“That’s crap and you know it.”
“Mel,” Greg interrupted, glancing at his watch, “he has to go or I’m going to have to cancel the exam.”
“Please trust me,” Brad said.
She glanced between the two men, her mind racing. Damn it. Two minutes ago, things had been so clear.
Brad stepped closer to her. “I need you to come with me to Nashville. I need you to record that song with me. I need you.”
Her breath caught in her throat. She met Brad’s eyes, and the love and affection in them made it impossible to refuse his request. Why couldn’t he have just stayed away?
“Mel, are you staying or going?” Greg asked.
Collecting her coat and purse from the back of the chair, she prayed she wasn’t about to make the worst decision of her life. “I’m sorry, Greg. Thank you so much for the opportunity, but I have to go.”
* * *
“JUST RELAX. THIS is nothing. Just pretend you’re onstage at the Green Gator.” Brad’s soothing words did nothing to ease the fear and panic creeping over Melody as she stood in the vocal booth, headphones positioned over her ears. It was the day after Brad had persuaded her to come to Nashville.
“Right, no problem...except that this isn’t the Green Gator and it’s not nothing. It’s your career.” Hyperventilating wouldn’t help, but she had no control over the quick little breaths she was taking. How he’d ever succeeded in getting her and the boys on a plane to Nashville the day before, she’d never fully know. She remembered saying no about a thousand times while he ignored her and packed all three of their suitcases for the trip. She also remembered gripping the door handle of her home before he’d physically carried her out of the house and into his rental car.
Brad removed her headphones. “Okay, take a breath.”
The feel of his hands softly stroking her bare arms wasn’t helping. It just gave her another reason to hyperventilate. “I don’t know if I can do this.”
“I do. You can.”
His confidence in her was astounding. Glancing at the producer in the mixing studio, she knew it was now or never. Never would have been her preference at that moment. But deep within her was a desire to take this chance to realize a dream she’d fought against for three years. Then the door to the studio opened and David and Joshua entered, excitement shining in their eyes. Excitement and something else. Pride.
“Thought you could use a fan club for moral support,” Brad said.
Her nerves settled as she waved to her boys. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“We all know you can do this. You know you can do this.” Brad hugged her.
“Okay. I’m ready.” Swallowing hard, Melody placed the headphones over her ears again and shut the vocal-booth door. Then, closing her eyes, she forgot everything else as the music filled her head.
* * *
FROM THE MIXING STUDIO, Brad listened as Melody’s voice provided the harmony on the chorus. Their voices sounded perfect together. Her voice was perfect. She was perfect. And here she was in Nashville. He’d gotten her this far—would she consider staying?
She was smiling widely as she removed the headphones and exited the booth, and it gave Brad a surge of hope. She’d loved it, just as he knew she would. The boys were busy learning what all of the buttons on the mixing equipment did, so he slipped out to meet her in the hallway. “That was fantastic,” he said.
“A couple of notes were off,” she said, struggling to speak as he hugged her tightly.
“Only you noticed, and besides that’s what Auto-Tune is for.” He reluctantly pulled back but still kept his arms draped around her waist. “So?”
“So what?”
“It was awesome, right?”
She sighed, but the gleam in her eye betrayed her. “Yes, it was awesome. Thank you for this, Brad.” Her voice was soft when her gaze met his.
He kissed her forehead, letting his lips linger on her skin. She smelled good, and felt even better. It wasn’t until he had his arms around her that he realized how much he’d missed her. He had no answers about the future, but he’d do anything he could to make sure she was a part of his. “Thank you. Arnie’s on the phone already to the local radio station. He says he’ll have the song played in the region within a week.”
“Wow.”
“He’s pretty amazing.” He paused and gently traced a hand along her cheek. “Speaking of amazing,” he said, lowering his voice.
“Mom!” David and Josh came running out into the hallway. Melody took a step away from Brad and knelt to hug the boys.
“You were awesome!” Josh said.
“Yeah, Mom, that was pretty cool,” David said.
Brad knew no matter how much success or praise Melody received from family, friends and fans after the song was released, none would matter more to her than the pride on her sons’ faces at that moment. “Let me just say goodbye to Arnie and then we can get out of here,” Brad said. “Go celebrate.” There was a restaurant nearby he knew the boys would love—it had an arcade with over fifty different games. If he remembered correctly, Melody was a champion foosball player, and he wanted to impress her with his own skills.
Melody stood and placed a hand on his arm. “Actually, Brad, I think we should see if there’s a flight back to Newark tonight.”
What? They’d just arrived and she wanted to leave already? “You guys just got here...I thought you might want to stay for a few days.” He’d expected them to stay at least until New Year’s Eve.
Melody shook her head. “We shouldn’t. I mean, you already spent so much on the plane tickets. Another night in a hotel is unnecessary.”
Yes, it was. They could stay with him. He hadn’t even been thinking about a hotel. “I’ve got space...”
“We really should get home.” Her voice was tight as she glanced at the boys. “It’s been an exciting day, but...”
“But?”
“But it was just a day. And it has to end sometime.”
He moved closer and examined her face for any indication that she wanted to stay. “Says who? Every day could be like this, Mel—following your dream, pursuing music again...” Being with me, he didn’t add, unsure if he could handle personal rejection on top of rejection of the opportunity he was trying to offer her.
“I told you this was a one-time thing, Brad. I’ll keep writing music...sell more songs, maybe,” she said. “But this will be the only song I record.”
He’d done all he could. He’d convinced her to give music another try and she had, but he could only do so much. She didn’t want this life anymore...she didn’t want a life with him. Clearly the past couldn’t be forgiven.
* * *
MELODY GLANCED AT the ringing cell phone in her hand and silenced the call.
“Another one?” Heather asked several days later at the bowling alley.
“Yes.”
“Wow, I guess it’s true what they say. People come out of the woodwork when you’re famous.”
“I’m hardly famous—it’s just one song. I don’t even know how everyone found out so quickly.” Melody filled the bar fridge behind her with bottles of champagne for that evening’s New Year’s Eve celebration.
Heather busied herself with wrapping the cutlery in paper napkins. “Yeah, weird.” Her guilty expression said it all.
“Oh, Heather! Tell me Brookhollow hasn’t gotten to you, too.”
“Sorry, Mel. I couldn’t help it. I squealed so loud the other day when you texted to say you were on your way to Nashville to record the song. I couldn’t have kept the information to myself if I’d died trying. I’m sorry, but I was so excited for you.”
“Fine, but the next time this phone rings, you’re answering it.” She tossed the cell to her friend. Since she’d been back, her phone hadn�
��t stopped ringing. She enjoyed when former friends and family members called to offer congrats, but the press was killing her. The constant attempts to secure an interview with her were shameless. One reporter had even dared try to use the single-mom-turned-country-star angle. She didn’t like publicity, least of all publicity that included her kids.
Heather caught the phone just as it rang again. She glanced at the caller ID. “Not a Brookhollow number. What do I say?”
“‘Not interested,’ or any other version of that. Be creative.” She was so done with these calls already. She’d had to unplug the home phone because the calls had been disturbing the boys. The last thing she wanted was for a reporter to try to solicit comments from one of them.
She wasn’t as worried about David. Her more practical son seemed to understand the severity of revealing any information to strangers on the phone. But poor Josh was still floating in the clouds over the whole experience. He kept the local radio station on in his room all day long, waiting to hear his mom on the radio. All he could talk about was how cool the recording studio had been and how much he now wanted to be a singer. One day in Nashville and her little boy had been completely bitten by the industry bug. She couldn’t blame him. They’d visited Music Row before going into the studio, and that industry hotbed had been a sight. She hadn’t wanted to leave—which was exactly why she’d had to do it.
She refused to even think about how hard leaving Brad had been. But there hadn’t been any way for her to stay, not with him. Their history was...their history. It didn’t matter that she’d fallen in love with him or that he’d fallen in love with her—it was a love that never should have happened. That never could happen. Going forward, they would be friends, and that was all.
“Oh, hi, Brad!” Heather said into her phone a second later.
Melody’s heart raced. Sure, friends. Who was she trying to fool? He’d texted her the night before just to see that they’d made it home safely, but she hadn’t expected to hear from him again. At least not so soon. She knew she’d hurt him by leaving. His teary eyes at the airport had nearly destroyed her. To her credit, she’d waited until both boys were sound asleep next to her on the plane before she’d allowed herself to cry.
“Yeah, she’s here. She’s just avoiding the media.” Heather paused, and then laughed. “You’re too cute.”
Melody tried to pretend she didn’t care that her friend was flirting with the man she loved. Heather and Brad would make a great couple. Heather was carefree and loved adventure. She had nothing tying her to Brookhollow. Melody’s stomach turned at the thought of setting the two of them up. She reached for the phone. “Here, I’ll talk to him.”
Heather moved the phone out of reach and covered the mouthpiece. “Oh, I see. I get to handle the annoying reporters, but you get to talk to the handsome country star?”
“Give it,” Melody said, hating that her friend could see right through her. There was no point denying her feelings for Brad to Heather. The savvy city girl knew her too well.
“Please hold for Melody Myers,” Heather said into the phone before handing it over.
Melody took a deep breath. Act nonchalant. “Hi, Brad.” Her higher-than-normal pitch was anything but nonchalant.
“Hi. How are you?”
“Good.”
“I’m sorry if the press is swarming you. Arnie kind of went crazy promoting the single...that’s why I’m calling. You’re at the bowling alley?”
“Yes. Just setting up for the New Year’s Eve party.” The thought of the party once again made her wish she’d be celebrating the occasion with him. Working the event here and seeing the happily dancing couples celebrating the countdown was going to be torture. She remembered how it had felt to be in his arms at the mayor’s holiday party, the way his lips had felt when he’d kissed her on the sleigh ride...
Suddenly a loud screeching sound on his end made her cringe and hold the phone away from her ear. “Where are you?”
“At the stage in Times Square. It’s crazy here.”
That’s right. He would be performing with a group of other musicians when the ball dropped that evening. It made her miss him even more, although she was hopeful he’d be too busy singing to kiss anyone that evening.
“Anyway,” he said, “turn on Nash FM.”
That was a radio station in New York she could get in Brookhollow. “Okay.” Approaching the radio behind the bar, she turned the dial until the familiar radio DJ’s voice came through the speakers.
“...Next up we have a new single from Brad Monroe...”
Monroe?
“...and a new up-and-coming country star, Melody Myers.”
She covered her mouth with her hand. Heather’s squeal could surely have been heard in Beach Haven. Up-and-coming country star? They’d gotten it wrong. “Brad...”
“I have to go. Listen to it. You deserve this moment. Say happy New Year to the boys for me. I’m going to try my hardest not to wish I was kissing you tonight at midnight, but I make no promises.”
* * *
“OKAY BOYS, HURRY...I have to get back to the bar.” Melody gathered their overnight bags for their New Year’s Eve sleepover at her parents’ house. By the time the party crowd rang in the New Year and they kicked everyone out and cleaned up the mess, it would be well after three in the morning. She couldn’t think now about how lonely coming home to the empty house would be. Hopefully she’d be too tired to notice.
“Can I bring my air hockey table from Uncle Ethan to play with Grandpa?” David asked.
Melody threw their overnight bags over her shoulder. “Can you carry it?”
“Yeah.”
“Then sure. But hurry, okay?”
Josh appeared in the hallway with Patrick’s guitar over his shoulder.
“You’re taking the guitar?”
“Yeah, I have to practice. Brad said if I can learn to play, I can go on tour with him when I’m older.”
She wanted to go on tour with Brad, too. “Take me with you, okay, buddy?” she said, affectionately tousling the boy’s hair as he moved past her into the hall.
“Hey, Mom, Grandma’s here,” he said a second later.
“She is?” Had she gotten it wrong? She thought she was dropping the boys off. Josh opened the front door and Delores entered. Oh, the other grandma. “Hi, Delores. I’m sorry, we’re just on our way out.”
“I won’t keep you. I just wanted to make sure you and the boys were still coming for lunch tomorrow.”
Shoot, she’d forgotten. The only thing she had planned for the next day was sleep. After the excitement and whirlwind trip to Nashville, she was already exhausted and she hadn’t even worked her shift yet. “What time? You see, I’m working the New Year’s Eve party at the bowling alley tonight, and the boys are sleeping at my parents place...so if it’s early...”
“It’s whenever you get there.” The woman took a step closer and handed Melody a long, thin white box.
“What’s this? You already gave us our Christmas gifts.”
“I saw it in a window of the pawnshop yesterday and I stopped to check...”
Oh, no. Melody’s heart stopped as she opened the lid. Her U 47 microphone was inside. She swallowed a lump in her throat. “Delores, I didn’t want to sell it, but I had to.”
“To take care of your family—I understand completely. I would have done the exact same thing. But after I saw it, I couldn’t leave it there. It belongs to you.”
“I don’t know what to say. Thank you.” Her gift from Patrick was back where it belonged.
“My son wanted you to have this because he believed in your talent. I heard your song on the radio this morning...and I do, too.”
Melody was rendered speechless.
“Your voice belongs to music, Melody.”
She shook her head. “It was just one song. I don’t plan on returning to music...”
“I’ve come to believe that no one plans anything important or significant in life. Music returned to you, Melody. Dan and I didn’t support Patrick’s decision and it’s something we will never be able to forgive ourselves for, but we are here to support yours. Go after what you want, honey, because with your talent, you’re sure to get it.”
* * *
MELODY SAT AT the stoplight on Main Street even after the light had turned green. Delores’s words had struck a chord and her mind was reeling. Go after what she wanted. Could she really do that? For the first time in a long time, she was thinking about what she wanted, and that was Brad and a career in music...but mostly Brad.
A horn honked behind her and she hesitated just a second longer before pulling the van to the side of the street. She waited until the truck passed, and then she swung the van around. The boys were with her parents for the evening. New York City was three hours away by car.
This was crazy. Well, maybe crazy was a good thing. For years she’d been playing it safe, afraid of falling, afraid of making the wrong choices, afraid of living. Now was her chance to change that. Brad had said he would try his best not to be wishing he was kissing her that evening. Well, she was going to do everything in her power to make sure he was.
* * *
THE CROWD IN Times Square was unbelievable. Despite the bone-chilling weather and the falling snow—which was giving Brad the feeling of being inside a shaken snow globe—the radio was reporting record numbers at the New Year’s Eve event. Brad had arrived at the festivities before six o’clock to witness the raising of the ball to the top of One Times Square’s roof. This was his first time attending the annual event, and he’d been mesmerized by the flurry of activity and coordination involved in corraling thousands of spectators into different viewing sections. Party favors—balloons, hats and noisemakers—had been distributed as the crowd had gathered, and he couldn’t help but think about how much Melody and the boys would love all of this excitement.
Now, ten minutes to the ball drop and eleven minutes to his group performance of the iconic “Auld Lang Syne,” he paced the backstage area.
The Mistletoe Melody Page 21
