Crescendo

by Laurie Larsen

  Blake was the next to stop over to the table. He and the guys had finished disconnecting the stage equipment and carrying everything back to the truck downstairs. He looked exhausted, but happy. “You about ready?”

  “Yep.” She closed the lids of the boxes and he automatically lifted one, then stacked another one on top. She grabbed two, as well as her purse and they headed down the stairs, carefully watching where their feet landed. “Good sales tonight. I’ll have to reorder everything.”

  He pushed the truck hatch closed and pulled her in for a hug. She breathed in his scent, a heady combination of sweat and fresh air. His head dipped and they were in a kiss, her heart rate increasing as it always did when they kissed. This man made her heart race, her head spin, her blood pump. Her thoughts went to a silent prayer of thanksgiving for having met him, and for having partnered together on this business venture. She was having so much fun, and so was he.

  “Sorry,” he murmured when he pulled back. “I’m sweaty and gross.”

  Sweaty, yes. Gross, no. They both headed to the truck. Blake swung into the driver’s seat. They made their way through the nearly deserted streets of the city and to the highway. Sleep was calling her hard, but he was probably more tired than she was. Conversation would help them stay awake.

  “Great night. The manager came over and wants to book you guys again.”

  Blake did a slow shake of his head. He took a hand off the wheel and put it on hers, squeezing it. “You’re a miracle worker. None of this good stuff would be happening for us if it weren’t for you. Do you know how grateful we are?”

  “I think I do.”

  “For years we were stuck in a rut, playing beach bars, making a couple hundreds bucks a pop. Now look at us. You show up with all these ideas for making us look good. And suddenly we’re in demand.”

  She chuckled. “It’s called marketing, baby. Building a buzz. Making people aware of what you have to offer and making them want it. You did your part all those years. You mastered your craft. You worked hard. You know what you’re doing, so when success found you, you were ready for it.”

  “And you are great at marketing.”

  “Thanks. I love it. I’m having so much fun.”

  “So are we.”

  “I wish we had a crystal ball and could read the future.”

  He nodded sleepily while he watched the road.

  “For example, we need to hire help. We can’t keep doing all this ourselves.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, to start, you guys shouldn’t be doing your own set up and tear down at every gig. We need a roadie crew to do that. You should be focused on performing.”

  He looked over, eyebrows up.

  “And the merchandise sales. I need a sales crew to take care of that. I’ll do all the behind the scenes orders and creative stuff. But I need people to work the sales table at the gigs.” She wanted to dream big. She just didn’t know where her dreams and reality would collide. “And ... me.”

  He looked over at her again.

  “I’m spending so much time working for the band ...”

  “For no money ...”

  “Right. That I don’t really have time to work at the community college anymore. Between doing all the manager responsibilities for the band, and attending as many performances as I can, I’m exhausted when I go in there.”

  He drove in silence for a few moments. “Well, you handle our money too. Can we afford to pay you?”

  That was the big question. Would this success continue? Or was it a short-term thing? What would their payroll look like? They’d need to pay the musicians a living wage, of course, and if she quit her job, she’d need a living wage too. The other employees she’d mentioned could be part-time.

  “Let me work on finding out. I’m going to call in an accountant to look at our books and our future planned income. We have the goal of paying at least the four of us full-time salaries, but I need help with that before I decide if I can quit my job.”

  “You’re amazing.”

  “Stay tuned.” With that, she leaned back in her seat, closed her eyes and let slumber overtake her.

  THE NEXT WEEK, THE band was booked in Hilton Head Island for multiple performances all weekend. The venue was an outdoor amphitheater that sported a covered bandstand in the middle of a big waterfront park. Rows and rows of wooden benches stretched out facing the stage, providing seating for nearly a thousand people. It was the biggest venue they’d played yet, and Haley was thrilled that they’d managed to get included in Hilton Head’s Battle of the Bands festival. A dozen bands graced the stage throughout the festival. Ace in the Hole was scheduled for an hour on Friday evening, another hour on Saturday afternoon and a half hour finale on Saturday night. Spectators were encouraged to vote for their favorite bands, and a judging panel weighed in too, to come up with the Battle of the Band winner on Sunday. The winner walked away with a trophy and a cash prize.

  Late afternoon on Friday, the band had arrived, Haley had checked in with the festival organizers, and received their instructions regarding performance times, lengths, and set up instructions. They were all set.

  Blake wrapped an arm around Haley’s waist and smiled down at her. “How about we grab something to eat?”

  The whole crew was there ... Jake and Lindsay, Robbie and Helen, so they headed toward one of the waterfront crab shacks and waited twenty minutes for a table. They ordered pounds of crabs, which the waitress shoveled onto their table covered with newsprint. No plates, no silverware other than the tools necessary to crack open the crabs and get the luscious meat out. Dipping trays filled with melted butter made it even better, as well as pitchers of iced cold beer. It was messy but it was fun.

  Haley was happy that the mood at the table was lighthearted and festive, especially since she had spent little to no time with the girls lately. First, she’d been busy. Second, whenever she had the choice, she avoided them. She knew how they felt about her, well, Lindsay at least. Maybe she wasn’t being fair to Helen. But she had no room in her life for negativity.

  “This festival is awesome. I wonder how many other country bands there are,” Jake commented.

  Haley looked up, about to respond when Lindsay’s voice came, pinched with anger. “Why don’t you ask your favorite band manager? I’m sure she has a spreadsheet and a website and could look that right up for you.”

  Haley’s mouth was open, and she closed it, quiet. Lindsay’s comment came from a place of anger, but she’d let it go if it meant they could keep the peace. “About half, Jake, are modern country bands. There’s also some classic rock, some hillbilly and even a couple gospel bands.”

  “It’s a really fun environment,” said Blake. “I’m happy we got in here. Fun too, being in Hilton Head Island.”

  Haley winked at him, grateful for his kind comment. But the kindness at the table didn’t last long. Lindsay dropped a crab cracker onto the table with a heavy clunk. Jake looked over. “Babe?” he said cautiously.

  “Let’s all take another moment to worship at the altar of Haley Witherspoon. Let’s all sing praises that if Blake hadn’t met Haley we’d still be singing at bars like Winners Lounge and The Crazy Crab in Myrtle Beach. Oh hail, almighty Haley.”

  The air pushed out of Haley’s lungs at the magnitude of her sarcasm and obvious hatred. Jake addressed Lindsay first. “Hey, that’s not necessary.” Jake looked up at Blake.

  Blake placed his own utensils on the table and started unrolling from the paper towel roll, wiping the grease off his hands. “Come on now. No need to be mean, Lindsay. Look, we all appreciate the work you did for the band. But yes, Haley is doing the band management now and she’s doing a great job. She’s booking us at really nice places and getting us seen by a lot more people. Don’t take it personally.”

  Lindsay stood, tugging her legs out from the picnic-style table. She appeared undecided whether she’d storm off or stick around for one more retort. Unfortunately for all of
them, she decided the latter.

  “I’m getting sick and tired of this new pace. Some of us have to work everyday. I don’t have the flexibility to take off work to drive two, three hours to a gig. I’m exhausted from all this. I don’t see what was so wrong with the way things were before.” She pulled her gaze away from Haley and swept a look at the rest of them. “Why couldn’t you leave well enough alone?”

  She ran off, while everyone at the table sat, frozen. Haley eyed over at Jake. He stood, watching her go. Slowly, he turned back to the table and sat.

  “I’ll let her cool down. She’s making no sense. She’ll be fine.”

  Haley didn’t know Jake that well, but he sounded like he was hoping that would be true but wasn’t certain. She glanced over at Helen, who Haley assumed was Lindsay’s best friend. Helen raised her head and met gazes with Haley. She shrugged one shoulder. “She’s been worked up about this for quite a while. I’m actually glad she let it out.”

  So, no one was going after her. Interesting. Maybe, as in the way of bullies, no one actually agreed with her. Maybe they just went along with her because it was easier that way.

  Soon the table returned to lighthearted conversation and the sound of cracking crabs. Showtime was two hours away and they were just thankful to be here.

  Chapter Five

  HALEY KEPT BUSY DURING Friday night’s performance, and enlisted Helen’s help with the merchandise table. With two people, they were busy enough to make a bunch of sales, but still watch their guys doing what they did best. Blake played to the crowd while he sang, leaning down to brush hands with the front-row concertgoers, pausing for an occasional selfie with a fan, making eye contact with as many people as he could. His voice was spot on, and the instrumentals were flawless. Maybe she was biased, but she fell in love with Blake over and over again each time she watched him perform.

  One of the festival organizers came over to the merch table and asked, “Do you have a minute?” She gestured to Helen, who nodded. Haley walked off with the organizer.

  “They sound great.”

  “Thanks,” Haley said with a beaming smile. Funny how she felt like a proud mom.

  “I just wanted to show you two places where you can keep track of their rankings.” He led her into a small tent where an electronic tally board listed all the bands in the competition, and two columns of numbers. One was the popular fan vote, the second was the judging panel scores. Both numbers were mathematically blended together throughout the weekend and the bands were displayed in order, the current winner on top.

  “Wow. This is nice,” Haley exclaimed. Ace in the Hole was in the second-place spot, but the judges’ column was blank.

  “The judges post their scores within a half hour of every performance.”

  “So, my guys are doing well.”

  “They sure are. And, if you can’t get over here physically, I’ll text you a hyperlink to this same information on the internet.” He tapped on his phone and Haley’s phone buzzed with receipt.

  “Awesome.”

  “Good luck.” He patted her shoulder and left the tent. Haley looked around and sent a quick prayer skyward, Thank you, God. Thank you for this new excitement in my life. Thank you for hooking me up with Ace in the Hole. Watch over us during this competition.

  She’d grown up in the church, but she was by no means an expert in spirituality. She remembered enough of her early religious training, that when things were going well, she needed to express her thankfulness to God.

  Haley returned to the merch table. Helen was holding her own, but the crowd was enthused by the items, so she jumped in and helped. It really was a perfect night. The setting was gorgeous, the temperature was warm with a nice breeze, and the beautiful sounds of the band’s music filled the amphitheater. She couldn’t think of anywhere she’d rather be.

  ON SATURDAY, ACE IN the Hole had two performances. Blake and Haley walked the white sand beach while discussing their performance strategy.

  “I know cover songs of popular bands are best received. But we’ve been working hard on original music and we really want to float some of that out there. I have two new songs, and Jake and Robbie each have an original.”

  Haley thought about it as the surf ran up over her bare feet. “I think it’s great that you guys are writing music. For any band to advance, they need to move away from playing other people’s music, to branding their own music.”

  Blake gave a hearty shake of his head, excited that she agreed with him. It hurt her heart to continue, “But.” He turned toward her. “Now’s not the time to float some originals. Not for this festival. We’re in a competition and every minute you’re playing, people are voting for you. Fans and judges. What they want to hear is music they know.”

  He let out a frustrated breath.

  “I’m not saying, never. I’m just saying for today’s performances, when the voting is on the line, stick to the familiar. Stick to the favorite songs that everyone knows and loves, and you guys do so well. It might just win you the Battle of the Bands.”

  Blake nodded. “I see your point. You’ve never led us wrong so far, and I’ll trust you with this too. But we really do want to start introducing our own music into our sets. Starting next week.”

  “Agreed.” She sealed the deal with a kiss on his lips, then they continued walking with her fingers resting in his back pocket.

  “Do you really think we have a chance of winning this thing?” Blake asked, and the way he looked over at her, with hopefulness in his eyes, melted her heart. She knew they had a strong chance of winning this thing, because she’d been obsessively monitoring the scoring tent every half hour or so all last evening. When Ace in the Hole’s performance last night was done, and the judge’s scores had rolled in, they were strongly in the first-place position.

  But standing there, watching the numbers change in real time, Haley had made the decision not to tell the others about it. She wouldn’t tell the band members, and she wouldn’t tell the girlfriends either. It would just make them nervous and possibly throw them off their game. They’d perform better without all that hanging over their heads. She was the band’s manager. She would take that pressure on herself. They would find out the official results Sunday morning. Until then, she would be the only one to know how they were doing.

  “Yeah, of course I think you have a strong chance of winning this thing.”

  Her answer pleased him because he stopped walking, pulled her in close. “Have I ever told you ... I love ...” His eyes flickered between both of hers, and his cheeks colored.

  She stared up into his face and her breath caught in her throat. Although they hadn’t been together that long, maybe he was ready to tell her he loved her. Suddenly, even though she hadn’t given it much thought, hearing him say he loved her was what she wanted most in the world.

  “I love ... the faith you have in me.”

  His face wavered a little in her gaze as tears threatened. She couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed. Loving the faith she had in him, wasn’t exactly the profession of love she was hoping for. On the other hand, she didn’t know if she loved him either. But she sure loved what they were creating together, and she loved being with him. That was enough for now. She sniffed and put a smile on her face. “You’ve earned the faith I have in you.”

  He pulled her in for an embrace. She felt safe and content in his arms, and she laid her cheek on his chest. A million moments of bliss passed by, or maybe it was only a few, but it was time to head back to the festival grounds and prepare for their afternoon set. On the way back, they discussed their song order.

  “Throw all the great country artists in there that you can: Radley Ray, Keith Olson, Chris Parker. Those guys are all gold.”

  “Yeah. And how about Frontier Fire? We’ve prepared a set of their oldies and those are ready tonight.”

  Haley considered it. Frontier Fire was one of those iconic country bands from a decade ago, almost two. After a stellar car
eer lasting fifteen years and multiple hit singles and Country Music Awards, they retired, only to miss the magic. They came out of retirement last year with a new album, new singles that stayed true to their old sound while modernizing to fit into the current country music scene. There had to be some Frontier Fire fans out there today, and their older songs had that sing-alongability that they were looking for.

  “Good idea. How many? Three? Four? Then move on to the more modern stuff.”

  “Sounds good, boss.”

  Haley punched his shoulder and they headed back to the bandstand.

  BLAKE GATHERED WITH Jake and Robbie behind the bandstand, putting their heads together. The current band had five minutes left, then a festival crew would prepare the stage for Ace in the Hole. They would be up there in less than fifteen minutes.

  “So, you guys clear on the set order? Or do you want to go over it again?” He peered at his bandmates and tried to ignore the racing of his heart. Nerves routinely hit him while he was waiting to go on, but once they started playing, it all clicked, and he calmed down immediately.

  “We got it, we got it,” Robbie droned. Blake let out a nervous chuckle. “Seriously, man,” Robbie continued, “we’re ready. You wrote the set list down and we can all see it. We got this, bud. We won’t mess this up.”

  Blake ran his fingers over the chords of the first song silently without plucking the strings. “I know. I didn’t mean to imply that we’d mess this up.”

  “Hey,” said Jake. “We’re in this together. Whatever happens, we all do it together. We want to win as bad as you do.”

  Blake took in a deep breath. “Is that why I’m so nervous? Because I know we’re being judged and a big prize purse is on the line?”

  Jake shrugged. “That’s why I’m nervous.”

  They all laughed, and Blake felt his nerves start to calm. These guys were his brothers. His crew. One for all and all for one. They’d been together a long time, and that familiarity was comfortable. No need to worry. They’d do the best they could, and if they won, they won. If they didn’t, so what? They still had a whole summer of great gigs scheduled, thanks to Haley. Life was good.