a parent?

Piper kept moving like some sort of out-of-control Energizer Bunny. “I need to tell my father, but I thought you should hear it first. We need to convince him that this won’t ruin everything. He’ll know what to do so our careers stay on track.”

Sawyer’s brows pinched together. He didn’t need Heath Starling telling him what to do about his child. Heath might control Piper, but he was not going to control Sawyer, and he definitely wouldn’t be in charge of this child.

“This is our baby.” He pointed to her flat stomach, trying to picture it round and swollen. “We get to decide what happens. Not your dad.”

“I feel sick. I think I had too much sugar.” Piper sat down next to him. “My dad can help protect my image.”

“How can you think about your image right now?”

Piper didn’t flinch. “How can I not? I am financially responsible for my entire family, Sawyer. My career pays for everything, including my brother’s enormous medical bills. My family depends on me to uphold the image I’ve sold to the world.” She placed a hand on her stomach. “And I am thinking about this baby. This baby is going to depend on it, as well.”

Sawyer took a deep breath. “How is being pregnant going to ruin your image?”

Piper picked at the sequins on her dress. “Trust me. I’ve been at this longer than you have. I know how the business works. Country music is way more conservative than pop. I may be looking to cross over but my base is still country. Not to mention that my brand is good girl, girl-next-door, girl you can bring home to your mom. Good girls don’t get themselves in this situation. Good girls get married and then have babies. There are mothers out there who would not want their daughters listening to my music if they thought I promoted anything other than a clean lifestyle.”

Sawyer had issues with this logic but couldn’t deny he’d seen other celebrities take a fall when a scandal hit. A baby and a wife weren’t exactly part of his branding, either. He shook his head. How was he able to think about his image and career right now?

“Can I have a little more time to wrap my head around this before I have to deal with your father, who is probably going to kill me?”

“We have to tell him before I go meet with the tour promoters tomorrow to sign the contract. There’s no way I can go on a yearlong tour when I’m going to have a baby in less than nine months.”

The tour would have to be cut short. Sawyer hadn’t thought about that. Heath really was going to kill him.

They agreed to meet in the morning for breakfast. They would tell Heath together.

Sawyer left Bridgestone Arena feeling much less confident about his future than he had coming in.

* * *

“THE MORE I think about it, the more I can’t believe you’re okay with the world thinking you and Piper have a thing going,” Hunter said as they walked into their hotel. “Anyone who knows you is never going to believe it, and everyone who doesn’t, will. So much for me being wingman to the most eligible bachelor on tour.”

“I can’t talk about this right now.” Pretending to be dating Piper was the least of Sawyer’s concerns.

“Poor Hunter is going to have to find his own dates,” Faith teased. “And I’ll say it again, there are worse things than dating Piper Starling.”

Sawyer wasn’t about to let himself truly fall for someone like Piper. He’d been avoiding women like her his entire adult life. Why had he let his guard down? Piper had made it clear back then and tonight that her career was her number one priority. She reminded him of women like his mother, who’d left her husband and children without ever looking back.

Sawyer wanted to be like his father—a strong provider who put his family first. But how was he going to manage raising a child while building a career in music? How difficult would Piper and Heath make it for him to be part of their child’s life? He knew one thing for sure—he didn’t want his child raised by nannies.

“I need a minute with my brother,” Faith said, hooking her arm in his and pulling him in the direction of the stairs instead of the elevator. “We’ll meet you upstairs.”

She pushed the door open and motioned for him to lead the way. He might have grown up without a mother, but he had a Faith, and she knew him better than anyone.

“What’s going on in that head of yours? Ever since you got done talking to Piper, you look like your favorite horse just ran away.”

“It’s been a pretty stressful day.”

“Tell me what’s really going on. Is there something wrong with Piper? Does she not want you to go on tour with her? What did she need to talk to you about?”

Lying to his sister was impossible, and right now he needed someone to talk to more than ever. “What if I told you it’s not so far-fetched that Piper and I could be together? What if we were together a couple months ago?”

Faith didn’t buy it for a second. “I was there when you two were working on her album. You were living under my roof. You might have been flirtatious, but there’s no way you were sneaking around having a secret romance. I would have noticed.”

Sawyer side-eyed her as they made their way up the stairs. She was one to talk. Faith and Dean had carried on a secret romance for an entire summer over a dozen years ago when she was only eighteen.

“Right, because no one has ever gotten away with a secret relationship on our farm before.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. Dad knew about me and Dean. I didn’t know he knew, but he did. He told the Presleys about us.” She was quiet, probably thinking back to when things were starting between Piper and Sawyer. “I’ll admit, I noticed she looked at you like you hung the moon for a long time. I also noticed you were kind of loving all the attention. But those last couple weeks, it was different. It was almost like you were avoiding each other.”

They had been avoiding each other, but that was no longer a possibility. Piper would be a part of Sawyer’s life forever. “What if we were in love? Or thought we were.”

Faith laughed. “If you were in love, I would know, because it would change you. And you have been the same ol’ Sawyer since she left Grass Lake.”