“Sawyer carrying her offstage. Everyone thinks it was part of the act, and they’re loving it. They love Piper and Sawyer together.”
Piper let that soak in. People loved her and Sawyer together. Everyone was thrilled at the simple idea of it. Except her father, of course.
“Ridiculous!” Heath scoured his own social media accounts to verify Dean’s claims.
“I think we should take advantage of this. You could have Sawyer join Piper’s tour as the opening act. As long as we don’t deny the possibility of a relationship, people will be scrambling to buy tickets to see for themselves if they’re a couple or not. It’s a win-win for both of them.”
“We were leaning more toward crossover performers for opening acts. Artists who aren’t only country.”
“I think Sawyer’s songs have a wide appeal, as well,” Dean argued.
Heath wouldn’t give in. “We were also considering female artists to avoid exactly what you’re suggesting we promote—rumors about my daughter and her love life.”
Piper saw it differently than her father for one very important reason. The baby wasn’t going to be a secret forever. Eventually, she would have to not only come clean to her father and Dean but also the world. Maybe Dean was giving her the answer she had been looking for since this morning. Maybe the feelings she’d had for him were more real than she’d thought.
Piper let her head fall into her hands. Her thoughts drifted back to right before she’d passed out. Instead of walking away at the end of the song, Sawyer had been drawn to her. He was going to kiss her. Maybe his feelings had changed. Her father would have to come around. Sawyer would always be part of their lives.
“I need to talk to Sawyer,” she announced. Everyone exchanged curious glances. “Now. I have to ask him something.”
Dean went to find him. Her father sat beside her on the couch. “Do we need to go back to the hospital? I know you were sick before the performance, but maybe it’s more than a stomach bug.”
The sincere concern in his voice made Piper’s guilt for keeping the secret resurge. Sawyer needed to hear the news first, however. “I’ll be fine. It’s nothing. Maybe I was more anxious about performing than I thought I was. I feel much better now, I swear.”
“We don’t have to include the Stratton boy in any of this. You know we can’t let him distract us from your ultimate goal. It’s not your job to sell his records, only yours.”
“The rumors have already started. I need to talk to him about what’s going on. I’m fully committed to making the crossover into popular music. I know what I have to do, and if Sawyer joins the tour, that’s not going to change.”
Piper couldn’t let her father down. He had given up his career to be her manager, to help her make her dreams of being a country-western music star come true. The pressure of supporting her family was plenty of motivation, and now their family would be expanding.
Dean and Sawyer entered the room with equally worried expressions on their faces. Sawyer tried to smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
“I need to talk to Sawyer alone,” Piper said. Although they looked confused, Lana and Dean left the room. Her father needed an additional push. “I’ll explain everything, I promise. Please give me a minute with Sawyer.”
Reluctantly, Heath followed the rest out.
“How are you feeling?” Sawyer asked, taking her father’s spot on the couch. He placed a warm hand on her knee. “You really gave me a scare there.”
Piper’s heart thumped double-time. Maybe everything was going to work out better than she’d imagined. “I’ll be okay. Thank you for holding me up and getting me offstage.”
“Anytime.” His trademark smile was back.
“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.”
“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