Page 31 of Playing With My Heart Strings

dusty

A Future with You

We’ve reached the turning point of the show, where relationships start to become deeper and decisions are more difficult.

Today, we’re in downtown Nashville on lower Broadway, with security and producers flanking us on both sides to prevent fans who recognize us from getting too close.

It’s slightly annoying, having so many watchful eyes on us, but I understand the concern with it being the whole group. If it were only two of us on a solo date, the security wouldn’t be as necessary because, hypothetically, it would be easier to blend in.

“Oh my God, is that Dusty Wilder ?”

“It is! They must be filming today.”

“Ugh, those girls are so lucky.”

Whispers and faint squeals can be heard as we pass people on the sidewalk.

One of the girls next to me stifles a laugh, clearly hearing the comments being made as we pass. I focus more on their reactions, rather than the attention from fans.

“How do you deal with this all the time?” Baylor mutters, and I flick my eyes toward her, amusement probably painting my features. She catches me looking at her, and her eyes drop to the ground, like I wasn’t supposed to hear her comment.

Aspen, on the other hand, seems to be soaking in the attention, holding her head up high and flashing smiles to the people who stare a bit too long.

We eventually enter a bar at the end of the strip. Security guides us to the V.I.P. section directly in front of the stage.

Valerie and Sage sit at a table to the right of me, and Katherine and Baylor find their place at my table. Aspen tries to squeeze her way in, too, but when she realizes there isn’t room, she rolls her eyes and surrenders to the other table.

The stage is empty for now, top country hits playing from the speakers. Before I can process the song that’s playing, Katherine nudges me with her elbow.

“Isn’t this your song?” She laughs, and I strain my ears, recognizing the familiar kick drum beat before I even hear my own voice.

I let out a slightly nervous chuckle. “Yeah, I guess so. What a coincidence.” The bar probably changed the station specifically to the one that’s always playing my music, knowing we’d be here today.

Jarrod approaches us out of nowhere. You’d think by now I would expect him to turn up out of the blue since he’s the host.

“Hello, Dusty. Ladies,” he greets all of us with a wave. “Exciting plans for this afternoon.”

Curiosity must get the better of Sage, because she raises a hand. “What are we going to be doing?”

“I thought you’d never ask, Sage. You’ll all get the chance to sing today on this very stage...”

Aspen’s eyes widen, a smile creeping onto her face.

“...as a group.” Jarrod finishes his sentence, and Aspen’s smirk vanishes. “Don’t worry, Aspen.” He chuckles. “I’m not finished. You’ll all perform a song as a group, and then the audience will get to choose one lucky woman to perform with Dusty.”

Sure enough, a crowd has gathered behind us, security and a velvet rope the only things separating us. I face forward again as a band steps onto the stage and the radio stops playing. Jarrod jumps on stage as well, heading to the microphone.

“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen! I’m Jarrod Stone, the host of the new hit reality TV show Heart Strings .

We’ve got some incredible talent with us here today, and they cannot wait to perform for you!

” He looks down at the women and gestures for them to come up.

“Come on up, ladies. Folks, let me introduce you to our final five women: Aspen, Katherine, Valerie, Sage, and Baylor!”

One-by-one, they all file onto the stage. Aspen immediately heads for the microphone, but Jarrod waves her away and hands the first microphone to Baylor. I stifle a laugh, because of course , but then the bar staff brings over four more microphones.

Jarrod quietly talks to each of the women, Katherine and Valerie nodding along with what he has to say, while Baylor has a blank expression and Aspen just glares.

Once he finishes, he exits the stage and nods to the band, who starts playing the opening notes of a popular Pistol Annies song.

Valerie, Aspen, and Baylor start the song off with a harmony, and I can’t lie, they sound great together. Their voices mesh effortlessly. Baylor sings the line about breaking a million hearts, which is fitting, because with the way she looks on stage, she could give a man a heart attack.

Katherine takes over the first verse, singing a solo, and when Miranda Lambert’s verse approaches, I fully expect Sage to start singing. I assume she expected to start singing, too, but instead Aspen cuts in, her more powerful vocals drowning out Sage’s softer voice.

Murmurs from the crowd rise behind me, but the girls recover quickly and Sage picks up the next verse. I make a mental note about their ability to adapt. It’s an important trait to have, especially on tour.

I also take into account Aspen’s selfishness, but I already knew she possesses that trait.

Valerie and Baylor split the next chorus, then all five women harmonize the final one, and the song ends with a roar of applause from the crowd.

Jarrod claps as he enters the stage again. “Well done, ladies. How about that, folks?” He pauses as the crowd cheers again. “What you in the audience don’t know, is that Dusty Wilder is also going to perform a song for you all. And he’s going to perform with one of these lucky women.”

A hush falls over the bar as the audience listens intently.

“You all have the chance to vote and pick the special girl who gets to perform. I’ll have each of the women say their name once, and then voting will be determined by the loudest cheers and applause. Are you ready, Nashville?”

Hoots and hollers rise from the bar patrons as Jarrod gestures for Valerie to start. They go down the line until Aspen and Baylor are the only two left.

“My name is Aspen,” she says confidently, arrogance radiating off her as though she’s the obvious choice for the crowd.

“Hi, I’m Baylor,” Baylor introduces herself then gives the crowd a closed-lip smile. She does that often in public, like she wants to save her true smile, the radiant one. The one she’s given me during our secret, off-camera dates.

“As I raise my hand above each contestant, cheer loudly for the one you think should get to sing with Dusty!” Jarrod instructs.

He starts with Valerie, and the crowd gives an uproar of applause. Sage gets a similar response. Katherine gets a few more cheers, but it’s nothing compared to the response the audience gives Aspen. For a moment, I think the roof might blow with how loud it gets.

“Finally, Baylor.” Jarrod hovers his hand over her head, and the crowd goes into an absolute frenzy. “Well, folks, I think we have a clear winner here. Congratulations, Baylor.”

Aspen looks like she’s going to explode as her jaw ticks and she stomps off the stage. Valerie, Katherine, and Sage look disappointed, but still happy for their friend.

I stand, wiping my hands on my jeans as I walk toward the steps to get on the stage.

“You all looked and sounded great up there.” I give the other girls an encouraging nod. I don’t want them to lose their confidence from this, because they all sounded incredible.

Valerie and Katherine smile, and Sage nods as they walk past me, but Aspen grabs my arm.

“I wish it was me up there with you, but I understand,” she whispers before planting her lips on mine.

My eyes widen at the contact. I’m a little bit taken aback, and this is clearly an attempt to throw Baylor off. The camera crew catches sight of us “kissing” and immediately points the cameras at us.

I gently push Aspen away, the movement discreet enough that no one will notice.

“What?” She furrows her brows.

“I need to go on stage,” I reply then leave her standing there with a confused look.

In the five seconds it takes to walk up the steps, all my annoyance with Aspen melts away when I see Baylor. She turns toward me and flashes me a smile, a real one this time. She probably doesn’t save them just for me, but I’m okay with pretending.

“Hi.” I smile at Baylor.

A flush creeps into her cheeks as she whispers, “Hi.”

“Second time performing together, might as well make it official, huh?” I tease, although it’s not a joke, not really.

I can’t pinpoint the emotion on her face, whether it’s amusement or contemplation. But she laughs it off, responding, “Don’t get too ahead of yourself, superstar. There are still five of us here.”

Yeah, but only one of you matters.

The band starts playing a song by Flatland Cavalry, interrupting all my thoughts. I don’t take my eyes off Baylor as I begin singing the lyrics—about what the future could look like if we worked out and ended up together.

Baylor picks up the second verse where the lyrics talk about the nicknames we’d call each other and the things we’d do together when I’m not on the road.

While it’s not necessarily a happy song, it makes me hopeful for the future—preferably one with Baylor.

Before the chorus starts, I step closer to her, holding my microphone to the side and leaning close enough to share hers. Close enough for me to feel when she takes a breath in between lines.

I’ve all but abandoned my microphone at this point, singing the final verse with hers.

The lines alternate, and at one point she draws her bottom lip between her teeth as though she’s holding back a smile.

When the song ends, instead of pulling apart, we freeze, gazing into each other’s eyes like the audience and the cameras and the other women don’t even exist.

It’s only when the crowd starts chanting, “Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!” that I’m brought back to reality.

“Let’s give the people what they want, darlin’,” I whisper before leaning in and kissing her. Her lips meld to mine, like puzzle pieces fitting perfectly together. Like we fit perfectly together.

The crowd swoons and cheers as we break apart. In the absence of her, my lips tingle, a burning want creeping into my chest.

I look down at the V.I.P. section where the other women are.

Katherine picks at her nails, Valerie won’t make eye contact with me, and Aspen looks like she wants to murder Baylor.

I can’t imagine it’s fun having to watch your competition kiss the person you’re dating, but that’s the name of the game.

We exit the stage and join Jarrod and the women.

“There won’t be an elimination this week, ladies,” Jarrod announces, signifying the end of the date and the day. “Head back to the hotel and relax. You’ve all earned it. Congratulations on making it this far.”

Oh, I plan on doing something at the hotel, but it won’t be relaxing.