Crazy Dreams

by Dawn Pendleton

  I whirled around. “What?”

  “Do you really think I’d let this kid be out on his ass?” Baker asked me.

  I opened my mouth and then shut it. Probably best to keep my opinion to myself.

  “Want to see the inside?” Stone asked me, holding out his hand.

  I grabbed it, entwining our fingers together. “Absolutely.”

  Stone led me into his new place, which happened to be fully furnished. He showed me around. It was small, but very nice. The second bedroom was set-up like a studio. All his music equipment was spread out in the room, making it seem much larger than it was.

  “This place is fantastic,” I told him. “How’d you get in?”

  “Baker called me after you called him. He still won’t tell me how he got my number, but he said he knew someone at the admin office here and had already called them. They had this place open and so I took it.”

  “How did you afford it?” I asked. I knew Stone wasn’t exactly rolling in it.

  “Don’t you worry about that,” Baker said from behind me.

  I turned and he was leaning on the door jamb. “You’re something else,” I murmured. I walked over to Baker and gave him a hug, thanking him. He was so sweet.

  He didn’t even know Stone and he helped him out. I was surrounded by amazing men.

  Seventeen

  Stone

  Baker’s generosity was heart-warming. I felt guilty at first. He paid the deposit and half my first month’s rent. He assured me I could pay him back at my leisure, but the real payment would be me taking good care of Ember. I’d promised him I would.

  “This place is really nice,” she commented.

  It wasn’t as flashy as Dallas’s place, but it would definitely do for now. At least it was a place to live.

  “I have more good news,” I told her.

  Ember was sitting on the couch in my living room. “What’s that?”

  “We’ve got a show Friday night.”

  She furrowed her brow. “What does that mean?”

  “It means the two of you are going to be singing together in a bar,” Baker explained.

  She jumped up. “What? Tell me you’re kidding! I can’t sing in front of a crowd. I have to get my nails done. I think I need a trim, too,” she said, wrapping the ends of her hair around her finger.

  I walked over and put my hands on her shoulders. “Calm down. You can do it. You’re going to be great. And you can do whatever you want, but you’re already gorgeous.”

  “Aww,” she whispered, pressing her lips to mine.

  I was lost in her kiss. It was like wildfire, starting slow and building, causing fire to spread through my entire body.

  “Ahem!” Baker cleared his throat, distracting me.

  “Shit. Sorry,” I said to him, but my eyes were focused on Ember, who looked thoroughly kissed and was fully lost in the moment. It took her a minute to come to her senses.

  “Sorry, Baker,” she said, her cheeks flaming.

  “Okay, love birds. You two hang out. I’m going to have a little chat with Dallas. He should be wondering where you are by now, Ember. I’ll let him know,” he said, turning to leave. “Stone, take good care of my little sister.”

  “Yes, sir,” I replied. We had an understanding, and he respected me enough to trust me with her.

  Of course, I had no idea whether or not I’d be able to keep my promise, but I was willing to try.

  On the phone, Baker made me promise not to sleep with his sister before we were each in love with one another. I was half in love with her, so I knew it would happen eventually, I just wasn’t sure on the timing.

  I made the promise anyway, knowing that it was probably the only way he’d trust me. I was a man of my word, too. I stepped away from Ember as Baker closed the door behind him, leaving us alone in my new apartment.

  “Should we work on the song? I want to make sure it’s perfect before we sing it on Friday night,” I asked her.

  “How are you going to play guitar? Your finger is all messed up.”

  I smiled. “I actually recorded the music yesterday morning, while you were still sleeping. I added some other musical instruments, like drums and bass. Want to listen?” I asked, already leading her into my second bedroom.

  She followed me and took a seat on one of the stools in the room. I sat on the other, pressed play on the song and then watched her as she listened to the full song, with all the music. She face was priceless.

  “This sounds amazing,” she said, her voice full of awe.

  “It’s not too bad,” I agreed. I was so proud of the song, of the fact that she inspired it. I wanted to tell her that, but I figured it might freak her out, so I kept the information to myself.

  “Not too bad? Stone, it’s phenomenal.”

  “Thanks. I think it’ll sound better with our voices.” I started the song over and then we sang, our voice melding together.

  This song could change my life.

  * * * * *

  On Friday night, I found myself more nervous than ever. I’d sang at a few bars around Nashville, but something was different this time. Not only did I have Ember to sing with me, but I also had the confidence that this song was better than anything I’d ever written before.

  Ember and I spent the last two days together, singing the song over and over. She even learned a few of my other songs so she could sing back up for those, too. Her voice added something special to each and every song. We put together a four song set, which kept it short, but I put our song last. I wanted to end on the best note possible.

  Baker was still in town, claiming he had to see his little sister sing. He even convinced Dallas to go, which I never thought would happen. The two were going to meet us at the bar. Ember tried on at least ten different outfits, claiming nothing was good enough. I didn’t care what she wore, but she was obsessed. When she tried on a white sundress with pink flowers, I told her it was perfect. She finally agreed.

  She informed me that I had to dress to match, which meant I wore khaki pants and a pale pink shirt. I wasn’t fond of the color, but even I had to admit we looked good standing next to one another. She wore a pair of pink high heels, which meant she was almost as tall as me. I didn’t mind at all. They made it easier for me to kiss her.

  True to my word, I didn’t anything more than kiss her. I wanted to do so much more, but my promise to Baker was solid. I wouldn’t break his trust. Ember was still staying with Dallas, but she refused to talk about him, so I left it alone. I got the feeling he was shutting her out. It bugged me, and I’d probably end up saying something to him, but not until after the set. I didn’t want to ruin the experience for Ember.

  We drove over to the bar, which was actually more of an upscale club. The room upstairs was all set-up for us, complete with stage and two microphones. Because of my finger, I couldn’t play guitar very well, so the club agreed to play the music for us. We didn’t have much to set-up, so we hung out at the bar until it was our turn.

  Baker and Dallas showed up around seven-thirty, half an hour before our time slot.

  “Hey! Are you guys excited?” Baker asked, obviously happy for us.

  “I can’t wait. I’m so nervous,” Ember admitted to him.

  Dallas remained silent.

  “You’re going to be great,” Baker praised. “I’m sure the two of you sound amazing together.”

  “Thanks!” Ember and I said together.

  The bartender let us know they were ready for us a few minutes later.

  We walked up to the stage and got settled. We each sat on a stool, microphone in hand. I introduced us.

  “I’d like to be able to play my acoustic for you, but I hurt my finger this week, so the club is going to play our music. I wrote all the music, though. Thanks for having us,” I said, signaling the guy running the music sound board.

  One of my older songs started up and the two of us sang together. By the time song number four started, Ember had the entire crowd in
the palm of her hand. Her sweet vocals had them all thoroughly engrossed with each song. People danced on the dance floor, swaying to the music.

  When the music for Ember’s song started, though, people felt the difference. They all stopped to stare at her. Her voice rang out loud and clear, beautiful and vibrant. She started the song as a solo, just as I wanted to draw people in. Where she’d been more of a back-up singer for the first three songs, she was the star of the fourth. She owned that room.

  I looked out into the crowd, finding Baker and Dallas, and found them both in awe of their sister. Even though Baker had praised her, he still hadn’t heard her sing. By the time I added my voice to the song, she had captured every single person in the place. When we finished the song there were several people in the crowd who had tears in their eyes. The emotion she elicited was real, raw. She sang from the very bottom of her heart and everyone there knew it.

  The long silence after the music stopped was broken by a deafening applause. Ember was taken aback by the noise. Tears came into her eyes and she looked at me. She mouthed, thank you and grabbed my hand. We both stood, taking a bow and then shuffling off stage.

  We made our way through the mass of people, but it took us forever. Every other person stopped us to tell us how great our performance was. Baker was just as enthusiastic, hugging his sister and then shaking my hand.

  “That was amazing,” he said. “There really aren’t words to describe how awesome it was.” He handed me a beer and Ember a Coke.

  “You were great,” Dallas said to Ember. It didn’t escape my attention that he ignored me completely.

  I didn’t care. I was happier with our time on stage than I’d ever been with any stage time I’d ever had. It was all worth it for me. I kissed Ember’s cheek and congratulated her.

  “You did great.”

  “We did great,” she corrected.

  Eighteen

  Ember

  It had been two weeks since our bar performance. I managed to get a job as a waitress at a diner a few blocks away from Dallas’s apartment, but I spent every waking moment that I wasn’t working at Stone’s place. He picked me up from work almost every day.

  Dallas was in a mood. He still hadn’t apologized to Stone, but he did say he was sorry to me.

  “I just worry about you, Ember. You’re so young. And Stone is a lot older than you. I thought he was taking advantage.”

  “That’s total BS. Stone has been nothing but a gentleman. You think he’s the one trying to get in my pants, but the reality is, I’m the one trying to get into his,” I explained.

  He held up his hand. “Ember, please.”

  “I’ve tried playing nice, Dallas. I’ve tried to tell you I really like him that I’m not going to stop seeing him because you say so. I’m not your little puppet. I’m also an adult, so you can stop trying to be my dad any time now. I have a good head on my shoulders. I don’t need your permission to do anything.”

  “I just wish you’d rethink your relationship with him,” Dallas begged.

  “No. Stop trying to interfere. You don’t have to like the fact that I’m dating Stone, but you do have to accept it.”

  It was still a little new to me, if I was honest. Stone and I were an item. We made it official a few days prior. We weren’t sleeping together yet, a fact that didn’t make me very happy, but I was willing to accept it. He still wouldn’t tell me why. I knew it had something to do with my brothers, but I let it go. For now. He was bound to crack one of these days.

  “Fine.” Dallas pouted every time I went to Stone’s apartment.

  After our performance, I expected him to jet off to another assignment, or return to the one he’d been on when Baker called him home. He didn’t. He stuck around, probably to keep an eye on me, but I was never home. Between work and hanging out with Stone, I didn’t have time for much else.

  Working at the diner was actually fun. I liked the people I worked with, for the most part. There was a creepy guy who hit on me a lot my first few days, but once he saw Stone picking me up after work one night, the guy left me alone. I didn’t blame him. I wouldn’t want to mess with Stone either.

  His finger was almost healed, but he still couldn’t play guitar. It frustrated him, but he had a keyboard, so at least he could get down some of his music. We were both excited that the club we’d played at invited us back. They wanted an all new set, but they did want us to play the song we’d temporarily named Smile. It was the one we first sang together and it was my favorite. The lyrics just spoke to me, though I had no idea why.

  Stone and I were planning a camping trip, too, which was really exciting. We planned to just get away, be alone, and spend some quality time getting to know one another better. I was hoping we’d take our relationship to the next level, but I wasn’t sure if it would happen.

  Camping was something I’d done a lot with Rainey and my dad when we were kids. I loved to fish, even if I wasn’t keen on hooking the worm. I was excited to spend more time with Stone, though. Doing something that brought happy memories into my mind, even if they were laced with sad ones was better than living in the past.

  It would be nice to have a no expectations weekend, too.

  On Tuesday afternoon, Stone called me before I left the apartment for work. I answered right away, ignoring the look Dallas sent me. He recognized the ringtone I picked for Stone and glared at me whenever Stone called. I rolled my eyes.

  “Hey , Stone,” I greeted him.

  “Are you sitting down?”

  “Uhh, no. I’m about to walk out the door to work,” I explained.

  “Sit down.”

  “What?”

  “Sit down right now so I don’t worry about you falling over.”

  I sat on one of the stools at the island. “Okay. I’m sitting. What’s going on?”

  He took a deep breath. “We just got an offer from a recording company.”

  I stood up. “What? Are you kidding me?” I was in shock. I immediately sat back down.

  “I’m completely serious. Apparently , one of their people was at the club a few weeks ago. He liked us, but he had a few other shows to see and didn’t get a chance to give our names to his supervisor until yesterday. They want us to come in to do a formal audition, but the guy on the phone said that if we’re half as good as this guy said we were, we’re a shoo-in.”

  I couldn’t speak. I sat there, silent as Stone’s words settled in my brain.

  “Ember? Ember! Are you okay?” Stone was yelling at me but I barely heard him. “Dammit, Ember! Answer me.”

  “I’m here,” I finally squeaked.

  “I thought you passed out.”

  I laughed. “No. Pretty close, though. I don’t even know what to say.”

  “Please say you’ll do it with me. I can’t do this alone.” He was begging me.

  “Of course I’ll do it. I mean, this is a big deal, right?”

  He let out a breath, like he’d been worried I would actually say no. “Yes, this is a big deal. I have no idea how it all works, but I can tell you it’s going to be exciting. I’ll pick you up after work, okay? Our audition is tomorrow morning.” He hung up before I could reply.

  I set my phone down on the counter but continued to sit there.

  “What was that all about?” Dallas asked, walking into the kitchen.

  “What was what about?” Baker asked. He’d been staying in Stone’s old room.

  “I think Stone and I are going to sign a record deal,” I whispered. I was afraid if I said it too loud, it would no longer be true.

  “What? That’s amazing! Congrats!” Baker pulled me into a hug.

  “Yeah, great job,” Dallas muttered,

  “Stop being a dick, Dallas. You can be happy for her,” Baker chastised him.

  Dallas gave me a small hug. “I’d be happier if she was doing it by herself instead of with Stone.”

  I pushed him away, his demeanor cutting into my happiness and officially irritating me. “Cu
t the shit, Dallas. I’m sick of you not liking him. He was your roommate for months. How can you hate him so easily? I was the one who started things with him. And you know what? I don’t give a crap about what you think. You told me you’d accept me being with Stone, but you haven’t. So screw you. I’ll just move out.” It was an empty threat. I had no intentions of moving out. I just wanted him to snap out of whatever funk he was in.

  Dallas waved his hand, dismissing me. “Fine. Get out.” He went to his bedroom, leaving Baker and me staring after him in surprise.

  “Wow. I was bluffing,” I admitted after I heard the door to Dallas’s door click closed.

  “I figured. What’s up with him?” Baker asked me.

  “I don’t know. Have you talked to him about Stone at all?” I asked.

  “Yeah. He actually told me he was coming around to the idea of you and him together. I don’t get it.”

  “Me either. He totally ruined my high.”

  Baker patted my hand. “Don’t let him get you down. You should be proud of yourself.”

  “I am. If this actually goes through, I don’t think I’ll go back to Maine.”

  “Your mother will have a fit,” he commented.

  I nodded. “She’ll get over it. Eventually. I’m doing what I want to be happy, and if she doesn’t like it, then she doesn’t truly care about my happiness.”

  “So true.”

  Nineteen

  Stone

  It took me an hour to call Ember. I sat in my apartment after I got off the phone with the record company in utter shock. I couldn’t believe it was finally happening. Months of trying and all it took was adding Ember to my set. She was talented, possibly even more talented than me but she wasn’t the type to go off on her own. If she and I stuck together, we could be the next big duet. There were so many possibilities for us. I wanted them all, even if it scared the shit out of me.

  I had a hard time waiting to pick her up after work. The hours seemed to drag. Finally, it was eight o’clock and she came out of the restaurant. I was parked out front. She jumped in the truck, leaned over the center console and kissed me.