Hearts on Fire (The Hunter Family) (11 page)

As soon as the words escaped his mouth it was as if everything moved in slow motion for the next couple of minutes.  My eyes went straight to my mom who had a worried look that she instantly tried to hide, then they slid down to Claire who looked terrified and then over to my dad who I saw clench his fist by his side.  He was not happy.

“Jonathan, did you just say you recognize Abby’s friend from a band?”  His words were stern and he didn’t even try to hide his disgust.

“Yeah, dad, his band is really good!  They are huge on the underground scene!”

Zane smiled at Jonny and I could see that he appreciated the recognition.  My dad sat down and slowly put his napkin on his lap as he processed the information and then looked at Zane. 

“Well, Zane, my son seems to be impressed with your band so you must be very good.”

“I like to think that we are pretty good.  We have a big following, we play in a local bar every week and then we have gigs on the road sometimes, too.  We put out a couple of CDs independently which have sold pretty well and we’ve actually talked to a couple of record execs so we should be signed to a label pretty soon.”

My mom jumped in to try to ease the tension in the air that you could cut with a knife.

“Zane, how wonderful that you are being scouted by record executives.  I am sure your band has to be very talented to be talking to people like that.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Hunter.  We’re very excited about it.”

I was really happy my mom was there to try to smooth things over, but I was worried that Zane had just lied to my family.  This was the first I had heard that they were close to signing a record deal.  The last I had heard from him the band had a meeting with a couple of execs but nothing came of it.  I understood he was nervous, but lying to my parents was not the way to go.

My dad still had a stern look on his face.

“Zane, I am assuming this is how you make a living?”

“Yes, sir.   And I also bartend at night.”

My dad clenched his jaw.  “Oh, really?  A bartender?  Where did you go to college, son?”

Oh boy, here we go.

“I didn’t go to college, Mr. Hunter.  I started working when I was 15 and I have been taking care of myself ever since then.”

My mother jumped in with a worried look on her face.

“You started working when you were 15, Zane, and you had to take care of yourself?  What does that mean?  Where were your parents?”

I saw a pained expression on Zane’s face and I knew he was uncomfortable talking about this, but there was no escaping my parent’s questions.

“They were working also.  They worked long, odd hours and we didn’t have a lot so we all pitched in.  The good thing about working at a young age is it teaches you about responsibility and having a strong work ethic.”

My dad seemed to appreciate those words and I saw his expression soften, just a little.

“You are absolutely right about that, Zane.  So tell me, this band, is this your plan A?”

Zane looked confused.  “Plan A?”

Dad looked slightly annoyed.  “Yes, son, plan A.  The main plan for your life.”

“I guess I haven’t really thought of it in those terms, but, yes, this is what I want to do with my life.”

Our chef’s assistant finally served our food and I was grateful for the short distraction as the chef explained what we would be eating.  As soon as he was done my dad picked up right where he left off.

“I see.  So, if this doesn’t work out for you, what is the next plan?”  He took a bite of his salmon and gave Zane a cool stare as he slowly chewed his food.

Zane’s face was beet red and I felt bad that he had to go through an interrogation like this.  I should have warned him how bad my dad could be but I was afraid if I did that, he wouldn’t want to meet my family.  Besides, he would have to meet them sooner or later, and sooner was much better than later when it came to my family.

Zane shifted in his chair, trying to get comfortable and glanced at me before looking at my dad.

“Well, sir, I would like to open my own bar one day.”

My dad seemed to perk up at the sound of that.

“Really?  A business owner?  I think that is a terrific idea.  There is nothing more rewarding than owning your own business, son.  Make sure you have a business plan before you begin because that will save you a lot of time and help you avoid costly mistakes.  It will not be easy, especially in such a competitive market, so be sure to do plenty of research.  It’s hard work, but very worth it in the end to own your own business.”

My mom seemed to have enough of my dad’s interrogation and just as he was going to ask another question, she interrupted him.

“Joshua, let the man eat before his food gets cold.”

He gave her a sheepish look and, just like that, the interrogation was over.  It always amazed me the power my mom had over my dad.  He was putty in her hands.

Claire was abnormally quiet and I thought that was really weird.  I thought she would at least say something to tell mom and dad that Zane was a good guy.  I think she was so worried about what they would think about Logan that she just wanted to see how they would handle Zane before she said anything.

After dinner we had mini desserts from mom’s favorite bakery and the conversation was much more relaxed even though Jonny couldn’t stop asking Zane about the band.

“Zane, do you think I can get a copy of your first CD?  I can’t find it anywhere.”  Jonny’s eyes were as big as saucers and I had never seen him so in awe of someone or something in my life.

Zane smiled at him. “Sure thing, bud.  I’ll give it to your sister and she can give it to you.”  He turned to look at me.  “Is that okay, Abby?”

I smiled at him.  “Of course.”

My mom smiled at us and then she looked at Claire, concern furrowing her brow.

“Claire, you have as quiet as a mouse.  Is everything okay?”

Claire widened her eyes innocently and smiled at mom answering her with a bit too much eagerness.  “Yes!  I’m just thinking about the performance tomorrow.”

I knew that wasn’t true but my mom bought it.

“Oh, that’s right!  Tomorrow is the opening matinee?”

“Yes, and even though it’s going to be a short run, it’s a pretty grueling and technically difficult show.”

“I’m sure you’ll do well, darling.”  Mom smiled at her with pride.

My dad also chimed in.  “Yes, honey, you’ll be brilliant as usual.”

I felt that stupid pang of jealousy again.

Zane glanced at me and gently rubbed my back.  “I’m looking forward to the day I can watch Abby on stage.”

My parents were both quick to jump in.

“Oh we feel the same way.  It’s unfortunate that the girls belong to the same dance company because if they didn’t we know that they both would be the lead dancer.”

And then Claire decided to offer her two cents.  “Abby could be the lead if she put more time and effort into practice.  I know you can be better than me if you just worked harder Abby.  I think you are much more naturally gifted than me but you are not using your full potential.  I don’t know why you don’t try harder.”

Okay, how did this turn around to being about me?
  I instantly felt defensive but I knew that she was right.  If I worked harder I could be the lead but, if I was honest with myself, I knew that the fear of being the lead was what kept me from working harder.  I don’t think I had ever admitted that to anyone and I wasn’t about to do that at my parent’s dinner table with all eyes on me.

“Abby will be the lead when she’s ready.  She’s just not ready yet.  Isn’t anyone going to ask me about the dance?”  I wanted to kiss my brother for saying that and trying to get the heat off of me.  He had always been my biggest cheerleader.

“You never want to talk about your social life Jonny, but yes we want to know!  How was the dance?”  I smiled at him for changing the subject and for offering to talk about the thing he practically kept a secret.  We knew when he liked a girl because he mentioned her name a lot, but if any one of us, including my parents, asked for details, he clammed up.

“We had a blast, it was so much fun.  Emily looked really pretty and we had a lot of fun dancing.”

“Emily?  What happened to Colleen?”  Claire and I said it at the same time, which we did a lot.

“I went with her to the dance a couple of weeks ago and she’s way too clingy.  She wouldn’t leave my side the entire night.  I didn’t like feeling like I had someone attached to my hip.  Not cool.”

My mom chimed in.  “Okay, so Emily was not like that, I take it.”

“No, she is super cool and really chill.”

“Chill?”  My father looked confused.  “I don’t where these kids come up with these sayings these days.”

“C’mon dad, you’ve heard that before.  You’re not
that
old!”  Jonny liked to give him a little bit of a hard time.