Gypsy Hearts

by Lisa Mondello

  “Hello, Nashville!” he yelled into the microphone and the crowd went wild.

  “Sorry I kept you waiting. It’s good of y’all to come out to see me play. I thought we’d take it a little slow at first, start with a song I wrote in the studio a few weeks back about a woman who’s dear to me.” Pointing into the darkness as if he could really see her, he said softly, “This one is for you, Josie.”

  Her heart melted and tears sprang to her eyes as she recognized the song she’d heard that night in the studio when they’d been alone. At the time, she’d known by the way he sang that it was about someone special. She had no idea he’d written it for her.

  The small panel light illuminated the soundboard, but Josie had to fight through the moisture in her eyes to see the levels and controls.

  Lifting her face to the stage again, she was in awe of Brock. It was clear he had broken free of whatever had gripped him so strongly in the dressing room. Fear had a way of being debilitating. To see him now was amazing. He was so alive with energy. And foolishly, Josie was as starstruck with Brock as all the girls who were screaming his name out in the audience. When the song wound down, Brock stood with a lone white spotlight illuminating him, his head bent to the floor. The crowd was on its feet, going wild.

  Brock invited the band on stage with him and they broke into a rowdy, fun number they all loved. It was clear Brock was in his element when he performed. Even if he couldn’t see past the first row with the blaring lights blinding him, he was a part of the crowd, lifting his face to the blackness beyond the lights and smiling his appreciation and love for what they were giving him as he played.

  He’d written the song for her. The envy she’d felt in the studio was replaced by emotions she didn’t want to name. She’d fallen for words before. She knew they could be written and even sung, but still not be heartfelt. How could she believe that this time, the words the man professed to be only for her, were in reality just that?

  he crowd was still going wild, cheering and chanting Brock’s name as he stood backstage and gulped down some bottled water. Still breathing heavily after his last number, Brock poured some cold water from the bottle into his hand and splashed it on his face, wiping away the sweat with a towel someone had handed him.

  Miles cracked open a beer, laughing. “Incredible. You were truly magnificent out there tonight. Even I feel like getting up and screaming for you.”

  Brock chuckled, almost choking on a gulp of water. “Don’t you dare try to kiss me or I’ll resort to desperate measures.”

  “Fair enough,” he said. “How long are we going to let them scream before we go out for the encore?”

  “I say we give it a good long minute,” Roy said. “Then they’ll go wild when we go back on stage.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, Brock saw Will standing at the end of the hall with a man he didn’t recognize. Will was animated, his eyes wild with excitement and his hands gesturing rapidly, making his point. Dressed like everyone else backstage, the man could have blended in with anyone who was in the back corridor, but Brock knew Will would only be spending the time to talk with him now if he were something important. Brock guessed the man was Rick Beckley, the A&R executive Will brought in tonight to see the performance. And by the gestures he was making and the smile on his face, Will was happy about the meeting.

  It still amazed Brock how quickly the anxiety that had crippled him earlier had vanished once he’d broken free of the chains binding him. He was suddenly looking forward to talking to the man, finding out what he had to say about Brock’s performance. But that could wait. There’d be time enough for talk later. First, he wanted to see Josie, to hold her and thank her for being there. No one could have done what she’d done for him.

  He dropped the bottled water on the table. “Let’s give the crowd what they came here for, boys,” Brock said, heading toward the stage door again. There’d be time to talk to executives later. Right now, Brock couldn’t wait to get back on stage so he could get personal with the crowd.

  A flurry of people swarmed the hallway that led to the dressing room. Josie weaved in and out of the crowd, hoping to see Brock before he was whisked away for private talks with Will and the studio people who’d come to the concert.

  Rick Beckley would have to be deaf, dumb, and blind not to have noticed Brock or the crowd’s reaction to him and his music. Brock had been larger than life tonight, moving from one end of the stage to the other, holding the crowd in the palm of his hand the entire performance. It was like nothing Josie had ever seen before. Those that knew Brock fell at his feet, and those that didn’t had fallen in love with him tonight and would never forget him.

  She’d fallen in love with him long before this though, Josie thought as she made her way through the crowd. The name on everyone’s lips right at this moment was Brock Gentry. The laughter and the smiles were all because of him. A good time was had by his new fans.

  Flashbulbs popped at the far end of the corridor. Josie couldn’t see over all the heads, but her heart picked up a beat. Brock was what they all wanted and she was sure that was where he was now. A smile tipped her lips as she moved, only to freeze when Will caught her hand.

  “Josie,” he said, pulling her in the opposite direction.

  “Great show, huh?” she said, trying to break free.

  “Fantastic. Say, we’re going to be held up for a few minutes with Rick and his friends at the record company. I was wondering if you could take care of a friend of mine.”

  Josie stopped dead in her tracks, a frown pulling at her face. “I beg your pardon?” she said sharply.

  Will just laughed. “I’m not asking you to date the guy. His name is Ron Albani. He works out of the best studio in Nashville. All the main Nashville players use his studio and the guy has a lot of contacts. I don’t want him running away until I have a chance to talk to him a little more. But I can’t schmooze both groups at the same time and I don’t want to lose the contact, if you know what I mean.”

  Josie paused. Will reminded her too much of Brian, her boss at DB Sound. There was always some hidden agenda in any request.

  His smile wavered. “He mentioned you when he heard Brock’s CD and was quite impressed. He’s a good person to get to know if you want to move in this industry. I thought you might like the opportunity to meet him.”

  Josie glanced at the far end of the corridor where Brock was talking with reporters. This was Brock’s night. As much as she wanted to share it with him, she didn’t want to take him from the spotlight or keep him from making the most of tonight’s performance. They’d agreed to meet back at her hotel room later tonight, so there’d be time for them then to celebrate together.

  She’d heard of Ron Albani and had to admit she was a little flattered he’d mentioned her name. If, in fact, Will was telling her the truth. Since her purpose for coming on this tour was exactly this, she’d be a fool not to jump at the chance to talk with Ron, if only to get the names of some people in Nashville she could contact on her own. She wanted to meet people who could help her move in a better direction in her career. Ron Albani had the power to do that.

  “Why don’t you introduce me?” she conceded, pasting on a smile.

  There would be time later to share her excitement with Brock. The band would probably party all night and sleep late into the next day. They’d make time, she and Brock.

  As she walked with Will in the opposite direction, fear began to brew in the pit of her stomach. Tonight had changed everything for Brock. She only hoped that didn’t spell the end for them.

  The noise from the street below carried up to Josie’s hotel window. She sat in the chair, looking out at the Nashville skyline. Dexter lazily lounged in her lap, where he’d been since she’d returned to her room.

  Josie glanced down at her faithful companion and smiled. She was relieved she hadn’t been forced to put Dexter in a kennel until she found a permanent home for him. Of course, she didn’t have to stay in a hotel at
all. She could have chosen to stay on the bus with Dexter rather than put him up with strangers. But tonight, like many other nights she’d stood at the crossroads, she needed her friend.

  And she needed Brock. He’d become her friend, not just a man she’d fallen in love with. Josie realized she’d let herself fall into that trap again. But unlike the way things had been with Grant, her relationship with Brock was open and honest and it didn’t scare her the way it had with Grant.

  Closing her eyes, she sighed, watching the pedestrians below race across the street to avoid the oncoming traffic. A couple walking hand in hand was decked out in evening clothes for a night on the town. She wondered where they were going and if their lives were easy and carefree. She longed for that kind of stability, but inside, she knew her heart followed a path that led her here to Nashville.

  Reaching over, she picked up the pictures that had recently been delivered to her room. She sifted through them for the tenth time, smiling as the memories her night on the beach with Brock flooded her mind. Most of the photos hadn’t turned out very well because they’d been taken with a flash. But even the blurred and sometimes washed out images made her smile. The time she’d shared with Brock on the beach in Galveston was like a dream from which she didn’t want to wake. Tonight had been a lot like that right on the beach.

  Tomorrow, they’d both wake up to a new reality. That was the nature of this business. Backstage handshakes had a way of changing your life overnight.

  Josie hadn’t expected her meeting with Ron Albani to go as smoothly as it had. In truth, she hadn’t expected anything at all beyond the introduction. But his enthusiasm for her work-not only with Brock, but with Grant Davies-had her believing the years at DB Sound hadn’t undone the strong start she’d made for herself when she’d first come to Nashville all those years ago. That was comforting in a town where you were only as good as your last piece of work and people forgot you as soon as the new act arrived to take your place.

  There was promise. She hadn’t been offered a job. No, Ron had made that perfectly clear that Pete Harrington liked to be responsible for the hiring of new engineers at the studio. But Ron’s word would go a long way toward impressing the owner of the studio. Ron had urged Josie not to wait, to go see Pete as soon as possible and talk to him about coming on board.

  The sound of someone leaning on a horn in the traffic below startled Dexter enough to make him leap from her lap and scurry under the bed. With a bittersweet chuckle, she yanked the curtains closed, shutting out the world below. Crawling on her hands and knees over to the bed where Dexter had fled, she pulled up the floral bedspread so she could peer at him. His magnificent eyes glowed back at her and he meowed softly.

  “You silly boy, it was just an impatient driver wanting to get home. Nothing but a car horn. Come here and-”

  The heavy-handed knock on the door startled her. Dropping the edge of the bedspread, she darted her head up to look at the red glowing letters of the alarm clock. 3:03 A.M. Her smile was immediate. There was only one person Josie could think of who wouldn’t wait until morning to tell her something.

  Brock. And she was sure he had good news. It had to be.

  Rushing to her feet, she glanced in the mirror to give her reflection an approving glance, then raced to the door in her stocking-clad feet. Excitement building, she fumbled with the lock for a few annoying seconds before she was able to throw the door open.

  Her smile faded when she saw Miles and Roy standing there.

  “You two?”

  “Sorry to disappoint you,” Miles drawled.

  Josie chuckled, and pushed a stray hair away from her face. “Sorry, guys. I just expected-”

  “Yeah, yeah, you expected the wonder boy. But if you’re waiting on Brock, it’s going to be a long night. Will has him talking to every major player in Nashville tonight.”

  Her smile spread wider than it had all night, if that was at all possible. “And? What’s happening? Tell me everything you’ve heard!”

  Miles and Roy exchanged a look of confusion.

  “You mean, you don’t know?”

  She looked at one, then the other. “No, I don’t know anything. I spent most of the night talking to some sound engineer Will insisted I babysit and I missed all the action.”

  The little fib was lost to Roy and Miles. It hadn’t been a hardship to spend time talking with Ron Albani. He’d been gracious and interested in Josie’s work. This is what she’d come to Nashville for. Not only had the evening been a huge hit for Brock, but it had been great for her as well. She just hoped that when Brock arrived, they could sort through it all in a way that didn’t spell the end of their relationship.

  “Nothing’s been signed in blood yet, but it’s looking that way.”

  Josie whooped and threw herself into Roy’s burly arms, giving him a quick peck on the cheek and then did the same to Miles. “This is fantastic!”

  Miles sighed. “Yeah, well. ..”

  “Come on, guys! This is great. This is what we’ve wanted. It’s what we’ve been working for all this time.”

  Roy nodded, a weak smile tugging against his lips. “Yeah, I know. It looks like a pretty done deal… for Brock. The rest of us are still up in the air though.”

  Confusion collided with her initial joy. “What are you saying?”

  “Seems the studio has a different idea of what direction Brock’s career should be taking.”

  A nerve started to twist itself and tightened into a knot in the pit of her stomach.

  “And?” she prodded.

  Miles couldn’t look at her and glanced down the hall. Roy leaned against the doorjamb. “Maybe it wasn’t a good idea for us to come here.”

  “Spit it out. There’s obviously a good reason why you felt the need to come to my door in the middle of the night. And don’t get cute and tell me it was because you couldn’t sleep and needed me to sing you a lullaby.”

  Miles glanced at her and gave her a quick smile, sympathy in his eyes. “We didn’t know how you were going to take the news so we figured we’d come see you before you had a chance to take off without saying goodbye.”

  She closed her eyes. Take off? Goodbye?

  She stifled her sigh as best she could, but it escaped despite her best effort. “I would never do that,” she said softly, emotion like a tidal wave clogging her throat. Not again, anyway.

  Roy reached out and touched her shoulder. “The A&R people from the record company are talking about bringing in their own people to work in the studio. They want to go back and rework all the songs.”

  She nodded once, folding her arms across her chest. “And?”

  Miles and Roy glanced at each other and then to the floor.

  “Don’t stop now, boys. You’re on a roll.”

  Miles sighed. “They want to finish up the gigs at the Wild Horse Saloon with a new sound engineer, to let him get the feel of Brock’s music, before they take Brock on the road again. Will said something about moving in a new direction and tightening his sound instead of making it so … “

  “Primitive. That was the word he used,” Roy added with a roll of his eyes.

  Josie fought the Urge to shrug the comforting hand Miles had placed on her shoulder. He must have sensed her tension and removed it.

  “It’s a raw deal and all,” Miles added. “Everybody knows that demo you did back in Texas is what got us here.”

  She laughed at the compliment and shook her head, looking up at the ceiling, then the floor, blinking back the moisture filling her eyes. “Thanks. But it was a group effort all around. I appreciate the support. Will said it was a done deal?”

  “No, they’re still talking. And for the record, you should know that Brock wasn’t buying into it in a big way. ButWill…”

  She sighed and pasted on a smile she didn’t feel inside. Will. Yeah, he was a carbon copy of Brian all right. He’d thrown her a bone tonight, albeit a fat juicy one, by introducing her to Ron Albani. But it was only so Josie
wouldn’t make a fuss when he canned her in the morning.

  She’d have her meltdown-later. It just wouldn’t be now in front of Miles and Roy.

  Taking the attention off herself, she asked, “What about the band? You’re still going to stay with Brock, right?”

  “The jury is still out on us,” Roy added. “These studio execs like to shake things up a bit. But between you, me, and the walls here, I think we’re all being replaced.”

  eplaced? Everyone?” She’d barely managed to get the words past her throat. Of course, she had known this was a distinct possibility once a record label was interested in taking on Brock. They had their favorite musicians. But, knowing Brock as she did, she couldn’t imagine him sitting well with it.

  “Yeah, Will was real apologetic and all,” Miles said, his voice dripping with sarcasm that didn’t show on his face. For all his steam, the man looked like he was about to weep. She was pretty near that herself.

  Roy, on the other hand, was just plain ticked. His face grew a hotter glow of red by the moment. “He said he’s keeping us for the rest of the sessions at the Wild Horse. Like we have nothing better to do than hang on his tail until he decides what to do with us. I mean, it’s not like he can replace us overnight.”

  “I’m sorry, guys.” Stepping aside, she gestured to the room. “Do you want to come in and talk for a bit?”

  “You mean, instead of standing out here in the hall like the pathetic losers we are?”

  “Stop that,” she admonished gently. She’d invited them in to be polite, but deep down Josie hoped they wouldn’t take her up on her offer. Rightfully so, they were taking the news hard. But she didn’t want to indulge in conversation that was sure to lead to Brockbashing. Whether he had a say at all in the decision of letting his band go or not-and at this stage of the game, that was still up in the air the ultimate resentment would end up falling on him. Tonight, Brock was the golden kid, the one to envy and hate, no matter how much he was loved by his friends.