Triple D Steak House, Cave Spring, Virginia:
Jessie, Cassady, Debbie, Angela, and Juni couldn’t believe they had gotten a call from Leon and asked to meet him at Triple D Steak House. When they arrived, they were escorted to a private section, where Leon was waiting for them. He wasn’t by himself, either. Standing next to him was a young woman around their age. She was dressed in a nice business suit.

“Ladies, it’s so good to see you in person. Please have a seat.” A huge smile appears on his face.

Jessie looks at Leon as she sits down “what have you gotten us into now, Leon?”

“You’ll like the news I have for your group, Jessie.” He watches as everyone sits down at the table.

Leon and Cynthia sit down after everyone else. A young Asian woman comes over and takes their drink order while she passes out menus to everyone. Cynthia looks at everyone as they browse through the menu.

Cassady already knew what she wanted. She has been here before on a date. She knew the food was good and expensive.
Jessie looks towards Leon “all right, Leon. What gives?”

“I was going to wait until after we ate, but since you are suspicious about my motives. Let me lay your worries to rest. First, I want to introduce you to your new road manager, Cynthia DeVeau. She’s going to be traveling with you in the following weeks.”

“What do you mean in the following weeks?” Jessie was curious.

“What I mean, Jessie. I have a bunch of gigs lined up for your group. The first venue you ladies will be playing in is Windsor, Va. It’s at Heritage Park & Joel C. Bradshaw Fairgrounds. After that, you’ll be heading towards Lexington, Va. Then you’ll be heading towards Maryland, where you are booked for two gigs. Afterward, you’ll be heading north to Pennsylvania and south towards North Carolina and South Carolina.”

“How long are we going to be on the road?” Cassady was curious.

“About five months. Afterward, you’ll head to Fort Worth, Texas, for the finals.” Leon had worked out a deal with the entertainment division of the PRCA Association.

“Will we have gigs in between each event?” Jessie wanted to know.

“Yes, there will be smaller gigs in between the rodeo events. I’m in the process of getting you a gig in Washington, D.C., at a popular Country Western bar.”

“When do we start this tour?” Jessie had to admit Leon had come through for them now that they were a country music band.

“In two weeks. Your first venue is Windsor, Va. Cynthia here will handle all your road duties and hotel arrangements.”

“Does this mean we’ll get roadies to handle all our equipment?” Juni was curious.

“Yes, their names are Rick Owen and Marty Kason. They have several years of experience under their belts. So, you ladies have nothing to worry about with your instruments or gear. They will act as your security as well.” Cynthia figures that they might need it with all the rodeos the girls will be visiting.

“That doesn’t give us much time to get everything arranged.” Juni had an apartment she rented.

“I brought paperwork for all of you to fill out, so I can set up direct deposit of your pay into your account. That way, you can easily transfer the money from your account for any bills since I will be traveling with you. I can advance some of your pay to you. I’ll subtract it from the money you will be making.” Cynthia knew the girls might want to buy things either for their gigs or supplies for their instruments.

Jessie looked at everyone to see what they thought. They had done well at the one country western bar they played at. The crowd there loved them. Since that day, they have been writing new material to call their own and getting permission to play certain songs.

Their waitress showed up with their drinks and took their orders. Once she was done, Cynthia passed out all the paperwork the girls would need to complete to have their pay deposited into their accounts. She also passes out the paperwork for the medical policy Leon had gotten for them. It wasn’t the best policy, but it was within their price range. It covered their essential services and annual checkups.

“I’ll send you the time and date you need to be at the practice office to load up. Remember, you’ll be gone for four to five months, so bring everything you need. Also, you ladies might want to think about coordinated outfits on stage.”

“What’s the weather like where we are playing?” Cassady was curious about how she should dress.

“Plan on dressing for cool and warm weather. Most of the time, you’ll be playing inside an arena, but there will be outside venues you’ll be playing at.”

“I know the perfect outfit for you, cousin.” Jessie looks at Cassady with a smirk on her face.

“I don’t know about you girls, but I have the perfect outfit.” Juni had a nice western outfit she planned on wearing.

After lunch, everyone leaves the restaurant and goes their separate ways. Cassady knew she needed to speak to her neighbors across from her.
Hopefully, they won’t mind looking after her place while she is on tour. She should look into how much a house sitter is when she is gone like this.

Since she was the group’s drummer, she needed to stop and see what outfits would be appropriate. She was thinking maybe wearing a farmer’s bib with a white t-shirt or one of their t-shirts under the shoulder straps. Maybe, put her hair into pigtails and wear a baseball cap. She’ll have to see how the outfit look.

Cassady stops at a store that sells western country wear. She knew she’d need a pair of cowboy boots and ankle boots. She finds several pairs of boots in her size and tries them on. The first pair fit her snuggly, but she knew she’d have to break them in. The second pair was too tight for her feet. The third pair fit her pretty well. She sets them aside and looks at the ankle-style boots.

By the time she leaves the store, she has boughten several pairs of boots and ankle boots. She also bought several pairs of jeans, shorts, blouses, and other items. She made sure to buy several pairs of farmer overalls to play in. She could wear a t-shirt or a muscle shirt to cover her bra and breasts.

She didn’t have any suitcases or a makeup bag. She stops and buys a nice set. Good thing the stocks she had in the auto parts place she used to work at had gone up since she bought them. She sold most of them when she left the company. It wasn’t like she had a choice in the matter.

When she came in the Monday of the following week, her boss called her to the back and fired her. He said a customer had complained about her attitude and how she told him where he could shove his rachet. She tried to tell her manager what had happened, but he wouldn’t listen. She knew he had a problem with her being transgender. Plus, he didn’t like that she knew more about cars than most men and women who came into the store.

Most of the men who entered the store didn’t like that she knew more than they did. It bruised their ego that a girl knew more about cars than they knew. She hated playing like she didn’t know anything to please them. So, the customer complained about her. She told them what they could do with their rachet and wrench.

Luckily for her, The Angels were making a name for themselves after playing county music at that one gig. They were asked to come back and hired by another country western bar. The group was hired to play at several parties and a few weddings.

Jessie continues shopping for what she’ll need to take for the gigs.