Take Me As I Am (11 page)

Chapter Twelve

“Thea, are you home?” Jo flung her backpack onto the side table, causing it to totter. She quickly grabbed hold of the vase of fresh flowers threatening to fall. It was a pleasure to come home to a clean house where she didn’t have to do anything.

Jo smiled recalling her days at the motel with Thea—a month she never would forget. In that time, they formed a solid friendship and thanks to John-Henry had the opportunity of a potential singing contract in Nashville…

They had arrived in Nashville three months earlier with little more than the shirts on their backs and even less money in their pockets. Now hard work, even stacking shelves in a local supermarket would see them through. There was no way Thea was going to end up in the gutter.

Keeping an eye on the inexperienced woman had become second nature.

At times, she wondered how the timid and innocent Thea managed to worm her way into her heart so rapidly. Jo’s life had demanded that she survive in any way she could and she had few experiences left to challenge her but not so for Thea.

John-Henry’s friend Jack Wicklow was true to his word. After listening to Jo sing in person, he advanced her enough money to rent a modest apartment along with money for other necessities. He’d told her that he knew she was going to make it big and it was only the first installment.

It made her heart flutter and her belly warm knowing that she would always be able to look out for Thea and keep her safe. Thea looked after the domestic needs of their lives. Jo found she had the amazing talent of taking anywhere and making it a home. The once dingy apartment was now a colorful, clean place that Jo was proud to call home.

The thing called friendship was turning out to be very satisfying.

“Thea, you home?” Jo called again as she walked into the kitchen. She was surprised that there were no succulent smells wafting through the room. It was empty. Spotless and tidy, but empty.

Jo looked out the small kitchen window, wondering if ever she would make the big time and have the luxury of a beautiful view one day. She snatched a cookie from the plate that Thea had around for visitors. Or so she said. There was always a fresh batch for Jo to snaffle and she suspected Thea made them for her since visitors were practically nonexistent except for the neighbor above them.

As she was munching on the delicious chocolate cookie, she walked into the living area surprised that Thea wasn’t there either. She was either asleep or out somewhere. It was only four-thirty in the afternoon so it was doubtful she was taking a nap.

Once she’d settled on the sofa, stretching her long denim clad legs on the cushions she picked up the remote and turned the television on, using it as background noise while she relaxed from the long studio session. It had been a very busy day and she was tired. In the past three months, she had been practicing for long hours and although she knew it was for her benefit, her lack of a social life was getting to her.

Even Thea had given up on them having time to tour the city together. Thea had made a friend in one of the neighbors and now had someone to go out with and explore the town. Jo didn’t really mind, for she was happy with her music and that was what paid the bills. She reasoned that it was a great way for Thea to stretch her wings and find out what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. The unsettling feeling in her stomach made her wonder if she was all that happy with Thea’s newfound friendship.

Jo yawned.
Thea won’t be long, she never goes far
, she told herself before letting the peace of the apartment lull her to sleep.

†

Thea smiled engagingly at her new friend, Alice Richards, who lived in the apartment above them. Alice didn’t mind the odd late session that Joanna indulged in when she was working on a new song and would often come around from time to time to see a live performance. Joanna, ever the showgirl, seemed to bask in the attention. Joanna was a star to her and there was no doubt to the whole world one day—she just knew it.

“Alice, how’s it been today?”

Alice worked in a law firm as an underwriter. It wasn’t the most sensational job in the world but it had its compensations and paid the rent. The woman seemed quite happy with her lot in life although she admitted that she wouldn’t mind settling down one day and was envious of Thea’s relationship with Joanna. Thea did have to explain that they weren’t a couple in
that
sense although she longed for that to be true. She knew Joanna liked her but not to the same degree that Thea did. With each passing day she was more certain she loved Joanna and her dream was that they would be a couple.

“Great. What about yourself?” Alice asked.

“Oh, you know me. I’m enjoying getting around the city. After living in a small town all my life, it’s a novelty.”

“A novelty you will find will wear off in time. I hope it doesn’t tarnish for you too soon.” Alice grinned as they walked toward the small apartment building in a mid-priced area of the city. “Who knows, you could be living with a star one day.”

Thea’s shining eyes looked up at one particular set of windows and smiled. Joanna was a star and without her, Thea wouldn’t be free from the entanglements that would have emotionally killed her. “Oh, I think there’s a great chance of that in the future.”

As they climbed the steps to the apartment, a wolf whistle stopped them. Thea turned and saw a group of young men on motorcycles leering at them. She dropped her eyes fractionally. Joanna always tried to make her more assertive in handling what she termed the
riffraff element of humanity who tried to feed off the innocent in this world.

“Hey, beautiful, wanna come for a ride?” asked the guy on the lead motorcycle. The girl already sitting behind him scowled.

Alice turned to face them. “No.”

“Oh, I wasn’t talking to you, red. I’m waiting for your friend’s answer.” His voice dropped seductively as his eyes roamed Thea’s body. His taunts reminded her that she had seen enough of this kind of baiting for a lifetime.

I thought I left this behind in Danvers.

“No, thanks.” Thea tugged on Alice’s sleeve. “Let’s go. Joanna will be waiting and it’s already after five,” she whispered.

The biker quickly dismounted his bike and ran up the stairs between them and the entrance to the building before they knew it.

“Want to whisper in my ear, beautiful,” he said playfully.

The man was quite handsome in a tough way. His stubble had the effect of giving him an extra dimension to his masculinity. Thea remembered Joanna telling her that the look was raw sexuality. It might be to Joanna but certainly didn’t ring any of her bells.

“No, thanks. Perhaps another time.”

The young man smiled broadly showing gleaming white teeth. He lifted his hand and passed a fleeting finger across her cheek before grinning. “I’ll hold you to that.”

He vaulted down the stairs and mounted his bike before roaring away.

“Wow. Thea, you handled that well.”

“I didn’t do anything. Come on let’s go. Joanna will be home.” Thea looked at her friend and smiled. “Want to drop in for supper in an hour?”

Alice shook her head. “Sorry, I have my night class in an hour. Can I have a raincheck?”

“Sure. You know you are welcome anytime.”

†

Thea unlocked the door and walked into the apartment hearing the low hum of the television. She sniffed the air. It lacked any smell that told her that Joanna had started dinner. Not that she expected it since it wasn’t her field. They had tried it a couple of times but the singer couldn’t add cooking on her many skills set.

“Hi, Joanna, have you had a busy day?” Thea picked up the knapsack on the side table and opened the closet door where they kept coats and shoes placing it on a hook inside. When she didn’t hear any response, she went into the living area and saw Joanna asleep on the sofa. It wasn’t an uncommon sight. During the past six weeks, Joanna was up early and working late into the night.

With quiet steps, she moved closer and marveled at the smooth features that belied the lines that crossed under Joanna’s eyes and brow when she was wide-awake. It was as if, in sleep, she didn’t have a care in the world. Awake, she carried a burden that Thea didn’t understand. Joanna never spoke about anything from her past so how could she know.

They had been friends now for four months. In that time, they had opened up some, but now that Joanna was so busy, their time for intimate conversations was scarce. Thea knew she couldn’t complain for she hadn’t found work yet and Joanna was the one who kept a roof over their heads and food on the table.

Should I wake her?

It took all of a second to say no. Instead, she headed for the kitchen to begin their meal. She grinned knowing that as soon as Joanna smelled the cooking, she would be awake and sitting at the table. If there was one thing Thea had learned early in their relationship, she could make Joanna very happy and content with a decent meal.

Everything was going well in their world and she was happy. Very happy. Her fervent hope was that it would stay like this for some time to come and just keep getting better.

†

“Hi, Jack, how’s tricks?” Jo asked.

Jack tossed his gray head to one side, looking at the beautiful woman who had sauntered into the smallest recording studio at Trigon Records. She looked as if she owned the place and if he admitted it, she did once she started to sing. Jo was a natural. She had a presence about her that defied her lack of star power. However, that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to become a star. If he had his way, she would be taking the whole country by storm in the next six months.

“Tricks are fine, Jo, how about yourself?”

“Good. I think we need to do “Needing You” again. It lacked something yesterday.”

Jo was always to the point. It was another thing Jack liked about her. She had done nothing but work, work, and work harder still, every hour he allowed her in the studio. He suspected she did the same at home.

“Andy’s helping Shawn with his backing track but I’ll get him here after lunch to do your track again. Do you ever think of anything but music?”

“Not lately. I promised John-Henry that I would give it my best shot. Plus it pays the bills.”

Jack watched the woman as she picked up the lyric sheet to the next recording they were going to practice. Her eyes were running over the words that she had written for the hundredth time, doing what she did best. She had a wonderful raw talent that rarely came into the right place at the right time. He felt that was now and he was going to see it happen. It wouldn’t do his record company any harm either if she became the next overnight sensation.

“You go practice the songs for a while then I’d like you to join me and one of my business associates for lunch.” He saw the quick flash in her blue eyes. “It’s nothing sinister, Jo. He’s from New York. Believe me, I don’t want any distractions to the deal I’m making. What do you say?”

Jo tossed her long raven hair to the side and grinned. “So far everything John-Henry told me about you being a decent record producer has been accurate so, okay you got yourself a date. Andy can wait until after lunch.”

Jack smiled as he watched her pick up her guitar strumming a few chords as she prepared for the morning session.

†

It was eleven in the morning and Thea had done all the basic chores for the day. There was nothing left to do but to prepare dinner. She was going to make Joanna her favorite meal, or at least one of them. Joanna had a funny habit of saying every meal that she cooked was wonderful…and her favorite.

A smile crossed her face as she recalled Joanna’s face while enthusing about her session the day before. She had been excited about one of the songs she had been working on and had said she had finally figured out the arrangement. Not that she knew what Joanna was talking about, but the look of rapt concentration and excitement convinced her that this was a good thing.

Maybe tonight Joanna might come home early and they could talk for a change. The more she lived with her, the more Thea realized that they were still strangers, but at the same time, they fit together perfectly. Would Joanna ever think that way or would fame and fortune split them up? It was something that preyed on her mind but she refused to let it rule her life.

It was a beautiful day and Thea decided to go on another open topped tour bus ride of the city. She picked up her purse and jacket before locking the apartment door. As she stepped out the door, she smiled—it was a good day. She just knew it.

While walking along the sidewalk her thoughts drifted to Joanna and her preoccupation with her work. Her biggest fear was that once Joanna made it big—there was no doubts about that—she wouldn’t want Thea around. Her stomach churned at the idea as it did every time she thought of their future together.

“Hi.”

Thea swiveled her head toward the voice and was amazed to see the biker, who had asked her to go for a ride.
Is he stalking me?

“Hi,” she said hesitantly. When his blue eyes captured hers, she couldn’t help but smile. He probably was still in college and she had no doubt that she was older than he was.