Sweet Harmonies (9 page)

“
Thanks, don't mind if I do!” Sam
called back sunnily from the kitchen.

“
This whole 'morning person' thing you
have going on could get to be a real issue eventually, just FYI,”
Karina informed her flatly as she flopped down into one of her
kitchen table chairs.

“
Best time of day,” Sam chirped
back.

Karina grunted in disagreement, and then
added, “In all seriousness, though, Sam – what the holy hell are
you doing ringing my doorbell at 6:30 in the morning?”

“
Oh, were you sleeping?” Sam asked, all
innocence.

“
Of course I was sleeping!” Karina shot
back indignantly, “Did you miss the part where it's 6:30 in the
morning?”

“
I couldn't help it!” Sam trilled,
opening Karina's fridge and pulling out a bottle of water, “I
wanted to deconstruct the whole moving day with Ryan yesterday!
Plus, Amanda and Lauren and I DID notice that there was quite a
lengthy period that the two of you were conspicuously absent
yesterday. Together! So what happened?”

“
Nothing,” Karina said flatly, “Whole
lotta nothin', that's what happened.”

“
No way! Nothing?” Sam asked
disbelievingly.

“
Certainly nothing that warrants this
buttcrack of dawn visit,” Karina concluded miserably.

“
I have a really hard time believing
that. I mean, come on, if you don't want to tell me, just say you
don't want to tell me.”

“
I don't want to tell you,” Karina
deadpanned.

“
Well, too bad, you have to,” Sam said
decisively, dropping into the chair opposite Karina and taking a
swig of water from her bottle.

Karina pushed her tangle of dark hair back
away from her face and sighed. “Make some coffee,” she relented,
“and I'll go through the entire tale.”

“
Agreed!” Sam said cheerfully, walking
over to Karina's cabinet. She opened it and pulled out a bag of
coffee.

Opening up various cabinets in turn, she
mumbled, “Coffee filters...coffee filters...hmmmm....” finally
turning to Karina and asking, “Where do you keep your coffee
filters?”

Karina shook her head, which was at this
point resting face down on her arms, which were folded on the
kitchen table in front of her. “I doubt I have any,” she said, the
sound of her voice muffled by the fact that her face was buried in
her arms, “I haven't completely stocked up in kitchen supplies yet.
Just use paper towels.”

“
Will do!” said Sam, ripping off a
paper towel with a flourish and lining the basket of the coffee
maker with it. She then poured in grounds, filled the pot with
water and poured it into the machine. Lastly, she pushed the button
victoriously and the delicious and restorative aroma of coffee
began filling the kitchen. Sam came to sit by Karina, an air of
satisfaction surrounding her like a halo.

Karina sat up, looking more alert already.
“You seem awfully proud of yourself for making a pot of coffee,”
she observed.

“
Well, you just have no idea how
satisfying it is to do things for yourself after you've had them
controlled for you your entire life!”

Karina nodded, “Yeah, I can see that you're
really embracing independent living. Exhibit A being how you're at
my house for coffee first thing in the morning.”

Sam dismissed this, “Oh, that's just being
social, don't be a grump.”

Karina grimaced, “I have very few personae
available to me when I'm unexpectedly awoken prior to 7 am. Trust
me, 'grump' is the nicest one available. You're lucky you got
'grump' instead of the alternative.”

Sam got up and poured a steaming mug of
fragrant brew for each of them. Karina leaned over the mug and
breathed in deeply. She looked up, finally ready to begin her
tale.

“
Well, first of all,” she began, “Did
you guys realize he didn't know who I am?”

“
What do you mean?” Sam asked,
puzzled.

“
He didn't realize that I, Karina
Blackstone of Hope Falls, am actually Karina Black, the pop
star.”

Sam stared at Karina without comment for a
moment, then threw back her head and began laughing
uproariously.

“
I'm glad you think it's so hilarious,”
Karina grumbled.

“
Was he mad or something?” Sam asked
incredulously, “That doesn't seem like him.”

“
Right, because you know him so well,”
Karina laughed, “I can see where you would be like, 'Oh, yeah, that
reaction totally doesn't read
Ryan
to me. That's nothing
Ryan would ever do.' Because the two of you are so
tight.”

“
Whatever, you know what I mean,” Sam
replied, “He just doesn't seem like the kind of guy who gets
tripped up over little things.”

Karina shrugged, “No, actually, he didn't
seem to have much of a reaction to that, other than being
surprised. But what really freaked me out is that he actually
stepped back right in the middle of our kiss, and was like...”

“
The middle of your what?” Sam
exclaimed, interrupting, “I have a feeling you just skipped over
the best part of the story. Go back. Rewind. He kissed you? What
kiss? How did the kiss happen?”

“
No, he didn't kiss me,” Karina
admitted, “I kissed him, as a matter of fact. And in answer to your
last question, I'm not quite sure how it happened. But I will tell
you one thing – out of all the ways that a kiss can begin and end,
me starting the kiss and him stepping back in the middle of it is
not ideal.”

“
Well, did he say why he stopped the
kiss?”

Karina nodded, “Oh, sure. He was all polite
and gentlemanly and, I don't know...cowboyish about it. He was all,
'Little lady, this here isn't the right time or place for this here
kissin' to be a-happenin'...”

Sam grimaced, “That's not how he talks.”

Karina brushed this off, “Whatever. He said
he didn't think it was 'respectful' and that he wouldn't be able to
stop himself if he stayed in the room with me, so he left and got
back to work.”

Sam shrugged, “I don't know, Kar, that
actually sounds kind of nice? What am I missing.”

Karina shrugged miserably, “That's the worst
part, though, don't you see? It's like...he rejected me, but I
can't even hate him for it, because it was so gentlemanly!”

“
Awww...” Sam said in a sympathetic
tone, “I'm sorry you feel bad, Kar. But seriously. I was watching
him give you googly eyes all day yesterday. The boy is smitten. I
don't think it was a real rejection. I'm sure he's gonna
call.”

Karina shook her head miserably, “I, on the
other hand, have no such confidence. But it doesn't matter. I had a
lot of time for contemplation last night after he left, during
which time I was drowning my miseries. And I decided that this
thing with Ryan was a short, two day aberration. It was a fun
little adventure. I'm going to lock the experience away inside and
pull it out later to use for my songwriting. But it was clearly not
something that was meant to be long-term. Right now, I think I just
need to focus on my music, and on the reason I came back to Hope
Falls, which was to return to my roots as an artist.

That's not an easy thing to do, you know.
After you've been a certain way for ten years, to just change back
right away. It's going to take time, dedication, focus...and most
of all, it's going to take all of my energy. So that's what I'm
going to do, I'm going to devote all of my energy to it. It's a
worthy cause. Moreover, I think it was silly of me to even consider
getting distracted by Ryan in the first place.”

“
No!” Sam protested, “Not silly! Not in
the least. Sometimes you can't help what life drops in your lap at
any given moment. Sometimes life drops trouble, but sometimes life
drops love!”

Karina laughed, “That's sweet, but in this
instance, I think it was definitely life dropping trouble, and what
I need to do is just be grateful that I dodged a bullet.”

Sam stood to leave, carrying her water with
her to the front door. She said, “You're being completely overly
dramatic, and I think it's WAY too far to go to say that this thing
with Ryan is over, for heaven's sake. But, if it is, at least
you're feeling pretty OK about it.”

Karina sighed. “Well, I wouldn't go that
far,” she pronounced with finality, and Sam enveloped her in a
sweaty hug.

Chapter 6

“
I don't know, Grandmother,” Karina
said nervously, as they walked through the wide double doors of the
Hope Falls Community Center, “I haven't heard from Ryan in a whole
week. It would be so awkward if we just ran into each other here
tonight.”

“
It's a small town,” her grandmother
reasoned, “You're going to run into him sooner or later. Best to
get it done sooner. This avoids as much awkwardness as
possible.”

Karina knew that what her grandmother said
made sense, on an intellectual level. But when it came to her
heart? That, she couldn't stop from pounding a mile a minute at the
thought of seeing Ryan again.

She didn't actually know what she felt about
the prospect of running into him. Embarrassed? Excited? She wasn't
sure. Sick to her stomach? Yes, there was no question that she felt
that. But what the guttural churning indicated, she couldn't pin
down. Was it butterflies from excitement, or nausea from dread?
Food poisoning from shellfish? Another valid possibility.

It seemed to Karina that since the moment
Ryan had walked into her life, she had been incapable of pinning
down ANY thoughts or emotions, and in fact had existed in a
constant state of swirling confusion. Which she hated. Or loved?
She couldn't quite tell.

“
I just wish I had a way to get in
touch with him, aside from just showing up at the cafe and hoping
that he'll be there. That seems so stalker-y. But it's not like I
have his number. I don't even know if he has mine,” she said
miserably.

Renata looked at her sideways, “On the day
after you moved into your house, I spoke with you and you had the
completely sensible notion that you were going to stop thinking
about this boy and put him behind you altogether. Each day, this
has not happened, and in fact, you seem to talk about him more and
more.”

Karina brushed this off, “Oh, for heaven's
sake, Grandmother! I'm an artist! We are naturally dramatic. Of
course I was swearing him off at first, but that was just pride!
Obviously, I was secretly wishing he'd call me the whole time. And
now it's been a whole week, and he hasn't gotten in touch. What do
you think it means?”

“
Karina,” her grandmother said
pragmatically, “If there is one thing I have learned about men and
women in my long life, it is that – if a young man wishes to make
contact with a young woman, he will find a way to do it, no matter
the obstacles. If he does not do this, then...” she cocked her head
to the side, trying to coax something from memory, “I believe the
phrase is 'he's just not that into you.”

Karina burst out laughing, “Where did you
hear that?”

“
I don't remember,” Renata replied,
“But I do think the sentiment applies here. I think it quite
perfectly describes this scenario.”

Karina sighed glumly, “Well, here's the
thing...”

“
Karina, honestly,” Renata cut her off,
her voice tight, “I have grown weary of discussing this topic. It
is time to move on and take this opportunity to focus on your
music, and on the tribe. Which is, in fact, why we are here
tonight.”

“
Agreed,” Karina said
miserably.

They were at the Hope Falls community center
attending the planning meeting for the Hope Falls Harvest Festival.
This wasn't usually the sort of thing attended by people under 50,
but Renata had roped Karina into coming because she was concerned
about the declining Washoe cultural representation in the festival.
The tribe was an important part of the town and the surrounding
area, and she wanted them to get their fair due.

Renata had brought Karina along because, with
Karina's fame, she was a highly respected citizen in Hope Falls.
She was Hope Falls' most stunning success story, and if she pushed
for more representation for her tribe in the festival of the town
that loved her, Renata did not see how they could deny her.

Karina had felt selfish when she had resisted
her grandmother's wishes initially. She was usually completely
willing to use her celebrity to further any good cause that was
close to her heart, and would volunteer her time and her voice
(both literal and metaphorical) without giving a second thought.
But the thing that was holding her back, the one thing that she
absolutely could not get past in her reticence, was the
near-terrifying thought of running into Ryan at the meeting.

Honestly, she didn't understand it, and she
wasn't pleased to witness this personal development, to say the
least. She had never felt nervous to see a guy. Then again, she
reminded herself darkly, she had never been rejected by a guy. So,
this whole experience with Ryan was FULL of firsts!

But now, she felt properly chastised enough
that she was going to pull herself up by her bootstraps, take
herself firmly in hand, and put Ryan completely out of her mind.
Besides, she thought, devoting what she promised herself would be
her very LAST thought of the evening on the subject of one Mister
Ryan Perkins, what are the chances that a handsome young guy in his
twenties would have any interest – or even reason – for attending
the Hope Falls Harvest Festival planning meeting?