Sweet Harmonies (28 page)

The phone buzzed again and brought him back
down to earth. He plucked it out of his pocket and looked at the
face. He didn't recognize the number, but did see that it was the
same area code as Karina's cell phone. Realizing that the call must
either be from her or have something to do with her, he pressed the
button and answered immediately.

“
Hello?” he said curiously.

“
Ryan Perkins?” asked an unfamiliar
male voice on the other end of the line.

“
Yes,” he replied, puzzled.

“
Davis Johannson here,” the voice said
jovially, but with a definite air of someone who expected that name
to mean something to people. It meant nothing to Ryan.

“
Hello,” Ryan greeted him
neutrally.

There was a pause on the line, and then Davis
prompted him, “From Spintown Records...?”

Ryan recognized the label as the one Karina
was on, but had no idea what they might want from him.

“
Pleased to meet you, Mr. Johannson,”
Ryan said politely.

Davis laughed heartily, but there didn't seem
to be any real mirth behind it, “Oh, that patented Midwestern,
straightforward charm! I love it!”

Ryan tried to interject, “I'm not technically
from...”

But Davis was barreling ahead as if he were
not even aware of Ryan, “Listen, kid, we've seen your video with
Karina and we'd like to have a face to face. Does tomorrow at four
work? Can you make it to LA in the morning?”
“I have plans tomorrow,” Ryan responded without even thinking.
Then, as his brain caught up with the conversation, he asked
disbelievingly, “Wait, did you say LA?”

“
Day after tomorrow then?” Davis asked
in clipped, hurried tones. Everything about his voice telegraphed
that he was a busy man with important things to do.

Ryan tried to keep up, but he was confused,
“I don't understand what this is about...is this something to do
with Karina?”

Davis laughed again, shortly, “This is about
you, kid. We liked what we saw in the video.”

Ryan shook his head to clear away the
spiderwebs of sleep that still clung to the edges of his
consciousness, “Look, I think you have the wrong idea about me. I'm
not a professional musician...I just played that one time at the
festival.”

Davis dismissed this objection out of hand,
“You're definitely a musician. Leave the 'professional' part to
Spintown, that's what we do. So, day after tomorrow, then?”

Ryan realized that he should be ecstatic at
this opportunity just dropping out of the sky and into his lap, he
should be doing cartwheels. But he just couldn't seem to wrap his
mind around it, and he didn't like the feeling of being pushed or
rushed.

“
Look, Mr. Johansson, I really
appreciate what you're saying but I'm going to need to look at my
schedule and get back to you,” Ryan replied, although what he was
really thinking was that he would need to talk to Karina and then
get back to him. She would have a better idea than he what credence
he should give these people and what they said to him.

“
Well, don't delay,” Davis said
quickly, “This is a fast-paced business, and you have buzz right
now. We'll want to capitalize on that.”

“
By the end of the week,” Ryan
promised.

“
Talk to you then,” Davis shot back,
and just that quickly, he was gone. Ryan could see him in his
imagination, pressing the button to disconnect the line and yelling
to an assistant to roll in his next call, and bring him goddamn
espresso, he'd asked for it ten minutes ago.

He dropped his head into his hands. He didn't
mean to sound rude or ungrateful, but this was all happening really
quickly, and he felt a bit out of control, a little confused and
overwhelmed. Ryan wasn't used to those emotions.

Out of necessity if nothing else, Ryan always
had a plan. Sure, Karina made him feel out of control, but he
definitely had a plan. It was 'Operation Show Karina Blackstone
That Ryan Perkins Is Worth Settling Down With.' So, even there, in
the most unpredictable facet of his life, he had some measure of
planning and control.

Besides, he thought with a small smile, with
her I feel out of control in a good way. He undressed and crawled
under the covers, laying back against the pillows and drifting off
to sleep thinking of nothing but 11 am tomorrow morning, when he
would have his next opportunity to continue putting his plan into
action.

--- ~ ---

Karina had just put on a pot of coffee and
was relishing the invigorating aroma when she heard a knock on her
front door that she had come to recognize.

She sighed and dropped her head to the
counter. Seriously, what did a girl have to do to get some solitude
around here?

She trudged slowly towards the door, and when
the insistent knock came again, she called loudly, “Coming!”

She opened the front door, and Sam happily
bopped into the entryway.

“
Took you long enough!” she called
behind her as she made a beeline for the kitchen, “Mmmmm....smells
good!”

“
Sam, what a surprise to see you here,”
Karina said dryly as she trailed her friend back into the
kitchen.

“
I just wanted to stop by and see how
you were doing,” Sam said with concerned eyes, “Amanda said you
were sooo quiet on the way home from Renata's. And Lauren said you
seemed really up in your head. I thought maybe you could use a
sounding board.”

Instantly, Karina felt guilt and shame wash
over her like a cold shower. Yes, it was true, Sam's frequent
unannounced visits were wearing her patience thin, but she meant
well. She just wanted to make sure that Karina was OK. Karina
chided herself for being so self-centered. She really needed to
start appreciating the people around her.

Just as Karina's internal voice began to wrap
up its self-righteous lecture and Karina was feeling about two
inches tall, Sam shrugged and continued, “Besides, I'm just so
BORED, you know? What do people do all day when they live by
themselves? I've always been with people all the time. I used to
dream about having free time when I was in perpetual training, like
I'd daydream about it, just unscheduled time to do anything I
wanted. I mean, even that phrase...anything I wanted...I used to
roll it around on my tongue and just love every aspect of it, even
the way it sounded and felt on my tongue. Not bound to do anything
that anyone else told me to do, but deciding for myself what I
would do with my time. Honestly, it sounded as close to heaven as I
could imagine.

But now that I have it in spades, I realize
that I was seriously overselling myself on the appeal. I see that
now. Man, but back then? I used to fantasize about having free time
more than I fantasized about sex!”

She looked stricken, as if something had just
occurred to her, “Oh, No! What if sex turns out to be as overrated
as solitude?”

Karina laughed, “It's not, trust me.”

Sam accepted that easily and continued to
chatter, “Anyway, I now realize that my training and traveling
schedule was so regimented that I never really had time to develop
any interests or hobbies.”

“
How sad for me,” Karina said flatly,
under her breath.

Sam stuck her tongue out, causing Karina to
break into a wide smile. Even if she didn't always welcome it at 6
am, she had to admit that Sam had a positive and cheerful energy
that was difficult to resist.

Karina suggested, “Why don't you read that
book that Lauren assigned us for book club? I have a feeling heads
are going to roll if we have one more of those without even
mentioning the book. And now she has Amy on her side, so....”

“
Done!” Sam shot back, “Plus I prepared
two pages of discussion questions and talking points, which you
obviously haven't read. Next?”

Karina wracked her brain, “Lauren was talking
about needing to study for her California Real Estate Licensing
exam. Why don't you see if she needs any help?”

Sam gave Karina an incredulous glance and
said, “Come on now. It's like you're not even trying. First off,
Lauren's not exactly the study buddy type, I'd just drive her nuts.
Not to mention, I know nothing about real estate. Hey, by the way,
have you checked out the video lately? It has over 5 million views
now!”

Karina smacked her forehead, “Not that video!
It's all anyone wants to talk about!”

Sam gave Karina a 'No Shit, Sherlock' look
and said, “Um, yeah...cause...it's amazing?”

“
Even my grandmother's in on it now,
although she has a slightly different take on it than you do,”
Karina said miserably.

“
Oh, yeah!” Sam said, snapped back to
feeling sympathy for her friend's dark mood after leaving Renata's
house the day before, “Is that what she was mad at you
about?”

Karina nodded sadly, “She told me I was – and
I quote – forbidden to see Ryan. What the hell? I'm an adult! She's
not the boss of me!”

Sam started to respond, but Karina cut her
off, “Shut up, I know how it sounded...”

“
I wasn't going to comment on the
irony,” Sam lied.

“
Really?” Karina said
skeptically.

“
I was going to suggest you add a foot
stomp for emphasis or use a shortcut to that sentiment by just
putting your hands over your ears and yelling 'lalalalalalalala I'm
not listening to you' next time, but I certainly wasn't going to
comment on the irony!”

Karina shook her head, too frustrated to
appreciate what she had to admit, had been a pretty funny joke.

She sighed, “Don't mind me; I'm just up too
early and feeling sorry for myself. I'll be all perked up after my
cup of coffee and shower.”

As if in answer to this admission, Sam set a
mug of coffee in front of Karina, which she took a nice long swig
of, feeling the elixir seeping life into her cells. She stretched,
already feeling a little more frisky.

She smiled mischievously, “Now back to your
big dilemma. Why don't you go down to Mountain Ridge Outdoor
Adventures and pester...I mean, help....Amanda.”

Sam laughed, “Oh, you got jokes, huh? Because
here's the truth – I did go down there. Several times. As it turns
out, everything there is under control. And those two? When they're
off the clock they're on each other!”

Sam waited a beat before saying, “Get it? Off
the clock? On each other?”

Karina nodded, “I get it. At the office,
Amanda is on top of things. At home, she's on top of Justin.”

Sam considered, then nodded, “Yours is
better.”

Karina shook her head, “They were both medium
strength. Anyway, I hate to kick your bored behind out of my house,
but I have to get ready. Ryan's picking me up at 11, and I still
have to get ready, and I have some work to do before that as
well.”

“
Wait!” Sam protested as Karina was
ushering her towards the front door, “I was going to ask you more
questions about Ryan, and about Kyle Austen Reed,
and...”

“
Great, email them to me!” Karina said
amiably, shutting the door with finality.

“
You don't read your email or you would
have gotten my book club questionnaire!” Sam yelled through the
closed door, getting the final word in before turning and jogging
off across the street.

Chapter 19

Ryan stood up from his desk in the back
office of Sue Ann's cafe at 10:30 with an air of equal parts
satisfaction and anticipation. The anticipation came, of course,
from the fact that he was taking the afternoon off to go and spend
with Karina. The thought of that caused a thrill of excitement
every time it crossed his mind.

The satisfaction came from being able to
leave knowing that everything here was well under control. He had
spent the morning wrestling with the books, and was finally seeing
a light at the end of the tunnel where that was concerned. He had
even called Kelly in early to help cover the lunch rush, so he
didn't have to feel guilty about leaving his Granny in the
lurch.

In fact, he had spent the morning so
completely engrossed in the business of the cafe that he had almost
completely forgotten about YouTube videos and record deals.
Almost.

He locked the door to the office behind him
and turned around to head down the hall and out the door. As he
turned and took his first step, however, he bumped directly into
Kelly, who he realized must have padded up the hall quietly and
stationed herself about an inch behind him as soon as she heard him
start to lock the office door.

“
Whoa there!” he exclaimed, trying to
take a step backward but finding himself blocked by the office
door.

“
Hey, Ryan,” Kelly said, tilting her
head to the side flirtatiously and batting her eyelashes a little,
“I was SO excited when you called me this morning.”

Ryan struggled to keep his voice neutral,
“I'm glad you were happy about the extra shift.”

Kelly laughed as if this were the funniest
joke she'd heard in a long time. She slapped his arm playfully,
“Oh, Ryan, you're so silly!”

Ryan shook his head and attempted to sidestep
her as he said, “Not really.”

Kelly also stepped to the side to block his
path again, “So, where are you off to in such a hurry?”

He groaned inwardly. He didn't want to tell
her. He really didn't want to get caught up in the middle of some
girl drama right now. But he didn't feel right about outright lying
about seeing Karina, either. That felt wrong, as if he were ashamed
of it, and nothing could be further from the truth!

He sighed, and settled on telling half the
truth. He said, “I'm going ice skating.”