Whisky Melody: Rock Star Romance, New Adult College Romance (Tennessee Romance Book 2) (4 page)

Nashville FunTimes (NFT): Well, folks, it’s getting close to the time we have all been waiting for, the Rock Star Royale! The names of the competing bands have been announced, and we here at FunTimes are working hard to interview each band so you, our fans and the fans of these amazing musicians, will be all hyped up and ready for what promises to be an incredible music festival! Today, we’re here with Ashley and Logan, the lovers of Whisky Lullaby.

Logan: Thanks for having us.

NFT: It’s our pleasure. Let’s start by asking how the band came into being.

Logan: The original lineup formed because we all knew each other well and played well together. At first, it was just a way to express ourselves. We didn’t really consider anything beyond that, but then we started playing small gigs and so forth and… Well, it just sort of went from there.

NFT: And what about Ashley?

Logan (smiling cheesily): She’s basically a new edition and just stepped onboard recently, but it really feels like Whisky Lullaby was made for her, and she was made for the band, too. She’s…a perfect fit.

NFT: Did you know right away that you wanted Ashley in the band?

Logan: We’re both students, and we met at the time when we had some, uh…drama going on in the original lineup. I didn’t imagine a cello player who had trained at
Juilliard
would ever wanna join our band, so I didn’t ask officially, but things eventually worked out that way…and now here we are, about to play at Rock Star Royale!

NFT: You seem pretty excited about that.

Logan: Well, I think the whole band feels really good about it. It’s an honor that we were chosen. I know there are lots of great bands out there. I mean, it
is
Nashville… Music City USA, right? We’re really stoked about it, and we’re looking forward to bringing some great music and good times to the fans.

NFT: How about you, Ashley? Are you excited?

Ashley: Very! Like Logan said, it’s a big honor, and everyone in the band is really excited about the opportunity to go up against some of the best bands around. We’re really looking forward to it, not just as musicians but also as fans of music in general. For me, one of the best parts will be hearing bands I’ve never heard before. It’ll be a real education for me since I’m more…classically trained.

NFT: You’re both students. Ashley, you’re something of a musical prodigy, in fact. Logan mentioned that you play the cello, but you certainly seem to have a love for alternative rock and pop. How does your classical music training translate into what you do in Whisky Lullaby?

Ashley: I just love music and seeing how it works. Being part of Whisky allows me to find new pathways in music. I suppose you’d say I’m one of those music nerds, but it speaks to me on every level, and I want to create things nobody has yet. (laughs) Isn’t that what everyone who plays music wants to do?

NFT: You’re right, and some succeed. We’ve heard Kurt Cobain…Stipe…

Logan: The Ramones and the Sex Pistols…David Bowie…

NFT (laughing): So I take it you’re a punk fan on the down low, huh, Logan?

Logan: Not so secret. I love punk. That old four-on-the-floor, straight bass thump, power chords…all of it. Who doesn’t love that?”

NFT (grinning): You have a point. Now, let’s talk about the two of you. Are you really seeing each other?

Logan (looking over at Ashley and shrugging): Sure. I see her right now.

Ashley: Hey, I see you, too!

NFT: C’mon now! Inquiring FunTimes fans wanna know! Is this your way of saying you aren’t interested…in answering the question?

Logan: We’ve discussed this, and we’ve decided that whatever the truth is, it’s ours.

NFT: I see. Then in that case, let’s talk Rock Star Royale. Will we be hearing new songs from y’all?”

Logan: We’re working on a few now.

Ashley (nodding): And they’re gonna be great. We are.

NFT: Good. What can we expect from these new songs?”

Ashley: Plenty of amazing riffs and beats and unforgettable lyrics.

Logan: Yeah, that about sums it up.

NFT: You seem pretty cool, calm, and collected about the competition. Are you nervous at all?

Ashley: Crazy nervous but excited.

NFT: Well, we’re all excited around here, too. We’re gonna have one heck of a good time! Thanks for joining us today and at the event, you two. It’s a real pleasure to meet you and to have Whisky Lullaby on the roster.

Logan: Thank you for having us!

***

Logan groaned. “Man, there’s something wrong with this song.”

Ashley tapped a booted toe into the floor. “Logan, it’s fine. It’s not off beat or off key or anything, and the lyrics are perfect. You’re just being a crazy perfectionist…again.”

The words were not as mild as she would have liked them to be, but they were true. Logan was driving them all nuts, and he had been for over two weeks, like an OCD, demanding nightmare. They weren’t getting any new songs done fast enough, because Logan insisted on overanalyzing every note and every word of them over and over again before giving them the green light.

It wasn’t that Ashley minded spending so much time with him. In fact, she loved that element of their preparation for the Royale. Lately, though, Whisky Lullaby had begun to take on the appearance of a starving monster, and it was eating all of her free time. She fell far behind in her classwork, and she became impatient and snippy. She had several exams coming up, and she desperately needed to study, so she was running out of time to keep practicing the two songs they had managed to come up with.

Logan paced the floor, rubbing the back of his neck furiously with one hand. “Nothing about it is perfect, Ashley,” he retorted. “I’m telling you it isn’t good enough.”

Zip groaned. “Come on, it’s awesome. You’re goin’ nuts, pal, and I gotta tell ya… Man, Lisa’s got the patience of a saint, but if I don’t spend some time with her tonight outside of practice, she’s gonna have my head on a platter…or maybe not have my head at all, if ya know what I mean. Take your pick, because either’s true. I say we call it a day.”

Ashley bit her bottom lip. “I’m sorry, Logan, but I have to agree. I mean, I can’t speak for Zip’s, uh…heads, but I have to get some studying done, or I’m toast on my scholarship, too.”

Logan nodded and sighed. “Yeah, okay. It’s just that… Look, I got the lineup yesterday, and there’s a lotta pressure on us to do well.”

“So we’re playing last?” Mike yawned widely. “You know what that means.”

“Actually, I don’t,” Ashley said with a frown. “What’s the big deal about play order?”

“We’re like…the headliners.”

Ashley frowned again and offered a shrug.

“He means we’re pretty much already in the second round,” Zip clarified then stood and stretched, and scratched his head. “That’s how I take it. They always save the best for last, so I’d say we’re golden, at least in the first round.”

Logan nodded. “I see it that way, too, and it’s good news, but it also means we have to work harder. If they think we’re that good, we’ve gotta prove ’em right.”

“Unless it was just…random,” Charlie said from the doorway. “They do that sometimes because they don’t want fans to automatically assume the last band is the best band.”

Ashley’s shoulders went tense. She and Charlie were still not on good terms, and she knew they might never be. On top of other things, he had made her vow to keep a secret he still hadn’t decided to tell Logan, and she didn’t like that at all. Plus, Kaylee had been crying on her shoulder a lot lately. Charlie wasn’t right for her, yet she refused to kick him to the curb where he belonged. Her naïve and sometimes pathetic cousin was so caught up in being his girlfriend that she couldn’t see that she and Charlie were never going to work out.

Charlie gave Ashley an oblique glance that made her wonder if he was reading her mind and caused her to quickly turn away. “Plus, and no offense,” he said, “but I took the liberty of checking out some of the other bands. Y’all can’t go in there with all those covers and expect to win. You’d better amp up your game.”

“Oh, shut up,” Zip said. “You’re gonna get me stuck here for a few more hours…and I wasn’t kidding about wanting to see my girl tonight.”

Charlie shrugged.

Logan cased his instrument. “I’m sure we’ve got this, Charlie. If you wanted a say in the band, you should have stayed with it instead of running out on us like you did. This is Whisky business, and we’ll handle it.”

“Whisky business? Heh,” Charlie said, laughing snidely. “Very punny, bro.”

“I wasn’t joking,” Logan snapped.

The tension was so thick it was worthy of that cutting-it-with-a-knife cliché. Ashley wasn’t willing to hang around for that, and she really did have to study. “Logan, I’ll call you later, okay? I need to get back to my room to try to get some studying done.” She gave him a quick kiss and quickly headed out, walking fast so he couldn’t possibly stop her with a word or those gorgeous eyes of his.

The air outside was fresh and clean, and she found herself smiling as she looked up at the brilliant blue sky. Truly, she was falling in love with Nashville. It was a strange place, all glitz and glamour and country edge, mixed with a little rock-n-roll. It excited her and fed her soul, just as much as the fine Southern food filled her stomach.

She was born in New York, and she loved the big-city life growing up, but she had never really considered where she would live as an adult. Now she found herself torn between the Big Apple and Music City USA. She did have time on her side, though. She was only a freshman, after all, not a senior about to head out into the world. As she thought about that, it dawned on her that she wouldn’t even make it to her senior year if she didn’t hit the books.

Walking even faster, urged on by her desire to actually graduate someday, she finally reached the hall and stepped inside, where she was immediately assaulted by the usual din. She groaned in frustration, then yawned as she headed to her room. As far as she was concerned, the best thing she could do was grab her stuff and head outside somewhere to study, maybe under one of the giant old trees that sat on the sweeping green lawns or under the stairs.
Anywhere but in the dorms.

Ashley found Kaylee weeping, sprawled across her bed like a deflated balloon. Ashley wanted to bang her head into the nearest wall and almost did. In fact, she also came very close to just tiptoeing past and pretending she didn’t see her, but in the end she walked into Kaylee’s room and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Kaylee lifted a mascara-streaked face from her tear-drenched pillow. “Oh, nothing. I just flunked a test. Daddy’s really mad. I asked the instructor if I could take a make-up exam, but they won’t let me, and I-I don’t understand why.”

“Because this is college, not high school, Kaylee.” The words popped out of her mouth before she could stop them. Mad at herself for saying that aloud, she sat on the side of the bed and patted Kaylee’s heaving shoulder. “It’s okay. It’s only one test, right? Just make sure you don’t flunk any more, and you can make up for that bad grade with good ones.”

Kaylee sniffled. “I know, but it just feels like I’m drowning all the time. I never thought college would be so hard!”

Um…how did she not know that?
Ashley silently wondered.
It’s college. It’s supposed to be hard.
Irritated and needing to study, but stuck because she actually cared, Ashley kept that thought behind her lips, or at least found a softer way to bring it up. “What did you
think
it would be?”

“I don’t know. More fun all the time, I guess.”

Ashley could not contain her annoyed snort. “You
are
having fun all the time—too much of it, if you ask me. You need to cut back on the partying, Kaylee. That’s screwing up your study time.”

“But I’m in college, when people are supposed to party. I’m grown, and nobody can tell me what to do anymore. If I wanna have fun, I will.”

There was no way to argue with her or get through to her, but Ashley had to try. “Yeah, but… Look, I don’t know. I have to study, so I’m just gonna grab my books and head outside where it’s less noisy. You want to go with me and study your own stuff?”

“No.” Kaylee rolled over onto her back and stared at the ceiling. “I think I’ll just hang out here for a while.”

“Fine.” Ashley then stood and headed into her room, shaking her head and muttering all the way.

Kaylee’s attitude sucked. She was being a spoiled brat, throwing away all that had been given to her. It was easy to see, and why Kaylee didn’t see it herself was anyone’s guess. In any case, Ashley had no time for her cousin’s breakdown, and she also did not have time to sit her down for a long talk and a reality check. She had her own education to take care of, and she wasn’t going to let Kaylee or anyone else jeopardize that after she’d put so much hard work into it.

Outside, Ashley found a quiet spot in a patch of sunlight. She opened her laptop and took her cello out of its case. The piece she was working on was intricate and fragile. She loved it, and it spoke to her in ways she understood, even if she couldn’t articulate them. Somehow, some way, the melody just soothed and touched her soul.