Under a Georgia Moon: Georgia Moon Romance Book 1

by Cindy Roland Anderson

  A feeling of pride and ownership gripped her. Smugly she got to her feet and started clapping to the beat of the music. At the end of the night she would be riding home with Chase and—unlike everyone else—getting a sensational kiss good-night.

  The song came to an end and Chase spoke into the microphone over the applause. “How y’all doing tonight?” he questioned in his soft southern voice. He seemed completely at ease in front of the rowdy crowd.

  The patrons responded with a few enthusiastic comebacks that said they were all feeling pretty good. Addie ground her teeth together when the brunette who had given her the evil eye, yelled out, “Much better if I get to go home with you, sugar.” She added on another invitation that wasn’t so innocent.

  Addie came very close to throwing something at the back of the woman’s head. Too bad she didn’t have any fruit handy.

  Chase didn’t pay any attention to the brazen invitation and announced the next song they were going to sing. “A few years ago, Jackson, our keyboard player and I wrote this song. It’s entitled Dreams.” He looked up and gave the audience a boyishly charming smile. “I hope y’all enjoy it.”

  The minute Chase started to sing, the audience actually quieted. Addie sat spell-bound, unable to take her eyes off of him. He was incredible. His voice smooth with a slight, raspy-rocker sound to it. Both Jackson and Drew harmonized perfectly to the ballad, telling a story about what they wanted to be when they grew up.

  Chase seemed to lose himself in his music, he and his guitar becoming one. Addie watched his fingers move effortlessly over the strings, his muscles rippled with the movement. It was easy to tune out the rest of the audience and focus on him, his instrument and his amazing voice.

  When the song ended, Addie stood up and clapped with enthusiasm. Then she put her fingers between her lips and gave a loud whistle. Chase looked her way and smiled. She mouthed, “You were great.” His smile widened and he gave her a wink before pulling his eyes away.

  Sydney touched her on the arm. “What’d you think?”

  “The song was amazing,” Addie said, her eyes sliding back to the stage as she sat down.

  Chase was amazing. Not only could he do fantastic covers, he also wrote great original music. She could easily see him having a successful music career, and hoped the talent scout showed up for tonight’s performance.

  That thought made her pause, and, for a second, panic seized her heart. If Chase was discovered, what were the chances he’d be moving to Daisy Springs to set up a new graphic arts business?

  Zero. Addie already knew the answer.

  When they’d talked last night, she’d been kidding about him moving to Idaho. Deep down, though, she really wanted to know if that was a possibility. If he could make a career out of entertaining, his graphic arts days were over.

  She swallowed, and tried not to let her anxiety show as the band started the cover of another popular country song. The upbeat music kept rhythm with her heartbeat, and soon Addie’s concerns about the future dissipated. Either that or she was using her old tactics of stuffing away her worries so she didn’t have to think about them.

  Honestly, she had so much in common with the heroine from Gone With the Wind—well, at least the I’ll-think-about-it-tomorrow motto part.

  The waiter brought them their drinks and a menu, stating he’d give them a few minutes to decide what they wanted to order. In the meantime, the band started playing another original song. The contemporary tune had most of the female patrons up dancing. Judging from their provocative moves, nearly all of their inhibitions had to be long gone. It was a little embarrassing, so Addie tried to ignore them and focus on the band.

  After ordering fried shrimp and fries, and downing most of her strawberry lemonade, Addie needed to use the restroom. Syd gave her directions as the band started another song. The path to the bathroom took her directly past a horseshoe shaped bar. Feeling a little nervous, Addie smiled and said hello to several people as she made her way to the ladies room. Most of them were men and she felt completely out of place, wishing Sydney would’ve come with her.

  Her nose wrinkled with distaste as she pushed open the door to the bathroom. Apparently it also doubled as a smoking lounge. Didn’t these people read the reports about tobacco and secondhand smoke? Addie didn’t waste any time and finished up in the bathroom.

  On the way back, she passed the same bar. It was a mistake. Her face burned with embarrassment at the whistles and invitations she got to have a drink with some of the men. Although nobody actually groped her, it felt like she was being mauled by the not-so-subtle comments. She rushed back to Sydney and vowed not to leave her seat for the rest of the night.

  The guys were in the middle of an upbeat song she’d never heard before. It must be another one of their originals. They were good and looked like they were having a great time. She scooted the chair back and sat down just as the waiter delivered their food. Despite the smoky environment, it smelled incredible. “Mmm. This looks good.” She picked up a jumbo fried shrimp.

  “I told you,” Sydney said, taking a piece of shrimp for herself.

  The flavor popped in Addie’s mouth and she stopped herself from moaning out loud. How come everything tasted so much better fried?

  Just as she took another bite, a new waiter came by with a tray of drinks. “For you, little lady,” he said, placing a tumbler full of amber liquid in front of Addie.

  She almost choked on her food. “Uh, I didn’t order that.” She felt slightly alarmed at having an alcoholic drink placed in front of her.

  The man winked at her and grinned. “I know. It’s from that man over there.”

  Addie looked over in the direction the waiter pointed. An extremely handsome man, wearing a brown cowboy hat and white-button down shirt, smiled at her and touched the brim of his hat. She swallowed and turned around, gripping the edge of her chair. She was pretty sure he was one of the guys she’d smiled at on her way to the bathroom.

  The waiter disappeared with his tray, leaving the drink in front of her. Panicked, she turned to Sydney. “What should I do?”

  Sydney gave her a sympathetic smile and pushed the drink away from her. “We’ll get someone to take it away.”

  When a waitress passed by their table, Sydney lifted a hand and waved at her. The woman stopped and placed another drink in front of Addie. This one had a cute little umbrella sticking out of it. “Hey, sugar,” the waitress said. “The cowboy who sent this wants to know if you’ll join him at his table.”

  What the heck! “Uh…” she didn’t know what to say.

  The waitress tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to a table across the room. Another man she definitely recognized from her trip to the bathroom gave her a smile and raised his drink. The only way she remembered him was because he resembled the syndicated sportscaster, Jim Rome.

  Addie shook her head, and whirled back around. She took a shaky breath as another waitress swooped in with another alcoholic drink, telling her a man in the back sent it to her, along with an invitation to join him. This was so embarrassing. Chase was going to think she was a complete idiot.

  Full of exasperation, she turned to find Sydney staring at the drinks. Her eyes flickered back to Addie. Slowly her lips stretched into a smile and a puff of laughter escaped. “What did you do on your trip to the bathroom?”

  “Nothing,” Addie whispered. “I just said hello to a few people as I passed by.”

  Sydney covered her mouth with her hand, trying not to laugh any louder. “Oh, Addie. I should’ve warned you not to make any eye contact or talk to anyone.”

  Now she tells me. One by one, Addie pushed the drinks away from her, careful not to slosh any over the rim of the glass. If the men took her nervous hellos as a hey-I’m-available-and-want-to-get-to-know-you-better invitation, she might be in a lot of trouble. She was from Idaho. Everybody said hi to everybody! And she’d said hello to quite a few men.

  She sunk low in her seat, wishing she could dis
appear. Sensing her despair, Sydney scooted over and patted her on the back. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll send them back with the next server that comes by.”

  “What if they bring more drinks? I didn’t know that giving a simple greeting would be misconstrued as flirting.”

  Sydney reached for a big fat French fry and handed it to Addie. She obviously knew her well. Food always helped. “It’s not your fault,” Sydney said, taking a fry for herself. “Men here take any eye contact as a sign of interest. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  Maybe not. Still it was humiliating. She might as well be wearing a shirt that said: Naïve, sheltered girl from Idaho.

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Chase tried not to focus on Addie as yet another drink was placed in front of her. In total, six men had sent her a drink. He could see the distress written all over her face. There had to be a story behind all the unwanted invitations. At least Sydney seemed to understand. She pushed each drink away, and would pat Addie on the back.

  It was almost time for a break, but Chase wanted to play the song he’d written for Addie. He hoped it would convey how he felt about her, and possibly put a smile back on her face.

  “Hey, y’all,” he said into the mic. “Before we take ten, I wanna play a new song I wrote just last night.”

  His eyes flickered to Addie and he could see he had her attention. “It’s called Make Believe.”

  He started the ballad, and his talented band joined in. They’d only played through the song twice today, but they picked it up easily. After razzing him about writing a love song, they told him it was good and could go on his first solo album. Chase had no idea if the rep from Country Sounds Music showed up tonight, but if they did at least they’d know he could write music.

  Strumming the last note of the intro, Chase began singing. “It was only supposed to be make-believe, but nothing’s felt more real. Your laugh, your touch, the kisses we shared. I know what they make me feel.”

  When he started in on the chorus, his eyes locked on Addie. “So baby don’t leave me, please don’t go. What we have is forever, and I can’t let you go. Yeah, what we have is forever, and I can’t let you go.”

  A look of wonder and love radiated from her face. She smiled, and put both of her hands over her heart. In that moment, she was the only girl in the room. The crowd, particularly the obnoxious drunk women in the front, all faded.

  Their eyes held throughout the song. His voice trembled slightly as he sang the last lines. “No this isn’t a fairytale, it’s not make believe. Our love is forever, baby please don’t leave.”

  The crowd went wild, like he’d just announced drinks were on the house. Addie’s reaction was all he cared about. The tender smile she gave him indicated she liked it.

  Chase waited for the applause to die down a little before speaking into the mic. “Thank you. Y’all have been a great crowd. The boys and I are gonna take a little break now.”

  He slipped off his guitar strap, disregarding the dark-haired woman in the front, offering to help him take his break. Chase had learned a long time ago to ignore women—drunk or sober—and their comments.

  A Luke Bryan song blared over the bar’s sound system, and cut out some of the lewd comments coming from the same brunette. Chase made the promise to Addie that he’d never take a lady to a sleazy bar, yet that’s exactly what he’d done.

  “Hey, man,” Beau said as Chase laid his guitar in its case. “It looks like your date is popular tonight.”

  Chase glanced over at Addie. She looked uncomfortable with all the raucous action around her. “Don’t tease her about it. I already feel bad enough for exposing her to all of this.”

  Jackson arched an eyebrow. “Exposing her to what? Secondhand smoke?”

  “No,” Chase said. “The environment. Drinking, lewd comments and, yes, the cigarette smoke.” Somehow, after singing in bar after bar, Chase had become immune to the skanky atmosphere.

  “Dude,” Jackson said. “This place is nice compared to some of the places we’ve played before.”

  “I know, but she’s not into this kind of scene. Just don’t tease her, okay?”

  “Okay, bro. We promise not to say anything.” Jackson clapped a hand to his shoulder. “By the way, your new song killed it.”

  “Thanks.” Chase could hardly wait to ask Addie what she thought about the song.

  He kept his eyes focused on her as he stepped down from the stage. He and his buddies were immediately swarmed by women looking for companionship.

  Jackson held up his left hand and pointed to his ring as he pushed through. “Sorry, ladies. I’m happily married to that gorgeous woman sitting over there.”

  Chase tried to stay close behind Jackson, but the obnoxious brunette had other plans. She stepped in front of him, flattening her palm against his chest. “Hey, sugar. C’mon over to my table and I’ll buy you a drink.”

  Beau and Jackson made it through the obstacle course, leaving Chase to fend for himself. “No thanks. I’m meeting my girlfriend.”

  The woman pouted and pressed closer. The overpowering scent of her perfume and the smell of alcohol assaulted his senses. “Oh, c’mon. She won’t mind.” One of her fingers made a circular motion on his chest as she attempted to be coy. She failed miserably.

  Chase looked over the top of the persistent woman’s head, and searched for a path to Addie. He found her standing by the table with her eyes zeroed in on the brunette in front of him. She minded all right. Even from here, he could feel the spark of jealousy radiating from her.

  “Excuse me, ma’am.” He removed her hand. “My girlfriend’s waitin’ on me.”

  The woman grunted and said something under her breath, but at least she moved out of the way. Chase turned sideways and squeezed through the crowded barroom floor. The smell of alcohol, tobacco and a variety of colognes and perfumes, mingled with the scent of warm bodies. The combination made him feel slightly nauseated.

  As he neared Addie, a big brute of a guy stepped in front of him. “Hey, baby, I sent you a drink. So what happened?” he questioned, his words slurred.

  Chase hoped he wasn’t talking to Addie.

  “I don’t drink alcohol.”

  Oh, man. It was Addie. And she was having to defend herself against some drunken cowboy.

  “That’s okay, sugar. I can make you feel just as good without it.”

  A hot flush seared his neck as Chase pushed past another person. He did his best to get to Addie, but it was like every time he got close enough to reach her, someone else would get in the way.

  “No thanks. I’ve got a boyfriend,” she said, sounding a little bit intimidated.

  The man gave a low chuckle. “I don’t see a boyfriend.”

  “That’s because I’m standing right behind you,” Chase growled, trying to squeeze around the guy. “And I believe the lady told you no.”

  The guy slanted him a glance, his lip curled up in a sneer. “That right?”

  Chase now stood in front of Addie, trying to protect her from her assailant. He had to look up. The guy had him by a few inches and at least a hundred pounds. “Yeah. That’s right.”

  The man leaned down and spoke close enough for Chase to smell the alcohol on his breath. “Then I suggest you tell that…” He called Addie an ugly name, along with a few other expletives which included a reference to her bra size.

  Chase didn’t think about what happened next. It was an automatic reaction as he drew back his arm and drove his fist into the man’s mouth. Sharp pain engulfed his hand, shooting up his arm. He was pretty sure he just busted a few knuckles. The guy was drunk enough his reflexes were pretty slow. His head snapped back and he staggered, trying to gain his footing.

  Chase turned and looked into Addie’s face. Her eyes were wide with shock.

  Before he could apologize, she said, “Did he just call me what I think he called me?”

  Chase shook his hand in an effort to ease the pain. “Unfortunately.”
/>   “And you hit him for it?”

  He eyed her with caution, wondering if she found his actions heroic or thought of him as some hothead. “Yeah.”

  She surprised him by giving him a soft smile. “Thanks. Nobody has ever hit someone for me.” She squinted and pursed her lips. “Of course, no one has ever called me that before.”

  “I’m—” He didn’t get another word out as he was yanked around, coming face to face with the cowboy he’d hit. He heard Addie scream and Beau yell for him watch out as the man took a swing at him.

  Chase pulled his head back, the man’s knuckles just grazed his face. A string of profanities flew from the man’s bleeding mouth and he caught Chase by surprise with a sneaky left hook.

  He fell back into Beau’s arms. “You just had to go and hit the biggest guy in the bar, didn’t you?” Beau said, helping him stand upright.

  Chase shook his head, hoping the double vision would go away. The next thing he knew a barroom-brawl broke out.

  Between the two of them, he and Beau did pretty well holding their own. But when the cops showed up to break up the fight, Chase knew Addie would never talk to him again. Not only had he exposed her to this deplorable environment, she also heard words no lady should ever have to hear. And on top of that he was probably going to be arrested.

  In the end, they lucked out. Because Chase and Beau hadn’t been drinking and because they were the hired entertainment, the cops let them go with a warning.

  “I better not catch you boys in another fight, ya hear?” Officer Jenkins said, trying to hold back a grin.

  Chase held his ribcage with one hand and a wet washcloth to the side of his face with the other. “Yes, sir.” He swallowed back a little blood from his split lip.

  The officer lifted his face and winked at Addie. She stood next to Chase, holding a glass of ice-water that she would periodically dip the washcloth in. “And you, little lady, keep this one out of trouble, okay?”

  “Yes, sir,” she said, sending a worried look Chase’s way.