“Really? Have I heard of it?”
He gave her an indulgent smile. “No, I don’t think so.” He shook the ice in his cup and drained the remaining soda. “At the risk of sounding like a fanboy, I’d like to hear about your work.”
She sensed that he was embarrassed by his band’s low profile. She shrugged. “Not much to tell, really.” In spite of her fame, she’d never been comfortable talking about herself. She looked directly at him and wondered if he knew how handsome he was. “Is there anything in particular you were wondering about?”
He ran his finger down the condensation on the sides of the cup. “When I heard you sing this afternoon, I was thinking that with your voice maturing the way it is, you might try some crossover stuff. Lots of country artists are doing that now.”
She tried to hide her surprise. “I’ve been thinking the same thing. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to talk to the songwriter.”
He nodded. “There are always other songwriters.”
“Easy for you to say.”
He gave her an odd look, and she gave her head a quick shake. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound snippy.” She glanced over at Sunny, who was watching them with interest.
She fell silent. “I don’t know how to say this,” she said after a few moments.
“Try.” He drew the straw out of his cup and sucked off the droplets of moisture. His lips were full and sensuous; she regretted not having kissed him all those years ago.
“It’s just...” She paused to collect her thoughts. “He seems to understand me. There are times when I’m singing his songs and it’s as though he’s invaded my body. As though he knows everything about me.” She gave a short, self-conscious laugh. “Does that sound crazy?”
“No, not at all.” There was something in his voice. “I get it.”
Neither of them noticed when Sunny got up and headed for the restroom.
Mandy exhaled slowly. “Thank goodness. When I’ve tried to explain it to Simon, he says I’m delusional.”
His eyes flashed angrily. “Why do you put up with that? He sounds like an ass.”
Tears pooled in her eyes; it felt good to have someone stand up for her. “Thank you.”
He gave his head an angry shake and reached for her hands. “I’m serious. You deserve better.” His thumb caressed the back of her hand.
She looked at their hands linked on the table, then raised her eyes. “Too bad you had to move away when we were young.” Her mouth curved in a lop-sided smile.
He released her hands and she wondered what she’d said to offend him. “Funny you should say that,” he said after a moment. “I had such a crush on you on high school.”
“You did?” Her words came out high-pitched and breathless. “Then I have a confession. I wish you’d kissed me that day. Something tells me we would have been good together.”
He leaned forward on his elbows and stared into her eyes. “We are good together.”
She glanced around, confused. “I didn’t mean like this...”
“I know, Mandy.” He took a deep breath. “It’s my turn to confess.”
There was something in his tone... something in the intensity of his gaze.
“Mandy, I’m your songwriter.”
Mandy blinked several times. Had she heard him correctly? The rustling of the trees and the soft ‘clink’ of horseshoes faded into the background as his words sank in.
“You?” Something bloomed deep in her chest. “You’re my songwriter?”
He raised both hands in a gesture of resignation. “Guilty.”
“But how...” She had a million questions. “You’re SwingTime? As in–”
“As in that day on the swing.” A slow grin transformed his face. “In a way, I’m glad my family moved away. I probably wouldn’t have tried writing if I hadn’t been mooning around about you.”
“Are you serious?” She wanted to believe him, but it was all so sudden. “You wouldn’t kid around about this, would you?”
“No, Mandy. That’s why I’m here this weekend.” He raised his eyebrows. “Well, two reasons, really. One, I wanted to hear you debut the new song, and secondly, I decided it was time to meet with you. I’m serious about trying some crossover tunes.”
“But why wouldn’t you meet with me before this?” She narrowed her eyes at him. “That’s never made sense to me.”
“Maybe not, but I was writing songs from the heart, trying to capture the way I felt all those years ago, when we were young. I was afraid that if I met you again, all of the fame would have changed you.”
“And has it?”
He grinned. “Not that I can tell.”
She exhaled slowly. “Thanks, I think.” She turned to see Sunny striding toward them, a big smile on her face.
Chapter Five
“David’s coming after all.” Sunny waved her cell phone. “He finally got away.” She stopped at the table. “What? You guys look guilty.”
“Sunny,” said Mandy, speaking slowly. “Matt just told me he’s my songwriter.”
“Get out!” Sunny made a face, then looked from Mandy to Matthew, then back to her friend. “You’re serious!”
They both nodded.
“Uh, oh.” She slid onto the bench beside Mandy.
“What do you mean, ‘uh-oh’?” Mandy nudged her friend.
Sunny rolled her eyes. “What I mean is, how does this affect whatever is going on between you guys? I mean, sheesh, I’ve never seen so many sparks fly.” She paused to consider. “Well, maybe between David and I, but that’s different.”