Bridge of Hope (33 page)

“Well, as I said, friendship is all I can offer.” She went on to ask where Alice was and so I told her that Alice had gone home and that she wanted to make a go of things with me again.

“I’m fully aware of that.” Mallory seemed a little pissed off. “Did she not tell you about our cosy little chat in the ladies that last time you played? She accused me of breaking your heart worse than
she
had and pretty much warned me off you.”

What. The. Fuck?
It was good that Alice had gone home because at that very second I was so angry I wasn’t sure what I would’ve done. “Shit! Really? Is that why you went—”

“Ha! Greg, I won’t be scared off by her or by anyone. I’ve become quite tough lately. I just needed a break. That’s all,” she said sternly.

The rest of the conversation was a little fuzzy in my head afterwards, as I was seeing red. But Mallory told me she was worried I would get hurt if Alice and I gave things another go, and she was right. I sincerely hoped at that point that Alice had given up on her stupid plot to win me back after the tongue lashing and home truths I dished her. But with Alice you never did know. The fact that she tried to warn off the woman I loved was enough to convince me that she wouldn’t give up easily. Mallory’s concern touched me but she did stress the fact that it was out of concern for me as her
friend
.

~~~

Later that day I was standing at the bar, a total nervous wreck. The agents from CAT were coming to see me, and I’d resorted to whiskey to calm my jagged nerves.

“I thought that stuff dried your vocal cords out,” Mallory said from beside me.

“Aye, but I’m a tad nervous tonight. Some guy put a clip of me on the Internet and this bloke from some entertainment agency is coming to see me play.”

“Wow, Greg. That’s brilliant.” She gasped. “What’ll happen if he likes what he sees?”

I pursed my lips, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed. She was reading more into this than necessary. “Ah… I won’t be famous or anything quite so crazy, but it could mean I get gigs farther afield. He has a list of places all over Highland that I could be booked for.”

Mallory’s gaze travelled to the door and I turned to see what she was looking at. The couple who had just walked in looked like undercover coppers, but I guessed they were from the talent agency.

“Shit, that must be them.” I took a large gulp of my drink and went over to say hello.

Chapter Forty-Four

September 2011

After introducing myself to the agency reps, I took my place behind the microphone. My mouth was dry and my hands were clammy, making playing a little tricky. Every so often I had to wipe my palms on my jeans, which, I’m guessing, didn’t look all that great.

“Evening, all. Good to be here again and to see the place packed. I’m sure Stella is grateful, and I know I am. I’d like to start tonight off with a dedication to someone. She knows who she is. The words have to be said and I can think of no better way to say them… It’s a song by a band you may think obscure for a weeknight in a village pub, but the sentiment is important. It’s by Incubus and it’s called ‘Dig’.”

I gazed at Mallory as I sang and she smiled back at me in acknowledgement. It was like a secret message shared between the two of us, and although there were people present who had figured out what I meant, it didn’t matter. We shared the moment and that was all I cared about. The song told her how much I valued her friendship and that I would always be there for her like she was for me. And even though I was determined to have her in my life no matter how that presented itself, I still felt the pang of sadness that we would never be anything more. That we would never share any kind of intimacy again.

The rest of the night went by fast, but the crowd in the pub was appreciative and clapped in all the right places. The only bloody problem was
every time
I sang something they knew, they bloody sang along. I’ve
always
hated that, but their out-of-tune warbling made me laugh so I eventually forgave them.

Once the gig was over, I made my way back over to the agents from CAT. Cassandra was the first to speak. “That was fantastic, Greg. The crowd here clearly loves you.”

I felt my cheeks become warm and I rubbed the back of my neck. “Right… thanks. That’s great. Thanks—oh, I already said that.”

Cassandra laughed at my embarrassment. “We’d like to take you on. However, we understand about your boat business, so we can work around you.”

“Yes,” Hayden, the male rep, said. “There are lots of our venues that would appreciate your type of music and, forgive me for saying so, we think the
female
clientele will just adore you.”

I shook my head, not really understanding why he thought that. “Really? But I’m thirty-eight. Hardly a spring chicken.”

Hayden shook his head and waved his hands up and down ma body. “Believe me, I’m talking from experience here, you have that dark-and-mysterious charisma that women love. And I’m told that the whole rugged-good-looks thing is very
in
at the moment as far as female patrons are concerned, so I think you’ll do
very
well.” He raised his eyebrows as if to emphasise his point.

“Oookay. If you say so.”

“Oh, we
know
so, Greg. So what do you say?”

I lifted my hands out from my sides and grinned. “I say why the fuck not.”
Whoops.
I cringed. “Erm… sorry about my language.”

Cassandra stifled a giggle and blushed. “Oh, don’t worry about it. We noticed you like your expletives. The places you’ll be playing are strictly adults only, so it shouldn’t be a
major
problem. Obviously try
not
to swear quite so much when you’re representing us, but the odd naughty word can be forgiven.”

Hayden held out his hand. “Welcome aboard, Greg. I can see great success in your future.”

I shook both of their hands and they left. I was a little shell-shocked to say the least. This whole thing was surreal and taking me well out of my comfort zone, but what the heck, eh? Nothing ventured and all that bollocks.

I went back over to put Rhiannon away and Mallory appeared at my side. “Well?” She sounded excited, and when I looked up at her wide eyes I melted inside…
again
.

“They’ve taken me on!” I flung my arms around her and hugged her, lifting her off the ground. I couldn’t help myself, I was so damned excited. She didn’t pull away, so I took that as a good sign. In fact she hugged me back with just as much enthusiasm. It felt so bloody good.

“I’m so happy for you, Greg. How amazing.”

When we broke apart, I scratched my chin and pondered my next words carefully. “Look, I’ve something to ask you. Feel free to say no if it’s too soon to socialise with me again, but… I’m going to an open mic night at the beginning of October in Oban and I wondered if you’d like to come along. I’ve been before and there are some great performers on.”

Tilting her head to the side, she smiled widely. “I think I can safely say I’ll be there.”

My heart almost stopped. I thought
fuck it
and hugged her tight again with a racing heart.

October 2011

October in Scotland is a funny month. One year it can be gloriously sunny and the next bitterly cold. The start of
this
particular October was wet and dull. The only light at the end of the miserable tunnel was my night out in Oban with Mallory and I could. Not. Wait.

Mallory had been showing prospective buyers around her house, and I was selfishly hoping that none of them liked it. If I could prove to her that we could be friends, then there would be no reason she would have to go back to Yorkshire. Friday the seventh was the long-anticipated night of our trip, and I called to collect her at seven that evening.

The two of us had been getting on well. We were back to… hmmm… I was going to say
normal
, but I don’t think there was such a thing where we were concerned. As I drove through the rain to Oban, we chatted about music. It turned out that Mallory used to sing in a choir, and I was intrigued by that fact. The trouble was, it only made me love her more. Stupid images of us doing a duet in the pub played in my mind like some fucking sappy teen movie where we’d fall in love across the stage. It was all in soft focus as she gazed lovingly at me from her place beside me.

To top all of that off, she mentioned that she once sang “Martha’s Harbour” by All About Eve, and it was a song that I absolutely loved; it sent shivers down my spine. I had to manufacture a way to get her to sing it. I simply
had
to. Even if she did insist that I did nothing of the sort. My mind was working overtime.

Just like the last time I’d been to the place, it was heaving busy and the atmosphere was alive with music and voices. This was something I loved. I got such a buzz from being around musos with a penchant for performing. It made me feel alive. Being here with Mallory just iced the cake and put the fucking cherry on the top.

We grabbed a table and got some drinks. We listened to a few of the acts performing, and I slyly watched Mallory smiling up at the stage. Some young guy was singing “Yellow” by Coldplay, and her eyes were filled with tears as she listened.
She’s just too bloody cute
.

The next singer was a girl with long titian hair and vivid green eyes. Her resemblance to Mairi was staggering and I was suddenly mesmerised. Mairi couldn’t sing for toffee, but if she could have, I imagined that this was how she’d have sounded. I felt someone squeeze my arm and I glanced to the side to find Mallory watching me with a knowing expression.

I wiped at the moisture around my eyes and smiled. “I’m… erm… just nipping to the gents’. Won’t be long,” I told her as I stood and backed away, feeling a little silly for my outward expression of emotion over the complete stranger on the stage.

Once inside the men’s room I went to the sink and stared at my reflection. Being with Mallory just did something good for me. I looked so much more vital. Gone were the dark circles I’d been plagued with and now I looked like
me
again. She had well and truly saved me. I just wished she would let me do the same for her.

I splashed cold water on my face and took some calming breaths. I was about to put my plan into action, and I was fucking scared she’d slap me or be so angry that our fragile friendship would once again be on the rocks. On the way back to the table, I chatted to the guy taking names of performers and gave him the information he needed. He told me I was up next and so I dashed back to Mallory and grabbed her arm. She followed me with a frown on her face but didn’t ask questions, although I saw that she had plenty.

“You know you sang ‘Martha’s Harbour’ in your choir that time?”

She frowned. “Yes, yes, of course I remember. We were
just
talking about it.”

“Aye, well, I hope you remember the words, ’cause it just so happens it’s one of my favourites, and we’re just about to perform it live on stage.” I, of course, knew it like the back of my hand.

She pulled her arm to try and free herself from my grip, but I just grinned and held on tighter.
Yep, she’s gonna fucking kill me.
Her eyes widened. “You must be mad! There’s no way I’m—”

Too late. The announcer’s voice came over the sound system. “Ladies, gentleman, it’s time for a duet now. Next up this evening we have Greg McBradden accompanying Mallory Westerman as she sings ‘Martha’s Harbour’.”

She sat down on the stool beside mine and gawped open mouthed in the direction of the audience. The stage lights were bright and so she would be able to make out only shadows like I could. I began to strum the opening chords of the song and gazed at her encouragingly, hoping she wouldn’t freeze.

She closed her eyes and began to sing. She had an
amazing
voice. My heart and stomach flipped simultaneously and I almost fell backwards off my perch. I tried my best to focus on my playing so as not to let her down, but honestly I just wanted to stop and listen instead. My insides turned to mush.
My God, can this woman get any more fucking perfect? Seriously, God, you’re having a laugh
now with your bloody tormenting.
I glanced skyward for a moment and then back to the angel beside me as she sang the song with such feeling that my stupid eyes began to sting again. This woman turned me into a bloody emotional wreck in the
best
possible way.

When the song ended, I placed my guitar down carefully and banged my hands together with the rest of the crowd. She was fucking
awesome
! My palms were red raw when I stopped clapping but I didn’t care. We stepped down from the stage and once again I placed Rhiannon against the wall. Scooping Mallory into my arms, I swung her around, kissing her cheeks and head. When I placed her down again, her eyes met mine and the chemistry between us literally took my breath from my body.