“That’s impossible!” AnnieLee exclaimed. Printers Alley, which was once home to a thriving publishing industry, was now one of Nashville’s most exciting entertainment districts. “I only played there twice.”
“Once is all it takes sometimes,” Ruthanna said.
“If you’re really good,” Ethan added.
“I think you are, AnnieLee,” Ruthanna said. “Which is why we need to get you into a recording studio.”
AnnieLee nearly choked on the fry she was eating. “Seriously?”
“Ruthanna’s got one in her basement,” Ethan said. “It’s incredible. You should see the mixing board. It’s fifteen feet long.”
Ruthanna gave him a playful elbow jab to the ribs. “Just like a man, to be concerned with how long something is.”
AnnieLee started laughing, which kept her from blurting out that she barely knew what a mixing board did. Then she asked, “Do you really think I should record some of my songs?”
“I do,” Ruthanna said. “I want to hear what you sound like in a decent mic, backed up by real musicians.”
AnnieLee’s heart was in her throat. She felt equal parts thrilled, grateful, and terrified.
“Yeah—five or six great recordings and she can self-release an EP on streaming,” Ethan said. “Is that what you’re thinking, Ruthanna?”
Ruthanna took a few more of AnnieLee’s fries. “One step at a time, cowboy.”
“But I’ve never sung with anyone else before,” AnnieLee said. “It’s always only been me and my guitar.”
“Well, once upon a time you’d never sung on a Nashville stage before, either,” Ruthanna countered.
“And you’d never met a charming, handsome man by the name of Ethan Blake. So really, there’s a fine first time for everything.”
AnnieLee considered throwing him an elbow, too, but decided not to.
“So, what do you say?” Ruthanna asked. “Are you ready to try something new?”
AnnieLee bowed her head and gazed down at her thrift store boots, remembering the lyrics she’d written on the way to Nashville.
Reaching out to take what life has given
One thing you can say for me is…
I’m driven
Then she lifted her head, and her eyes met Ruthanna’s. “Yeah,” she said. “I believe I am.”
Chapter
27
The day had dawned soft and tropical, and Ruthanna was reclining on a chaise longue beside the placid, glass-tiled pool, playing with a few lines of lyrics. A song about a girl, falling in love. Hmm, that was nice, she thought. And there would have to be a boy, of course—preferably a handsome one. Together…
With love in their eyes
’Neath the wide open sky…
But then her phone buzzed, hornet-like, from deep inside her big straw tote. She fished it out.
“Hello, Jack,” Ruthanna said. He was the only person whose calls she rarely screened.
“How are my earrings, love?” Jack asked.
“My earrings,” she corrected him. “The damn things sparkle so much I can signal aliens.”
“I’m glad you like them,” he said, and she could hear the amusement in his voice. “So now tell me about this girl I hear you found.”
She wasn’t surprised he’d already heard about AnnieLee. “Ethan Blake found her.”
“Never mind, say no more,” Jack said. “I’m sure he wasn’t listening with his ears, if you know what I mean.”
Ruthanna laughed. “He probably wasn’t, but she’s great. Her voice is even prettier than she is.”
“I’d like to meet her. Let’s get a lunch on the books.”
Just then AnnieLee popped out of the house in a borrowed bathing suit, and Ruthanna watched as she dipped a toe into the cold water and yanked it back with a surprised yelp.
“I know patience isn’t one of your strong suits, Jack, but she needs time to figure things out,” Ruthanna said. “Because I swear, she couldn’t get any wetter behind the ears if I threw her in my pool. She’d never seen a pop filter or a loop pedal before two days ago. And God’s honest truth, she’d never even heard her own voice played back to her! She says she’s been writing and singing songs for as long as she can remember, but as far as I can tell, her audience must’ve been a bunch of trees and some squirrels.”
“She sounds delightful,” Jack said. “I guess you better promise to let me know when she’s learned her way around a recording session. And in the meantime, when do I get to see you?”