A Trip in the Fall Pt. 05

"Mom loves Wolfgang Puck's, so we are going there."

Sarah nodded and the girls made their way back to the car and back to the hotel, where the guys had returned from golf. Over the next few hours, the girls got some work done for the upcoming tour while Josh and Brandon went over stuff for Brandon's new job; he was technically not working for them yet, but was listed as a "consultant," so he was making about $50 an hour to knock some things off for Josh as they wound down the current year's grants and began prepping for the new year come July 1. Around 3:00, Josh and Amanda excused themselves to go get ready for dinner, while Sarah did the same heading to the shower before the makeup and hair stylist was set to arrive at 3:45.

While Sarah got ready and did her thing, Brandon was able to sit down and answer some emails and grade some things for his students that had been turned in on Friday. He had a couple messages asking when assignments would be graded, something he hated since he tried to get things returned within 24 hours, but with baseball season and the traveling he had been and would be doing, he was falling behind and his AP kids were not pleased about it.

Once he had done all he could, he entered the bedroom and found the clothes that Sarah had mentioned, and pulled them on, before returning to the living room to wait for her to finish up. About 5, the makeup and hair people left, and about 5 minutes later Sarah walked in and like always, caused him to smile, "Wow."

"You like?"

"I love; you look stunning." Sarah's make up was done a bit heavier than normal, but still nothing overpowering, it was supposed to transcend the red carpet, the awards ceremony, and also the performance with Dolly. Her dress for dinner was a greenish blue and only covered one shoulder and fell to her mid-thigh. There was an overlay on her right side that covered the rest of her right thigh to the knee, and it was all wrapped up with a large bow tied on her left hip. Like most of her dresses, it wasn't overly tight, but it definitely fit her well and with the sash, her natural curves were accentuated.

He stood up, "You don't look so bad yourself."

They embraced and kissed softly, both making sure to leave her lips as perfect as they could be. When they pulled away she said, "I can touch up lipstick, just don't get handsy with my face or hair."

He laughed, "That can be later."

She giggled but smacked him with her clutch, "Perv."

"That's me, now let's go collect your parents and head to dinner."

****

They made the short walk through the hotel to the restaurant where Brandon told him their name, and they were instructed to follow the maître d, because Sarah's parents had already arrived. They made their way deeper into the restaurant and could see Sarah's parents sitting in a small alcove booth. When her father saw them, he stood up and stepped into the aisle, causing her mother to do the same. Sarah dropped Brandon's hand and ran as well as anyone in heels, wrapping her father in a hug, "Daddy!"

"Hey darling," Jim Bixby smiled. He released her and Sarah moved to hug her mother, allowing Brandon to catch up, "Brandon how are you?"

Brandon Smiled, "I'm good sir, how about you?"

"Can't complain, no one listens."

Brandon laughed, "I know that feeling." Sarah had then let go of her mom and they had begun talking about their outfits, Susan fussing about how little Sarah's covered and Sarah talking about how she loved her mom's dress choice.

Susan finally looked up and smiled, "Brandon, how are you honey?"

Brandon hugged her and stepped back, "I'm good Mrs. Bixby, how are you?"

"You look so handsome! I've told you to call me Susan and him Jim, we aren't that old yet."

Brandon laughed, "My mother raised me better than that ma'am."

"Well I'm just going to have to talk to her about you dropping the formalities since you're moving in with our girl."

Brandon laughed, "I'll do my best."

"Good, now what do you say we sit down and stop blocking the road?"

They all sat down Jim and Susan having already ordered drinks for the table, A glass of white wine for Susan and Sarah, and Weller on the rocks for Jim and Brandon.

"That's really good bourbon," remarked Brandon.

"This is the full proof, I had it right after Sarah signed her record deal and I drink it whenever there is something to celebrate, and tonight is just that night."

Brandon and Sarah both smiled as the waiter returned for their food orders. With their orders taken, he left, and the table resumed conversation. It had been about 2 months since her parents had seen her, so Sarah dominated most of the conversation, catching them up in more detail about what was going on, and the happenings back home. As their meal came, the focus shifted to Brandon, him catching them up on his world and his progress in packing on the process to move to Nashville in June.

With dinner over, the waiter brought the check and both Brandon and Jim reached for it. "What do you think you are doing son?"

"I'm treating my girlfriend's parents to dinner."

"I don't think so."

Brandon chuckled, not removing his hand from the check, "You fed me for 3 days and let me stay in your house, even if my feet did hang off the bed. Let me buy dinner."

"That was our pleasure, and I got plenty of work out of you while you were there."

Seeing the two men go back and forth made Sarah smile, knowing that they got along made her happy, but she did finally speak up, "Boys, neither of you have to impress me. Why don't you split it?"

"Well, I didn't bring cash..."

Jim snatched it away hurriedly, "Ha, got it."

Brandon shook his head, "Fine, but I will buy breakfast in the morning?"

"That would be fine."

Jim paid the check, and they stood making their way to the entrance. Sarah hugged both her parents, and Brandon shook Jim's hand before hugging Susan. Sarah double checked that her parents knew how to get to their seats and what time they needed to be there by. Once that was confirmed, she and Brandon said goodbye and made their way back to the elevators to begin getting ready for the night's festivities.

Chapter 5-Sunday Night

Once they returned to the room, Brandon was able to get dressed in about 10 minutes, his outfit was very simple. They had gotten him a tailored blue suit that was a bit brighter than a standard blue suit, he paired it with a white dress shirt and decided to forgo the tie, leaving it open at top, and topped it off with a pair of brown dress boots to add just a little bit of country flair to it. He had been trying for weeks, but Sarah had squashed his request to wear a cowboy hat, much to his fake disgust.

Sarah on the other hand had disappeared into the bedroom after coming out of the bathroom and while he could hear her moving around, he hadn't seen her. Right at 6:30, he looked up from his phone when he heard the door click open and heard, "Well, how do I look?"

Brandon looked up and was literally speechless. Sarah always had a way of taking his breath away, but this time rivaled New Years. She stepped out of the bedroom wearing a maroon floor length dress that was held in place with spaghetti straps and a mermaid cut. As she got closer, he could see the dress had a solid underlayer with a lace overlay that showed off a lot of detailed flowers. The dress was a v-neck that was cut below her breasts, suggesting that like she said, there was no bra.

She did a short spin and looked over her shoulder, smirking and said, "How about the back?"

The back was just as gorgeous as the front; the straps over her shoulders were tied in a bow at her waist, while the rest of the back dipped in a vee shape below the bow, exposing her toned lower back and confirming there was no bra, and Brandon was even questioning if she was wearing underwear.

Getting his brain under control as his body tried to make it function while diverting blood to his crotch, he did finally say, "God you're hot."

Sarah grinned and then burst out laughing at the dumbfounded look on his face. "Thanks babe, you look pretty snazzy yourself."

He closed the gap between them and pulled her against him before gently kissing her lips. As he was about to pull away, he felt her tongue touch his lips, and opening them, their kiss deepened. As his hands drifted to her ass, he gave it a squeeze causing her to moan. She pressed her pelvis into him and as he let out an accompanying groan, there was a knock at the door.

They both let out a soft, "Fuck!" before separating and Sarah smoothed her dress and made her way to the door. She opened it to find Nigel, "Is it time to go?"

"Yes ma'am, the car is waiting."

"Alright, Honey, let's go."

Brandon had slipped around the corner and adjusted himself so his bulge wouldn't be as obvious, reappeared, and they headed out the door with Nigel, heading towards the lobby to meet Amanda and Josh. As they climbed onto the elevator Sarah cozied up to him and smiled with a slight fake pout, "We can finish what we were discussing later tonight, alright?"

Brandon faked annoyance, "Good."

Sarah smiled at him playing along with her, "Well this is the OFFICIAL stepping out with me, you ready for your picture to be everywhere in 2 hours."

Brandon laughed, "I don't have much choice, let's go."

***

After arriving at the stadium, they were dropped off and proceeded down a literal red carpet with Josh and Amanda. As the guys walked a few steps behind, Amanda and Sarah stopped to take pictures for photographers and to sign autographs for fans who had been gathered for hours Brandon figured out. On some occasions, he and Josh would be beckoned over to join in the pictures. To walk the 50 yards, it took over a half hour and by the time they reached the official entry, Brandon's face hurt from smiling so much. They passed under an awning and into a tent marking the VIP area; Sarah took his hand and smiled, "That wasn't so bad was it?"

He smiled and softly kissed her cheek, "You tell me, they are here to see you, not me."

She laughed, "That is true, thank you for being here with me, though."

He smiled, "Of course."

They passed through security and made their way to a wall with "ACMs" in black and gold on it. There, they took a couple of official photos before making their way into the stadium to find their table where Jim and Susan were already seated with another couple that looked familiar. As the two young couples approached, the older couples stood, and Amanda introduced her parents Mark and Teresa to Brandon. Brandon smiled, "Oh yeah, we met very briefly at the final tour stop."

Amanda's dad smiled, "Oh yeah, now I remember!" They all found their respective seats, the parents sitting with their backs to the stage, Sarah and Amanda sitting at the head of the table with Josh and Brandon flanking them by their parents. They made small talk until the director came out and announced that they were five minutes from show time.

Precisely at 8:00, the lights dimmed, and music began to play, and Brandon noticed smoke rolling from the left side of the stage and right at 8:01, Zac Brown Band launched into their newest single "Comeback," to kick off the show.

***

Over the next hour with a few commercial breaks, the audience in person and at home were treated to multiple acts, jokes by Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, and the awards for the night. Sarah and Amanda had been nominated for a few things but didn't win. As the next commercial break was getting nearer, Brandon had to use the restroom, but didn't want to move seeing as they were in the second row of tables. Carrie and Brad had stepped back on stage to announce Duo of the Year, the final award the girls were nominated for that night.

As the video board on stage began to flash images, Brad began to read off names of the nominees, "Brothers Osbourne, Maddie and Tae, Biloxi Broncos, and finally Dan and Shay."

After the applause had died down, Carrie pulled an envelope from Brad's hand, "And the winner of the Country Duo of the year goes to....Biloxi Broncos!"

As the applause started, Brandon and Josh both grinned and stood as Sarah and Amanda jumped up covering their mouths before hugging their boyfriends and moving onto their parents. It took them another 30 seconds to make it to the stage as they were stopped and congratulated by multiple people.

When they finally made it to stage, they each took their statues from the hosts and Amanda stepped to the mic first, "Wow! This is awesome, I just want to thank my family, my fiancé, my friends, my family. Oops I already said them," causing the audience to laugh, "Thank you so much for this, it means the world."

She stepped away from the mic and Sarah took her place, "Thank you all so much! Holy crap we won something! I want to thank my family and boyfriend, our record company, our support staff, Max and Morgan, you guys are life savers, and thank you to the fans for wanting to hear this thing we call music and giving us a chance. Thank you all!"

To another round of applause they were ushered off stage and the show cut to another commercial break. Brandon hurriedly made his way to the bathroom where he checked his phone after using the bathroom. He found numerous texts from people back in NJ and from his parents. He responded to his parents and Matt, before making his way back out to the floor just as the TV's started rolling again.

Jim leaned forward, "Pretty special huh?"

Brandon smiled, "Yep, now she gets to perform with Dolly, her night is made. Congrats Dad."

Jim smiled, "Thanks, but I didn't do anything, god knows her singing isn't from me."

Brandon laughed and sat back as the next few awards were presented and a few more acts performed. The girls didn't return to their seats, as they were getting ready to perform, but their rewards were returned, and Brandon took a couple of quick photos with Josh of the girl's parents and the statues before shooting off a picture of Sarah's to his parents and sister before pocketing his phone to continue enjoying the show.

***

As the clock got closer to 9:40, he knew that the girls and Dolly were the final act before Artist of the Year and Song of the Year. The TV cut to a final commercial break and returned to the hosts standing back on stage. They spent the next few minutes describing Dolly's life and career, highlighting her humble upbringing, her early work where she almost sold "I Will Always Love You" to Elvis and many other stories. Carrie Underwood finally said, "Here to celebrate Dolly and her music are the Biloxi Broncos!"

The familiar beat to "9-to-5" came on and the curtain rose to expose Sarah and Amanda backed by the house band. Amanda was holding her guitar wearing a silver, long sleeve sequin's dress and matching high heels. Sarah was wearing a similar colored romper and a pair of black ankle boots.

They both smiled to the crowd and Sarah launched into the opening verse:

"Tumble outta bed,

And I stumble to the kitchen,

Pour myself a cup of ambition,

And yawn and stretch,

And try to come to life."

Sarah paused with a smile as she danced, and Amanda picked up the next verse:

"Jump in the shower,

And the blood starts pumpin',

Out on the street,

The traffic starts jumpin',

The folks like me,

On the job from 9 to 5."

As the crowd started to sing along, the girls came together and started into the chorus:

"Workin' 9 to 5,

What a way to make a livin',

Barely gettin' by,

It's all takin' and no givin',

They just use your mind,

And they never give you credit,

It's enough to drive you crazy,

If you let it,

9 to 5, for service and devotion,

You would think that I would deserve a fair promotion,

Want to move ahead,

But the boss won't seem to let me,

I swear sometimes that man is out to get me."

As the chorus ended, the girls started to clap and as the band softened for the next part, Dolly herself walked on stage wearing a sparkling gold pants suit and began to sing the next verse while Amanda and Sarah danced behind her. The crowd stood and joined in as she finished the verse and signaled for Amanda and Sarah to join her at the front of the stage.

As they came even with her, they all three started singing the chorus, causing the crowd to erupt in cheers. Brandon couldn't help but smile at seeing the fun that Sarah was having, performing with one of her biggest idols, in front of some of country music's biggest stars. As they wrapped up the chorus, the crown let out a thunderous applause and the three women bowed. Amanda and Sarah took a few steps back, giving Dolly the stage that she so deserved. As the crowd continued to clap, the hosts reappeared and presented Dolly with a plaque signifying her contribution to country music, and music in general.

As the clapping died down, Dolly gave a short speech thanking everyone for all the support, making sure to thank Amanda and Sarah for doing her song justice before the director signaled that time was about up. As the lights on stage faded, Sarah, Amanda, and Dolly made their way backstage, leaving the crowd on the floor to begin milling around and talking before slowly making their way to the exits.

Brandon, Josh, and the parents sat down for a few minutes before both the guys' phones went off, they each read the texts then looked at each other, "The girls?" They both laughed and nodded before standing. Josh said to the rest of the table, "That was Amanda and Sarah, they want us to come backstage."

Amanda's mother said, "I thought we were meeting them back at the entrance?"

Brandon chimed in, "That was the plan, but they want us to come backstage."

Josh led the way with Brandon bringing up the rear; they came to a security guard and Josh said, "Guests of The Biloxi Broncos and Ms. Parton."

The guy checked his iPad and then smiled, "Right that way, make your first right."

They moved beyond the rope and made their way along the side of the stage into a long hallway before making the right as the guard had said. They entered what was effectively the green room and Brandon could see Sarah's back to him but heard Amanda say, "Oh they made it!"

Sarah turned around, exposing that she had been talking to Dolly; her face lit up seeing her parents and Brandon, "Hey!!!"

Josh nearly got run over as the parents rushed the girls hugging them and congratulating. Brandon stepped to the side beside Josh and nodded to Dolly, "Ms. Parton, nice performance."

Josh nodded in agreement and Dolly responded, "Oh honey, these ladies of yours' stole the show."

Before anyone else could respond the group hug in front of them had broken up, and the girls began to introduce their parents to Dolly and the group spent the next 10 minutes making small talk about the show, the careers of both the girls and Dolly, and about Vegas in general.

An aide appeared and spoke to Dolly, leading her to say, "Well it appears my ride is here. Ladies it has been a pleasure, folks it was very nice to meet you. She hugged each of them and hugged Brandon last, "You stay out of trouble young man, I won't always be there to bail you out."

Brandon laughed, "I'll try. Thank you for everything."

Dolly grinned and headed out. Once she was gone, the girls turned to each other and squealed again about their awards. Once they had calmed down, Amanda said, "Okay, we have to go get changed for the after party, then we will be out."

Brandon smiled, "Sounds good." Sarah ran up and gave him a quick kiss before she and Amanda stepped into a room off the one they were in to change.

Amanda's mom Teresa turned to them, "Gentleman, that is our cue to leave, would you mind walking us out."

"Of course not, "Josh said with a smile. He and Brandon walked the couples out to the pick-up area and made their individual arrangements for breakfast the next morning before they all went their separate ways.