CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
The traffic on the Interstate was bumper-to-bumper due to construction and it being a Friday evening in the city. What was supposed to be a quick ten-mile jaunt from the Nashville Airport to the Ryman Auditorium turned out to be a commuter’s worst nightmare. The Nashville-bound plane in Atlanta had taken off later than expected and Katie was pushing it, knowing she had just about run out of time. The worst part was, she had left her cell phone in the front seat pocket of the first plane and had no way of getting in touch with Clay. She hoped and prayed Dale would notice it and send him a message on her behalf.
Guessing which rental car place Dale had corresponded with, she lucked out finding her reservation on the second try. Without her precious Google Maps App, she depended on the polite attendant who was a Nashville native to give her explicit directions on how to get to the Ryman quickly and efficiently. She was now mere fifty yards from the exit sign which seemed to taunt her as the minutes on the digital clock on the dashboard ticked by. Traffic had only moved a foot in the last five minutes and she couldn’t take it anymore. Glancing over her shoulder, she swerved the car to the right pulling into a small enclave that wasn’t barricaded by orange construction cones and turned the hazard lights on. The sun was finally setting and the wind had picked up, blowing wisps of hair out of her tight bun. Grabbing her purse and locking the door, she started toward the exit, bypassing stand-still traffic all-together, hoping and praying she would make Clay’s performance on time.
The asphalt was unforgiving as she walked in her high-heeled, pointed shoes and she stumbled several times, cursing under her breath. Tears pricked her eyes and she swiped at her cheeks with the back of her hand, trying to maintain her composure as she thought about how stupid she was for putting herself in this situation. When she finally made her way to the bright red stop sign at the bottom of the ramp, she could hear the rumble of a motorcycle come up from behind. Keeping her head down, she continued on the side of the road, knowing she was several blocks from the auditorium. Out of her peripheral vision, she could see a big, burly man on a Harley Davidson twisting the throttle and grinning from ear-to-ear. He wore a bowl-shaped black helmet and shades, a long braid trailing over his shoulder and full, graying beard hiding most of his face. He was obviously following her. She stopped in her tracks.
“You trying to scare me?” Her hands were on her hips as she shouted over the loud rumble of the cycle engine.
“No, ma’am. Trying to find out if you need a ride somewhere. Saw your car pull over on the freeway. Can I give you a lift?”
Chewing on her lower lip, Katie knew she was out of time and this scary-looking lumber-jack-of-a-man was her only hope. Flipping her purse strap over her head and across her chest, she hiked up her pencil skirt and hopped on the back of the man’s bike, surprising him.
“I need to get to the backstage door of the Ryman. It’s a matter of life or death,” she yelled into his ear.
He nodded eagerly. “Hold on!”
Gripping the man’s ample waist, she held her breath as he took off with a jolt. In less than two minutes, he pulled up to the backstage door and she hopped off, pulling her skirt down to the tops of her knees and adjusting her purse over her shoulder.
Looking desperately at the stage door and back at the motorcycle man, she hesitated long enough to thank him. “You just saved my life. Thank you!”
He pulled off his shades revealing gorgeous blue eyes. “You’re welcome darlin’. Glad I could be of service.”
“Could you leave your contact info with the door guy so I can send you a thank you gift or something?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“At least tell me your name.” She was interrupted when Buddy appeared in the open doorway frantically waving for her with his hands.
She looked at Buddy, then turned one last time to the man on the cycle.
He revved the bike hard before quickly taking off in a cloud of exhaust leaving a skid mark on the ground. Her mouth gaped. The vanity plate on the back end of the Harley spelled the words, “Big Daddy.”
***
“Five minutes Mr. Watkins,” the stage manager said through a crack in the dressing room door. Clay looked in the mirror and shook his head. Tonight was supposed to be special; tonight was supposed to be a night he would never forget. He was numb; his heart broken, plagued with the unknown. As much as he tried to calm down with breathing exercises and playing his guitar, he felt like he had lost his mojo and was ready to forfeit his last ember of hope. He was at a loss and was about to let a whole bunch of folks down, including his mother and Big Daddy.
Standing in front of the lighted mirror with his palms on the dressing table, he sighed and bowed his head in submission. The door creaked open again and he was frozen in his stance not able to turn around to tell them he couldn’t go on. Lifting his head and looking at the reflection in the mirror, he saw her standing in the shadows. Her hair was a mess and tears streamed down her cheeks as her chest heaved with emotion. His eyes widened, and he turned around with a flourish as she propelled herself into his arms.
“I’m here…I’m here. Oh, God. Clay, I’m so sorry.” she whispered hoarsely, peppering his cheeks and neck with kisses.
His heart started to flutter, the numbness dissipating as his limbs slowly came back to life as he tried to figure out what was happening. Pulling back, he looked at her face, gripping her by the arms. “Where have you been?” he struggled to ask, his expression a mixture of concern and jubilation. Katie was as real as the stars in the sky. He smoothed the wild strands of hair back from her face and wiped her tears with the pad of his thumb. “Are you okay? Why are you dressed like that?”
Before she could answer him, they were interrupted by Buddy and the stage manager who stood in the doorway. “Places,” the manager said, her expression thoughtful.
He nodded before looking Katie in the eye, cupping her face tenderly with his hands. “I have to go, baby. Are you sure you’re okay?”
She nodded eagerly placing her own hands over his. “You have to know something before you go, Clay.”
“What is it?” He watched her doe eyes shut briefly before she took a deep breath.
“I love you. You need to know that. You need to feel that while you’re out there. You have no idea how much love is covering you tonight by all your friends and family. Big Daddy is here… and I’m here. And…and I love you.”
Shocked, Clay was at a loss for words. All he could do was pull her in for one last hug and kiss her hard on the mouth. Grabbing his guitar, he walked out of the dressing room in a daze, following the manager to the lighted stage entrance. Katie Parker had just confessed her love for him. His heart was pounding out of his chest and he wanted to sob with relief. His body was coming back to life as his blood pumped to the rhythm of the crowd chanting his name.
Buddy was by his side watching the live feed on a monitor in the wings. “You got this?” he asked, a worried countenance paling his face.
“Yeah,” he whispered. A long intro was playing, showing photos from Clay’s past, the smooth voice of a narrator explaining the journey of Georgia Clay. From his humble, stuttering beginnings to his numerous awards, highlighting some of the most significant songs in American music, one couldn’t help but watch and be mesmerized by the songwriter’s journey to this moment in time. The band was in place looking over at him with broad smiles, anticipating the count off.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, Warner Music’s newest country artist… Georgia Clay!”
The crowd was on their feet in an instant. He hesitated, caught off guard by the bright lights and the noise, Buddy pushed him gently forward onto the stage. The drummer played the downbeat of the first song, the audience quickly clapping along. He waved to everyone and smiled, his eyes frantic to find his focus, which was standing on her feet in the front row. Their eyes locked and a calmness swept over him. Shifting the acoustic guitar across the front of his body, Clay approached the microphone.
“Hey, Y’all. I’m Georgia Clay.”
Another, thunderous eruption of screams and applause swelled in the famous auditorium like a giant wave in the ocean as he looked up into the heavens and started to sing.
*
Katie had managed to let her hair loose out of the corporate bun, wipe her face and put on lip-gloss before being escorted to her seat on the front row. Knowing Stacey would approve, she unclasped the top three buttons of her blouse and held her chin high, looking up at the man of her dreams doused in bright light. He commanded the stage, sending the audience into a tizzy with his upbeat, catchy first song about a hard-working cowboy partying with the boys. His transformation was jaw-dropping, and he looked like he belonged in the elite group of male country music mega-stars.
His talent seemed to fascinate everyone in the audience as he segued into a sexy ballad, painting a picture of a couple exploring each other in the darkness of night. She watched him close his eyes several times, his strong jawline clenched during the musical interlude, his head rocking to the sensual beat. He had to wait several seconds for the crowd to pipe down as the last note rang out in the ambient space. The smile on his face was infectious as he looked down and winked at her.
“Thank you,” he said into the microphone. “Thank you so much to Warner Music for…for bringing me on as a new artist. Thank you to the fans out there…” He paused and chuckled, allowing the screams of several women to dissipate.
Katie watched him shift nervously and wondered what was going through his mind. A stagehand brought out a stool and the bright lights dimmed, except for a lone spotlight on Clay and his guitar.
He sat on the stool and swallowed hard looking at the floor. “M…my daddy is the reason I’m here tonight…” His chest rose with a deep intake of air. “Ever since I was a young boy, he always believed that I’d sing a song on this stage one day. I’d like to dedicate this song to him. It’s called, ‘Big Daddy.’”
A hush fell over the audience and everyone sat in their seats. Katie watched Clay’s hands pick and strum the guitar effortlessly in a hauntingly beautiful melody, knowing this was the moment he had feared; the emotional climax performing for his beloved father. His voice echoed throughout the building as he sang about a gentle giant who taught him life lessons; about a man who had unending pride for his son and how he lifted him out of the darkness that was his childhood. Tears streamed down Katie’s face as she watched Clay. The vulnerability and transparency he evoked were precious at that moment. This is what made her love him with everything she had. This was a man who was real and sensitive and creative. He was her song; the melody that had been missing from her life.
Clay strummed the last chord and let it reverberate throughout the room, allowing it to end in a whisper before he looked up and nodded. The crowd went wild, standing on their feet again. Katie slapped her hands hard, laughing and crying at the same time. She was witnessing pure brilliance. The stagehands returned, one grabbing the stool, the other taking the guitar Clay handed off. His lean physique was highlighted in the bright lights making her gasp. He was gorgeous and in total control. The pride she felt was overwhelming.
Taking the mic off the stand, he paced back and forth grinning from ear-to-ear, waiting for the audience to simmer down. “Gosh, y’all. I haven’t even been on the road yet and you’re giving me a big head.” Laughter filled the auditorium, the warmth in the room perceptible.
“I’ve been writing songs for a while now. Some of them are near and dear to my heart, especially this last tune. There’s a pretty girl behind the music of this one and she’s sitting right there in the front row.”
Katie gasped as Clay pointed her out, heads turning to see who she was.
“This pretty girl has inspired many songs over the years. She’s had my heart for a long, long time. Katie? Darlin’? I want the whole world to know right now that…” His voice cracked with emotion. “…that I love you too.”
She covered her mouth with her hand as the surrounding folks gave her side hugs and pats on the back, her heart bursting with elation. For a brief second, she wondered if her best friend might be watching back home, screaming at the top of her lungs.
The band started a familiar melody as Clay strutted across the stage, getting the audience to clap along. When he started to sing, she recognized the song he had sung to her in bed several weeks ago—and now he was singing it for the whole world to hear.
“Drivin’ down a two lane road. Gravel flyin’, takin’ it slow.
You look so pretty. You wanna come closer with your lips and kiss me?
Lookin’ over the river, at the moon and the stars, they make us shiver.
Drinkin’ in the neon lights, stayin’ up all night.
Dancin’ real slow
Oh, baby, I gotta know…”
Everyone was on their feet, couples with their arms around each other and the entire room swaying back and forth to the sweet music.
“What would happen if…
We stayed in bed all day long and I wrote you a love song, yeah.
What would happen if…
You promised to stay by my side, oh our love is somethin’ I can’t hide.
What would happen if…”
Clay stopped in the center of the stage with one hand and his face raised to the ceiling. He suddenly yelled into the microphone, “I love Katie Parker!” The audience screamed and out of the blue a very large bouncer was escorting her to the steps leading up to the stage, Clay thrusting his free hand out pulling her up the last stair. Immediately, he drew her close and kissed her knuckles looking at her with glistening eyes, the music loud and the lights hot on the infamous platform. Beads of sweat trickled down his temple as he sang to her in front of millions of viewers.
“I miss you darlin’ when you’re gone.
Nothin’ bout our love is wrong. I need you baby.
You gotta know by now that you drive me crazy…”
Katie giggled bashfully, too shy to look out into the audience, her eyes fixated on Clay’s as she bit her bottom lip.
“Lookin’ over the river, at the moon and the stars, they make us shiver.
Drinkin’ in the neon lights, stayin’ up all night.
Let’s keep dancin’ real slow…”
He pulled her into his chest and they swayed together to the beat of the song.
“Baby tell me, I gotta know.
What would happen if…
We stayed in bed all day long and I wrote you a love song, yeah.
What would happen if…
You promised to stay by my side, oh our love is somethin’ I can’t hide.
What would happen if…”
He chuckled at her shyness tucking her hair behind her ear and tilting her face up by the chin as the band went into the bridge of the song.
“You have my heart. We belong together. I want this love to last forever.”
“I do, Pretty Girl,” he said, kissing her on the cheek. The band brought the music down a notch and Clay looked out into the crowd. “Sing it with me!”
The entire crowd sang along, their voices sharing the unforgettable moment that was Katie and Clay’s.
“What would happen if…
We stayed in bed all day long and I wrote you a love song, yeah.
What would happen if…You promised to stay by my side, oh our love is somethin’ I can’t hide. What would happen if…”
Clay sang the tag on his own staring into her eyes. She was floating, as if in a dream, the gold flecks in his eyes bold, drawing her into his strong love.
“This is our forever. Forever. Forever…Let’s make it happen.”
Throwing his arms around her, they embraced to a thunderous roar of applause, his voice barely audible when he whispered, “I love you” in her ear again. She would never get tired of those three little words, and she would never forget the magic that was Georgia Clay.