Chapter Thirteen
Thirteen
Luke was right – Mary did not regret stepping into The Whiskey Bent Salon for the very first time that evening, not even for a second.
The decoration was maybe a little too ‘huntsmen’ for her liking, with a full-sized stuffed bear and a variety of animal heads mounted high on the walls amongst the many neon lights, but the atmosphere inside the venue was simply electric.
Country music played through the ceiling speakers, while laughter and animated talk could be heard coming from just about every corner of The Whiskey.
Two bartenders – both of them female – looked to be rushed off their feet, as they expertly mixed colorful cocktails and served beer and whiskey to a pretty busy bar.
Mary simply couldn’t help being sucked into the party mood that lingered in the air.
‘Wow,’ she said, as she allowed her eyes to circle the room. ‘I was definitely wrong. It’s a lot busier than I thought.’
Luke smiled proudly. ‘Let me get you a drink,’ he said, leading the way to the bar. ‘Beer?’
‘No, please,’ Mary replied, as they got to the varnished wood counter. ‘Let me get you a drink. Whiskey?’
Luke’s head angled slightly to one side. ‘That would be correct, ma’…… ry, but I never drink before a gig.’
Mary’s eyebrows arched. ‘What, really? Not even to settle the nerves?’
‘Specially not to settle the nerves,’ Luke replied. ‘Playing and singing is what I love doing… it’s what I was born to do. I love the excitement of it all and the nerves are simply part of it. They also keep me in check so that I always try to better myself.’
Mary was impressed by Luke’s answer, but she kept her cool.
‘But please,’ Luke insisted. ‘Let me get you a beer or something.’ He broadly gestured at the packed floor. ‘It’ll be like a welcome to The Whiskey gift.’ The wink he sent Mary’s way was so subtle that she wouldn’t have noticed it if she hadn’t been looking straight into his eyes.
Luke lifted his hand at one of the two women behind the bar.
‘Hey, Luke.’ The short-haired brunette bartender greeted him with a flirtatious smile. ‘Are you playing the same set as last Monday?’
‘Hey Josie.’ Luke smiled back at her. ‘Not the exact same. I’m adding a few new tunes, and a couple of original ones as well.’
‘Really? Wow, I can’t wait to hear them.’ The flirtatious smile stayed exactly where it was. ‘So, what can I get you tonight?’
‘Can I get a bottle of beer for my friend Mary here. It’s her first time at The Whiskey.’
Josie’s eyes moved to Mary. ‘Is that a fact?’
Mary nodded. ‘Walked past it many times, but this is my first time inside.’
‘In that case,’ Josie said. ‘We need to pop your cherry.’ She reached for the glass-door fridge behind her, grabbed a beer, twisted the cap off, and placed it on the bar in front of Mary. ‘Glass?’
Mary shook her head. ‘Nah, it tastes better from the bottle.’
‘Amen to that, sister,’ Josie replied, with a nod.
Mary reached for her beer, but Josie lifted a hand at her.
‘Hold on, we’ve gotta do this The Whiskey way.
’ She grabbed a bottle of bourbon from one of the shelves behind her and poured it into a couple of shot glasses before addressing Luke.
‘I’m not pouring you one because you told me you don’t drink before a gig. ’
‘That’s right,’ Luke confirmed, his gaze pinging to Mary for a split second. ‘But you can keep mine behind the bar and we can have a round once I’m done.’
‘We can certainly do that,’ Josie replied, the flirtatious smile back on her lips.
Mary nodded her agreement.
‘Talking about gigging,’ Luke said. ‘I better go get ready. I’m on in five.’
‘Yes, you are,’ Josie confirmed, quickly checking her watch.
‘So, let me get these,’ Luke said, nodding at the drinks before reaching into his pocket.
What he got in return was a resounding ‘No’ coming from both Mary and Josie.
‘I’ll get these,’ Mary tried.
‘That’s a “no” for you too,’ Josie stopped her as well. ‘This is your first time at The Whiskey, so this one is on us.’ She grabbed her shot of bourbon and raised it at Mary. ‘Welcome to the best little bar in town.’
Mary did the same and they touched glasses.
‘Thank you.’ Her gaze moved to Luke. ‘To a good gig. Break a leg, Luke.’
‘I’ll do my best.’ Luke smiled. ‘OK, I’ve got to go. You can come closer to the stage if you like.’
‘I’m good here, thanks,’ Mary replied, leaning back against the bar before pointing at the stage. ‘You go do your thing.’
‘Will you stay until the end?’ Luke asked. ‘We’ve gotta have that shot together.’
‘My staying is directly dependent on how good you are.’ Mary said back, a quirky smile on her lips.
Luke smiled back before turning on the balls of his feet and disappearing into a door to the left of the small stage.
‘Can we finally do this now?’ Josie said, still holding her shot up at Mary.
‘Yep. Sorry about that.’
Mary and Josie touched glasses again before knocking back their shots and slamming the empty glasses upside down on the bar counter.
Mary nodded at Josie. ‘Wow, nice bourbon.’
‘Angel’s Envy,’ Josie told her. ‘From Kentucky. Mellow and smooth.’
‘Definitely smooth,’ Mary agreed.
‘And you’ll stay,’ Josie said.
‘Sorry?’ Mary frowned at her.
‘If you’re staying here is directly dependent on how good Luke is,’ Josie explained, ‘then you’ll stay.’ She nodded confidently. ‘He’s fucking great.’
‘Is he?’
‘You’ll see.’
As Josie walked away to go serve a new customer at the other end of the bar, Mary turned to face the stage. She was in a good spot. Despite being at an angle, she could see the stage very clearly.
A short man, with a quite pronounced beer belly and a cowboy hat, got up on the stage just as the lights inside The Whiskey dimmed a touch.
Mary sipped her beer.
‘Is this thing on?’ the man on stage said, tapping the microphone a couple of times with his index finger.
The loud chatter simmered down, and the crowd turned to face the stage.
‘OK,’ the cowboy continued. ‘Welcome everyone to Monday Nights at The Whiskey.’ That sentence was greeted with a chorus of ‘woo-hoos’, ‘yee-haws’ and cheerful applause.
‘As most of you know – and I guess that’s why you’re all here tonight – Monday nights is when we open the stage to new acts – bands, solo artists, duos…
whoever wants to showcase their talent, right here, at the heart of the ‘Music City’.
And I am very proud to say that many… many country music superstars out there today have started their journey to stardom right here, on this very stage. ’
More ‘woo-hoos’ and ‘yee-haws’.
‘And I’ve got a feeling that this next act is well on his way to the top. Last Monday he played his first gig here at The Whiskey and boy, was he a hit.’ The man pointed at the first row of people right in front of the stage. ‘Specially with the ladies, right here.’
That front row was made up entirely of young women, who right then, cheered loudly, raising bottles of beer and whiskey glasses up in the air.
‘Looks like you’ve got some stiff competition,’ Josie said, leaning her elbows on the bar.
Mary hadn’t even noticed that Josie was standing right behind her.
‘What?’
Josie nodded at all the excited women on the front row. ‘G.R.I.T.S. And they are ferocious.’
‘Grits?’ Mary questioned, resting her bottle on the bar counter. ‘Like cornmeal porridge?’
Josie laughed. ‘Nope. Much worse,’ she explained. ‘It stands for – girls raised in the south. You never heard that term before?’
Mary’s turn to laugh. ‘No. Never.’
‘Yep,’ Josie confirmed. ‘G.R.I.T.S – mean as hell and sweet as honey. We act all innocent and naive, but we play dirty – the kind of dirty that men love.’ She indicated the front row once again.
‘And those girls right there, they’ll snap like gators and bite like rattlesnakes.
They’re basically Jersey Shore on steroids. ’
‘Hold on,’ Mary said, her stare bouncing between the stage and Josie. ‘You think that Luke and I are like…’ Instead of finishing her sentence, Mary widened her eyes at the bartender.
‘Girl,’ Josie said in return, her eyebrows lifting at the center. ‘I saw the way you were looking at him… and I don’t blame you – that boy is a barn burner.’
‘So,’ the cowboy on stage announced. ‘Before these beautiful ladies over here lynch me off the stage, here he is again – ladies and gentlemen – to delight us all with another incredible acoustic set – Luke Jenkins.’
The entire place erupted in applause and cheers.
Luke cleared the back curtains and stepped on stage – a spotlight following him – and he looked like a rock star.
The ripped trousers were gone, substituted by a pair of stonewashed, bootcut jeans.
The t-shirt had also been swapped for a black, western button-up shirt, with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.
Instead of white sneakers, he was wearing black cowboy boots, with silver metal tips.
His hair had also been let loose, under a dark-brown cowboy hat.
His acoustic guitar hung from his neck – Elvis Presley style.
‘Good evening, y’all,’ he said, as he reached the microphone. ‘Thank y’all so much for coming out tonight. Your support and love is very much appreciated.’
More cheers and screams, especially from the front row.
Right then, Luke’s eyes moved left, in the direction of the bar. They stopped when they reached Mary. ‘It’s nice to see you here.’ The sentence was delivered with a coy smile.
Without noticing it, Mary bit her bottom lip. Damn, that boy was one smooth operator.
‘The good news for you over all those G.R.I.T.S,’ Josie said, pouring another shot of bourbon for her and Mary, ‘is that it looks like Luke likes you too.’
Mary felt a giddy smile start to blossom on her lips, but she was able to keep her poker face solid. ‘This one is on me,’ she said, nodding at the shots before placing a twenty-dollar bill on the counter. They clinked glasses again and downed the shots in one.
On stage, Luke tapped his foot to a count of four before the sound of his guitar took over, soon followed by his voice. Mary turned to face him again and as she did, she felt her entire core shake. Josie was right – Luke Jenkins wasn’t just good… he was fucking great.