Page 18 of Born To Be My Baby

"It might help."

She swallowed again, hesitated a moment and nodded.

"Okay, maybe a half a glass." Half a glass should be alright.

Mina poured her glass, more than a half, handed it to her and she looked at her dad. "You want something, Dad? What do you drink, by the way?"

He chuckled. "I'm normally a beer drinker. It's easier for us to have on the road, so we pack the bus with it."

"All right, what kind of beer? If we don't have it here, I'll call up and get you something."

He shook his head. "Nah, I'm not a prima donna. I'll drink whatever's here. I'm good with that. Over the years, we didn't have a lot of money. We drank whatever was available. I haven't developed a fussy palate when it comes to beer. Except light beer. I won't drink light beer."

He laughed. They all laughed with him.

Gloria felt so good being able to laugh again a little bit.

The door opened and Chris Stapleton walked in. She set her glass down, wiped her hands on her thighs, and walked over to meet him.

"Hi, Chris. My name is Violet Slyk. This is my daughter, Mina Adams."

She stood back as Sean neared. "And this is Sammy Fender."

Sammy and Chris shook hands. Chris laughed. "So you've all had a day."

Gloria huffed out, "Oh, you have no idea."

Chris laughed. "I think I do. I've seen some of the Internet reports and I've seen the crowds outside. I'm going to tell you this, because anyone that's been in the industry for a while will know this. This is going to propel all of you to stardom. Handle it well. Fall forward. Keep your heads high. You're all going to be just fine."

Gloria laughed, and it felt good. "That is so good to hear. Not that the career part of it is more important than the personal part of it."

Chris nodded. "I'm aware. We've all dealt with shit in our lives. Handle it like I know you all can handle it. You'll be good." He nodded. "You'll be good."

"This guy right here." he lifted his chin toward Sammy. "He's good people. I've followed him and the band’s career for a while. You're going to be fine."

Chris leaned forward and shook Mina's hand. "It's nice to meet you, Mina. Thank you for keeping us all up-to-date on what was going on. We appreciate that."

"You're welcome. It's my job. It's the least I could do." She smiled brightly. "We're all happy to meet you, too."

A staff member knocked on the door and stepped in. He said, "They're all set for you anytime you're ready."

Gloria swallowed and looked at Mina. "Where do you want me during this Crossroads event?"

Mina smiled and took her hand. "I want you right next to the stage with me."

16

Sean stepped forward and reached his hand out to greet Chris.

"Nice to meet you in person."

Chris pulled him close and hugged him briefly.

"It's nice to meet you too, man. Should we go play some music?"

Sean nodded and smiled. "You bet. Let's go."

He turned and looked at Mina.

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