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until he
    finaly alowed himself to accept that he was realy on
    the way to living his dream at last. He mentioned to
    Jean and Jules what had happened with Buck, and they
    were not surprised. Jean told Bily that Buck’s girlfriend
    was at every open mic night with Buck at her side. “She
    never wins and most times looks embarrassed, but
    nonetheless, she’s always here. I don’t like that Buck
    Stevens one bit,” Jean added to Jules, “and I wish you
    would fire him at the ranch.”
    “That wouldn’t make him stop pushing Tina to
    sing here every month,” Jules replied.
    “Wel, maybe he would leave town in search of a
    new job and leave that poor girl alone,” Jean said.
    “Bily, you keep your eyes and ears open and let
    me know if anything out of the ordinary happens,” Jules
    asked, and Bily agreed.
    The next few afternoons, when Bily got back
    from the trail rides, Jules helped take care of the horses
    so Bily could meet with the band at Jean’s, choose a
    list of songs to sing with them for the next month, and
    get some rehearsal time in before the bar opened. Bily
    knew he had to work hard if he was going to make it. A
    month was a long time, and he hoped like hel that it
    was enough time to be discovered.

Chapter 4

    IAN DILLON was just finishing dinner at Milie’s Pub,
    which had become a favorite of his, and was headed to
    a late recording session to complete a demo for a new
    artist he’d recently discovered, when his cel phone
    rang. He flipped open the phone. “This is Ian.”
    “Ian, hi, honey, it’s Jean.”
    “Hey, what’s up, dol?”
    “Listen, when you get a chance, it would
    probably be worth it for you to stop in and check out
    this new kid that won the open mic contest this week.
    His name is Bily Eagan, and he’s something else. The
    kid’s got it al —looks, charisma, and most of al, talent.
    I think you two would hit it off. The response from the
    ladies has been overwhelming, and the guys even seem
    to like him. You know guys, they especialy like anyone
    who can get their ladies turned on,” Jean said with the
    hint of a chuckle.
    Ian laughed. “Yeah, I imagine so. I’m leaving
    Milie’s, and I’ve got about an hour or so to kil, so I’l
    see you in a few.”
    Bily was settling into his new gig very wel. This
    was his third night opening for Capitol Nashvile
    recording artists Jed Strong & the Renegades, and
    although Jed hadn’t said anything, Bily could tel that he
    wasn’t very happy with the response Bily was getting
    from the crowds. He imagined it was getting harder to
    folow his act, but there was nothing he could do about
    it but be sensitive to it and try not to rub it in.
    He stepped up to the bar to get a bottle of water
    to take on stage with him and saw Jean at the other end
    of the bar on the telephone. He waved at her, and she
    returned the gesture while continuing her conversation.
    The house band was just starting their warm-up set, so
    he had about forty-five minutes to go before he took the
    stage.
    He was just about to go backstage to wait until
    showtime when he saw a couple of the guys from the
    ranch walk in. He made his way through the crowd,
    being stopped a time or two, shaking hands and smiling,
    as if he was running for office. He didn’t quite
    understand people’s sudden interest in him, but he
    thought that it would probably fade by the end of his
    month-long gig.
    When he reached the guys, they al exchanged
    greetings, ordered beers, and shot the bul for thirty
    minutes or so. It was almost showtime, so Bily said his
    farewels and headed backstage to freshen up. He
    turned away from the bar and noticed Jean hugging a
    gorgeous blond-haired man who had just walked in the
    door. He felt a twinge of jealousy, not sure if it was
    because Jean got to hug this gorgeous man or because
    she seemed to be quite fond of him. He kept walking
    but made a mental note to ask her who the man was.
    Ian had arrived just minutes before Jean saw him.
    She