“Karina, you didn't think we forgot you, did you?” said Amanda, her voice high and tight with anticipation.
“Oh, that's OK, don't worry about it,” Karina said, wanting nothing more than to downplay her relationship-less-ness and move the attention on to something else.
“We don't have to worry about it,” Amanda said slyly, “because we would never forget you!”
With that, Karina turned and saw a very dashing Ryan come through her front door, decked out in a tux, hair slicked into place, and carrying a clear plastic clamshell container with the most beautiful orchid....was that a corsage? She couldn't tell.
Karina looked into his handsome face and felt overwhelmed. Dumbstruck. Was it possible that she could have forgotten how handsome he was in the just-slightly-over-a-week since they had seen each other? Because she could swear that the jolts his physical beauty was sending through every inch of her body right now were ten times stronger than they'd ever been before. It was like he was so good looking that it actually, physically SHOCKED her!
“Ryan,” she breathed. She knew she was probably as pale as a ghost. She had felt the blood leave her face. And now, she couldn't think of anything to say, beyond just his name. Which she had barely managed to whisper. Yeah. He must be re-visiting any charitable thoughts he ever had about my IQ, she chided herself. Yet, for the life of her, she couldn't pull herself out of this Ryan-induced trance. She just stared.
Ryan crossed to her, a giant smile on his face, and set her at ease immediately by leaning down and giving her a long, lingering kiss. It was wonderful, she realized, because it struck exactly the right balance between hot and sweet, between passion and affection. Just like Ryan himself did.
As Ryan pulled back, Karina barely registered the whistles and cheers of the other people in the room, so focused was she on Ryan's eyes, and the fact that she was back in his arms. She was floating on a cloud. She was home.
Ryan stepped back from her and said, “I have a question, for you, Karina Blackstone. Will you go to prom with me?”
Karina laughed, uncertain what he meant, “What?”
He grinned at her, “Tell you what...can you just trust me enough to say that you'll go? I know the last surprise didn't work out, but I want to prove to you that I have it in me to make you happy.”
Karina's face split into a wide smile, “Yes, of course! Let's go!”
She grabbed her keys off of the front hall table and dropped them into her clutch. The group filed out the front door, and Karina saw a stretch SUV limousine waiting for them.
“This is amazing!” she enthused, but if she were honest with herself, she had to admit that almost any sort of activity would have seemed beyond incredible while basking in the glow of having reunited with Ryan.
The group piled into the SUV limo, marveling at all the amenities, and spent a fun trip down the mountain, toasting with champagne, talking and laughing.
Karina was still enjoying the easy camaraderie of the limo even as it pulled to a stop.
“That was quick!” she exclaimed, “Where are we?”
One by one, each of the eight climbed out and onto the sidewalk, Karina and Ryan bringing up the rear. When she stepped down, Ryan holding her hand to assist her, she realized that they were all standing outside the high school.
“What in the world?” Karina inquired, completely baffled at this point.
“Come on,” Ryan said with a smile, holding out his hand to her, “Trust, remember?”
She returned his smile and put her hand into his, allowing herself to be led up the wide walkway that led up to the school.
When the group came to the wide double doors that led to the gym, Karina said, “Now, come on, guys...I really think we're all a bit overdressed to attend a basketball game!”
Ryan just smiled mysteriously and opened the doors.
Karina walked into the cavernous space, mesmerized.
Streamers were hung all over the walls and bleachers, balloons floated near the ceiling, and the lights were dim. Someone had installed a disco ball and it was spinning, casting multicolored lights festively over the crowd of close to 100 townspeople, all dressed in their prom finery.
A DJ was spinning slow jams, and couples were out on the dance floor, leaning against each other and swaying.
As Karina's eyes adjusted to the dim lighting and she began to take in more details, she noticed that there was a table set up with refreshments, and in the corner, a station for getting prom pictures taken.
And, over in the other corner, as if to complete the scene, was Kyle Austen Reed, making the rounds and greeting people like a politician on a whistle-stop tour. He caught her eye and swept over to the group.
“Karina!” he exclaimed when he reached her, “Isn't this the most magical thing you've ever seen? A prom! For adults! How whimsical! What will this town think of next?”
With that, he was off in a flash, pressing the flesh and basking in the overflowing adoration.
Karina turned to Ryan, emotion shining in her sparkling dark eyes.
“It IS magical!” she insisted fervently, “Did you do this? Did you do this for me?”
He smiled gently, brushing her hair from her cheek.
“Not alone. Your friends helped.”
She turned to them, “You guys! I can't believe this!”
“It was completely Ryan's idea,” Amanda assured him, “He remembered you saying that you hadn't gotten to go to prom in high school, and thought that it was high time that that should be remedied.”
Karina threw her arms around Ryan's neck and kissed him hard, not even caring that she was smearing her lipstick. It was worth it.
As the whole group wandered further into the room, Karina said, “How did you possibly get the word out to all of these people without me finding out about it. In a town this size? Are you kidding me? That's a huge accomplishment!”
“Yeah,” Lauren said dryly, “That part probably would have been a lot harder if you'd come any closer to venturing into town this week than just wearing a mopey path between your bed and your kitchen.”
Karina smiled wryly, “Touche.”
Sam did a little hop of happiness as she clapped her hands together and said, “Enough talking, let's dance!”
Karina laughed a little and said, “I could get behind that idea. Hey, Ryan, I know this isn't a Sadie Hawkins dance or anything, but would it be too forward if I asked if I could have this dance?”
Ryan smiled a sexy, smoldering grin and said softly, “You can have pretty much anything you want.”
As Karina and Ryan slow danced, Karina said, “So, I guess all the times you called me, you weren't planning on breaking up with me, then?”
Ryan shook his head, “No way! I thought you were pissed at ME because of the Lake Tahoe disaster. I was trying to make amends. But most of all I just wanted to make sure you were ok.”
Karina sighed and laid her head on Ryan's shoulder, “Wow that could have been easily solved with one conversation. That's my fault. I shouldn't have avoided your calls just because I didn't want to hear what you had to say. That's a bad LA habit I'm going to have to drop.”
“That’s a really good idea because,” Ryan insisted, “not being able to talk to you was torture! I don't know if I can go through that again. And besides, if I need to pull another grand gesture out of my ass, who knows if the high school gym will be free that week?”
Karina laughed, “Point taken.”
They swayed for a while in contented silence, merely enjoying one another's presence, the music, and the fact that they were back on good terms.
Finally, Ryan said, “So, Karina?”
“Hmmm....” she murmured.
“I hate to bring up what could potentially be a mood killer, but Henry has come by three or four times to ask me about it...”
She looked at him, “OK, what is it?”
“Well, you remember back in the wave of excitement over having just played on stage at the Tow
n Follies? We did something without really thinking it through first...”
She smiled wickedly, recalling their office antics later that evening.
“Oh, I remember,” she said, infusing every bit of naughtiness she could into those three words, “And I disagree about not having thought it through. It was about the only thing I COULD think about for the weeks leading up to it...”
Ryan laughed huskily, “Not that, smartass. Although, I admit, I like where your heads at. I'm talking about when we agreed to play again at the Winter Festival.”
Karina closed her eyes. As soon as Ryan spoke the words, of course, the memory came rushing back to her. But up until that point? It had entirely slipped her mind.
She slapped her palm to her forehead, “Oh, Ryan, God! The Winter Festival is in a week!”
Ryan nodded, “Exactly. That's why I wanted to talk to you about it. Are we still playing? What do you think?”
Karina shook her head, “God, I don't know. This couldn't come at a worse time, with Bernie and Davis in town. This will just be one more excuse for them to pressure me about speeding up the contract negotiations.”
Ryan nodded, “Yeah, I know, they've been talking to me a lot about singing contracts, too. I told them I wouldn't sign anything until I talked to you.”
Karina nodded miserably. Ryan didn't know, and she didn't ever want him to know, that he was being used by Davis as a pawn in Spintown's negotiations with her. If he had been hardened and calloused by many years of dealing with wheelers and dealers, it wouldn't have come as a shock. But Ryan wasn't like that. He was naïve and sincere. He took peoples' word at face value. And damn it, call her selfish, but she'd like to keep it that way for as long as possible.
She looked up at him and asked slowly, “So, you're on board, then? You want to go forward with the deal?”
He nodded enthusiastically, “Oh, yeah! I mean, sure, of course. An opportunity to play music and get paid for it, plus I get to work with you all the time? Sign me up!”
She nodded, smiling encouragingly, but with the sinking feeling that her smile was not reaching all the way to her eyes. This suspicion was confirmed when Ryan tilted his head, looking at her face with an expression of concern, “What's wrong? You're not sure about the deal?”
She smiled, doubling her efforts to look and sound enthusiastic, “Oh my God, yes! For all the reasons you just said. It's just, you know, a complicated contracts thing. Bernie'll get it worked out for me, he always does.”
He nodded, seeming still to be unconvinced.
“OK,” he said slowly, “If that's really all it is...”
She nodded, smiling, and he surprised her by whirling her around in his arms and dipping her. She laughed with glee, the feeling of being embraced and supported by his strong, powerful arms making her feel utterly carefree.
--- ~ ---
When Karina walked up to the refreshments table later that evening, she was surprised to see Renata serving the punch.
“Grandmother!” she exclaimed, shocked, “What are you doing here?”
“Chaperoning,” her grandmother replied.
Karina tilted her head and adopted a 'gimme a break' expression.
“School dances need chaperones,” Renata reiterated. A tad defensively, Karina thought.
“Uh, huh,” Karina replied, unconvinced, taking the cup of punch her grandmother handed to her.
Then, in a completely nonchalant tone meant to convey exactly how little thought she had put into the matter, Renata said, “I'm surprised that your manager isn't here.”
Karina shook her head, setting the punch down on the table, “And there it is. Grandmother, are you saying that you're interested in Bernie?”
Renata looked shocked, “That was an offhand comment. Couldn't you tell by my tone?”
“And what about the fact that you made the very unlikely decision to come and chaperone this evening?”
Renata gestured at Sue Ann, who was working at the other end of the table, handing out snacks, “I'm not the only one. Sue Ann's here, as well.”
Hearing her name, Sue Ann bustled over cheerfully, coming around the table to greet Karina with a hug.
“How do you like your party, sweetheart?” she asked.
“I love it!” Karina grinned, “I can't believe Ryan went to all this trouble just for me.”
“Well, lots of us chipped in to help,” Sue Ann said.
“Oh, good,” Karina said, relieved, “I mean, even just the food alone must have cost a fortune...”
“Oh, no,” Sue Ann corrected, “I meant, we all worked on decorating and putting the word out and what have you. Ryan paid for all of this.”
“Oh,” Karina said miserably, “I hate that he got stuck with all of it. I know that can't be easy.”
Sue Ann looked at her, puzzled, “Well, he's got plenty of money, sweetheart.”
Karina rushed to explain, “Oh, no, Sue Ann, I didn't mean anything by it! I'm sure the cafe does really well!”
Sue Ann snorted, “It's got nothing to do with the cafe. Ryan won't take a penny of my money for helping me out. No, when his parents sold their ranch, they split the money up between them and Ryan, since it would have gone to him if they hadn't sold it. They considered it his legacy.”
Karina smiled, “Oh, that's nice, then! He has a little nest egg!”
Sue Ann laughed again, and as she walked back to her side of the table to continue working, she said over her shoulder, “If you consider a few million dollars a 'little nest egg' then, yes, that's what it is.”
Karina and Renata exchanged startled looks.
Karina couldn't seem to process the information. Ryan was rich? How was that possible?
She found him where he was sitting on the bleachers talking to Justin and the guys. She asked to speak with him and they went out into the corridor.
When they were in the corridor and out of earshot of the crowd, Karina turned to him and took a deep breath, then said slowly, “I'm making good on my brand new resolution to talk to you about things instead of letting them fester, and avoiding.”
Ryan looked confused, “Man, did I mess up again so soon? Crap! What did I do?”
She shook her head, “Why didn't you ever tell me you were rich?”
He let out a startled laugh, “What?”
“Your grandmother just told me that you have, like, millions in the bank from the sale of your parents farm.”
“Ranch,” he corrected.
“Seriously? Now?”
He smiled, “Sorry. Reflex response. But, honestly, Karina, does it matter?”
She shrugged, “It shouldn't, probably. But I just feel a little off-balance that you never said anything about it.”
He shook his head, “I doubt you go around telling people your bank balance, either.”
She nodded. It was a fair point.
Just then, Bernie burst through the doors from the gym, shattering the moment by exclaiming, “There you are! I've been trying to reach you. Have you seen this, kiddo?”
With that, he thrust the latest issue of People Magazine at her. She took it in her hands and looked down at it. Across the top of the cover was emblazoned the bold headline, “Who Will She Choose?”
The photo was a split-screen take of two photos side by side. The first was a screenshot of the quick kiss between her and Kyle Austen Reed captured in the YouTube video. The second was a paparazzi shot of her and Ryan leaving the Lake Tahoe restaurant.
Karina was suddenly inordinately angry. She threw the magazine on the ground and cried, “Damn it! They can't just leave me alone to live my life!”
Bernie nodded sympathetically, “Yeah, I know, it's the pits. So what d'ya wanna tell 'em?”
She sighed and tried to gather her thoughts, “OK. Just tell them that Ryan and I are collaborating on my next album. And give them a 'no comment' on Kyle Austen Reed.”
Bernie nodded, “Will do, kid.”
He waggled his eyebrows then and did his b
est Groucho Marx impersonation, “Now, if you'll excuse me, I gotta go see a lady about some punch...” and exited back into the gym.
Karina turned to Ryan incredulously, “Can you believe that?”
Ryan shrugged, “I mean, they're a celebrity gossip magazine, what do you expect?”
“Oh, yeah. I was actually talking about Bernie and my grandmother, but, yeah. The magazine cover, too.”
Ryan looked at her evenly, “So, is that the whole story, then? We're collaborating on your next album?”
Karina was taken aback, “That's the story for the public. It has nothing to do with our real life.”
Ryan laughed bitterly. He picked up the magazine and looked at the cover.
“Karina, maybe that's the problem. You've been living two lives for so long, you don't even know which one is real. The super star ‘Karina Black’ version for the public, or the low-key ‘Karina Blackstone’ version you try to live here. Is that what really bothers you about my money? When you thought I was just a poor little country bumpkin, I fit nicely into your hometown fantasy. Now that you know I have money, that illusion doesn't quite fit anymore. Is that why you don't want to sign the papers and go out on tour with me? Because in your mind, I was just your little small town boy toy, and you don't want to take me out of that realm?”
Not knowing how to reply to this line of questioning, Karina just stood speechless, stunned by the accusations Ryan was throwing at her.
He shook his head sadly, handing the magazine back to her, “You need to choose, Karina. You need to decide what you want out of life. If it's a simple, small town life with me here, I'm good with that. If it's for you and I to go out on tour together, I'm on board with that, as well. If it's to leave me behind entirely, I'll hate it, but I can deal with that, too.
“The one thing I can't deal with, and won't deal with, is this constant limbo. Whatever you want out of life, you need to decide. I can't make you happy with your life, Karina. Only you can do that for yourself. You need to choose.”
Ryan turned on his heel and walked away down the corridor – probably, she thought, wanting to avoid the crowd of people back in the gym. She wouldn't mind doing that herself, she thought, but she couldn't very well just trail after him like a little puppy.
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