McGraw singing “Live Like You Were Dying.”
Jean laid a hand on his arm and whispered his
name.
Startled, Ian said, “Yeah?”
“You seemed to be a milion miles away, honey.
Are you okay?”
“I was just thinking about the first time I walked
through these doors. You and Jules were my first real
friends in Nashvile, and I owe you so much. You gave
me a roof over my head and a job—not just a job, but
in the end, a career that I love. A great many wonderful
things have happened to me since that first night, and
every time I walk through your front doors, I’m
reminded of how lucky I am to have you both in my life.
It seemed, at the time, that I had lost everything, but in
reality, I’d found everything.”
“You are a good, honest man, a hard worker,
and a hel of a son,” Jean said.
Although Jean and Jules had always treated him
like a son, they had never realy referred to him that
way. Ian suddenly filed up with emotion, took Jean by
the hand, and squeezed it tight. “I love you.”
Jean squeezed back and said, “I love you too,
Ian. Now, enough trips down memory lane. I’ve got a
man for you to turn into a star.”
“So tel me about this kid’s first three nights.”
“I haven’t seen the entire package in a long time,
honey. In my humble opinion, this type of talent doesn’t
come along very often.”
“I’ve never known your opinion to ever be
humble,” Ian said with a chuckle.
“It’s so different now,” Jean replied. “The music
business is not about the talent anymore, it’s mostly
about the marketability. The labels want to make money
and make it fast. With al the studio capabilities these
days, you can make a pig sound like Patsy Cline. I feel
terrible for the young people who sound great in the
studio and on records but sound terrible in a live
concert. Just for kickers, when was the last time you
heard an entertainer sound great at the CMAs? It just
breaks my heart. But I digress. Back to Bily.”
“I know what you mean about the talent,” Ian
said, “but we’re here to change that. So when do I get
to see this guy?”
Ian and Jean were so into their conversation that
they didn’t notice the place had filed to capacity and
the crowd seemed electrified. The dance floor was
packed, and it was standing room only. So Jean stood
and said, “Let’s get this show on the road.” Ian
watched as Jean stuck her head behind the stage to
make sure that Bily and the band were ready. At a nod
from Jean, the house lights went down, the spotlight hit
Jean, and she began, “Welcome to Jean’s Magnolia
Saloon. Tonight we have a very special night for you. In
addition to Jed Strong and the Renegades—” The
crowd went wild, and Jean waited for them to quiet
before she continued, “we have a newcomer. For those
of you who weren’t here for open mic night this week,
you’l be blown away by this Cajun boy right out of
New Orleans. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome
Mr. Bily Eagan.”
Ian wasn’t sure what he expected, but his heart
skipped a beat when he saw Bily take the stage. Bily
was tal, inches taler than Ian’s own five-foot-ten-inch
frame, and his close-cut coal-black hair, accented by
the stage lights, shone like velvet. Ian took note of the
long black eyelashes that shaded his deep-set crystal-
blue eyes. Below his baby blues was a nose that looked
like it was perfectly designed for his masculine face. His
lips were ful, his jaw was firm and slightly squared, and
he was sporting just a hint of a five o’clock shadow. He
was carrying a black felt Stetson hat with a rhinestone
and black onyx band, wearing a hip-length black leather
jacket, revealing a shiny silk shirt tucked into place by a
tasteful sterling silver belt buckle big enough to bring
attention to his slim yet muscular frame. Black
Wranglers and beautifuly polished black Justin Ropers
completed the outfit.
When Bily slipped the black Stetson onto his
head, Ian could feel the man’s charisma as clearly as he
could see his strikingly handsome face beneath the hat.
His sharp features and tal muscular frame worked
perfectly onstage and, as Ian alowed himself to imagine
for a minute, offstage as wel.
It’s been so long since
I’ve felt even a flutter of an attraction to someone.
Why now?
Was he just looking at Bily as a potential
new artist for Capitol, or was it something else?
Ian hadn’t been a saint, of course. In his early
years in Nashvile, when the pain of Todd had receded
a little, and at Jean’s encouragement, he’d tried to get
back out there. He’d had a one-night stand or two but
never even as much as a quick or casual relationship
and nothing at al in the last few years. Fear of the
slightest connection to anyone left him cold and closed
off emotionaly. He’d adjusted to the fact that his head
would never alow it, or was it his heart? He no longer
knew, and he’d given up trying to figure it out a long
time ago.
Bily opened with “Find Out Who Your Friends
Are” by Tracy Lawrence. As Ian watched Bily and the
crowd’s reaction, he instantly noticed that in addition to
Bily’s physical appearance, he had that star quality very
seldom seen in today’s entertainers. He was able to
connect with the audience with an ease that Ian seldom
felt from the stage.
Ian was stunned. Bily’s voice was strong and
easy, his transition from upper to lower registers was as
smooth as velvet, and Ian could hear just a hint of R&B
in his rich tone. He sang effortlessly, and the lyrics
flowed like a slow, lazy river.
Bily ended his set with the entire house, including
Ian, on its feet. The crowd was screaming for more.
Bily looked off to the wings and saw Jed nod, so he
knew it was okay to do an encore. Bily hadn’t
rehearsed the song he had in mind with the band, so he
wasn’t sure if the time was right to do an original song.
It was a risk, but he went for it. “Ladies and gentlemen,
thank you so much for the warm reception. I would
realy love to end my set with the first song I ever
wrote. It’s caled ‘The Love of a Man’. It was inspired
by my mother, who always said she wouldn’t have had
a life without my father’s love.” Bily reached for his
guitar, took the stool at center stage, and the spotlight
found him as he hit the first note.
The song was a balad, and the dance floor soon
filed up with couples doing a very slow two-step.
Before long, the dancing stopped and the crowd stood
there quietly watching, couples holding their dance
partners and rocking back and forth with looks of
approval and understanding.
Bily hit every note every time and sang the song
with an ease that Ian had rarely seen. When the song
was over, the crowd again went wild. He had realy
struck a chord with the ladies, and there wasn’t a dry
eye in the house. Ian thought about his parents, and a
tear slid down his face as wel, but for much different
reasons. Ian had seen crowds react similarly to various
singers, but never at Jean’s and never for a guy who
had just arrived in Nashvile. The room was electric, but
besides that, Ian suspected he would never forget that
night for far more reasons than he was wiling to admit,
even to himself.
It was Bily’s turn to introduce Jed. “Folks, I’ve
taken up enough of your time. Let’s bring out the guy
you realy came here to see. Please put your hands
together for Capitol Records recording artists Jed
Strong and the Renegades.” With that, Bily headed
offstage and met Jed midway. They shook hands, and
Bily continued to exit the stage as Jed thanked Bily and
began his set.
When Bily reached the wings, he couldn’t believe
what had just happened. He felt like he was floating on
air. After four nights, they stil liked him! Jean was
heading his way, and he sure hoped she was equaly
happy with his performance. In reality, he had no
reasons for concern; she was thriled and told him so.
She also said she had someone she wanted him to
meet.
“Now Bily, I didn’t want to make you nervous,
but I invited a very good friend of mine who just
happens to be a talent scout for a Nashvile record
label, and he wants to meet you.”
“What? No way!” Bily couldn’t believe his ears.
“Are you serious? Where is he?”
“He’s sitting over in the corner at my table, and
he’s waiting for you. Take a minute, calm down, and
don’t be too anxious. He’s a great guy, and I think you
two wil hit it off perfectly. I’l be over shortly.”
Bily went to the men’s room, freshened up a bit,
took a deep breath, and headed into the crowd. He
was stopped at least ten times by wel wishers with
words of encouragement. When he finaly made it to
Jean’s table, he instantly recognized the guy Jean had
been hugging at the door earlier.
Ian stood and said, “You’re a pretty popular guy
right about now.”
“Oh, man, I can’t believe it,” Bily replied with a
smile.
Ian stuck out his hand and said, “Ian Dilon.”
Bily returned the handshake and said, “Bily
Eagan. Nice to meet you.” They looked into each
other’s eyes, and al at once Bily saw nothing else. The
place was empty except for Ian.
Bily couldn’t let go of Ian’s hand, and Ian didn’t
seem to want to let go either. For a brief moment, Bily
felt like time stood stil. He couldn’t believe the warmth
he felt simply by shaking this man’s hand, something he
had never experienced with a simple handshake before.
Suddenly Bily was aware of Jean speaking.
“I see you two boys have met. Can I get you
something to drink?”
Ian said, “No, ma’am, thanks. I’ve already had
two beers and I’m driving, so I’l pass.”
Bily said, “Nothing for me, Jean, I’m stil high
from the crowd.”
“Then I’l let you chat and I’l see you in a little
while.”
“I’l walk you back to the bar. Wil you please
excuse me for a minute, Ian?” Bily asked as he took
Jean’s hand.
Just as they were leaving, Ian kissed Jean’s cheek
and said, “I’l see you in a bit.”
As Bily walked Jean back to the bar, he was
grinning from ear to ear.
“What’s with this guy? I shook his hand and al of
a sudden I’m seeing stars.”
“Honey, he’s the one seeing a star, and you’re it!”
Jean said.
“Is he realy a talent scout? How did you meet
him? What label is he with? Does he like boys?”
Jean laughed and said, “Yes, he likes boys, but
the rest of your questions wil have to wait; you better
get back over there and charm him before someone
else moves in on him.”
“I’m on my way, but I want answers to my
questions and soon!” Bily said as he headed back to
the table.
Ian watched Bily walk away with Jean and
couldn’t believe what had just happened. The guy
seemed to be as genuine as he was good-looking and
talented, and that was a hard combination to find. He
took another glance in Bily’s direction. He couldn’t
remember the last time he’d had this type of reaction to
anyone and was stunned by his admission.
Stop it
, he
told himself.
This is a business meeting
. Jean hadn’t
realy told him anything about Bily except how talented
she thought he was. Could he be gay? Surely not, but
then he remembered Jean saying that she thought the
two of them would hit it off nicely.
What did she mean
by that?
Ian told himself it didn’t matter. He was long
past the point of ever thinking he could be happy in a
relationship. His time for that had passed, and he was
happy being alone.
Just as Ian was contemplating how he should
handle the situation, Bily walked back and took a seat.
“Sorry about that. I’ve only known Jean for a short
while, but I feel so damn protective of her, I hate to see
her walk across the bar unescorted.”
“Chivalry is not dead,” Ian said with a chuckle.
“Not while I’m stil alive,” Bily responded.
“Jean is very lucky to have someone like you
looking out for her.”
“Are you kidding? She and Jules are the only real