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Sienna put her guitar back in its case, knowing that she’d have to do something about this situation. She’d somehow managed it for the last ten years, and she really thought that when Caleb went away to play college football, that he’d meet someone, that if he did come back to their small town someday, he’d bring his girlfriend with him.
“Sometimes, I think they like me more than you do, Sienna,” he said with a laugh, but it was the truth, and Sienna bit her tongue as he wrapped his arm around her waist.
Something had changed in the last few months.
Sienna had always been upfront with Caleb. He’d asked her out when they were sixteen, and she’d say she just wanted to be friends. There were a few more attempts while they were still in school, and then they only saw each other over Christmas when Caleb was back home from college for a week, but he was like a dog with a bone lately, and Sienna was seriously considering telling him that he really and truly was wasting his time.
But if she told him she was gay, he might not take it well and tell someone who would tell someone else, and then what little chance she had of being a country music star would disappear.
Sienna knew that window was closing anyway, but until she’d completely given up hope, she couldn’t come out, and she wasn’t going to let Caleb out her.
So, she had to manage this situation as best as she could.
“But at least I know that if we ever get together, they’ll welcome me into the family,” he said, his hand still on her hip, and Sienna slipped away, bending to pick up her guitar case and slinging it across her back.
“Caleb,” she said, unable to keep that warning tone out of her voice.
“I know, I know,” he said, holding up his hands. “Just friends. I got it.”
Sienna bit back a response, because did he really know? He never acted like he did. And the last thing that Sienna wanted to do was ruin their friendship, but she was starting to wonder. She was frustrated around him more often than not. Maybe, their friendship had run its course.
“Hey,” Caleb said, his eyes moving to someone behind Sienna. “Looks like you got a fan. I’ll see you later. I’ll be putting my cannon to good use,” he said, lifting his right arm to show off his bicep. “Don’t be shocked if I return with a gigantic stuffed bear for you.”
“Please don’t,” Sienna said with a smile. “Your niece would appreciate it so much more than me.”
“True. True. Okay, see you later.”
Sienna finally turned, glad that he was gone, but momentarily dazed when her eyes landed on that woman, the one who had made her way down to the front row.She was walking towards her now, and Sienna swallowed. The woman strolled up to Sienna with a smooth swagger, her posture upright and her gaze direct, her copper brown hair falling across her shoulders.
Volunteers wearing orange t-shirts took down the speakers and dismantled the small stage a few feet away from her, but the rest of the crowd had left.
“Hey,” Sienna offered, stuffing her hands in her pockets. She rarely got the chance to be nervous around a woman, but then again, Sienna couldn’t remember the last time someone this beautiful had stood in front of her.
“Hi.” Up close, the woman’s eyes drew her in, that intensity still there, and Sienna didn’t think she’d been this thrown by someone’s presence, those rich brown eyes locking onto her, the golden flecks almost shimmering in the low light. “That was quite the performance.”
“Thank you.”
“I couldn’t leave here without finding out your name.”
Sienna found herself swallowing again. Even her voice had this alluring quality that made her weak at the knees. “Sienna Kent.”
The woman extended her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“You too,” Sienna said as she shook it, ignoring the tingling sensation that crept up her arm as their fingers brushed, their hands falling away, and yet this woman hadn’t offered her name. Sienna could feel her lips tugging into a smile. “Aren’t you going to tell me your name?”
The woman smirked, a soft laugh bubbling up from her throat. “I’m not normally so full of myself, but I didn’t think I needed to.”
Sienna must have frowned or made some kind of a face, because the woman smiled again, and Sienna’s mind went into overdrive, trying to figure out who this woman was.
If she had to guess, Sienna would say she was about forty, and she wondered if they’d met before, but Sienna was sure that she would have remembered her.
The woman’s eyes danced, her laugh warm. “I don’t know what to make of this, but I would have hoped that if you were going to sing one of my songs, probably my most famous one at that, that you’d recognize me.”
And now Sienna was spiraling. What song…? She went through her set list, starting at the top, skipping past just about every song, knowing exactly whose they were. Until she got to her last song.
Sienna closed her eyes for a second, desperately searching her memory. She was sitting on her bedroom floor, opening the box of CDs that her mother had left in the donation pile when they’d been clearing out their house.
Sienna had kept it under her bed, curious about what her mother’s tastes had been, and already at the age of eight, looking for songs to learn. She also couldn’t understand why her mother was suddenly getting rid of albums that she’d regularly listened to. When Sienna asked her, her mother had said that she couldn’t support a housewrecker like Natalie Spencer.
