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Chapter One - Raleigh, North Carolina

"Oh my God, it's hot out here."

"Well, they don't call August the dog days of summer for nothing," dad pointed out.

"Dad, it's too hot for dogs out here," I complained.

We were in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was only my second show back on the road. I had performed two nights ago in Charleston, South Carolina. It was amazing the difference one state could make. I felt like I was baking on the equator.

Dad laughed. "Would you like some water?"

I pulled my hair away from my neck.

"Yes, please."

Dad headed off to find some cold water. I had to pry my shoes off of the pavement. They were melting to the pavement even though I had only been standing still a few minutes.

It was absolutely miserable being outside. And I had to perform tonight.

I walked around until I finally found a tiny spot that welcomed a little shade. I sat down on the ground. The heat seared into my bottom.

"Oh!" I squeaked. I hopped back up and clutched my backside.

"Are you okay?"

I whirled around. A dark haired guy with amazing green eyes and perfect teeth was smiling at me. He had a camera around his neck and a huge bag slung over his shoulder.

He was gorgeous. And he had caught me at the exact moment that I had gotten a butt blister.

Perfect.

"Am I okay?" I squeaked. "I'm fine, I'm...it's hot out here," I explained.

As if he didn't already know.

He laughed. "Yeah, August in North Carolina is brutal." He held out his hand. "I'm Nate Blosser."

I put my hand in his. "I'm--"

"Brooke Carter," he said. "It's nice to finally meet you. I've heard good things about you."

He had a hot handshake. Of course, in this heat, everything was hot. I couldn't help but look at him suspiciously.

"Where did you hear all this good things?" I asked.

"Well, I--"

"Here we go BooBoo," dad said. I felt an ice cold bottle of water against my arm. I reached for it.

"Thanks," I said. "Dad, this is Nate Blosser. Nate this is--"

"I forgot you were joining us today!" dad said. "Welcome aboard."

Nate and dad shook hands. I stared at them in surprise.

"You know him?" I asked dad.

Dad looked surprised.

"Didn't I tell you?"

I unscrewed the water and took a drink. A big line dribbled down my chin.

So attractive.

"Tell me what?"

"Sam broke his leg. He can't come on the trip. But, it just so happens his nephew is following in his footsteps. Nate's going to be your new photographer and web tech for the tour."

I looked back at Nate.

"Sam is my mom's brother," he explained. "And he's the one that told me all those good things."

I felt myself blush, but I didn't worry about it much. The sun was already turning me red from head to toe.

"Oh," I said. I didn't know what else to say.

"Nate, let me show you your bus," dad said. "You'll be bunking with the band."

"Sweet."

Dad headed towards the bus. Nate walked by me and flashed me a smile.

"Woah," I whispered when he was out of earshot. I pressed the water bottle against my cheek.

The temperature seemed to spike another ten degrees.

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"Why did I think leather was a good idea?" I asked as I clipped my wireless mic box to the back of my pants.

"Because they make your butt look great," my wardrobe girl, Lola said. She fixed the strap of my shirt.

"You're good," she confirmed.

"Alright," I said. "Be prepared to cut these pants off me when I get off the stage. If they don't melt first."

Lola laughed. I headed out of wardrobe. Dad was standing backstage with a plate of food. He put it down when he saw me.

"Ready?"

I nodded. "Ready."

"I told the guys to put more water out for you," he said.

"Then I'm going to have to pee," I said. Dad smiled.

"So be it. I don't want you fainting onstage."

He gave me a hug. "I'll be out for the encore."

I grinned. "I'd be disappointed if you weren't."

We high-fived. I took off for the stage. I ducked under the stairs and stood on the platform that would lift me up for the first song. It was stifling. I yanked at my shirt.

I strained my ears to hear the crowd. My plugs always filtered out the sound once I started singing, but I loved hearing the crowd during the few seconds before that happened. I always knew when the lights went out; the cheers magnified ten-fold.

Tonight was no exception. I closed my eyes and counted to three. The platform started to rise. I lifted my arm and crooked it over my head.

It was time to rock.

------------------------------

I have to admit that I had gotten accustomed to seeing Sam periodically during the concert. Seeing Nate threw me off a little bit. At one point, he gave me a thumbs up.

"I want to thank you guys for braving this heat to come out and see me," I yelled out to the audience. I lifted my arm for a big wave. It seemed like a bazillion arms waved back.

"Because of you guys, this song just recently made it to number one. This song is very special to me. You see, my brother wrote it. It's called Chaotic."

The lights dimmed. I ran to my mark on the stage. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw dad come out. My drummer disappeared and dad took his place.

The lights came back on. They swirled around in a dizzying array of blues and reds. I focused on my little stage markers and made sure to cover every square inch of the stage. I was thankful for the costume that dad and I had argued about. It was the coolest thing I had worn all evening; not that the heat mattered at the moment. My adrenaline was keeping the oppressive heat at bay.

"THANK YOU RALEIGH!" I screamed.

I picked up one of my water bottles, opened it, and sprayed those people in the first row. I tossed the empty bottle into the crowd and ran off the stage. I pulled out my plugs and unclipped my box.

"You're my hero," Lola said. "There's a freakin' heat warning out and you made it look like it was fifty degrees out there."

I grabbed a towel and dabbed my face. My heavy makeup came off with the sweat.

"I'm a good faker," I gasped. "I'm headed right to the shower. I'll bring the clothes out afterwards."

"No prob," Lola said. She waved me on.

I walked through my dressing room and into the shower. I turned the knob just enough to get the water on. I wanted it cold. I shrieked as I stepped under the spray.

"Amazing," I said to myself.

I stayed under the cold spray until my skin began to turn colors. I wrapped myself into a towel, picked up the clothes and headed back into the dressing room. I yanked on a pair of shorts and a tank top and yanked my hair back into a ponytail.

From superstar to nobody in ten minutes.

"Lola, here's those clothes," I said as I stepped out of my dressing room. I bumped right into a solid body.

Nate.

"Hey," he said. "I was looking for you."

"You were?"

He tapped his camera. "I wanted to talk to you about maybe doing some videos for your website."

I smiled. "I'd like that. Sam and I did a couple."

"I know, but I've been going over your site and your fanclub is complaining that there's not enough 'All' in All Access. Think we can do better?"

I was always up for a challenge. I put my hand on my hip; my smile widened.

"Absolutely. Tell you what. We should get to the next venue pretty early in the morning. We can go to breakfast and talk about it."

Nate ran a hand along the camera strap.

"Sounds good," he said with a smile.

"Excellent," I said. Nate walked backwards.

"See you tomorrow," he added.

"Good night," I said. I lifted my hand. He waved and turned around, heading in the direction of the busses.

"Breakfast tomorrow, huh?"

I turned. Dad was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed.

"You were listening?"

"I just caught the end of the conversation," dad said lightly. He stood up and began walking towards the exit.

"He's eighteen, BooBoo," dad called out behind him. I made a face.

Leave it to dad to insinuate that my harmless conversation was anything more.

As if!