Love's Road Home (28 page)

No matter how strong her feelings were for Tom—and she loved him with all her heart—she was convinced she would eventually do something that would push him away for good.

Best case scenario? She’d make his life miserable because her dislike of life on the road was so deeply ingrained.

But what she’d told Tom the other night had been the honest truth: She would never ask him to quit the band or stop performing. Music was his life, and his hard work and dedication to the craft made her love him all the more.

So until she could get over what he did for a living, or at least make peace with it, she had to leave. There was no telling when, or if, this crucial revelation would occur, and she had no right to ask Tom to wait until it did.

He had to do what he had to do, and so did she.

Beth let out a deep breath and took a last look at herself in the mirror. Her fancy make-up and relaxed hairstyle had her looking calm and collected, but she knew inside that she was barely hanging on.

Tough cookies. Get out there and give it everything you’ve got. For Tom.

Widening her eyes and blinking to clear the moisture that had welled up, Beth stood. "Ready?" she asked.

"Yup. I’m good to go." Hannah stood and made a final adjustment to the bodice of her snug black dress. "Let’s do it, sweetie."

Forcing a bright smile to her face, Beth headed out to sing for her lover for the last time.

•

Music was a balm for any weary soul. It could either lift a person out of the doldrums or comfort him if there was no other solace to be had.

Halfway through the first song, Beth no longer had to pretend she was enjoying herself. The band’s energy spread throughout the theatre, to every audience member and back to her. She knew no matter what the future held for her and Tom, she’d never forget being a part of this experience. Having worked as both a roadie and a singer, the past five weeks on the road would leave behind nothing but fond memories.

She’d made some good friends, and she’d fallen in love with a great guy. Even made some money to boot.

And the best news of all had come mere seconds before Roadhouse took the stage, when they’d been informed that Eric Sharpe had been captured in
Las Vegas
.

Beth had been right about him. He hadn’t the slightest interest in taking revenge on her. He may have spared the time to send her a nasty bouquet, but that was the extent of his malevolence.

It seemed Eric would rather use his precious free time to gamble and visit strip clubs.

So Beth was worry-free for the moment and able to totally immerse herself in the excitement of performing. Everyone on stage added something unique to the show, and although she knew she wasn’t a great talent, Beth hoped she complemented the others in some way. From the audience’s reaction, they loved everything they saw and heard.

Intermission came and went too fast for Beth. Between using the bathroom and fixing her make-up, she had no time to talk to the men. With tomorrow being the Fourth of July, some of them were departing right after the autograph session to visit relatives over the long weekend, and she didn’t know if she’d have time to properly say goodbye.

For all the complaining she’d done about traveling, and she’d complained a lot, one would think she’d be happy the tour was ending. But, instead, she dreaded its close.

She was really going to miss these guys. Tom the most, of course, but all the men and women she’d met had become her friends, and
San Francisco
didn’t seem quite so appealing anymore.

"Don’t forget about the set change," Hannah reminded her as they exited their dressing room for the second time.

"Oh. Right." Beth’s attention drifted as the men emerged from their nearby rooms. Her eyes searched for and found Tom in the narrow hallway.

No doubt the man could wear a paper bag and still look hot.

But, right now, in his informal outfit of faded blue jeans, black T-shirt, and sneakers, he looked like your friendly neighborhood blue-collar worker. Yummy.

His dark gaze locked with hers, and Beth almost looked away, unwilling to see the hurt in his eyes from what she’d done. But then, of all things, he winked.

Here she was, thinking she’d broken his heart, and he just smiled that sexy smile of his and winked at her.

Then he turned away and headed back toward the stage area.

"Are you done catching flies? Can we go now?" Hannah waved her hand in front of Beth’s face.

Beth immediately pressed her lips together in a tight smile. "Sure. Let’s get this done."

They followed the men down the stairs, and minutes later the curtains parted. The crowd welcomed Roadhouse back with rousing cheers.

Once again Beth surrendered to the music. And when Leo introduced the band members for the final time this tour, she soaked up the applause her name elicited.

She knew she would never again perform in surroundings like this, but she had to admit the fans’ attention and appreciation could easily become addictive. And for the introverted person she normally was, that was saying a lot.

Finally it was time for the last song. Beth expected "Dandelions" to be played in its normal, mellow manner. After all, it was a ballad and required no loud accompaniment.

But she was still quite surprised when Leo walked offstage to grab two wooden stools from behind the drapes. As the singer made his way back to center stage, Tom began to speak into his microphone.

"How are ya’ll
doin
’ tonight? You
havin
’ fun?"

Each of his questions was greeted with loud cheers and whistles.

"Thanks, man," he said to Leo as a stool was placed beside him. Then he slid the strap of his electric guitar over his shoulder and set the instrument in a stand to his right, quickly replacing it with an acoustic six-string. The audience quieted down as he began playing a few chords.

This was not the usual approach to performing "Dandelions." Beth glanced at Hannah, curious to know what was happening. But the other woman remained looking forward as Tom continued on.

"I hope you guys don’t mind if we do something a little different tonight. Something which has never been done before and, hopefully, won’t need to be done again."

Beth was lost. What the heck was going on? And how come no one else on stage seemed in the least concerned about Tom’s little speech?

In fact, Leo had picked up his own acoustic guitar, and both he and Tom had taken up positions on the stools. All the other men had relaxed poses, and another glance at Hannah showed her trying to suppress a smile. Or maybe it was a laugh.

Because Beth sure felt the joke was on her.

"This is a song I started to write back in college, and I worked all the bugs out of it last year." The soft music coming from Tom and Leo’s instruments created a warm, inviting atmosphere. The audience remained silent as Tom spoke, undoubtedly impatient to find out what he had in store for them.

Beth was dying to know, too.

"Normally Leo sings this song, but I asked my friends here on stage with me if I could sing it tonight. And they said okay." A brief outburst of encouraging applause and shouts rang out, but quickly died down as the men’s soothing music became recognizable as the introduction to "Dandelions."

"‘Dandelions’ is about love, but I have to admit I didn’t know squat about that emotion when I wrote the song. Sure, I loved my family and friends, but I didn’t understand what it meant to love someone with all your heart. To want that person by your side for the rest of your life." He paused for a moment. "And now I do."

Another round of applause followed his words, and although the same bars of music kept being repeated, Tom played them harder, as though communicating his emotions through the song.

Meanwhile, Beth couldn’t breathe. What the hell was he doing?

The music quieted, and Tom spoke into his
mic
once again. "It’s been said that love is a many
splendored
thing, and I totally believe that. I know it’s hard sometimes, and we’ve all gotten hurt at one point or another on the path to true love. But I also know it’s all worth it in the end. Right?"

Beth could feel the stage vibrating beneath her feet, the audience’s response was so loud. But again, the noise didn’t linger very long.

"‘Dandelions’ is all about the possibilities that love brings to people, if they just let it. And tonight I want to dedicate this song to the woman I love." For the first time since intermission, Tom shifted to look directly at her. "This is for you, Beth."

Remaining sideways on his stool, Tom launched into the first verse of "Dandelions" with the audience’s screaming and clapping drowning out most of his words.

Hannah nudged Beth to move forward on stage, but she stood frozen in place, really hearing the lyrics for the first time—and thankful this song didn’t require her active participation. Tom’s crooning and Leo’s additional harmonizing vocals were all that was necessary.

"Dandelions aren’t just weeds, they’re symbols of what everyone needs. Spots of color in a sea of green—listen and you’ll see what I mean."

His words washed over her, his voice deep and soothing to her ears. And to her heart.

He was making it so damn hard for her to leave...

"… love colors people’s lives—love from friends, children, husbands, wives. Just like the flowers, love keeps coming back."

She was only released from Tom’s hypnotic gaze when he began to play the more complicated bridge of the tune. And after that, she refused to look at him again.

Two emotions raged within her. Love tempted her to say yes to all Tom was offering. And anger wanted her to scream at him for embarrassing her like this.

"… love can make you high and dandelions can, too. Just let yourself be loved and everything will be fine. And out of those dandelions we’ll make dandelion wine."

Obviously the rest of Roadhouse knew what Tom’s plans had been. And they had all hidden their secret from her very well. Beth had no clue what was coming her way.

As Tom and Leo blended their voices for a final round of the song’s chorus, Beth took an action of her own. Unwilling to risk another near-meltdown in public, and not caring how unprofessional she looked, she stepped down from the riser then crossed behind the black curtain hiding the rear stage area. Ignoring the startled crew members near the monitor at stage left, Beth headed back upstairs to her dressing room.

Where she got her second big surprise of the night.

Chapter Fifteen

Tom was torn. He’d seen Beth leave the stage and wanted to go after her, but he didn’t want to upset his friends. Or the audience. Once again, he was forced to decide between personal and professional issues.

This really sucked.

He caught Leo’s eye as the final strains of "Dandelions" faded into the crowd’s enthusiastic applause.

"Go," his friend directed with a nod of his head. Then Leo leaned closer so he could be heard. "Go after her. We can handle this."

Tom didn’t hesitate. After removing his guitar, he waved to the audience and gave a sweeping gesture of acknowledgement to the rest of the band. As he jogged offstage, Hannah and the guys launched into a semi-coordinated jam session often used to warm up during rehearsals.

In the wings, Tom handed his instrument to a nearby technician and then continued on toward the dressing rooms, desperate to locate Beth. He needed to know how she felt. And what exactly she wanted most in her life. Would she fight for him or against him?