Page 17 of Born To Be My Baby

He nodded, though his heart felt empty. He didn't know what would happen in the future, but what he knew now was life brought them back together. And they had a daughter. And he wanted to be in both of their lives again.

He was going to need to get her to want that as well. They had time. He'd work on it. They eased down the driveway. The roar of the crowd grew louder. He couldn't believe his eyes when he saw how many more people had joined the crowd. They yelled as he drove by. He stared straight ahead. He gritted his teeth together to the point where his jaw ached.

He glanced in his rearview mirror to see Mina watching, staring straight ahead. She wasn't going to acknowledge any of these people, either. His heart grew another inch for his daughter.

They slowly made their way down the road to the hotel where the class reunion was being held, and where he would have his mini concert tonight on the beach with Chris Stapleton. Boy, he had been so damned excited when he found out that he was going to be doing a Crossroads appearance with Chris. And they had a few conversations on the phone about which songs they would sing. And they played on live chats with each other, their respective songs. It was the new age in music. You could jam online. How cool.

But he was excited to meet Chris in person. All of a sudden, that had all faded away, that excitement that he had. He was still eager to meet Chris and sing with him. It was a milestone, a career milestone. But his heart had been through so much today already. And all he really wanted to do was sit down and talk with his daughter in private. He wanted to know all the things. He was excited they were going to get that chance in just a couple hours. They turned into the hotel and a staff member waved him over to a private area they had secured for special guests.

He backed up his SUV to the parking area so he could pull his guitars from the back. As he got out, he was grateful there was some security. The crowds had slowly moved down the street toward the hotel. It wasn't that far. Crystal Cove wasn't a very big town. And that's when it hit him. He hadn't even thought about being home in Crystal Cove.

He hadn't thought about visiting his old haunts where he had gone to high school. He didn't even think about visiting the football field where he had played games as a junior and senior. All of that had just faded away. It was an important part of his life. It's where he grew up. And he cared. He cared about it. But not today. He wasn't even sure at this point if he'd even attend the class reunion. He didn't want to take any time away from Mina and Gloria. He wanted to spend every minute with them. He had a lot to catch up on. So did they.

He opened the hatch to his SUV and two hotel employees rushed to help him. They carried his guitars. Normally, he carried his own. But today what he wanted to do was hold Mina and Gloria's hands as they entered the hotel together.

One of the staff members said, "We've got a back entrance for you to come through. And we've got a dressing room set up where you can all stay until you go out for the concert. Security hasn't quite finished setting things up out there. So they've asked that you stay in this room until you're ready for your appearance. Mr. Stapleton's assistant called. He's on his way."

Sean nodded, "Thank you. We sure do appreciate you taking the time to help us out with this. I know the hotel is full because of the class reunion."

"It's all right, sir. We do everything we can to help our guests out. And I'd like to say I'm honored to meet you. I'm a big fan. I've listened to every one of your songs. I love them. I saw your concerts when you were a cover band back in the day. Over and over, every time you were within a hundred miles, my wife and I came to see you. So thank you for the years of music."

Sean swallowed the lump in his throat. Oh, how he had always longed to hear things like that. He nodded, shook the man's hand, "Thank you for coming, for being a fan, for following us around. It's why we do what we do. It means a lot to me."

The man swallowed a lump in his throat and Sean made a mental note to get a copy of the DVD they just created, and send it to this guy. He looked on his name badge, saw his name, and he'd surprise him in the mail one day. He quickly made a note in his phone.

They were ushered through a back hall and to their room. When he opened the door, there were sofas, water, and drinks set up on a back bar, kind of like any green room in any TV interview, where they had things set up for the stars. Not that he considered himself a star yet, but he had always dreamed that one day he would be.

15

Gloria looked around the room and let out a long breath. She smoothed her hair with her fingers. She hadn't even thought of how she looked through all of this. She'd need to check over the video once Boon had it uploaded and ready for editing. She was sure her jaw was tight. She probably looked ten years older than she actually was. The television cameras today caught it all. Every line, every flaw. And viewers could be brutal. They'd write the television station and ask if she was sick because she looked so bad. She had a hair out of place, for god's sake get her a hairstylist. The vitriol went on and on. She stopped reading the emails years ago.

The stress of today probably aged her ten years. She went across the room to the window and stared outside. They faced the side of the hotel, not the front, but she could see crowds gathering. She wished they had a beach view so she could see what the security was looking like out on the beach.

She jumped when Sean's hand touched her shoulder. "Hey, it's going to be alright, Gloria. I know you didn't want any of this today. None of us were prepared for it, but we're fine. Security's doing their job. I'm going to sing with Chris Stapleton. We're going to get this concert over with. And then why don't we drive out of town tonight? We can go back to Blossom Springs. I've got a nice house not far from Jami's barn. It's just easier that way. We can go there and hole up. I can call and have security start setting up around the house in case people start finding out where we live. It'll be private. It'll be quiet. And we can talk."

She looked into his eyes and smiled. "What about your class reunion? What about your weekend plans?"

He shook his head. "None of that matters anymore. I was just thinking that none of this matters anymore. It's amazing how the things that were important to me a week ago don't concern me right now."

She swallowed the lump in her throat. Her nose tingled. Her eyes watered. "I'm sorry, Sean. I owe you an apology and I'm sorry."

He reached forward and pulled her in for a hug, and the tears flowed. She slowly wrapped her arms around his waist, and he pulled her even closer. He hugged her tightly, and the memories flooded her mind. What she wouldn't have given all these years to have his arms around her, to comfort her when things were tough, to tell her it was going to be okay.

She swallowed, sniffed, tried to get herself composed, but his smell wrapped around her, his warmth, the security of being in his arms, the firmness of his body pressed to hers. She had missed him so much.

"Hey, you two." She jumped at Mina's voice.

She turned and stared at their daughter. A soft smile appeared on her lips.

"I just heard from Chris Stapleton's assistant. He just pulled into the parking lot. They're putting him around back where our vehicles are, and they are bringing him up shortly.

"Thanks, honey."

Mina nodded and looked her in the eyes. Gloria couldn't tell what her thoughts were at that moment. Mina looked at her father, then turned and walked over to the bar and poured herself a glass of wine.

Mina turned and held up her glass of wine. "Want one?"

Boy, did she. She didn't know if she could trust herself to have a glass of wine right now. Every time Sean touched her, her defenses fell. She needed to be strong. Especially in light of the gathering shit storm. She huffed out her breath. "I don't know. I better not."

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