Page 6 of His Ex's Little Sister
A part of me just ain’ttoosad,
One day you’ll see whatwehad.
ByeByeHero,
ByeByeHero.
By the timeI finish the first verse, I realize singing this particular song is a big mistake. I get to the bridge and a few hot tears blur my vision, refusing to be blinked back. What Reid did to my sister had a profound effect on us all. He walked out of her life, and we were left to handle the repercussions. A tear runs down my cheek as I let out the last line. I’m a wreck, and I can only be grateful that Barclay and I have been performing gigs on tiny stages like these for so long that not even the waterworks affect myvoice.
Crowds like this just love sad old country songs that hit them in the gut, which is why most everyone gets out of their seats for this closing round of applause. Clasping my hands together over the mic, I nod and thank them for listening. Patrons from a several tables come up to the front to congratulate us personally and put cash into the stage tip jar. I’m also thanking the stars that Barclay added a long enough guitar solo to my song, so we can wrap it up as the last song of our gig thisevening.
We settle up with Rusty for our pay and splitthetips.
“You were awesome tonight,” Barclay tells me as he packs uphisgear.
“Thanks. You were too. I liked those chords you ran with for thelastsong.”
“Hey, while you were in the restroom just now, Rusty came by with somegoodnews.”
“Please tell me he invitedusback.”
He nods, smiling with pride. “He sure did! Three nights a week, startingtomorrow.”
“That’s great! Going by the tips we got tonight, I’d say we could be making a few hundred bucks a gig here. Lord knows I can use themoney.”
“You and me both.” He looks at his watch. “We’d better get going. We have twenty-five or so minutes to get over to Stars andSpokesBar.”
“Let’s go,” I say. We can’t leave here soon enough. It means I don’t have to see or speak to Reid for the rest of thenight.
But it seems that he hasn’t gottenthememo.
“Robin,” Reid says from a few feet behind me as I follow Barclay to the frontentrance.
Ignoring him, I keep walking. I don’t want to look at him right now, simply because I have no idea if I can control my runaway mouth. I may spill a secret that’s not mine toshare.
Reid catches up with me outside the front door. He grabs my elbow lightly. “Will you just tell me what the hell is going on?” he shouts in a voice that commands myattention.
Barclay whips around from his spot in the middle of the parking lot. He sees Reid’s hand on me and returns to my side, taking a protective stance a few inches ahead of me to serve as a buffer between Reid and me. Already, this is not going well. He gives Reid a genuinely dangerous stare-down, a familiar expression I’ve seen on his face a few times before. Barclay and I are just friends, but he wouldn’t bat an eyelash put himself in harm’s way to fightforme.
“Robin, is this guy bothering you?” Barclay asks, lifting his Gibson off of his left shoulder to prepare for a potentialfistfight.
“It’s okay,” I answer, turning to look up at my sister’s ex. “My…friend was just leaving…weren’t you, Reid? Because I know for sure you don’t want anytrouble.”
Reid releases my arm and steps back. “You’re right. I don’t, but I also prefer not to show up at your parents’ house to find out how to get in contact with Danielle so she can tell me what’sgoingon.”
Shit.
He’s got a pointthere.
I can talk to Reid. Everyone else in my family is liable to break out a rifle and let the buck shots do thetalking.
“Okay, fine. Give me your number. I can meet you after work tomorrow, but you need to promise me that after we talk, you’ll go off into the sunset, or under a rock, wherever, as long as you don’t go looking for Danielle or anyone else for answers. As far as I’m concerned, you’re nine years toolate.Deal?”
He studies me for a second before shaking his head and reaching into his pocket. “Deal,” he answers, and passes a business card to me. “Send me a text so we can set something up. See you around,Robin.”
“That meathead is Danielle’s ex?” Barclay asks once Reid returns inside and is safely out ofearshot.
“Yes.”
