Sweet Harmonies (7 page)

He laughed, “Well, yes. Guilty. I do have a
small confession. She did tell me that there was a very pretty girl
here in Hope Falls that I should meet, who loves music as much as I
do. So, I have to admit that I did have somewhat of a heads up.
But, you know how it is with non-musical people. I had to take that
with a grain of salt. When she said that you 'love music' she could
have meant you love listening to the radio. I had no idea that you
were THIS into music. A home studio and everything!”

Karina gave him a flirty half-smile, “It
seems she undersold me.”

Ryan returned her smile and said seductively,
“She certainly undersold your beauty. Calling you 'very pretty'
doesn't do you justice at all.”

As they rounded the last corner and stepped
into the studio, Karina said, “Well, here it is. It's obviously a
bit in disarray right now. In fact, everything's still in
boxes.”

“
Well that will be taken care of soon
enough,” Ryan replied, “Do you have any idea of where you'd like to
start?”

Karina looked around at the intimidating pile
of boxes and said, “I guess at the beginning?”

“
Sounds good,” Ryan smiled, turning and
tearing open the box to his immediate left. He started lifting out
large framed glossy photographs of Karina and leaning them against
the wall. In these photos, which were from her many tours and award
show appearances, she was costumed and made up in various exotic
and elaborate ways. In one, she was in skin tight black leather
from head to toe, with stiletto thigh-high boots and coal black
nail polish and lipstick completing the ensemble. She loved this
one because, in certain parts of the photo, you couldn't tell where
her midnight black locks ended and the stark black leather began.
She remembered that this had been from a performance at the MTV
music awards.

In another iconic look, this one from her
Futuristic
tour three years ago, she was sheathed in a
luminescent stretchy silver fabric. Her hair was pulled up in a
complicated updo, interwoven with gossamer silver threads, and her
face was covered in makeup in every metallic shade imaginable.

In yet another photo, this one from a
performance at the Hollywood Bowl, she was wearing a jewel
encrusted gown with a sweetheart neckline, and a skirt that went
all the way to the floor, every inch of it covered in real
diamonds. She remembered that it had been insured for over ten
million dollars – she also remembered that it had been heavy as
hell!

The photo was sharply focused on her in the
foreground, and in the background, slightly blurry and faded, were
visible the string section of the orchestra, which for this
particular number had come onstage.

She loved that particular photo because it
had captured her at the top of hitting a climactic note – her face
was upturned, her arms were flung out to her sides, and on her face
was the closest thing she had ever seen to a rapturous expression.
In her mind, she had titled that photo, “This is Music.”

She had also saved and framed some of the
posters for concerts she had done – posters that were particularly
meaningful to her, either because she had been proud of performing
at that venue or sharing the stage with someone that was
significant to her, or because the graphic design of the poster had
connected with her in some deep way.

By the time Ryan had unpacked and leaned
about twenty of the posters and photos, he chuckled and turned to
her, saying, “Wow, somebody's sure a big Karina Black fan!”

Karina laughed as well, embarrassed. “Oh, I
know,” she said, waving her hand to divert attention, “It's
absolutely ridiculous. I need to get rid of a lot of this stuff. I
thought about maybe auctioning it off for charity, but you know,
it's like...what do you keep, what do you get rid of? It was just
too much to think about, I don't know.”

“
For charity, really?” he said,
impressed, “You must have quite the collection if it would bring in
enough money to benefit a charity.”

“
Well,” she said, starting to look
slightly uncomfortable, “I mean, I'd probably have to autograph a
lot of it or something...”

She felt herself starting to get a little
pissed off. I mean, who did this guy think he was? Earlier today,
he'd asked her if she was an artist, while wearing that
oh-so-innocent expression. She wasn't sure at the time, but now she
was pretty certain that was a sarcastic little dig.

“
You know what?” she said, indignation
coming through in her voice and body language, “I realize that the
music I've put out so far might not be brilliant, it may not be
deep or steeped in artistic meaning, but I do actually have a
fanbase. Quite a loyal fanbase, truth be told. They would pay for
memorabilia. And honestly, I find your comments a bit
insulting.”

He didn't respond at all, and for a moment
she started to regretfully think that maybe her tone had come
across more hostile and defensive than she had actually intended.
She looked over at him to gauge his reaction, and was surprised to
see that he was standing stock still, gazing at her, mouth agape,
eyes wide, looking dumbstruck. She furrowed her brow in puzzlement.
She knew she hadn't come across as abrasive enough to cause all
THAT much shock!

Ryan was looking at her hard, seeming to
examine her face anew, and under the the heat of his intense
scrutiny, her face flushed.

“
What?” she said, touching her hair,
her nose, her mouth, “Do I have, like, dirt smudged all over my
face or something?”

“
Oh my God,” Ryan said, in disbelief,
“YOU are Karina Black.”

“
Um...yeah?” she said, not quite sure
where he was going with it.

“
I mean...you are ACTUALLY Karina
Black,” he continued, as if he thought that clarified
things.

“
Well...yes,” she said again, “I
mean...I don't understand, Ryan. Are you making some sort of
metaphysical observation about the nature of the universe and
identity and what have you that's going over my head? Or...well, I
guess I don't really have an 'or' – I just don't
understand.”

“
I didn't...” he started laughing,
shaking his head as though he couldn't believe his stupidity, “I
didn't know. I didn't realize. No one told me.”

She cocked her head to the side, puzzled, and
said, “I don't know what you mean by that. You didn't know what?
That I was Karina Black?”

Ryan nodded.

“
Well...I mean, it's not like I wear a
disguise. I'm not Lady Gaga. I wasn’t trying to Hannah Montana it.
It's just me.”

“
I know!” Ryan burst out, “I get that!
That's why I feel so stupid now! But, in my defense, it's not like
you would expect to move to a tiny little town high in the Sierra
Nevadas to help your Granny out with her cafe, and then be
introduced to a super star. It's not like that's where my head was,
you know?

“
And then, also, your last name. I
mean, yes, Blackstone and Black, I see the similarity now. But it's
not like I get introduced to people and say to myself, ‘hmm...what
similar-sounding permutations of their last name do they probably
use in their other lives as a super star?' It's not a normal thing
to consider! I just never made the connection,” he finished,
shaking his head.

Suddenly, it was clear that an additional
shocking fact had occurred to him, and he smacked his forehead with
an open palm.

“
Wow,” he continued, laughing wryly
“So, that must have been why you weren't overly impressed with my
musical stylings in the cafe.”

She stepped to his side, “No, what are you
talking about?”

“
The way you rushed out right
afterward,” he said, his eyes starting to twinkle in amusement at
the situation, “You must have thought I had some serious balls to
play in front of you like it was no big deal. Little did you know,
to me, it WAS no big deal. I didn't know who you were. Anyway, it
makes more sense why you didn't care for my stuff.”

“
No, no!” she protested, taking his
hands in hers, “Seriously, Ryan.”

Suddenly, all the flustered nervous energy
that had taken hold of her since the moment that she had met Ryan
fled, and all that she felt was a calm and purposeful desire to
make sure that she truly connected with him, and got across the
message that she needed him to know.

She reached up and gently placed her hand on
the side of his cheek, turning his face so that he was looking
directly into her eyes. Then, she moved that hand down to rest on
his chest, immediately over his fast-beating heart. At the same
time, she took the hand of his that she was still holding and
placed it over her own heart.

“
Ryan,” she said sincerely and
intensely, looking directly into his eyes, “Please believe me when
I tell you that I loved your music. It was soulful and real. I
loved the songs, I loved your voice...you made me cry, that's how
deeply your music touched me.”

Ryan and Karina stood that way for a long,
intense moment, looking into each other's eyes, the tension in the
air growing into a crackling electricity that burned and tingled
over the entire surface of Karina's skin.

Before she could stop herself, riding the
wave of that sparking electricity in the air between them, she had
pressed her lips to his – desperately, hungrily, like his lips were
the elixir of life and she needed to drink from them for her very
survival.

She snaked her arms around his neck and
pressed her body firmly to his, moaning as the kiss fervently
progressed and she felt their tongues intertwine. She sank her
fingers into his silky blonde hair, relishing the soft feel of it
against her fingertips even as she moved her hand quickly upward to
the back of his head, pressing his mouth even more firmly into
hers.

Karina felt Ryan's strong hands on her waist,
encircling it as though it were as tiny and delicate as her wrist.
She heard him groan, and felt the rumble deep in his chest as it
vibrated against her own.

Karina’s head fell back in abandon, and as it
did, she felt one of Ryan's hand come up to the back of her head
and gently but quite firmly guide it back down until her mouth was
again devouring his. The strength and sureness in his touch and
guidance of her lips caused her body to catch fire. She could not
remember the last time – if ever – that she had found herself so
completely consumed by desire, so blissfully out of control. She
loved it.

Eager to take this intense and pleasurable
interlude to the next level, desperate to feel the rough skin of
his muscled chest against her quivering breasts, Karina began to
unfasten the buttons down the front of his shirt with fingers that
were trembling with arousal.

As she did this, however, it seemed to snap
Ryan out of the trance that he had been in. He stepped back,
looking at her as if he didn't quite believe this was real, as if
he thought this might all be part of some dream he was having.

He stepped back deliberately, reaching up and
grabbing her hands on his shirtfront and holding them tenderly. He
took a ragged breath, and then another. He smiled at her, a smile
that held a bit of regret, but which was mainly composed of
determination.

Then, that sweetly melancholic smile still on
his lips, he leaned down and gave her a sweet, chaste slow peck on
the cheek.

“
Sweetheart,” he said, looking into her
eyes intently, “This is definitely going to happen. All this and so
much more. But it’s not going to be here like this. This isn't the
right way, and it isn't the right time. Not now. With all your
friends here, it's disrespectful.”

She laughed this off blithely, “Oh, don't be
silly! They're all in the front of the house.”

She stepped up to him again, and lowering her
voice seductively, she whispered, “We won't get caught,” and
started kissing his neck. Her fingers returned to their steady
progress down his shirtfront, unfastening as she went.

She felt him groan deep in his throat, and
take a long, raggedy breath.

“
Karina...” he breathed, but forced
himself to step backwards.

He laughed shakily.

“
Look, darlin',” he said, “There's no
way I'm gonna be able to hold myself back if I stay in this room
with you, so I'm gonna get back to work.”

And with a quick kiss to her forehead, he was
gone. Karina was beyond confused. She had never been rejected by
any man she had tried to sleep with. She was in shock. She wanted
to be angry, she wanted to be offended, but she couldn't seem to
quite work it up. Instead, as she listened with regret to his firm
bootsteps echoing away down the hall, what she couldn't help but
feel was respect.

She smiled to herself. Respect, yes. But
tinged with a bit of a competitive edge. She wasn't above taking on
a challenge, in fact, she relished the opportunity.

“
Game on, Ryan,” she whispered with a
grin.

Chapter 5

Ryan unlocked the door of the cafe that
night, after having been dropped off by Amanda, Justin, Lauren and
Sam in Amanda's van. He smiled as he again fought off the imagery
of himself as a kid getting dropped back home after day camp.

He felt like the day had been a success. He
had begun this morning with two goals in mind for moving day – to
make sure Karina was aware of his interest in her, and to
enthusiastically do more than his fair share of the work. Of
course, the second part was easily accomplished by simply jumping
in and expending the elbow grease. It was the first part of his
mission that he hadn't been sure if he would be able judge his
success at.