Free Under a Georgia Moon: Georgia Moon Romance Book 1 by Cindy Roland Anderson

sir.”
    “This is a formal event so wear a tux. By the way, you’ll be escorting Hayden.”
    The phone went silent. Mr. Barclay had given his order and hung up.
    Chase slipped the phone back in his pocket. Hayden is back home? He’d been relieved when she moved to California the year before to pursue an acting career. Hopefully this was just a visit. He wasn’t in the mood to play any of her games, and somehow he knew Hayden was behind the invitation.
    Feeling aggravated, Chase straddled his bike. Why couldn’t Hayden just let go? It’s not like she really loved Chase. She just didn’t like to lose any more than her father.
    He pulled out his phone again to access his music, but before he got a chance his phone chimed an incoming text. If it was work related, he better answer it so Shanna didn’t have to track him down again. At least one of them should enjoy their weekend.
    There were actually two messages. One from Miss Janie and the other from Lexie. He opened the one from Lexie first.
    Hey, my roomies and I are making homemade pizza tonight if you want to stop by for supper. Try to come because I miss you. Love Lexie.
    Love? Obviously Lexie hadn’t taken him seriously when he’d told her a couple of weeks ago they needed to see other people. Lexi was pretty and sweet and he’d sure liked kissing her, but he wasn’t in love with her.
    When they’d first started dating, Lexie told him upfront she wasn’t looking to get married for a long time. It had been exactly what Chase needed to hear because he wasn’t in the market for a wife either.
    He wasn’t ready to make a commitment to her or any other girl right now. Before he decided to settle down for good, he wanted to see if he could really give his music career a chance. Once he married, he knew he might never have the opportunity again. Drew was increasingly adamant that they cut back on performances because of his growing family. Even Jackson seemed less enthusiastic since he’d married Sydney.
    Despite what Lexi told him, after they’d been dating for a little over a month, she’d started dropping hints about them being completely exclusive. Chase flat out asked her what she’d meant by that and Lexie confessed she’d like to see if they could make their relationship more permanent. She’d even suggested moving in together.
    Chase had been shocked. He and Lexie met at a church retreat and the extent of their intimacy had been a few hot make out sessions. Without feeling too guilty, he’d ended the relationship amicably. It looked like he’d been too nice.
    Rather than make a less than friendly reply, Chase simply deleted the message. If Lexie persisted in trying to start things up again, he’d have to be more direct.
    Next he opened the message from his neighbor and smiled.
    Chase, thank you again for picking up Addie. You’ve always been such a polite, considerate boy, and I knew I could count on you to get my niece to me safely. She’s a real sweetheart and I’ve missed her. I hated leaving her home all alone today. If you get time, maybe you could stop by and say hello. Hugs.
    Shaking his head at her not-so-subtle attempt at matchmaking, he keyed in a response, telling her he’d try to stop by. Not wanting to get interrupted again, he hastily accessed his playlist, placed the ear buds in each ear and pocketed the phone. Then he pedaled off before anyone else attempted to get a hold of him.
    Although Janie was considered his neighbor, there was still a good half a mile in between their houses. As he approached her driveway, he decided he wasn’t in the mood to talk with Addie right now. Maybe after a good long ride he’d feel less stressed.
    The first mile, Chase concentrated on the music, especially the guitar solos Brad Paisley was so famous for. The gifted musician had been Chase’s idol for as long as he could remember. While Chase could never claim to be as good as the popular country music artist, he knew he was pretty talented.