“I’m going to let you go now, beautiful. I know you need to get up early, but I can’t wait to see you this weekend. I’ll text you the details in the morning. Goodnight, Codie.”
“Night, Mav.”
ChapterEight
Maverick
My kid brother, Noah, lived in Raleigh now, but he’d flown in for the show on Friday night and planned to stay the weekend, so we could hang out.
“There he is.” I walked to the back of the restaurant where we’d agreed to meet and hauled him into a hug. “Good to see you, kid.”
“You too.” He grabbed the back of my neck, looking into my eyes. “Damn, it’s good to see you looking so good, Mav. It’s been a long time since your eyes have been clear.”
He knew I’d been going to meetings, but it was early days and he was probably afraid to hope for too much. I couldn’t blame him. We’d been down this road with our mama. All the times she promised to get sober, got our hopes up, only to let us down, time after time.
I wouldn’t do that to the people who cared about me. I’d fight the good fight, every damn day, because I knew how lucky I was that everyone in my life hadn’t written me off already.
“How’s work going?” I asked, sliding into the booth across from him and reaching for the leather-bound menu. Noah was a mechanical engineer, working for one of the big automotive companies and last I heard, loving every minute of it.
“Great, man.” He grinned. “Might be years before I get those student loans paid off but it’ll be worth it.”
“Yeah, I wanted to talk to you about that.”
Noah raised his hand. “I know what you’re going to say. You’ve had an unbelievable year and you want to help me out, but that’s not happening, big brother.”
“Don’t be so stubborn.” I leaned in, lowering my voice. “What the hell am I going to do with all that money? You know the way I live.” My one indulgence when the royalty checks started rolling in was a new pick-up truck. Other than that, I still lived in my one-bedroom apartment and wore jeans and t-shirts every day, unless Marisa was ‘styling’ me for a performance or interview.
“Well, maybe you need to start living better.” He looked me in the eye and said, “You’ve earned it. Hear that. You’ve worked your ass off, paid your dues, and you deserve this success. Enjoy it.”
“You know I don’t give a shit about material things. Sure, it’s nice to be able to pay off my credit cards every month and have coin in the bank, but as far as a big house or fancy car, that’s not my thing.”
“It’s not your thing because you never allowed yourself to believe you could have it. But now you can.”
I swallowed, tipping my head back, letting his words sink in. He was right. I’d prayed hard about making it in this business, but I’d always known it was a long-shot and guys like me didn’t get many lucky breaks. Except now I was. And maybe I needed to learn how to start expressing my gratitude by stepping into the life I’d been blessed with.
“Don’t just do this for yourself, Mav. Do it for everyone who loves you and believed in you.”
I chuckled. “That’s a short list and you’d be the President of the club, bro.”
“Then do it for me.” He was fighting back emotion when he said, “People like you and me, who lived through the shit we did, usually don’t come out on the other side a success.”
“No, they often drown in the bottom of a bottle, like I’ve been doing for years. You don’t think I know how lucky I am that I was born with this talent—”
“It’s more than luck, and you need to start acknowledging that. You grinded, every damn day. You wrote the songs, put them out there, performed all the bars, honky tonks, and festivals. Kept your band together—”
“Even when they hated my guts.” And there were days when they did. Because I’m an alcoholic and drunks aren’t nice people to be around.
“It’s time to quit putting yourself down. It’s time to quit living in the past. Enjoy this man, soak up all the incredible stuff happening to you right now. Believe you deserve it. And start planning for your future, because it’s gonna be amazing.”
I was almost afraid to believe it could get any better because I was still having a hard time believing a drunk like me, who’d been the human wrecking ball in so many lives, including Codie’s, could be rewarded like this.
“I hope so,” I said slowly, thinking about what my future could look like, if I kept my act together. “I want it to be.”
I was starting to imagine things I never had before, like maybe finding a woman who could love and support me. Someone like Codie. No, not someonelikeCodie. Codie had always been the only one for me. After all these years without her, knowing I still felt the same way I had way back then was the only proof I needed… that girl was it for me. Too bad she didn’t feel the same way.
“So… Codie? Is she part of that future?”
I laughed. “What are you, a mind reader now?”
