Second Chance Ranch: a Hope Springs novel (Entangled Bliss) by Cindi Madsen

clawed at her, and then she’d done something she’d sworn she’d never do: she left the stage midsong. By the time she’d gotten into her car and driven away, the tears were pouring down her face.
    “I wanna hear you sing,” Eli said, leaning forward.
    She shot him a shut-it look. He was supposed to be on her side.
    “I showed you my art. I think it’s only fair.”
    Someone started chanting, “Sing, sing,” and it caught on like wildfire. Cory shoved the remaining half of his hot dog in his mouth, got out of his seat, and reappeared with his guitar a minute or so later.
    Panic rose up, sharp enough it stung her lungs. Singing to a crowd of jaded teens who probably hated country music hardly seemed like a good way to get her confidence back. Eli raised his voice over the chanting. “What, you too cool for this stuff?” he asked, echoing the words she’d said to him the first day they met.
    I’m stuck now , she thought, slowly standing so her diaphragm wouldn’t be all squished up and she’d have a better shot at getting the best sound possible. “Okay. One song.”
    It’s just a small group. No mic, no crowd expecting a brilliant performance.
    Along with the apprehension clenching Sadie’s stomach, a tingle of excitement mixed in. Somewhere along the way, singing had become a source of stress. Out here, just her and Cory’s guitar—well, it was the type of singing she loved.
    With her panic easing the tiniest bit, she was at least able to get a little air back in her lungs.
    Cory played a couple chords. “Let me guess, you want me to play ‘Honky Tonk Badonkadonk.’”
    Sadie shot Cory a dirty look and his grin widened. Like she’d really want to sing an offensive song about girls’ butts. “Funny,” she said, and despite her nerves, she found herself smiling. “But so not gonna happen.”
    Cory laughed and so did Royce—that helped, too. It was almost like old times all over again.
    “How about ‘Before He Cheats’ and I act out the music video using your truck?” She made a big show of looking around. “Where’s a baseball bat?”
    “Hey, do you guys know any Lady Antebellum?” Addison asked, and Sadie whipped her head toward the girl, surprised she knew any country groups, even though that one was pretty crossover. “I actually kind of like them.”
    Sadie glanced at Cory. He nodded and started playing the intro to “Just a Kiss.”
    Her heart was pounding fast, which was pretty inconvenient considering it had relocated to her throat. She blew out her breath and closed her eyes for a moment, centering herself with the music… Then she started, quieter than she usually did, but the notes were right. Cory sang softly along with her, taking the guy’s part, and while he always rebuffed the compliment, he did have a good voice. With each word, she put more behind it until instinct took over and she was belting out the lyrics, the way she used to when it was all about the music. By the second verse, she got up the courage to look at some of the faces.
    And when she was singing about shots in the dark and just a kiss good night, how could she not sing at Royce? She didn’t want to mess everything up, but she found herself hoping that maybe someday she’d get to kiss him again—because the thought of not being able to made a tight band form around her chest.
    Then the song was over and adrenaline was pumping through her veins, giving her that floaty performing buzz. There really was nothing else like it. I did it!
    The little group applauded. Addison even said, “Wow, that was really good!” Maybe Royce was right—she should give the girl a chance. Sadie gave a little bow, settled back on the log next to Royce, and stole a peek at him.
    He shot up, rubbing his palms on his jeans. “Looks like we’re out of drinks. I’ll be right back.” He took large strides toward the house, fading into the blackness.
    For weeks, things had been stilted between her and Royce, but today it felt