Grace Unplugged: A Novel by Melody Carlson Page B

place.” He winked at her. “I’ll be down in the cheap seats. Remember, you know what you’re doing. You know this song. Just own it, babe.”
    And just like that he was gone. She tried to replay everything he’d just said. She tried to breathe and relax, taking little sips of cool water. She considered praying, like she might’ve done before . . . before she’d taken her life into her own hands. Now she didn’t think praying would help. I can do this, she told herself. I know I can.
    Now she could hear someone talking into the mic, and she peeked out to see Tommy out in front. “Well, I’m sure you all remember Johnny Trey.” He laughed like this was funny. “Anyway, some of you old-timers do. And the rest of you have probably heard that Swedish kid singing Johnny’s song ‘Misunderstood’ enough times. But we got something really special for you tonight. We have Johnny Trey’s daughter right here. Yep, friends, she’s making her debut tonight. Singing the Johnny Trey classic, ‘Misunderstood.’ Put your hands together for Grace Trey .”
    The crowd reacted appropriately, clapping and cheering, as Grace made her way to center stage, taking a moment to adjust the mic. She made a feeble smile as she gazed out over the crowd, spotting Mossy and Larry near the front. Now she glanced back at the band to make sure they were set. But as she turned back around, her guitar neck whacked the mic stand, and the sound was all squeaky, and some of the people laughed. Collecting herself, she adjusted the mic, forcing another smile.
    “Sorry,” she told them. Steadying herself, she took in another deep breath then, ready to go for it, she gave a nod to the band and counted it off. “One, two, three, four—” And then she just leaped into it. She could hear the tremor in her voice at first, but it smoothed out by the second line. And by the time she hit the chorus, she was in the groove. By the second verse she knew she was rocking the house. They loved her and weren’t afraid to show it. Even better, she was loving this!
    But before the song was finished, she noticed Larry getting ready to leave. She watched, worried that she’d failed, but then she saw him giving Mossy a nod, and she hoped that meant something. Still, she wished he would’ve stayed to the end. She wished he would’ve heard the crowd exploding into applause. They liked her!
    Backstage, she hurried to find Mossy. “What happened to Larry Reynolds?” she demanded breathlessly.
    “Don’t you worry about that.”
    “But he left early,” she said as she unstrapped her guitar.
    “He left because he’d seen enough.” Mossy grinned. “Don’t you get it? He liked you, Grace.”
    “Are you serious?”
    “Don’t get too excited. We don’t have a deal yet. But, my dear, you just blew away Sapphire Music.”
    She controlled herself from dancing. “Oh, my goodness!” She covered her mouth with her hand. “I was so nervous.”
    “Well, you delivered.”
    “This is incredible! I don’t even want to leave now.”
    “Then don’t. Stay and enjoy it. I’m gonna grab a statement from Tommy for marketing. Go have fun. Meet your fans.” He started to go, then stopped. “Hey.” He looked her in the eyes. “You did great, Grace. I’m really proud of you. I mean that.”
    She felt touched by this kindness from him. She tried not to compare it to all the criticism she was used to getting when it came to her music. No, she was not going to let anything spoil this moment. She went out into the club again, and although she felt slightly more comfortable than before, she was still clearly a misfit here. Not only were these people all older; they still seemed to have only a couple of things on their minds. Things she had no interest in. Even so, a few of them greeted her, giving her an occasional high five or “congrats.” But mostly she was just another girl.
    Feeling a bit disenchanted, she decided to go over to where her band was seated on the