Sweet Harmonies (10 page)

--- ~ ---

“
Ryan, hurry up, we're going to be
late!” Sue Ann called across the empty cafe and into the apartment
upstairs.

Ryan clomped down the stairs, shrugging into
his coat and quickly crossed the cafe towards his grandmother, who
was impatiently on the balls of her feet, wanting to lock up the
front door so they could make the quick, two block trip down to the
Hope Falls Community Center, where the Harvest Festival planning
meeting was taking place.

“
Granny, it's a two minute walk,” Ryan
said, “and the meeting doesn't start for fifteen minutes. It's not
as if we're going to be late.”

“
We have to be EARLY,” she replied
decisively, “Last year, I showed up to the meeting right on time.
And guess what happened?”

Ryan sighed and mouthed the words along with
her as she said, “Those scheming snakes from Two Scoops stole my
booth!”

Ryan countered patiently, “You still had your
booth, just not in the exact place that you wanted it.”

“
Where I wanted it?” she scoffed
indignantly, “You mean the place where I'd had it for the past 25
years? It's tradition!”

“
Maybe they didn't realize,” Ryan
attempted to reason, although he knew from oft repetition that this
was a losing argument.

“
Hah! They knew, all right,” Sue Ann
continued grimly, “And what did they start serving in their shop?
Not even a month later?”

“
Sandwiches,” Ryan recited
begrudgingly.

“
Sandwiches!” Sue Ann informed him, as
though he hadn't said anything at all.

“
To be fair, though, Granny,” Ryan said
slowly, choosing each word carefully, “The types of sandwiches that
they are serving are not anything like the type of food that we
serve in the cafe. I don't really think that it can be considered
direct competition. They are offering pre-made sandwiches, wrapped
up to-go style. It's nothing like the delicious home cooking and
warm touch people get when they come to see you.”

“
To go,” Sue Ann growled, her voice
dripping with disdain, “To GO, for heaven's sake? What is Hope
Falls coming to? Food should be enjoyed and savored, meals should
be an experience, people should sit down with loved ones and take
the time to visit as they eat.”

She shook her head and mumbled under her
breath, “Sandwiches to go. I never thought I'd see such a thing in
Hope Falls. Next thing you know we'll be getting a
MACK-Donald's.”

Ryan laughed and put his arm around his
grandmother's shoulders, “I wouldn't go that far. Not just yet,
anyway.”

“
At any rate,” Granny concluded, “I
realized that the key to their success in stealing my booth right
out from under me was the fact that there are two of them. They
have the husband AND the wife.

“
So one of them can be signing up for
the booth while the other one is networking. And later, one of them
can be attending the meeting, while the other one is...I don't
know...using the facilities,” she grumbled, “So that's why I need
reinforcements, too. You know as soon as I walk in, I'm going to be
surrounded by people who want to bend my ear. I'm POPULAR,
Ryan.”

“
I know,” he agreed, a small half smile
playing on his lips.

“
So, as soon as we hit the door, you
make a bee-line to that booth sign-up sheet. You write the Cafe's
name in that box, in big block letters, plain as day. End of the
middle row, left hand side. That's MY spot.”

“
Yes, ma'am,” he agreed, giving a small
salute, “I'm on it.”

What he didn't want her to see was his
reticence at the idea of even attending this meeting. He didn't
want to admit to her that all he had been thinking about all day
long – hell, all WEEK long – was the prospect of seeing Karina
there.

He was dying to see her. For the past week,
he had been wanting so badly to get in touch with her. He was
aching to talk to her, to look at her face, to hear her voice, her
laugh.

He didn't even have her phone number. Sure,
he could have figured out a way to get it, just by asking one of
her friends. But he held himself back. He was back on his courtship
plan now. The moment in Karina's studio, when he had almost lost
control and gotten ahead of himself, was not going to be repeated,
this was a promise. He was bound and determined to stick to his
original plan and do this the old-fashioned way, the right way with
restraint and – above all – respect.

He wasn't going to let himself get twisted up
by his own overwhelming desires, or by the other unexpected bump in
the road – his discovery of her fame.

The more he thought about what she was like
in person, and not on the magazine covers, the more he realized
that she was actually one of the most down to earth people he had
ever met.

He had made two decisions in the week since
he had laid eyes on her. One of them was a decision that he had
made almost instantaneously upon laying eyes on her, that he was
going to make every effort to get to know Karina Blackstone better.
That decision hadn't changed, he was still pursuing it as
unwaveringly as he had the instant he had made it.

And the second decision was that, as he got
to know her better, he was going to do his absolute best to put out
of his mind the fact that, outside of this small, insulated
community, she was a superstar. He was going to pretend, to the
best of his ability, that the only world that existed was the world
that they had built between the two of them.

So, here he was, at the next step in his
plan. He knew that Karina would be at the meeting tonight, he had
overheard people eating in the cafe talking about it on more than
one occasion during the past week.

Therefore, even before Sue Ann had recruited
him as her ally in defeating the almighty booth-stealing powers of
Two Scoops, he had made up his mind that he would be attending this
meeting tonight.

It was step two in his plan. To “run into”
Karina at the meeting.

When they had this seemingly-unplanned
encounter, it would be the true jumping off point – the launch, if
you will – of Operation Get to Know Karina Blackstone.

And one thing he DEFINITELY would NOT be
doing if he ran into her tonight, was leaving without her contact
information!

--- ~ ---

When Karina turned from the conversation she
was having and saw Sue Ann Perkins enter the main auditorium of the
Hope Falls Community Center alone, she exhaled perceptibly. She
couldn't tell if this reaction was relief or disappointment, but
there was definitely a significant lessening of the tension that
she had been feeling all evening.

In fact, she had been so distracted and jumpy
as person after person had come up to chat with her and her
grandmother, that at one point, Renata had turned to her and said,
“Karina, you need to calm down, you're actually making me
nervous.”

Karina had nodded, agreeing, but when it came
down to it – she was not actually sure how to do that.

As soon as Sue Ann saw Karina and Renata, she
waved happily and headed straight over to where they were
standing.

“
Hi, sweetheart,” she said as soon as
she arrived at Karina's side, giving her a big hug, which Karina
returned.

“
So...are you here by yourself
tonight?” Karina inquired hesitantly, trying to sound as nonchalant
as possible. Even though she realized that both Sue Ann and Renata
must have immediately recognized her deeper motive, she did have
some pride left – she didn't want to make it seem too obvious that
all she really cared about was whether or not Ryan was
there.

“
Oh, no!” Sue Ann exclaimed cheerfully,
a twinkle in her eye, “Ryan is just out in the lobby signing us up
for our booth space for the Harvest Fesitval.”

“
Wouldn't want Two Scoops to get it
again,” Karina replied conspiratorially. She had heard all about
the controversy from Renata.

“
Exactly!” Sue Ann said, feeling
validated.

“
Yes,” Renata interjected placidly, “I
know that you were not pleased to lose the space to Two Scoops last
year.”

“
That's an understatement,” Ryan said
wryly, walking up to the group from behind Karina, surprising her
and causing her to start.

“
Jumpy,” he observed, giving her a
playful wink.

Karina turned toward him, and all of her
steely resolve to play it cool deserted her as her face, unbidden
by conscious thought, lit up in a wide, bright smile.

“
Ryan,” she said, and into that one
word, she interjected such warmth and pleasure that it made Ryan's
heart skip a little.

“
Hi, beautiful,” he replied, his face
mirroring her happy smile.

Karina blushed and giggled, two things that
were definitely new to her repertoire. She could feel her
grandmother's stare of disapproval, but she was far beyond being
able to make herself care.

“
YOU,” Ryan said to Karina in a
teasingly accusatory voice, “are a very difficult person to figure
out how to get a hold of.”

At this, she returned his wink.

“
I am at that,” she returned his
teasing tone, “That's when it pays to get creative.”

He leaned down toward her, his lips brushing
her ear, and in a seductive whisper, said, “Oh, I can be
creative.”

She laughed and touched his arm, her eyes
widening, “Oh really, that’s good to know!”

As caught up as she was in her interchange
with Ryan, she couldn't help but notice that Sue Ann was looking
happily as the two of them flirted, seemingly pleased as punch,
while Renata, on the other hand, was having distinctly the opposite
reaction.

Just then, Henry Walker strolled up to the
four of them. Henry was Hope Falls' official legal counsel and
acting mayor since the death of Parker Jacobs, Amanda's father, and
he had known Karina her entire life.

“
Here they are! Just the folks I was
looking for!” he greeted them jovially, giving Karina a hug and
clapping Ryan on the shoulder, “How would you like an opportunity
to serve your community?”

“
Oh, yes, absolutely!” Sue Ann agreed,
immediately and enthusiastically.

Ryan laughed good-naturedly, “I don't think
he was asking you, Granny.”

“
What is it that you need, Henry?”
Karina asked in a noncommittal but friendly tone.

“
Well, kids, here's the thing,” Henry
said, “as you know, the Town Follies is the most popular part of
the Harvest Festival. Has been forever. Is every year. But the
audition process has been, shall we say, scattershot at
best.

“
When it comes right down to it, we
don't really have anyone here in town with the skill to recognize
real talent, you know? So it ends up just coming down to whoever's
running the show, their gut instinct on what they happen to like,
and – let's be honest – who their friends are.

“
But, now, we have two real,
honest-to-goodness entertainment pros in our midst. And so, I was
thinking, maybe the two of you could form a team and take over
running the Town Follies. It sure would be a help, I tell ya,” he
concluded.

“
That sounds great!” Sue Ann enthused,
“Ryan would love to!”

Ryan looked at her, amused, and conceded,
“Apparently Ryan would love to. The only problem with that is that
I'm not a pro.”

Henry dismissed this concern, saying, “Well,
I don't know about all that. What I do know is that folks have been
hearing you play your songs in the cafe, and they've been mighty
impressed. Mighty impressed, indeed.”

Sue Ann beamed with pride, “Well, it's
settled then. Ryan will do it.”

“
Karina will also do it,” said Renata
firmly.

Karina turned toward her grandmother, “Does
Karina get a say in this?”

Renata looked at Karina sternly, “Your
purpose in this task will be the same as your purpose here this
evening – it is your job to look out for the interests of the tribe
in this festival, and now the Town Follies. In both instances, I
have all confidence that you will perform to the best of your
ability, bringing honor and pride to both your family and your
tribe.”

Karina shrugged, “And here I thought I was
just running some talent show auditions,” she turned to Henry,
“Also, incidentally, that was a long way of saying that, no, Karina
doesn't get a say in it. I'm in, as well!”

Ryan gave her a brilliant smile, “Excellent.
I guess we'll be seeing a lot more of each other. And, obviously,
we'll need to trade cell numbers. You know, for planning
purposes.”

Karina smiled warmly, “Oh, yes. For planning
purposes. Of course.”

Chapter 7

Karina had circled the block six times now.
Of course, since said block was the downtown area of Hope Falls and
not, say, a bustling block in downtown Manhattan...it had only
taken her about ten minutes.

Still. Every time she tried to bring herself
to park, get out of the car, and walk into Sue Ann's cafe for the
“Pre Planning Meeting” that she and Ryan had set up for this
afternoon, she just could NOT bring herself to do it. She would
glance down at the dashboard clock, realize that she still had a
few more minutes before she was technically late, and impulsively
decide to swing around the block one more time.

What was hanging her up was this – she wanted
a really snappy opening line. She didn't feel comfortable walking
into a meeting with Ryan without being prepared. She had a bad
track record with him, one that had found her, more than once,
gaping and speechless...only to think of the perfect comeback hours
later, when she was alone.