Wounded But Not Scarred (New Adult Rockers 2) (11 page)

I start my song, I forget about the
huge crowd starting at me intently, and sing my heart out as I walk around the
stage as if I'm alone in my own world. The song is fast and catchy, and before
I know it, I’m singing the final verse.

“Thank you!” I wait for the
applause to die down and I smile gratefully. I see my daddy, Daisy and Jami up
near the front and I give them a little wave.

“I’ve got something new for y’all
now. This song is going to hit the radio next week, but you get to hear it first
right here! It’s called
If I Were Perfect.”

I’m a little more nervous singing
this song; since I haven’t performed it live yet, and also because the material
is more raw. It’s a slow song, and I wasn’t sure if the label was going to let
me release it second, but they all really loved it. I think of Blake as I sing
the refrain.

“
I’d like to think if I were
perfect, then you’d see the best in me

If I were perfect, then the rest
would come so easily,

If I were perfect, then I
wouldn’t need you so damn bad

But I’m not perfect, and you
take me as I am.”

I have tears in my eyes when I
finish and when I look to the wings, I see Blake’s face beaming with love and
pride for me.

“I love you,” he mouths.

I smile and nod back at him.

The crowd is going nuts and I’m
thrilled that they’ve responded so well to the song. That song was one of the
most important ones that I put on the album, because it validates so much of
what I feel, and how I’ve accepted that being imperfect, is what makes me who I
am.

“Alright, Nashville!” I cry
brightly, “Let’s bring the energy level back up. I’m going to sing one more
song off the album for you. You might have heard this one before! It’s called
Pieces
of Me
!”

There’s more cheering and clapping
and I fall into an easy rhythm singing one of my favorite songs from the tour
we did over the summer. When it’s over, the DJ jumps on stage, congratulating
me and getting the crowd to go wild even more so.

“We’ve got one more treat for
y’all!” The MC says happily. “As many of you know, our beautiful Paige Lawson
here is dating the lead singer of Rust, Blake Evans.”

More cheers.

“And they’ve got a brand new song
together that they’re going to debut right here, right now!”

The cheers are deafening and I
laugh as Blake comes running out, waving to the crowd. He picks me up and gives
me a big hug and a kiss.

“Alright you two,” the MC teases,
“let’s not break any more hearts out there!”

Blake speaks up. “This here song is
called
Finding My Way Back to You.”

I beam at Blake as we start our
song. It’s amazing that we wrote this song together in such a short time
period. We'd been so pressed for time, and yet this song just poured out of the
two of us.

A crewmember runs onstage with two
stools and places them on the stage. Blake and I take a seat, looking at each
other, and then we hear the familiar chords of the guitar.

I take a deep breath and start
singing.

Blake comes in on the chorus, and
then sings the next verse, and then our voices come together as we harmonize
and sing about how we made it back to each other after all the pain and
heartache.

Daddy’s people have warned me, that
I may get asked about my attack. Not that it’s common knowledge, but if anyone
does a little research, they can find the news articles from thirteen years
ago. I’m prepared to deal with it, and I’m fully aware that my story is going
to be out there. At some point, someone is going to remember and dig up all the
gory details. I’ve decided that when that time comes, I want to be a role model
for others who have been attacked. It makes me sick thinking about it, but if
my story can help just one other girl, then it will be worth it.

We finish up our song, and take a
bow as the crowd’s happy cheers wash over us. We bow again and then head
offstage.

“Holy shit!” Blake crows, hugging
and kissing me. “You were so damn great!”

I hug him back. “So were you! And
we killed our song!”

“Yes we did!” He grabs my hand.
“C’mon. Let’s go enjoy this party they're throwing for us!”

I hold tightly to his hand, glad to
have this night together. We’ve spent most of the past three weeks apart, each
of us separately promoting our albums. I will actually be glad when we go on
tour because we will be together.

We walk through the halls towards
the party, and Blake shakes his head in amazement.

“The label has thrown us one hell
of a party.”

“I know,” I say in awe, looking
around. The ballroom's filled with trendy purple and blue lights, giving it a
magical feel. Tables and high tops are set up, and there are two bars open, as
well as five buffet tables serving food from the best restaurants in town.

The guest list is comprised of our personal
friends and family, the label, industry bigwigs, disc jockeys, other country
artists, and a number of lucky guests who won tickets on the radio and other
sweepstake venues.

The party had all the trappings of
a successful, music bash.

“Paige!”

I turn around to see my mother
rushing towards me. She looks beautiful as always, dressed in a stylish
embroidered black dress and heels. I hug her tightly.

“Momma, I’m so glad you came.”

“Of course I came!" She beams.
"You were so wonderful! And I thought you could never top your performance
at Bicentennial Park!”

“I’m so glad you’re here.” I say.

“Grandma sends her love, but this
would have been a little too much for her.” She turns to Blake and gives him a
hug. “So good to see you, Blake. You were wonderful too.”

“Thank you Ms. Lawson.” He hugs my
mother back.

“I feel bad that you’re here by
yourself.” I tell her, wishing my mother had a guest or someone to keep her company.
Especially since I'm going to have to circle the room and be a good hostess.

My mother gives me an embarrassed
smile. “Well, I sort of met up with someone.”

“What? Who?” I’m intrigued,
especially since she seems uncomfortable.

“Well, it turns out that one of the
men who works for your daddy’s label was a good friend of mine in high school.”

“Who?”

“Jackson Deveraux.”

I knew Jackson, but not very well.
From what I remembered, he handled a lot of the label’s finances.

“He went to college in Texas and
then stayed out there and got married. But after his divorce, he moved back to
Nashville.” My mother is grinning in a way I had never seen before.

“Momma, do you have a crush?” I
demand.

Blake laughs.

“Oh stop it! It’s just nice to see
him again! I had no idea he was back in Nashville!”

“Well, how would you? You’ve been
in Bristol all these years!”

“Yes, I know!” she blushes, fixing
her hair. “Well, I’m going to go find him and I’ll let you two mingle some,
don't worry about me.” She says, nodding towards the line of people waiting to
speak to us. She gives me one more hug. “I couldn’t be more proud of you,” she
whispers in my ear.

Blake and I pose for some pictures
after she walks away, and then Blake has to go off with Ben and Ryan, while I
spend some time talking to a few reporters, giving little quotes and making
comments about the evening.

One of the assistants at the label
is kind enough to get me drink, and as I sip my ginger ale, I see my father and
Daisy talking to Faith Hill and Tim McGraw.

I nearly choke on my drink.

I had no idea they were there!

My father catches my eye and waves
me over. Nervously, I make my way towards them and just as I’m approaching, I
catch a glimpse of frosted hair and glittery jewels. I do a double take,
thinking it’s Savannah, and I realize that the woman is older.

I can’t help but stare, and the
woman seems to feel my gaze on her. She turns around and I nearly gasp.

The woman must be Savannah’s
mother, there’s no other explanation. The resemblance is uncanny and from the
ice-cold gaze she gives me, I know this woman hates me.

But then a crowd of girls walk by
and when I look back the woman is gone. I shake my head, wondering if I had
only imagined it.

My father gives me a puzzled look
and then takes my hand and pulls me towards him and the two country superstars.

“And this is my daughter, Paige,”
he says proudly.

“Oh my gosh, it’s such an honor to
meet you both,” I gush, forgetting about the mystery woman, “I’m a huge fan and
I have to admit that I’m glad I didn’t know you were in the audience or else I
really
would have been nervous!”

They both laugh and shake my hand.

“You were amazing!” Faith says and
Tim nods.

“We were so impressed,” he adds.
“You’ve got real super star potential.”

“Get ready, sweetheart,” Faith says
kindly, “because your world is about to change forever. You put yourself on the
map tonight!”

I can’t believe I’m actually
hearing this from the two of them, and I’m so overwhelmed that I feel like I
might cry. We talk for a few more minutes, and then I graciously excuse myself.

I spend a few minutes talking to my
father and Daisy, both of whom look fantastic. My daddy looks as handsome as
ever in a well-cut suit, which really highlights his new, trim frame. He’s been
working out every day and it’s really showing. Daisy is dressed in a long
silver gown, which accents her own trim frame and coordinates with daddy’s grey
shirt. She’s kept her hair and jewelry simple since her dress is a bit more
elaborate, and I wonder if Jami helped her with the outfit.

I see Blake heading my way, and I
move towards him.

“Hey,” I say in a low whisper, as
he snakes his arm around my waist. “Is Savannah’s mother here?”

“What?” His voice is sharp, and his
head snaps towards me.

“I saw an older woman who looked
just like her, and she gave me the nastiest look when she caught my eye.”

“I don’t know why she would be
here, but God knows that she knows enough people to get herself an invite.” He
shakes his head, “I’ll keep an eye out, but I hope not.”

“Do her and Savannah look alike?”

“Well, yes. She’s basically an
older version of Savannah.”

I get an eerie chill. “I really
think it was her then,” I admit.

Blake is scanning the crowd. “What
was she wearing?”

“Very sparkly jewelry and a deep
crimson dress. Her hair was pulled up in a twist.”

He nods. “I’ll keep my eye out.” He
takes my empty glass out of my hand and gives it to a passing waiter. “Let’s
dance before we get pulled away again and have to talk to more people.”

I let him lead me out onto the
floor, and we start to dance to the new Carrie Underwood song that's playing.

“Do you know that I just had a
conversation with Faith Hill and Tim McGraw?” I tell him, still in disbelief.

He shakes his head. “Crazy, isn’t
it?”

I nod.

We manage to dance to two songs
before other people need us. Blake gives me a swift kiss and promises to catch
up with me again soon.

I follow an intern from a local
radio station that wants to record a few moments of conversation to play on the
radio. We move to a table in the back where it’s slightly less noisy.

But even as we talk about the
success of the night, I can’t seem to shake the feeling that Scarlet Devlin is
here and she's watching us.

I leave Paige to a radio interview
and I follow the disc jockey who needs to speak with me. I’m bothered by the
fact that Paige thinks she saw Scarlet Devlin at the party. It’s certainly
possible given all of Scarlet’s contacts, but I can’t imagine why she would
want to be at an event that celebrates Paige and I's success.

I give my quick interview to the disc
jockey and make my way back through the crowd, looking for a glimpse of Paige.
I catch up quickly with Ben and Ryan, who are chatting up two women, and then I
also say hello to Paige’s mother who seems to be enamored with her date.

Just then, I see Paige near the
back of the room, speaking with her father and another music producer. Before I
can make my way to them, I blocked by a deep red dress.

“Hello Blake.” Says an icy voice.

My mouth hardens into a tight line
as I stare back at the elegant, and surgically enhanced Scarlet Devlin.

“Mrs. Devlin,” I say tightly, “I’m
surprised to see you here.”

She lets out a peal of laugher.
“Really? I just love events like these. I never miss a chance.”

“Even when they honor your
daughter’s ex-fiancé and his new girlfriend?”

She narrows her eyes at me. “You
can’t fool me.” She hisses.