Chad: I onlyrecently found out myself, but I thought maybe she could help with our littleissue.
Devin: Areyou asking for our blessing to get her on board?
Chad: Youknow it.
Sebastian: Uh,well, let’s put it this way: if you DON’T get her on board, I’mgonnakick your fine ass.
Sebastian:How’s THAT for a blessing?
Theconversation ended there, and I lowered the phone. “Um … so, what’s thisabout?”
“Well,”he said, folding his arms against the table and staring into my eyes, “I got aphone call from Devin this weekend, and he told me the opener we had for thetour got into a motorcycle accident.”
Mylips fell open with an audible gasp. “Oh, my God. Are they okay?”
Henodded solemnly. “He’s in rough shape, but he’ll be all right.”
“Oh,that’s good.” I breathed out with relief.
“We’reout anopenin’ act, though,” he mentioned slyly. “Andtonight, I sent that video of you to the guys,‘causeI’d really like you to come on the road withus.”
Hehadn’t even attempted to beat around the bush, and my mouth fell open beforeclamping shut again. My throat was instantly dry, my tongue instantly tied, andmy eyes were so wide, I thought they’d fall right out of my head if I didn’tshut them quick. From my reaction, he laughed, smiling as he tipped his gazetoward the table.
Ihad no idea what to do with my hands, and it all seemed to happen in slowmotion. First, they laid on an invisible table, fingers splayed and shaking.Then, they were raised and pressed to my cheeks as the in and out of my breathraced to the point where I thought I would hyperventilate.
“Chad.Chad! Are youserious?” He nodded soundlessly as he grinned, obviously enjoyingthis way too much. “Oh, my Lord! Oh, my … oh, myGod! Wait, you’re notpullin’ my leg right now, are you? Because I swear on mymama’s grave, if you are—”
“I’mnotpullin’ your leg,” he assured me sincerely.
Myeyes filled to the brim and my hands moved to swipe away the tears leaking frombetween my lashes. “Oh, my God, ofcourseI’m interested!”
Ilunged forward and leaned over the table that separated us, to throw my armsaround his neck. He seemed taken aback for a moment, before wrapping his armsaround me and touching his nose to my shoulder. I felt him inhale as thetension released from his broad shoulders, and …God, he smelled good.Like summers, youth, nostalgia and innocence. But there was something else,too. Something that made me all too aware of his cheek pressed close to mine,and of how masculine and rough his skin was in comparison to my own. It wassomething mature, something beyondbestfriends forever. And maybe it was that I couldn’t remember when I was lasthugged like this. Or maybe it was that he had just offered me the opportunityof a lifetime. But whateveritwas,it felt nice and I didn’t want to let him go.
“Thankyou, Chad,” I whispered into his ear, as my heart raced towardterritoryI knew it shouldn’t.
“You’rewelcome,” he replied in a rasped tone and I wondered if he felt it, too. And Ifound myself wishing that he did.
***
I waselated, literally floating, as we left the Locust Lounge. Chad waited idly inhis truck, while I got into my little Beetle and turned it on, keeping an eyeon me and making sure I left safely. When I looked back to him, he gesturedimpatiently from behind the wheel for me to get going. I laughed and flippedhim off as my chest warmed with immediate affection for this man I’d knownsince babyhood.
Ikept thinking about it as I drove to my mama’s house to tell her the big news,and I was still grinning when I pulled into the driveway, just down the roadfrom Chad’s. It always struck me as funny that both of our mothers had seemedto follow a similar path of ending up where they started—back home, living inthe houses they grew up in.
Ofcourse, Chad’s mama had made that choice for herself, when she’d accepted thehouse her parents left to her and her husband. They could’ve sold the thing,made a pretty penny, and bought something newer, maybe even nicer. But shechose this life. She wanted it.
Mymama never chose for the father of her daughter to walk out on her.
ButI wasn’tgonnalinger on that. I never did.
Climbingout of the car, I instantly took note of Mama and Connie rocking away on thefront porch to the tune of Cat Stevens’s “Wild World” playing on the stereo.They casually sipped from glasses of iced tea, probably spiked with something,as I sauntered up to them, hands in my pockets.
“Hellothere, little miss Molly,” Connie greeted me with the grin I’d known forever.
“Hey,baby girl,” Mama crooned before sucking on her straw. “How was the showtonight?”
“Good.”I nodded as I practically danced on the spot. The news was leaving me jitteryand begged to be let out. “Guess what?”
“What?”they answered in unison.
