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WAIT FOR ME, he texted back WHERE ARE YOU?

Heelse he could do He shrugged on his jacket and slipped out the back, the music cut off abruptly as the door shut behind him

E like Emme

That was Toht when he walked into the audition He wasn’t sure what he had expected when he walked into the living roo ranch house in one of Louisville’s older subdivisions Mirrors, gilt,couches, ne fountains everywhere, Eown Instead, he walked in the open front door and found ale of wires spread out over the carpet, a case ofover the floor, and a giant, incredibly ugly green couch that looked like it had been picked up off the curb

The diva was sitting on the floor wearing yoga pants and a hoodie and untangling a cord of some kind She stood up when she saw him, brushed dust off her butt, and held out her hand “Tom! Nice to meet you,” she said with a smile

Onstage, she’d been all teased hair and false eyelashes and voluptuous curves She definitely had those; even the baggy hoodie couldn’t hide her shape, and those yoga pants were downright obscene on her, but her brown eyes were friendly and her hair was pulled back in a ponytail As he took her irl-next-door nae of her onstage, hair haloed by the lighting, holding the crowd,on the floor, when she looked at him, she radiated authority Like when he’d had a pretty, smart teacher he wanted to impress, he nearly called her “ma’am”

She introduced hier beard, and Dave, the lead guitarist, who barely looked up froreeted him “How familiar are you with our music?” she asked

I’ve been listening to your albuht since you played in my bar Wait That sounds cr

eepy “Pretty familiar I’ve worked out ht want to try tweaking just a bit”

Emme nodded “Good to hear Any particular musical influences?”

Toht for a moment “I’d say I’m mostly a fan of blues and soul,” he said finally “More modern stuff I like—I’m pretty into that dirty southern sound in alt country My dad owned McKinney’s, and I grew up there, hearing blues bands play JR Wilbur used to play on Wednesday nights, and he felt sorry for this kid as always in, you know, a bar So he’s the guy who taught me how to play”

Euitar from JR Wilbur? Those are some credentials Let’s hear it”

Toroup, Dave fiddling with knobs on the soundboard, E microphones The level of professionalism and comfort both of them seemed to have around what had to be tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of equipment made Tom’s heart beat a little faster This was serious He’d knohen he heard them play, had known fro onstage at the bar after the oing on this tour wasn’t the only thing that would change for him Doors would open

He’d sat in with sohad never, ever been an option His dad had been too sick Katie had needed him too much The bar had to be rescued frootten the bar under control, his dad had been gone for over a year, and Katie was doing so much better, and if this audition ell, maybe his life could look the way he’d alanted it to Tom’s hands shook, pal in his pocket, but he ignored it Please wait Just give me an hour

“We’ll start with ‘Walking Away,’ since that’s our biggest download,” Emme said