She looked at him curiously but didn't say a word.

"I enjoy lazy mornings in bed, the kind when we're all wrapped up in one another, making love and never bothering to look at the clock."

"Really?" she asked softly, but it really wasn't a question.

Matt nodded. "Same goes for late nights. Or afternoons. Or really anytime we're together near a bed. That's all I want to do-wrap you up in my arms and love you until we're too tired to move."

"Wow," she sighed. "I totally think I can live with that."

"You do, huh?" he asked with a lopsided grin.

"I really do."

"That's good, Viv. Because I was thinking..."

There was a knock at the bedroom door, and they turned as Riley popped his head inside, grinning. "Okay, good. I'm not interrupting."

"Yeah you were," Matt replied grumpily.

"Nah," Riley said, walking into the room. "You're both fully dressed and on the deck for all the world to see."

Matt shook his head and laughed but kept Vivienne tucked beside him. "So what's up?"

"Savannah's got lunch out, and afterward, I thought you'd like to come to the venue and jam with me for a bit while the girls go and do their thing."

Eyes wide with excitement, Matt looked down at Vivienne. "What do you think?"

She loved that his immediate response was to think of her, but her immediate response was to burst out laughing.

"What? What's so funny?"

"Matt, you don't have to ask my permission. I think it's a great idea, and if it's what you want to do, then you should do it." She kissed him soundly on the lips before turning to Riley. "And what kinds of things does Savannah have planned for us? Do you know?"

"She mentioned shopping and pedicures."

Vivienne's smile broadened, and she playfully pushed out of Matt's embrace. "You two can go and play all day," she said as she walked toward the door. "The women have business to attend to."

When she was out the door, Matt was still smiling as he turned to Riley. With a helpless shrug, he said, "I don't even know what I'm smiling about more-getting to jam with you or just seeing Vivienne so happy."

Riley clapped him on the back and gave him a nudge toward the door. "And it's a beautiful thing when those two things go together." He laughed. "Now let's eat so we can play."

"This is pure bliss."

"Mmm-hmm."

"I never knew such a thing was possible."

"It's good to have connections."

"Do you think... Oh God, that's good... Do you think we should...maybe... Never mind. Screw it," Vivienne said as she let her head fall back against the massaging chair. Her foot was being massaged, and she was enjoying the most decadent milk shake she'd ever had in her life.

"If you were going to ask if maybe we should come back and do this again tomorrow, I'm all for it," Savannah said, sighing with her own pleasure.

"Don't get me wrong. I've had pedicures before, and I've had milk shakes. Just never at the same time. And it's glorious."

Savannah nodded. "We came through here a year ago and discovered the ice cream parlor. I nearly orgasmed after I took my first sip of milk shake. So when I was looking for a spa for us today and saw there was one right next door to that sweet, creamy heaven, I knew it would be perfect."

"From this point forward, I will never doubt anything you suggest."

"Were you planning on it?" Savannah teased.

"No. But this just sealed the deal."

They each took a moment to enjoy the massage and their sweet drinks. Vivienne was so relaxed and happy that she could barely believe it. She turned toward Savannah and smiled sleepily. "So where do you guys go after this?"

"We have about a week off and we're going to visit my parents in Kansas."

"That sounds nice. Does Riley get along with them?"

"Oh, yeah. Our families have become very close. My parents came to North Carolina to see me when I was there interviewing Riley's family, and they became fast friends with Riley's dad and his girlfriend."

"That's very cool," Vivienne replied and then sighed. "I'm sure that would be very nice."

"You don't think it will happen for your families?"

Shaking her head, Vivienne reached for her chocolate shake and took a long sip before answering. "My parents live in Paris and aren't all that social-or at least they never used to be. We're working on that." She had to remind herself that there was a good chance of things getting better and not to have such a negative outlook where they were concerned.

"Do they come back often?"

"Not really. Although my mom and I just talked about her coming for a visit and the two of us having some girl time."

"That could be nice," Savannah said, sounding hopeful.

Vivienne wasn't quite ready to believe it or talk about how complicated her relationship was with her parents up to this point in her life.

"And what about Matt's family? Do you like them?"

"He doesn't have one," she said sadly.

Beside her, Savannah softly gasped. "I had no idea."

Vivienne nodded. "His parents divorced when he was younger and his mom left. His relationship with his dad was extremely volatile, and it wasn't until the band took off that he went and found his mom."

"Are they close?"

"She passed away several years ago."

"Oh man. I don't even know what to say. Poor Matt."

"I know. It's one of the main reasons he never comes home to North Carolina. There's no one here for him. Plus, his father still lives in town and Matt has been fairly adamant about not wanting to see him."

"So what does that mean for the two of you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well...it's pretty obvious he's crazy about you and vice versa, so how do you make that work? Is he willing to live with you, or are you going to move with him?"

"We haven't talked too much about it," Vivienne admitted. "He's said he'd stay if it made me happy, but I have to wonder if it's the right thing-the fair thing-to do."

Savannah nodded. "Let me ask you this: How attached are you to where you live? Are you open to living someplace else?"

She shrugged. "It's been my home since forever. Different houses and all, but it's still my hometown." She sighed. "I lived in Denver for two years for a job and I didn't hate it, but..."

"You missed your home."

"Exactly."

"If I could make a suggestion?" Savannah began cautiously.

"Please!" Vivienne replied anxiously. Maybe an impartial third party was the answer.

"No one says you have to live any one place one hundred percent of the time. Maybe you keep a house here but you also have a place somewhere else. Plus, if they start touring again, you're going to be living a mobile lifestyle."

That was something else Vivienne had been avoiding. Her job wouldn't be an issue-she really could do it anywhere, especially now that she was an assistant editor. But the thought of not having a kitchen of her own to cook in? That had the potential to make her more than a little crazy.

"I can pretty much hear you thinking from here," Savannah said. "Don't let it freak you out. We have no way of knowing if and when they'll tour again. Although..."

Vivienne looked at her hopefully. "Although?"

Savannah looked around carefully and then leaned close to Vivienne, lowering her voice. "I think after this tour is done, it's going to be a while before Riley takes on such a big thing again."

"Seriously? But what about if the band-?"

"He's ready for a break and...we really want to start a family."

"That's great!"

"Shh!" Savannah hissed and then giggled. "We've been talking about it, and we're both excited at the thought of having a baby, but I told him that if we did, he couldn't be gone for months at a time. I refuse to raise a child that way."

"And what did he say?"

"He fully agreed. So what I'm trying to say is...should they get back together, there's a really good chance it's going to be vastly different from the way things used to be. You won't need to be mobile for too long."

That put Vivienne's mind at ease, and she let herself relax again, picking up her milk shake. "I guess that's one hurdle."

"Just remember, you didn't hear it from me."

Making a zipping motion over her mouth, she smiled. "My lips are sealed."

Chapter 10.

Exhaustion.

That was the only word that came to Matt's mind and clung. The weekend had been a whirlwind and more fun than he'd had in a long time. They'd said good-bye to Riley and Savannah a few hours ago and were almost home.

Home.

Just the thought of it made him smile.

Turning his head, he looked over at Vivienne and saw she was losing the fight to stay awake. Not that he could blame her. They hadn't slept much all weekend, and after the concert last night, they had pretty much stayed up and celebrated until the sun had come up. It was a lifestyle Matt was familiar with, but he knew it wasn't something Vivienne normally did.

When he and Riley had gone to the arena on Friday and goofed around onstage, it had been fun. They jammed, they sang, they talked about how they felt the first time they'd played a venue that large. There was an agenda for Riley that he needed to follow, so Matt had taken a backseat during some of their time there.

When they arrived for the show Saturday night, they had been ushered backstage along with Savannah, and Matt had been shocked when Riley had called him out to play a couple of songs. They hadn't talked about it in advance, and by the time he had taken his final bow, he had felt more invigorated, more alive, than he had in years. He missed it. He missed playing the music he loved with the people he loved. Toward the end of the last Shaughnessy tour, no one had been having fun. They were all burned-out and ready for a break. Playing with Riley again proved that the chemistry was still there, and although they hadn't gone any further in talking about it, Matt had a feeling that once Riley's solo tour was over, the dialogue would be open to the next Shaughnessy album.

Though it would be several months away, Matt tried to picture living back in LA, where they normally recorded. He used to love living on the West Coast. There was always something to do, someplace to go, a party to be found. That wasn't something he was looking for now. Now he wanted to focus on making the music and making a life that was meaningful and not just about having a good time.

Beside him, Vivienne sleepily whispered his name. He reached over and took one of her hands in his while watching the road. "You okay, baby?" he asked softly.

"Mmm...talk to me. I don't want to fall asleep when we're so close to home." She shifted and sat up a little straighter. "We didn't get to talk, just the two of us, about how you felt going out onstage last night."

He couldn't help but grin. When he had walked off the stage last night, he had felt like he was on top of the world. The adrenaline was pumping, and the amazing response from the crowd had felt like total vindication.

He was back!

Before they had gotten on the road, Riley had simply handed him a copy of a review of the show and said, "We'll talk." When Matt had gotten in the car, he had glanced at it briefly, and his heart had kicked with pure joy. "Riley Shaughnessy Gets a Little Help from His Friend-Matty Reed! And the Fans Want More!" the headline read.

"You saw the review, right?" he asked.

She nodded and yawned loudly. "Oh...sorry. It was amazing, Matt. I know I saw you on the last tour you guys did together, but what you did last night was so much better. There was an energy, a playfulness, that wasn't there then. The crowd was almost deafening by the time you were done."

Exactly, he thought.

"Did you know Riley was going to do that-call you up onstage?"

"We sort of talked about it, but I didn't really think he'd do it. We had so much fun just goofing around on Friday, but I didn't think about doing anything at the show. It's Riley's show, his music, and I certainly didn't want to do anything to take that away from him. But I think the fans loved that we threw some of our old music in there on the fly. Honestly, I was having a great time just listening to him and his band-they sound freaking amazing! Better than I thought they would." He looked over at her and smiled. "Can I let you in on a little secret?"

"Absolutely," she replied, grinning back at him.