by Mary May
Tagin sighed as she once more applied the eyeliner and the dark lip-gloss. She was transforming from Sherrilyn, into Sherry Lane. The tumbling blonde locks and dark lips had become her signature look. He had to admit she looked nice, but it also made her look years older than she was, which worried him. Fortunately, the owner of the bar really did seem to be a decent man and he watched her like a hawk, keeping the ever-growing male fan base at a respectable distance. He prayed that she really would tell her father soon. Maybe then he could relax.
After the show ended that night, she waited for Earl to come escort her back to the small broom closet that he had converted into a dressing room of sorts for her. He didn’t allow her to step foot off stage until he was there to personally take her back. Finally, she spotted him talking to a man she had never seen before. She knew most of the regulars, but this man was different. He stood out and apart from the others that usually came out on Saturday night. Everything about him screamed success from the way he held himself to his clothes which looked tailor-made for him and expensive. He most definitely had a confident air about him that had her craning her neck trying to see around the people that were still milling around the bar not quite ready to go home. After several minutes, both men started walking her direction.
Earl was smiling ear to ear when he finally reached her. “Sherry, you just won’t believe who dropped by to hear you tonight. He is a record producer and he is very impressed with you!”
She could tell the man was a good bit older than her but he was still very handsome. Holding out his hand, he smiled at her, “Hello, I’m Lonnie Foster.”
Chapter 2
Sherrilyn sat listening in wonder and disbelief as Mr. Foster or Lonnie, as he insisted she call him, told her all the wonderful things he had planned for her. It all sounded too good to be true and she felt like she was in a dream. One thing worried her about the whole situation.
“Mr. Foster…I’m sorry, Lonnie,” she corrected after receiving a frown from the man, “How can you be so certain that I have what you call the gift after only hearing me sing one song?”
Lonnie smiled as he took a drink of his beer, “Because it’s my job to recognize talent when I hear it. I have been doing this for a good while and I know a star when I hear one. You absolutely had the audience eating out of your hand. For a young lady your age, that’s not a learned skill. You haven’t been doing this long enough to pick it up. You have a God-given gift. There are millions of people on this earth that can sing and can sing really well, but we won’t ever hear of them. Do you know why?”
Sherrilyn shook her head, trying to make her eyes not be as big as saucers. The last thing she wanted to do was appear childish.
“We will never hear of them because they can’t do what you did up there so effortlessly. You made us feel. You made us listen and pay attention to you. I have heard that song you just performed probably a hundred times, but when you sang it, it was like listening to it for the very first time. That, Miss Lane, is what is known in my business as the “It” factor, and you have it in spades.”
“My mama used to say something like that, so I find it a great compliment if you think I have it.”
Setting the beer bottle down on the table with a hard thud, Lonnie looked at her with a direct gaze, “I don’t think you have it -- I know you have it. Do you know how many people I have offered to sign after just one song, Miss Lane? Let me tell you… none. You are the first person that has made me sit down, shut up and pay attention. So, please don’t think I’m flattering you. If you decide to sign with me, you will work harder than you have ever worked in your entire life. You will most likely grow to hate me, but that’s ok. It means I’m doing my job. So, I guess all we are waiting on now is your answer.”
Later that night Sherrilyn walked into her living room to find her dad awake and waiting on her. Judging from the look on his face, he had been waiting for a good while. Sitting down, she waited for the fallout, and she didn’t have to wait very long.
“I heard the strangest story this evening. Just as I was leaving work, Ethan made mention that he couldn’t believe what a little singer you were. That he had heard you down at Ernie’s bar the last three weekends. Then he asked why I wasn’t there. Didn’t I want to support my own daughter?” After telling his “funny” story, he sat there and looked at her.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to explain. “I’m sorry, Daddy. I’m sorry that I disobeyed you and have been sneaking off. But this is so important to me and I have the most wonderful news!”
Doug raised his hand. “The only news that I will come remotely close to thinking is wonderful will be you telling me that you will never return to that bar. As a matter of fact, I’m going to insist on it.”
Feeling her heart drop, she tried again. “Daddy, there was this man, an important man, and…” She stuttered to a halt when her dad’s hand slammed down hard on the table next to the chair where he was sitting, making his glass of tea rattle.
“Sherrilyn Rose Lane, you are absolutely forbidden to go back to that bar! I will not be telling you that again. Do I make myself perfectly clear?” Getting to his feet, he loomed over her, his face dark with fury. She had never seen him so angry before. She shrank back in the couch in fear.
“I can’t believe you have been lying to my face all this time. It makes me wonder what else you have been sneaking off to do. You are not to leave this house unless it’s for school or church and, so help me, I better not find out that you have been sneaking off again. Do you understand?”
Staring at him with tears streaming down her pale face, she tried to explain again. “Daddy, I promise this is all I have been doing. I just sing! I swear!”
Grabbing her by her shoulders, he shook her, “No! You have been doing a lot more than just singing! Every single time you disobeyed me, you lied. Do you know how foolish I felt when I had to find out from a co-worker where my own daughter was at every Saturday night? You humiliated me.” Heaving a deep sigh, his grip on her shoulders eased up before he stepped away from her.
“I’m sorry, Daddy…I’m so sorry…I never meant to hurt you.”
“Go wash your face and get in bed. I never thought I would be ashamed of you, Sherry, but tonight I am.” Then he walked into his bedroom, softly closing the door behind him.
After scrubbing her face, Sherrilyn climbed into bed, her chest hurting from trying to hold back her tears to keep from waking up her brother. Once she was in the safety of her pillows, she let them go. How did everything get so messed up? Tonight had been one of the best nights of her life, and now it was the worst. She knew her dad would be mad; he had every right to be. If only he would let her tell him her news! “Maybe in the morning he will be calmer and I can explain everything.”
Tagin felt sorry for the girl. Oh, he totally understood where her dad was coming from. He wanted to drag her home from that bar on more than one occasion, but he also saw just what it meant to her, too. The man, Mr. Foster, seemed to know what he was talking about, but words were easy. Plus, he gave off a negative vibe that made his wings feel…twitchy. He would be watching him very carefully…
The next morning at the breakfast table she tried again to tell her dad about Mr. Foster. But he once more cut her off, not allowing her more than a word before pushing away from the table without eating his breakfast. Sighing, she played in her bowl of Fruit Loops.
“What did you do to make Dad so mad?” Shoving in huge mouthfuls of cereal, Devon looked at her, waiting for her answer.
“Something real stupid, kiddo. Hey! You want to hear some really good news?”
Nodding, he kept on eating. Sherrilyn smiled. Very few things came between that boy and his food.
“I met a man who wants me to make a record for his label!”
Scrunching up his nose, Devon cocked his head, “Do you know how to make a record? I’ve never seen you do it before.”
Reaching over, she ruffled his blonde hair, “I don’t actually m
ake the record myself -- I just have to sing. Then they record my voice and they might play it on the radio.” Sighing once more, she propped her chin in her hand, staring out of the window, “It’s not very likely to happen now.”
“Why not? Did they change their minds? Do they want someone else to sing for the record?” Putting his arm around her, Devon patted her back in a sweet show of sympathy.
“No, sweetheart, it’s not that. I don’t think Daddy is going to let me do it. I made a really terrible mistake and now I think I might be paying for it.”
“Is all that true? What you just told your brother?”
Spinning around in her chair, she saw her dad standing in the doorway. She hadn’t heard him walk into the kitchen. “Yes, it’s all true, Daddy. That’s what I was trying to tell you last night and again this morning. I was offered a record contract last night. Mr. Foster heard me sing and he said he was really impressed and wants to sign me. I’m supposed to let him know something by this afternoon.”
Her dad walked into the kitchen. Pulling out a chair, he gave her a serious look. “This Foster guy for real? He really wants to sign you?”
Feeling hope spring up in her heart, Sherrilyn nodded. “Yes, Daddy, I think so. I mean, I know he wants to sign me. He said so a bunch of times last night. I really think he is the real deal. Earl seems to think so, too.”
“Earl runs a bar, Sherry. What does he know about record producers?” her dad scoffed.
“I guess enough to call one for me.”
That made his brows lift in surprise. “Earl called this guy? No joke?”
“No joke, Daddy. Will you at least talk to him and hear what he has to say and to offer? Please? What harm can it do just to talk to the man? If you meet him and don’t like what he has to say, I promise I won’t argue.”
She waited while her dad considered her offer.
Finally, he agreed but only if Sherrilyn would promise to follow his decision. Leaping up from her chair, she threw her arms around his neck, “I promise, Daddy! Just wait until you meet Mr. Foster!”
The next afternoon Lonnie Foster sat across the room from Doug Lane, Sherry’s father. He appeared genuinely concerned for his daughter’s wellbeing so he knew to tread softly, “Mr. Lane, I have been in the music industry for well over ten years and I can look you straight in the eye and tell you that in those ten years I haven’t come across anyone with as much natural talent as your daughter. When I say that I can make her a star, I can guarantee that, because all I have to do is get her on the radio. The rest will come automatically. I also understand your reservations.”
Doug eyed the man in the fancy expensive suit. He looked slick and he felt slicker, “Mr. Foster, do you have any children?” When the man shook his head, he leaned forward in his chair. “Then you have no understanding of my reservations. Sherry is young and has a head full of dreams that you are sitting there telling us you can make come true. What proof do you have of this? Right now all you have given us is a lot of pretty words, which to me is worth less than the mud on the bottom of my work boots.”
“You’re right. I haven’t given you any kind of proof to back up my words, but I can. How about I fly all of you to my studio in Nashville? I can show you what I have done for others and where Sherry would be recording and living while she makes the album.” He sat back and smiled. “All you have to do is say yes.”
A week later found Sherry and her dad on a plane bound for Nashville, Tennessee. First class no less! With her face pressed against the window, she made the flight attendant chuckle. “I’m guessing this is your first plane ride?”
“Yes, I’m sorry. If you will bring some cleaner and some paper towels, I will clean off my smudges.” She took her napkin and tried to wipe away the prints she had left on the window.
“Oh, sweetheart, don’t worry about it! You are certainly not the first passenger to leave smudges and I bet you won’t be the last. Mr. Foster left strict instructions that your every need was to be met. Now can I bring you anything? Something to drink or a snack to hold you over until dinner is served?”
“I think we are fine for now,” Doug reassured the lady then shook his head at the amount of money Mr. Foster must have spent for the flight.
Sherry finally sat back in her seat with a huge smile. “What do you think, Daddy? Pretty snazzy, huh? I bet Mr. Foster flies like this all the time.”
Rubbing his hand down the smooth-as-butter leather armrest, her dad smiled faintly. “It must be nice to have the money to throw away on something like this. I bet the cost of our tickets would pay our mortgage for six months.”
Sherrilyn patted her dad’s arm. “Don’t worry, Daddy. When my record goes platinum, I will pay off the house for you! I might even buy you a new truck!”
“That sounds real nice, baby girl, but don’t go counting your chickens before they hatch. Let’s just see if this Foster guy can do all that he says he can.”
Lonnie was waiting for them at the airport. He trotted over to Doug Lane, shaking his hand and patting his back like they were old friends. He smiled at Sherrilyn but focused his attention on the man who would have the final say. He led them over to a long black limo that was shined up like a new penny. Their bags were already being loaded into the back. Settling into the back of the car, he offered her dad a drink, which was declined, before turning to her, “So, what do you think? Do you think you could get used to traveling like this, Sherrilyn?”
Beaming from ear to ear, she nodded. “Oh, this is too much, Mr. Foster! I don’t think I could ever get used to something so fancy!”
“Now what did I tell you about that Mr. Foster business? I’m Lonnie to all my friends and I certainly hope we can be friends.” He gave her a warm smile that made her flush to the roots of her hair.
The rest of the afternoon was spent at the studio. Lonnie showed them his wall of hit albums and introduced them to his studio musicians. Sherrilyn felt like she had died and gone to heaven when he actually let her goof off in the sound booth and record a song. Pushing the playback button afterwards, her voice filled the small room. Lonnie didn’t say a word; he just let them listen. Once the song had finished, he tapped on the wall of buttons that did everything but actually sing the song for the artist. “Mr. Lane, what you just heard is called a raw recording. No filters, no enhancements, no auto tune, nothing cleaned up or altered in any way. That was pure Sherrilyn. What did you think?”
“I think she sounded really good, but she always does, so what’s your point?”
Leaning against the sound table, Lonnie crossed his arms. “The point is, not everyone sounds that good right off the rack. There is always…always some cleaning up to do, but not with your daughter. She just walked in there and without rehearsing laid down one of the cleanest recordings I have ever heard. What I am saying is your daughter will be a star if you give me half a chance with her. I will put her up in her own apartment, provide her with a car, plus cover any recording expenses. I will take care of her like she was my own. If it will make you feel better, I will move your entire family down here. That’s how confident I am in her in ability. Now I have backed up everything I said I could do. What’s your decision? Do I take her and make her a star, or do I fly you both back to Texas?”
Chapter 3
Sherrilyn sighed in happiness as she stood in the front door of her brand new apartment. It was nothing short of a dream come true and her life had been crazy the last three weeks. After her dad had agreed to let her move to Nashville, Lonnie wasted no time finding her a beautiful apartment just blocks from his home and the studio. When she had flown back to Tennessee, he had picked her up from the airport in a candy apple red Mustang convertible. She had all but drooled over the car on the ride to her apartment then nearly passed out when Lonnie tossed her the keys.
“You’re kidding? This is my car?” she squealed. When he smiled and nodded, she threw herself into his arms! “I love it! I can’t believe it! This all so unreal! I keep thinking I’m
dreaming and I’m going to wake up and be back home.”
“Oh, you going to earn all of this, believe me. I’m going to give you the weekend to get unpacked and settled in. Then the hard work starts on Monday. Think you will be ready?”
Stepping back, she nodded in excitement, “Oh, yes, sir! I will work so hard for you. I promise you will never regret signing me! Not ever!
Sherrilyn couldn’t ever remember being so happy. In the three months since moving to Nashville, her world had become all things music. She practically lived at the studio and loved every second of it. When she wasn’t recording something herself, she hung out listening to other, more experienced singers work on their upcoming projects. She wanted to learn everything she could as fast as she could. Pleasing Lonnie had become her goal in life. He held all that she held dear in the palm of his hands, and she never wanted to disappoint him. So far he seemed pleased with her efforts. Just the other day he had commented that he wished all his artists were as easy to work with as she was. He showered her with compliments and praise. It was almost embarrassing, especially when he did it in front of the others that were signed with him. She started getting an uneasy feeling when she walked in the restroom one afternoon and heard her name being mentioned.
“Well, I guess we all know who will be the bright new toy this year. If Sherrilyn wags her tail or bats her eyes any harder, they might fall off!”
She froze with her hand on the restroom door. The hurtful comment made her eyes sting and her heart ache. The woman speaking was Carmen Sloan, and up until that moment Sherrilyn had thought they were friends.
“Oh, you know as well as I do that they never last. He plays with it until the new wears off; then he is back with Linda. You don’t really think he will ever divorce her, do you? Linda’s father loaned him the money to build this studio. No way he will ever leave her.” This voice belonged to Amber Leighton, and while she wasn’t as friendly to her as Carmen, she had never given the woman reason to mean mouth her. The news that Lonnie was married actually came as a surprise. He had never once made mention of a wife, and that didn’t sit well with her. She made a mental note to ask Lonnie about it.
