Cowboy Casanova

Chapter 19

TIM POV: After Faith leaves, I grab a scotch and suck it down. It was taunting me all night, so I couldn't help myself. I stand at the bar and watch Colorado celebrate New Years. Carrie walks up behind me and orders a dacari. 

"Hey there stranger." She says, nudging me a bit. 

"Hey." I say. "You were great up there tonight." 

"Thanks, I used your advice." She says. "You were amazing too. That was really brave, you know, changing plans on the fly like that." I nod. "You must really love her..." She says, leaving it to hang in the air for a moment. 

"I do." I say. 

"I can't wait till someone loves me like that." She says, smiling at me. 

"I'm sure you'll have no problem with that." I say. She raises her brow. 

"You think?"

"Yeah," I say. "you're a great catch." She smiles. 

"Thank you." She says. "So, you busy?" She asks, biting her lip. I can tell this will only lead to more trouble, but the alcohol is making me think that this is harmless. What Faith doesn't know won't kill her. 

We go back to the dressing rooms and lock the door. We slam down on the couch, and start to kiss. 

"Tell me something about you, Tim." Carrie says, wearing my shirt. 

"What do you want to know?" I laugh. She bites her lip and begins to think. 

"What's the one moment that lead you to want to become so huge star?" She asks, lying down next to me. 

"My Step-dad being such a dick. I just wanted to get away from him really." I say. "I guess I also wanted to impress my Dad, because he was a famous figure. Maybe I would be worth something to him if I were worth something to the rest of the world." I continue, finally voicing what has been stuck deep down. 

"Wow." She says. "That sounds tough." 

"Yeah." I say. "How about you?" I ask. Her face turns to a bit of a frown. 

"Please don't tell anybody about this." She says. 

"I won't."

"Well," She starts. "my dad was an alcoholic, and uh..." she thinks. "he would drink too much. I mean, he would never hurt me or my mama. He would just hurt anybody around us. He was so protective... but one time my mom's boss was sexually harassing her, so daddy took a gun to him. He's been in jail for about four or five years now." She says. 

"I'm so sorry." I say. 

"Well, I just remember him coming in and telling my mom that it was over. She didn't have to deal with it anymore. But then my mom was obviously fired, and my dad was in jail, so we went through a major money crisis. So I came here for the money. Everyone told me I had the voice, so why not use it?" She says. 

"You have to enjoy some of it though, or else the fans can tell..." I say. She nods. 

"I know. I didn't think I would like it, but I love this. It's like I don't want to leave the stage. It's like..." She thinks. 

"a drug...." I say. She looks at me. "You have to be careful Carrie. Stay grounded, or else this business is going to sweep you away. Don't turn this into your life. I've made that mistake many times." I say. She nods as my phone rings. Carrie gets up and grabs it. Her slight frown tells me who it is. 

"It's Faith." She says. 

"Just leave it. She's probably calling to say she's home." I say. Carrie nods and comes back to lay down. She starts to kiss me as the phone rings yet again.