Authors: Susan Worley-Bean
Robert John Montgomery stood about six feet, was stocky in structure but not flabby. At 42, he felt fairly healthy, considering his hectic schedule. His brown hair showed few flecks of silver. His steel-blue eyes looked straight through you. Dressed not in the same garb as some country stars, he was wore blue jeans, a white tuxedo shirt with sapphire buttons, a sapphire-colored bow tie, a belt adorned with a large oval gold buckle, and of course, Western boots. But his boots weren’t the tuck-into-your pants Western boots, but just suede cowboy boots that appeared to be buttery soft and looked as though they’d seen quite a lot of stirrup use.
Pierce finished his last song. “Now, it’s my pleasure to introduce my friend and Country Music’s Entertainer of the Year. Last but not least, please welcome Robert John Montgomery.” As soon as the applause started, it was like a bolt of lightening in RJ’s body. He’d tried to explain that it was like the feeling you get when you hear your name and the excitement of people cheering for you; simply unexplainable.
From backstage he picked up his microphone, clicked it on, and strolled out onto the stage.
“Good evening. Looks like I’m the rear-end of this show.”
The audience laughed RJ started singing one of his greatest hits,
Loving You.
The applause was almost deafening. The lights were so bright on stage he couldn’t see past his arm’s length. As he once told a reporter, when asked about focusing on someone or something when he sang, he commented, “You can’t see past about six feet because of either the spotlights or camera flashes.” After he finished his second song, he exited left stage, leaving his backup musicians and singers to play singers and sing the intro to his final song.
Upon his exit, he winked at Lynda, dazed from his previous song. The girls sitting commented, “Did you see that he winked at you!” “Ah huh” was all she could reply.
When he finished his final song before walking offstage, he winked towards the ladies in the front. Each thought the wink was just for her. As in previous shows he tugged off his bow tie and tossed it into the audience. All ladies were grabbing, trying to reach the bow tie, thinking it was tossed “directly” at each of them.
The four entertainers walked onstage, and again the audience went wild with applause. Willie introduced the final song, “We all travel several days a year, more than we want to count. Here’s a song that’s near and dear to our hearts. Let’s make this a sing-along.” The crowd was wild with anticipation of the song,
On The Road Again.
When the music started the crowd was on its feet, singing. When finished, the four entertainers bowed and walked offstage.
The applause finally died out, and in the still-dark showroom, the staff began to deliver the bills for extra beverages ordered. The captain handed Jillian a slip of paper. She stopped him. “We didn’t order any extra drinks. We shouldn’t have a bill.” He just nodded and walked away. The girls didn’t notice the note. The note read, “Please join me backstage.” She looked up and realized that she was smiling.
The house lights came up, and everyone started gathering their personal items.
Jillian said to Emma, “Wait for me. I’ll be with you in just a sec. I have to see what he wants.” The girls saw the captain motion for Jillian. They shrugged, then started talking to their tablemates. Then they decided to wait for Jillian in the lobby.
The captain escorted Jillian through a couple of doors and showed her to a small room with a sofa and a couple of chairs. Motioning to the corner of the room, the captain said, “Please, help yourself to the food and there are also drinks in the fridge.” She wondered why she was here.
Seconds after the captain left, the door opened and in walked Robert John Montgomery. Jillian thought: You’re not Pierce Layton!
All of the pictures she’d seen of this country star didn’t do him justice. He took her breath away for a second. He was gorgeous. He motioned to the sofa. “Shall we sit?” She nodded and sat down at the opposite end. Her legs felt so rubbery that if she didn’t sit, she might fall.
“Did you enjoy the show? Thanks for coming.” He stretched his legs and made himself comfortable. Even though seated at the opposite end of the sofa, she could smell his cologne.
“How could I not?”
He put out his hand out. “I’m Robert John Montgomery, RJ, as my friends call me, and you are?”
Jillian shook hands with him, embarrassed that her palms were sweaty. His hands were soft, not as she expected. But what was it she’d expected? She asked herself. She stammered, “I’m, Jillian James. Nice to meet you.”
“Are you from Seattle?”
“
No. I really enjoyed your…the show.”
“
Thanks, I really enjoy my job.”
Jillian smiled thinking, so do I.
He reached out and briefly touched her arm, “Would you like something to drink? I’m really dry. Something?” He asked, holding a small green bottle of water and motioning it towards her. She shook her head no. He opened the bottle and took a long drink. Taking a deep breath, Jillian shivered, yet knew she wasn’t cold.
“No thanks. My friends are waiting for me in the lobby. I really can’t stay.”
“Oh, you could send them away and go back later.”
“I can’t.”
“If you have to go, uh… may I see you again?”
“I’m not from here.”
“Neither am I.”
“May I have your phone number, so I could call sometime?”
“Sure, let’s see….” Jillian reached into her purse, pulled out one of her business cards, and handed it to him. He read her card, paused then stammered, “You’re a doctor?”
“Yes, I am. I really have to be going. My friends will be wondering what’s happened to me.”
He seemed disappointed that Jillian wasn’t one of his star-struck groupie fans that gladly would’ve spent the rest of the evening with him. As Jillian started towards the door, he touched her arm.
“Thanks for taking time to see me, I’ll call you.”
His touch was gentle and she was close enough to smell his cologne. She felt as if she could cave in at any instant. She took a deep breath, so as to remember the scent forever. He leaned over and kissed her cheek, a brief tender kiss, one that’d last in Jillian’s heart.
She opened the door and started out. The captain was standing a few feet from the door, motioning towards the lobby.
Jillian thought: Oh, I’m sure you’re going to call. Right? She found her way back to her waiting friends.
“Where’d you go?” Emma asked anxiously.
“You wouldn’t believe it if I told you. Let’s get something to eat, then I’ll tell you.”
On the way back to the hotel the girls decided to order room service. In their nightclothes they met in Jillian’s room. Jillian ordered three nachos and a gallon of ice tea. Soon, they were sitting on the bed, noshing and talking.
“Now, tell us where you went after the concert,” Lynda said, with a glob of sour cream on the side of her mouth. A quick swipe of her tongue remedied the glob.
“Well, the captain brought me a note saying he was to escort me backstage. I waited in a room, and who showed up but Robert John Montgomery!”
The other two girls shouted, “NO! What’d he want?”
“My phone number and asked if he could call me. I think he thought I’d fall all over him and spend the evening with him.”
“What was he like? What was he wearing? What’d he say? What’d you say?” Emma asked as fast as she could get the words out.
“He was very polite. He was still wearing the clothes he wore onstage, although he’d unbuttoned a couple of buttons on his shirt that was wet with sweat.”
“Well, why didn’t you? You chose us over Robert John Montgomery?” All three girls laughed.
“Well, I’m not some star-struck fan, so the choice wasn’t hard!”
“Are you going to see him again? What else? Is that all?”
“His cologne was heavenly.” She paused, and thinking back could smell it all over again. “When he kissed me, I thought I was going to melt away. Now, I’m beginning to sound like a dreamy teenager.”
“WHOA! He kissed you?”
“Just a polite goodbye cheek kiss. I doubt he’ll ever call and if he does, I’ll politely turn him down. That bridge’ll be crossed and that’ll be that.”
Lynda and Emma smiled. Emma said, “These are the best nachos I’ve ever had.”
“Tomorrow’s home, so since it seems we’re always eating when we travel, where shall we have breakfast before our flight?” asked Lynda.
“How about the Space Needle’s Corner Breakfast Cafe? The concierge said it’s good. We could go about nine. Since our flight’s at twelve-thirty, we’ll have time.”
Emma said, “Sounds good to me. Think I’ll retire. See you at 8:30, bags packed.”
“I’m sleepy, too,” said Lynda, “See, Jillian you should’ve taken Robert John Montgomery up on his offer!” The three girls laughed.
“Goodnight!”
At breakfast the girls decided that Dallas would be their next trip in about a month and they’d plan on a week for that trip; staying with Jillian’s parents is always fun. The view from the Space Needle was extraordinary and the food was a great treat. The cab ride to the airport was enjoyable. The cabby thought he was a tour guide and pointed out some of Seattle’s finest sights. At the airport the girls checked their bags, found their gate, and sat to wait. Emma and Lynda kept talking to Jillian about her encounter with Robert John Montgomery. Jillian thought: I wish they’d forget this. I have a life and don’t want his.
The flight home to Reno was uneventful. Heading home, Lynda said, “Why don’t we have dinner at Katie’s in the Carson Valley Inn? It’s on our way back to Yerington and then we’ll call it a trip.” The other two agreed.
Seated in Katie’s, the girls talked about the trip and what a good time they’d had. Emma excused herself. When she returned she handed Jillian a small package; instantly Jillian knew it was a CD, and right away who it featured:
“Robert John Montgomery – Greatest Hits.”
Jillian chuckled and appeared to be disgusted, as the other two girls laughed. But in her heart Jillian was smiling and that surprised her.
Emma said, “Now you can play something else than that flute music you listen to.”
During dinner, the three ladies discussed their next month’s upcoming trip. They planned to stay with Jillian’s parents a few miles south of Fort Worth.
Emma said, “Dallas-Ft. Worth should be fun. Remember last time when we went to Gilley’s? What a hoot! It’ll be nice to see your parents again.”
“Yeah, Emma, but remember you were the one that said ‘been there once, never again?’ ”
“Yeah, that was then. Now I’m ready to go, since Jillie has a country-star boyfriend.”
They all laughed.
Jillian was glad to get home. When Lynda turned on Franklin Street to drop off Jillian and Emma, Jillian felt home sweet home more than usual after this trip. Such a strange feeling, it was… as she’d been away for years. Her house was like an old friend awaiting her return. She said goodnight to Lynda, and they agreed to meet in the cafeteria at the hospital for coffee tomorrow morning. As she just looked around in the entryway, she remembered what her mother used to say: “Anyone can have a house, but lucky people have a home.” She sat her bags down at the foot of the stairs, turned and stepped into the den. The evening sky was dusk, and shadows filled the room. The mauve color of the walls and the dark wood desk made the room more inviting.
Emma knocked on Jillian’s back door, but there was no answer. She used the hidden key to let herself in.
“Jillie, where are you?” The only sound she heard was faint music coming from upstairs. The closer she got to Jillian’s bedroom, the louder the music became. Peeking around the doorjamb, Emma smiled, seeing her friend was dancing to the music, while unpacking her suitcase.
Jillian stopped dancing as soon as she saw Emma. Embarrassed like a young child caught dipping into the candy bowl, Jillian said, “Sneaking up on me?”
“You were really into this.”
“Well, I thought I’d give it a listen.”
“Sorry I disturbed you. Looked like you were really enjoying yourself.”
“His music is nice.”
“Jillie, if we hadn’t been with you, would you have taken him up on his offer?”
“Em, I thought you knew me better than that!
Chapter 7
Jillian Louise James was born in Carson City, Nevada, a native Nevadan. She left her birthplace only after graduating medical school from the University of Nevada to attend a residency program in Orthopedics in Baltimore, Maryland. Later, she knew she’d return to Nevada to practice.
She was lucky enough to be able to do internship at Yerington General Hospital; that’s when Dr. Mark Morrison approached her about joining his practice. His practice needed another set of hands. She was a rarity, as not many women go into the field. She’d heard several times throughout her schooling: “You’re a woman. You can’t perform some of the tasks that orthopedics require.” She’d never wavered in her decision. Since agreeing to join Desert Orthopedics five years ago, felt that her life was okay, but not complete.
Dan and Grace James moved to the birthplace of Jillian’s grandfather in Cleburne, Texas to care for Jillian’s grandmother in her later years of life. After her grandmother’s death they always said they’d return to Yerington but after 10 years, Jillian had given up on that idea. They moved into a life that her grandparents had lived for the 57 years of their marriage. Her parents had built up one of the largest horse ranches in the area, raising prize-winning quarter horses.