Another Cold State Line

I stared down at my daughter. It was still weird to think about it. While I had always wanted a family, I always thought I would be there from the start. But I understood Hayley so much better now. Julianna was an amazing human being, and I was lucky to be in her life now.

“One day, you are going to break hearts just like your mom,” I said to my sleeping baby girl. “She is a wonderful woman, and you are so fortunate to have her as a mother. She is… my world. Well, you are now.” I pressed a kiss to her forehead and left her room.

“Matt,” Hayley said and smiled at me. “You are… too much for words sometimes.”

I smiled, flashing my dimples at her. She instantly blushed. I forgot how much I missed that about her. “I told you I was serious about this, love. I want to be a real family. And I would never lie to our daughter about you.”

“I know.” Hayley sighed. “But you need to go talk to the boys. Don’t worry, Matty, we aren’t going anywhere. I have roots here now, and I want to keep them. Plus, Julianna would kill me if I ever left her daddy again.”

Taking a deep breath, I pulled her in for a hug. “Thank you for saying that. Now, I’ll be back next week.”
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“Are you legitimately shitting me?” I had never seen Zach truly angry before. Sure, there had been times when Vengeance came out. He had destroyed a guitar on stage once, but this was not the calm mediator we were used to.

“Well, calm down.” Johnny threw a water bottle at the lefty. “Look, Matt’s right. This is his life. That’s his little girl, our niece. Should Hayley have told him sooner? Of course. But Z, think about it from her perspective.” Johnny had turned into the calming force in the group. Even though he was the youngest of us and still the prankster, he knew how to calm us all down. He used to be the little brother, but I guess he grew up.

ZV sighed. “I just don’t want you to uproot your entire life for her. I know Hayley is your soul mate, and I don’t think any of us could deny that. But, Matt, we need you just as much as you need her. Can’t she come to Huntington?”

I ran a hand over my mohawk. “I don’t want to ask that of her. She just bought that ranch. She’s a famous cattle rancher now! Who would I be to ask her to uproot in the hopes that we can be more than just parents?”

“It’s not going to be easy to co-parent when she’s five hours away,” Brian said. Out of all of them, he was the most onboard. Since he had married Vivian, he was insanely smart. That woman got to him in the best ways possible.

“I know, and that’s why after this tour, I’m gonna go spend some time with my family.” I looked at each guy. “I know that if something important comes up, I will be with you in a heartbeat, but I want to give being a real family a chance. Julianna deserves that much.”

They all smiled at me, but it was Johnny that spoke up. “We all need a summer away from each other, trust me. Touring can eat away at even a friendship like ours. Go, be a family. Take the time you need. Besides, we know that we want Wackerman and we know that we want a concept album. Try to brainstorm while you learn about your little girl. BUT! We have to meet her.”

A huge grin came across my face. “Of course! Don’t spoil her too much. She already has a horse.”
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“It’s so good to see you again.” Hayley smiled brightly at each of my boys and hugged them tightly. She had always been close to them, and even after she left, they never had a bad word to say. Everyone understood where she was coming from.

“While we are excited to see you, we want to meet our niece.” Zacky put a shoulder around Hayley and then looked around her kitchen.

She laughed. “She’s getting dressed. She wants to look nice for her uncles.”

We all turned when we heard the pitter patter of little feet coming down the stairs. Julianna was the perfect combination of the two of us, and I could tell the guys could see it. When her little dimples pop, they almost melted.

“Hello, I’m Julianna. Are you my uncles?”

They all nodded and squatted to hug my baby girl. Maybe this was going to work out better than I could have ever hoped.

Notes

Well, I am so sorry I left you all for so long. What can I say? It has been a series of events that I wish I could take back. The fact of the matter is, I have had a rough 2 months. It feels like ever since that mechanic sexually assaulted, my life has had lots of lows. Suffice to say, two ER visits later... I have kidney infection. Thank you all for staying with me and this story. I'll do my best to update more frequently. Love y'all.