Stephan's buddy leaned back in his chair and turned his attention to the dimly-lit stage. A young woman in a long, white, full-skirted dress and startlingly high heels approached the mic carrying a fairly beat up guitar. She flipped her long dark hair over her shoulder and cradled the guitar. The guys had missed the intro, so they didn't get her name. A soft spotlight trained on her and illuminated a beautiful young woman, Clayne's Kayce.

She strummed a couple chords and in a sweet contralto, she nearly whispered the first words of her song. "I heard he sang a good song, I heard he had a style, And so I came to see him, to listen for a while, And there he was, this young boy, a stranger to my eyes..."

Stephan sat back and watched his buddy. His friend, Clayne, sat up at full attention, staring at the pretty girl, his mouth working as if he were trying to say something, but unable to. He turned a shocked face to Stephan. "How did you...When?"

Clayne turned his attention back to Kayce and listened to her soft rendition of "Don't You Remember?" It was as heartbreaking as she had always said it would be. One hand went to touch his chin, and then he couldn't seem to decide what to do with his hand. It wandered to the table, and then back to press against his mouth. He leaned back in his chair and blinked his eyes, fluttering his lashes like the veriest coquette. Stephan watched this twitchy display and knew that he was watching a man in the throes of love.

Kayce spoke the short transitional phrases, again in a heart-rending whisper. "Finding yourself in love is a wonderful thing. It can only be likened to pure joy. But not having that love returned is soul-searing. You will try anything to salvage that last little bit of happiness..." Her fingers ran over her guitar again, and she nearly moaned in sweet soft tones, "Say something...I'm giving up on you..."

Clayne squirmed in his chair and looked like he was going to run out of the room. Still blinking his eyes rapidly, he nearly did. He was half standing when Stephan put his hand on Clayne's arm. "Easy, old son. Sit back down. I'll stay as long as you need me." Clayne nodded his head a couple times quickly and slid back onto his chair.

As the melody ended, Kayce spoke more doleful narrative, "You finally know it's over, and you have to walk away. It tears the very heart out of your chest ... and still you have to go on living ... if this can be called living..." With more emotion and a stronger voice, she sang, "I can't make you love me if you don't. I can't make your heart feel what it won't..."

The last night with Celeste came boiling back into Clayne's mind. The thoughts roiled around in his head until he was ready to scream. His face contorted in fevered torment as various emotions were exposed there. Stephan lay a firm hand on Clayne's arm again. "Clayne, I'm sorry. I didn't know it would be this hard on you. I thought it would help. Forgive me, guy. Do you want to go?"

Clayne looked at him wildly. Kind of shaking himself, he recovered his sanity. "No, no. I want to hear her. I want to ... hear... her." He looked back up at Kayce. She murmured almost as to herself, "You have someone, if only for a little while, but then he's gone...and you're..." She sang the next words, "alone...again...naturally." She continued with a slow mournful remix of "Alone Again Naturally." She sang softly, "In a little while from now, if I'm not feeling any less sour, I promise myself to treat myself, and visit a nearby tower, and climbing to the top, will throw myself off, in an effort to... make it clear to who ... ever wants to know what it's like when you're shattered ..."

She murmured the next few lines with her eyes closed. "Then one night, one wonderful, unbelievable night, you meet a someone...the someone...that had it been any other time, would have been 'the one.' But it was only one night, and then you're all by yourself..." This time Stephan was the one who sat back and put a hand over his mouth as Kayce sang her beautiful, heartbreaking "Clayne." Clayne nearly stood up. Stephan stopped him. "A rainy night on a black-topped two lane...I met a man, my beautiful Clayne...We had only one night, with softly falling rain...washed away my lonely pain and brought to me my sweet Clayne..."

"Omigod." Clayne leaned forward, his hands over his mouth, his arms on the table. "Omigod... Kayce..." Stephan stood and placed a hand on Clayne's shoulder. He threw some money on the table and signaled the busty waitress.

"Buddy. You don't need me now. I'm going to go...Will you be all right?" Clayne nodded and turned a semi-smile at Stephan. "Thank you, Stephan." Stephan nodded and strolled to the door. He glanced back one more time to be sure Clayne would be all right. Satisfied, he went out onto the street. Quickly Clayne looked back up at the stage.

Kayce went on to "Much Too Good at Goodbye" and "Crying." On the last heartbreaking note, she dropped back into her whisper. "Guys, I'm sorry. I know I usually do a couple more songs as an encore of sorts, but I... I just can't do it tonight. It seems to have taken more out of me tonight than usual. I promise I'll make it up to you next time. Good night and thank you for listening." She stood, bowed deeply from the waist, and walked slowly off the stage to more thunderous applause. The lights came up, and the crowd began to stir and to get ready to depart.

Clayne sat there a couple minutes as the crowd slowly filtered out. He waved "Busty" back to the table. "I just need some information, honey." He handed her a twenty. "Where are the dressing rooms?" She looked more closely at his face, and her eyes widened as recognition dawned. She directed him with a hand gesture to a door at the edge of the stage and hurried to the bar to whisper something to the barkeep. They both watched Clayne make his way toward the dressing rooms.

Clayne wandered backstage into a long dimly-lighted hallway, and was checking every open door before trying the closed doors. "Busty" caught up with him, and handed him a smallish bouquet of yellow rose buds tied with a satin ribbon. He held up a hand to refuse the nosegay. "Honey, I'm not interes..."

"You're Clayne, aren't you?

"Yes, but how did you..."

"If you work here, you know who Clayne is, and what he looks like, and everything there is to know about you." He blinked a couple times. "You were hurt by some woman and came out to San Diego for a new start. You met Kayce on the road. You're a sweet, sensitive guy, and Kayce fell in love with you."  She paused momentarily and gazed at his face. "She loves you very much." She nearly rolled her eyes. "...so very much." She handed him the roses. "These are Kayce's favorite. I thought you might like to give them to her."

"Thank you, Miss...?"

"Lisa."

"Thank you, Lisa." He leaned over and gave her a quick peck on the cheek and his devastating smile. She blushed. "...I get what she sees in him ...hoowie..." and turning away, went back to the bar to finish end-of-day clean-up.

Clayne resumed his search. He seemed to be in luck. The fifth door stood open and a young woman was humming "Clayne." Stepping up to the door, clutching the roses in a trembling fist, he just stood there. As she was packing sheet music, sipping at her constant coffee, he just watched her, a lump in his throat and his heart bursting with what could only be described as joy. He was grateful to Stephan for recognizing that he wasn't suffering for Celeste, but was missing this amazing woman.

She moved to the mirror and began taking off the heavy stage make-up that helped her hide from all the people out there staring at her. As she leaned down to pick up a sponge, she spotted in the mirror, a male figure standing in the doorway and suffered a moment of sheer terror. No one should be back here, especially this late. She was terrified and whipped around to face him. Taking in the complete vision of him as she turned, the whole world slowed down.

Her hands flew to her mouth. A sharp gasp took her voice, and tears started. Her mouth worked, and finally after a couple of attempts, she regained her words, and cried "C... Clayne?" He nodded. She ran at him and slammed into his chest between his open arms, winding her arms around his waist. Wrapping his arms around her shoulders, he wound his fingers into her hair and held her close, his face nuzzled into her neck. She whispered in a quavering voice, "Clayne, oh, Clayne...How I have missed you..."

He whispered softly, "I've needed you so much... I was still wallowing in misery over my ex, when my friend figured out it wasn't her I was wanting. It's you, sweetheart. He found you for me and brought me here tonight." He leaned back to gaze at her face. "Oh, God, Kayce, I love you so much."

She spluttered a sob and ground herself harder against his chest. "God, I love you, too." She leaned back, lay her hands on his chest, and giving him a coy smile, murmured. "You want to get lucky tonight, mister?" She grinned, but her lips trembled.

"Yes, ma'am...Yes, I do." He chuckled softly and crushed his lips to hers, licking at her lips until she opened her mouth to him. His tongue plundered her warm mouth and sucked and caressed her tongue, drawing her breath until she was faint. He lifted his lips and added, " Tonight.. and tomorrow night... and the next night... from now on."

And he did.