Along for the Ride

by Casey Peeler

  Sliding on this flashy skirt and top, Morgan passes me a pair of heels and my eyes go wide. “I’ll break my neck.”

  She chuckles. “You’ll be fine.”

  “No, you don’t understand. I don’t do heels. Only boots. I’ll bust my butt out there.” Turning, she goes back to the closet and pulls a pair of funky booties with a wedge-type heel.

  “Try these for tonight, but that’s it. It’s heels from now on. With your nerves, I don’t want those feet to bring ya down,” she winks.

  “How long have you been doing this?”

  “Four years.”

  “You ever think about anything else?”

  “Never. I love the road, music, and fashion. It’s perfect. Now, there’s a diva that I’ve got to work with every now and then, but that comes with the territory.”

  As she finishes, I stand and look at myself in the full-length mirror. Who is this girl and where is small town Belle Montgomery? “Perfect!” Morgan says with a hand clap. Taking my phone, I snap a pic and text it to Chase and Laurel. “Girl, you better get going. You’ve got a full night ahead.”

  “Thanks.” Walking out of the room, I head cautiously toward the stage. Sam is standing there when I walk up.

  “Hey, Belle, you ready?”

  Smiling, I nod, and he hands me an ear monitor and microphone. Taking the stage, the band begins to play "Tin Man," and I close my eyes and pretend I’m at Joe’s. Once I finish singing my set, Sam comes back to the stage and takes my microphone, telling me to pull my earpiece from my ear as Jake appears.

  “You did great out there, but remember, this stage is huge compared to the one at Joe’s. There are fans everywhere. You’ve got to cover all sides of it. Other than that, you were a pro out there.”

  Jake takes his earpiece and puts it in place, grabs a different microphone and takes the stage for a quick sound check. He doesn’t sing his entire set list, he sings a verse, talks into the microphone, and when he’s given the thumbs up, he walks off stage.

  “Now, you ready?”

  “For what?”

  “Meet and greets.”

  “Jake, there’s not going to be a single person waiting on me for that.”

  “You’d be surprised.”

  Following him down a hall, we take an elevator down to another level and watch as Jim tells me what to expect. The door opens, and I’m shocked at the amount of people in line. Standing in the small room, each come by one by one and ask for my autograph and a photo is taken by the professionals. I counted each one of them and there were fifteen people. I didn’t expect there to be one.

  Once we are finished, I have fifteen minutes until show time. Morgan comes back to check my makeup and Jake comes to stand beside me.

  “My meet and greets are right after your performance, so I won’t be here when you walk off stage tonight, but Randall, my driver, will take care of you.”

  “Thanks, I think.”

  “Randall’s a good guy and like a dad to me.” I take a deep breath as the band begins to warm up and the crowd begins to holler. When given the go ahead, I make my way toward center stage, “Hello, Lexington! I’m Belle Montgomery. Who’s ready for an awesome night?” The crowd cheers even though many seats are empty because most are still tailgating. As the music begins to play, I sing my heart out. I know that these three songs determine my future. When the song ends, a more upbeat one begins to play, and I begin to feel comfortable with the stage. Working it the way that Jake explained, I do exactly that and by the time my last song is over, I’m in love with this stage and what’s to come.

  Jake

  The moment she took the stage, I had to watch. She’s amazing in more ways than one, but this relationship is strictly professional. She doesn’t need a guy like me in her life, but having her on tour is going to be fun, that’s for sure.

  As she finishes her second song, I listen to part of the third and see that her confidence has grown tremendously. It’s obvious she’s confident in her own skin and she was meant for this like I knew the moment I heard her voice. Looking to Randall, he knows the deal.

  Walking downstairs to the meet and greet, I laugh as security tells the fans that I will wear my hat like I want and there is no touching me. How in the world did I get to this point?

  As the door opens, I step in and for the next thirty minutes, it’s fan after fan. They are young, old, and some are super fans because they are so over the top. However, looking at the kids are what makes my night. It gives me hope for a life after this. I want a family one day, but a family shouldn’t live on the road like this. Plus, at this point in my life, it’s hard to find a girl that isn’t in it for the status.

  Once the final person is in the room, I count down until they are finished and exit as quickly as I entered. Going back upstairs, it’s time get ready for another epic night.

  Belle

  Between Jake and me is a rising male country music star, Jake Bryant. He’s all kinds of sexy and knows it. I stand for a few moments, and then turn to Randall.

  “Any chance I can watch Jake from out there?”

  “I don’t see why not, but you better change or they’ll spot you in a hot minute.”

  Quickly, I hurry to my bus, tossing on shorts, a tank, and my boots before going back to the side of the stage to meet Randall. We walk out the side and toward the railing. We are let out by security and I move my way into the pit just in time for the first down beat of Jake’s band.

  He takes the stage and works it like the country music god he is. He has girls screaming and begging to touch his hand, he winks their way, and when he makes his way toward where I'm standing, he pauses for a split second and smiles. Everyone around me goes bananas but I know he was actually smiling at me.

  Enjoying the remainder of the show, I watch Jake Bryant shake his booty as he is famous to do, sing his heart out, but when he pulls that little girl on stage, I’m sold. He’s one in a million.

  As the show comes to an end, Randall motions for me to get out of the crowd before the lights come up. Going to the side of the stage, I finish the show, and when Jake walks off stage he comes straight toward me. I’m not sure if I should be excited or terrified.

  He tosses his microphone to someone, pulls the earpiece out and stops in front of me. “What were you doing out there?”

  “Watching the show. There was no way I was hanging in that bus my myself.”

  “You’ve got to be careful out there. If people would have realized who you were, they would have attacked you like vultures.”

  “Whatever, they have no clue who Belle Montgomery is.”

  “That might be the case tonight, but you give it six months and everyone that loves country music will know your name.”

  “I hope so.”

  “There is no doubt.

  Chapter 13

  Belle

  Going back to the bus, I’m exhausted. I know I need to call Chase. Crawling into my bed and taking my phone in my hand, I call him.

  “Hey, Bella Blu. How was it?”

  “Exhausting, yet amazing? You wouldn’t believe it but there were fifteen people at my meet and greet. They put that out there yesterday. Who comes to see someone they don’t even know?”

  He starts to laugh, “A country music fan is who. You know good and well that if we had that chance, we’d have taken it, too.”

  “Good point.” The line is quiet for a few moments, and I’m unsure of the silence. “You okay?”

  “Yeah, it’s different here without you.”

  “I’ve not been gone even a day yet.”

  “I know. I hate to see what it’s like a few months from now.”

  “Six months, Chase, at the most. We’ve got a stop in Charlotte. You better be there.”

  “You know it,” he says as there’s a knock on my door.

  “Hey, someone's outside, let me call you back.”

  “It’s okay. We can talk tomorrow. Night, Bella Blu.”

  Chapter 14
<
br />   6 months later

  Chase

  “Chase, you ready?” Dad calls from the barn.

  “Yeah,” I say as I check social media once more.

  “You really need to quit looking at that garbage. You can’t believe half of it,” he says, tossing the ladder on the truck.

  “I know, but without her here, it’s like a way into what’s going on. She can’t talk every day like when she first started. Laurel and I want to know what’s going on.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure that’s all Laurel. Heck, we’ll see her tonight anyways.” He laughs and he’s right. Tonight, Bella Blu is opening in Charlotte and I can’t wait to see her beautiful self on stage because over the past six months, Belle hasn’t had as much time to call or text. She still does, but not as frequently as when she first started. Between shows, interviews, meetings with a label and who knows what else, she’s busy. So, I’ve done what any friend would do. I’ve left her alone and focused on work. Dad has a new addition to the church and a small chain store is opening up here soon. He has both of those bids, and I’m still laughing at where they are putting that store. It’s literally in the middle of nowhere, but whatever. Undoubtedly, working has helped keep my brain off of the tabloids that have her and Jake plastered on the cover with questions of a new romance. Who am I kidding? It's driving me up the wall. It shouldn't bother me. She's free to do whatever she chooses, but she swears it's all crap and there is nothing going on with them. I believe her, but when you go to buy a case of beer and see those two on the cover in the checkout line, you can't help but wonder if the story is true. That's why I keep working, talk to her when she calls, text every now and then, even visit Martin's to play pool a few times a week. It does good to keep my mind off of things.

  Hopping in the truck, we meet the rest of the crew at the site and begin to work. The air is cooler now, thank goodness, but regardless this is hard work each and every day. I love it. I honestly can’t see myself doing anything different. If so, it would be on the farm or full-time at Joe’s, but who wants to be a bouncer for a career?

  As we frame the new addition, my phone begins to ring and I want to stop to get it because it never rings. However, if I let go right now, my dad and every other guy working will beat my tail. Once we are finished, we move to the next section and forty-five minutes later, we are ready for a break. Grabbing my phone, my heart jumps when I see it was from Belle.

  Quickly, I listen to her voicemail, “Hey, Chase! Oh my gosh! I can’t wait until tonight. Y’all's tickets are at will call and when the show is over, go to the wooden gate to the right of the stage and tell them to let you in.” She squeals and I’m glad she’s so excited. “Okay, gotta go. See you soon.”

  That voicemail was everything I needed to hear to know that I’m right. She misses home and us, and I can't wait to see her take the stage tonight.

  *****

  Arriving at the pavilion, we walk to will call and sure enough, our tickets are there, but there's also a note that isn't in her handwriting with my name on it.

  “Hey, Chase, I know Belle left some tickets for y'all, but here are some upgraded ones. Figured you'd like them as close as possible. When the show is over, find the wooden fence and tell the guy to let you back. Enjoy the show. - Jake”

  “What's that?" Laurel asks.

  “Jake upgraded our tickets from Belle’s.”

  “Sweet!” she squeals, taking hers from my hand and I pass everyone else’s out. Entering the gate, it's kinda surreal to take in this scene. The last time we were here was last summer and we were hanging out in the lawn with the rest of the party crowd. Today, I'm walking in to see Belle perform on that stage.

  “Holy moly!” Laurel says as a life-size cardboard cutout of Belle is right in front of us. People are taking pictures with it and everything. Looking between Beau and me, we start to laugh, but we know what's coming. "We've got to take a group photo with it, y'all," Laurel says, asking someone to take our picture. They happily oblige and then we begin to walk toward our seats.

  “Hold on, y’all,” Beau says, stopping at the beer cart. He grabs a tallboy and I can't help but smile. Walking over, I grab one as well, but when her dad does the same, he about has a heart attack.

  “Twenty dollars. Are y'all crazy?” He looks to us then passes her the crisp bill, shaking his head as he takes a large gulp.

  “Dad, might want to slow down and let that last a while," Beau laughs.

  Arriving in our seats, we all look around at the crowd that is pouring in. Music is blaring through the oversized speakers hanging from the ceiling of the metal roof, and then the music stops, an announcer makes note of the exits and rules, and then I see her enter the stage as her band starts to play. She has on a pair of black leather shorts that should be illegal because they look like they've been painted on, a fitted black t-shirt, a leather jacket, and shoes that are red with a heel that looks like a weapon. She struts across stage with poise and confidence. Her hair is down and flowing down back. She looks to her right and I see her look falter. I wonder why? Then it hits me, I bet she has no clue about the seat change. If only there was a way to get her attention over here, but it's no use. Belle Blu is in her element, on the stage, singing her heart out, and all I can do is stare.

  Belle

  As I hit the last note of my most current single, the crowd goes wild, and the stage goes dark. “Thank you, Charlotte! Now put your hands together for Justin Lynch!”

  Exiting the stage, I glance over my shoulder into the crowd and cannot believe how my life has changed in the last six months. It wasn’t long ago that I spent my weekends working the merchandise table at Joe’s. Speaking of that, where are Chase, Laurel, and my family? They weren’t in the seats I left them and it hurts my heart.

  Walking down the hall backstage, I come face-to-face with the country music god himself. “Don’t worry, Belle. This never gets old. You do know that before long, you’re gonna be closing a show down.”

  “Thanks, Jake. But I’m just gonna enjoy this ride right now. I’ll see ya from the crowd,” I say with a wink.

  Hurrying to my dressing room, I make a quick trip into the powder room, change into clothes a little less diva-ish and hurry back to find a spot in the crowd. I honestly think I could watch Jake Bryant every single night on that stage, and not just for the way his backside looks in those jeans, either. He has one of the best voices in country music today. It’s like sweet honey to my ears, and I swear it gets sweeter every time I hear it.

  As I grab my water, I hear the voices of thousands of screaming fans, and with the first downbeat of his current number one hit, every word is being sung by Jake and the crowd. Gah! That’s got to be the best feeling ever. I walk double-time to make my way out into the crowd. Security knows exactly what I’m up to. Since the first day I began touring with Jake, once my set is over, I enjoy his show just like everyone else, directly in the pit. One perk is that I always get a good spot thanks to security.

  As Jake slows it down, I laugh when he finds my eyes in the crowd and then winks. Of course, all the girls around me think it’s for them, but I know it’s for me. The truth is, Jake Bryant has become by best friend since the day he signed me to his tour. He’s the complete opposite of what I expected a country mega star to act like; he’s a perfect gentleman. Maybe it’s due to the close quarters we endure while traveling, but he is an absolute sweetheart.

  I sing along with the crowd to every song, sway my hips back and forth, and lift my drink at the appropriate times. When the next to the last song in the set begins, I make my way back out of the crowd and to the stage entrance. Standing to the right of the stage, I take in the final song and sing along with him.

  As Jake finishes his finale, he takes a bow and runs off stage toward me. “Ahhh!” I squeal as he lifts me off the ground and spins me around.

  “Glad to see me?” I ask.

  “You have no idea what it’s like to look out into the crowd and find eyes that you know. Re
ally know, Belle.”

  “If I didn’t know better, Mr. Bryant, I’d think somebody had a crush.”

  “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you liked it.”

  “What can I say? I’m a sucker for a country boy in tight jeans that knows how to work a stage.”

  Jake puts me down and as his eyes linger a little longer, I start to question what is really going on between us. Tossing his arm around my shoulder, we walk down the hall toward meet and greet to sign autographs. This makes for a long night, but at least we have a few days off before hitting the road again. The big man upstairs must have been looking out for me because I can go home for a few days. That means no tour bus, cameras, hotel rooms, or getting decked out to the nines every night. I get to see my family and friends, be myself, and enjoy life as a normal girl from Lattimore.

  “So, Jake, what have you got planned for your days off?”

  “Well, I guess I’m gonna just stay on the bus. Why?”

  “Well, I was thinkin’.”

  “Oh lord, you’re thinkin’?” he asks as he stops and crosses his arms.

  “Yeah, well, I was thinkin’ about goin’ home for a few days. I mean, it’s like an hour from here. Honestly, I can’t believe more of my family and friends didn’t show up tonight.”

  “Um, Belle. You might wanna turn around.”

  As I turn around, I’m met by everyone that is important to me—my parents, Beau, Laurel and Chase.

  Laurel and I do the same squeal, dance in place, and then rush to each other. Chase and Beau laugh, and Mama and Daddy just shake their heads.

  “Oh my gosh, y’all! I didn’t even know y’all were here! I didn’t see you in the seats I left for y'all.”

  “Well, that’s because Jake found us some a little closer.” Spinning around, I find Jake and place my hands on my hips with a wide grin. “You pulled this stunt, Jake Bryant?”

  Smiling, he answers, “Guilty.”

  “I freakin’ love you!”

  “Whoa now, Belle. Don’t go droppin’ a four-letter word over some concert tickets.”