The Low Notes (3 page)

He thought about how nice it could be to have someone to come home to who might have a smile for him. Someone to wrap his arms around and kiss goodnight. Someone to talk to, to be completely real with. He might finally be able to unload the burden of his challenging young adulthood just by having someone like that in his life. Not only would he have someone to lean on, he'd have someone who could lean on him. In fact, he liked the idea of tending to a woman.

Kevin thought of how his father doted on his mother before she became ill. There was always coffee at her bedside each morning and he was sure to bring flowers on any old Tuesday. They shared a bottle of wine each anniversary and toasted to one hundred years of marriage. Kevin wanted that. Romanticizing their love affair always made his parents seem like the perfect example. Truthfully, he knew relationships were hard and his mother and father no doubt had problems. But he wanted a love like that, problems and all.

This enticing idea was clouding his head and suddenly the most enticing thought of all came creeping in.

This someone could be Nina.

Chapter Three

Nina walked inside and slipped her shoes off near the door. Her feet were killing her. She reminded herself to bring a change of shoes the next time she went to The Black Jewel at the same time a note on the mirror in the foyer caught her eye.

Out with Blake, call Dad -Greta

She let out a sigh of relief, thankful her sister wasn’t home. Though Greta was only five years older than Nina, they shared little in common and Nina always felt at odds with her. In fact, Nina was convinced Greta hated her and blamed her for their mother leaving when Nina was five.

Nina always wondered and yet she didn't really miss her. Her leaving was sudden and still unexplained. From what she could remember about her mother, she wasn't the Suzy Homemaker every girl wanted waiting in the kitchen with milk and cookies when she came home from school. She didn't braid her hair or cuddle and read books. She was uninterested and how that could possibly be Nina's fault she didn't know. Greta never said that was how she felt but Nina sensed it in her stare, as if she was constantly seeing her sister as the five year old brat who scared their mother away.

Nina crumpled up the paper with her sister's handwriting on it and headed to her room. She hung her black dress next to a few others she'd impulsively purchased in the past year.

When she walked into The Black Jewel for the first time, she never imagined they would let her on stage. But after a few weeks of begging and a handful of times dropping in on the owner to play for him, trying to convince him to give her a shot, he finally agreed. She got one song tonight and before she left, David told her he would be happy to have her any time. Nina was ecstatic. It was what she’d been waiting for. Being on that stage had been more than she could’ve ever imagined. She couldn't wait to do it again.

But to Nina, that wasn't even the best part of the night. Kevin the idiot, as she was lovingly referring to him in her mind, was the highlight. He'd been a complete surprise. Good looking and with that sweet, bumbling shy kind of thing, he was adorable. He had a strong jaw, dark hair, dark eyes, and a little bit of scruff, the real tall, dark, and handsome type.

He was older though. She could tell as much from the fact he had a glass of wine on his table. She could also see it in his eyes. Not wrinkles, but just enough of those tiny lines that showed he’d seen more days than her.

She told herself it wouldn’t be an issue. Tomorrow would be great. She'd even convinced herself that a
don’t ask, don’t tell
policy for the evening would be in her best interest.

Nina dug in her purse for her cell phone, tapping her father's number to dial. The phone rang and rang and finally her father's voice picked up.

“
You've reached Harold Jordan. I'm unable to answer my phone so please leave a message and I'll return your call.”

Of course
, she thought. He hadn't answered one of her calls in the past four days, why would he now?

“
Hi Dad. It's Nina. I'm in for the night. I sang tonight at that place I told you about. Anyway...I guess I'll talk to you sometime. Goodnight,” Nina said, hanging up with a sigh.

Her father had left for London a week ago and was planning on staying there for almost four months. His exact words before stepping through the door had been “I'll do my best to come home a few weekends but eight hour flights are getting tough on your old man.” His meaning, don't bet on it kiddo.

For the past week he'd been gone it had been like living alone. Of course Greta didn't have any trouble showing how irritated she was by the new living arrangement. If their father knew Greta spent almost every night at her boyfriend's house leaving Nina with the house to herself, he'd flip. This certainly wasn't her dad's first business trip. It was the longest on record but Nina had grown accustomed to caring for herself with all of his traveling. She could stock the groceries, clean the house and make herself meals. Sometimes it felt unfair and sometimes she got lonely but then she remembered she felt just as lonely when her family was with her. Why not make the most of her freedom starting with a date? For now, a good night’s sleep was all she wanted. Maybe she'd dream of that handsome face she'd be seeing tomorrow night.

Chapter Four

She was early and cursing herself for rushing to the restaurant. It was just so exciting. In fact, it felt like her first date. Nina tried to keep her cool and she found a bench near the front doors of Ambrose, the little bistro where they'd decided to meet. But Nina's nerves were starting to get the better of her and she tried not to fidget.

The summer weather was nearly flawless and this evening was no exception. The balmy air felt wonderful on her bare shoulders, in green linen sundress with thin straps and white ballet flats the perfect outfit. A slender green headband pushed her hair, which hung perfectly above her shoulders, away from her face. She started picking at her fingernails anxiously as her mind began to race.
What if he doesn't show up? What if he hates the color green? Am I supposed to pay or let him pay?
Just as she felt one of her signature worry-induced red splotches start to form on her neck, she saw him in the distance.

He was nearly to her when he started to smile and with that, her stress melted away. His eyes said he definitely didn't hate green and Nina stood as he approached.

“
Hi,” he said, his grin growing.

“
Hey.” She tried to be nonchalant but was sure it wasn't working.

She walked past him through the door to the restaurant, breathing in the scent of his cologne. It was, as she imagined, quite sexy. The restaurant was quant with little square tables, each with a candle and a single white rose. The walls were painted a deep maroon making it dark on the inside but warm as well. After Kevin held up two fingers the hostess quickly led them to the smallest of the tables set for two in the back.

Nina was taking in their surroundings when she glanced at Kevin. He was holding out a chair for her. She was sure her grin was goofy and girlish but she was impressed. It was exactly what she would expect of an older guy.

“
Have you been here?” He asked.

“
No, it’s nice though,” she replied.

One corner of his mouth turned up and he nodded and she felt herself growing hot under his stare. It was going to be a feat concentrating with this handsome man's eyes on her. Before they had time to jump into conversation, a tall broadly built man introduced himself as Gary and asked for their drink orders.

“
Would you like some wine,” Kevin asked.

Her heart thudded in her chest as she thought about how to answer.

Kevin shook his head and gave an embarrassed laugh, “Sorry. I forgot. You said you don't drink. Never mind.” He turned to the waiter and told him he'd have water.

The pounding of her heart waned and she found her voice to chime in. “Same for me.”

The waiter scurried off and they were alone again. There weren't many people in the restaurant and the quiet was making Nina's thoughts seem loud. She took a moment to take in Kevin's face and noticed he seemed fine with the silence between them. There was no hint of apprehension in his chocolate brown eyes or the slightest bit of worry in his brow. He merely held her gaze.

“
Can I ask you something?” he said coolly.

“
Sure,” Nina replied.

“
What the hell are you doing singing at a place like The Black Jewel?”

Nina tensed momentarily. “What do you mean?”

“
You’re amazing.”

Nina’s eyes shot up and for a second they just stared at each other.

Kevin cleared his throat. “Your voice. You’re an amazing singer. You could have an album, win a reality show.
Is that what you do for a living?”

“
I'm lucky to have a place like that to perform. I'm going to start filling in for Louis, the old guy who plays piano. It's easy work and if they'll let me sing then I can't complain. I’m living with my sister right now until I get things figured out. I’ve been looking at colleges,” she said.

Kevin nodded. “That’s great. You want to study music?”

She lowered her eyes nervously, “Maybe. I’m not sure right now. It’s kind of up in the air.”

“
I hope you do. Maybe you don't realize how talented you really are.”

With her eyes still down, Nina pretended to read the menu but she was really avoiding his stare. He was something else. No one had ever given her such genuine compliments. She’d believed in herself enough to get on that stage and she craved it again but something about his words put a fire in her. She wanted to make him right.

“
What about you, what do you do?” she asked.

“
I just moved here this week so I'm kind of...between jobs. I guess I call myself a writer but I'm not sure what I'm gonna find here in Wexley,” he said.

“
A writer! What have you written?” she asked eagerly.

“
Nothing you've read I'm sure. I used to do freelance work for a financial magazine. Not that exciting. But I’m writing this thing about my father’s life. I have his journals and I did a series of interviews with him before he died so...” he drew out his last word into a whisper and stopped. His eyes flitted around the room after he spoke.

“
I’m really sorry,” Nina said, reaching out, gingerly laying her hand on his. It was the first time they'd touched all night. She felt electricity between them when he found her eyes with his. In a little more than twenty four hours, she'd managed to feel the kind of compassion for this man she barely felt for anyone in her own family. She cared about him in a way that confused her but eased her at the same time.

Finally Kevin smiled and nodded a ‘thank you’.

And then they couldn't stop talking. From books they loved to Kevin giving her pointers on how to incorporate songwriting into her repertoire. It was as if they'd always been friends. Nina stopped wondering how old he was, stopped caring about the details and just allowed herself to laugh and to flirt.

Kevin didn't say anything else about his father or the circumstances of how he moved to town but Nina figured his move was determined by his father's passing. He talked about how hard it was not knowing anyone. He worried about making friends and fitting in.

“
Well, you know me now,” she said, her eyes glittering.

He beamed. “I won’t forget it.”

Kevin grabbed the bill and quickly paid as Nina tried to object, offering to chip in.

“
Of course not, it's my pleasure,” he said, shooing her hand away. She thanked him a few times, a girlish grin still painted on her face. They walked outside together, neither saying a word. For a while they just enjoyed the warm breeze and the faintly blue night sky. Then Nina saw Kevin's face fall a bit as he looked at her.

“
Look, Nina...” he started and her heart clenched. It seemed too perfect. What was he about to say? She wished for an instant he would stop right there and kiss her goodnight so the evening could end just as wonderful as it had been. But he continued.

“
I wasn't planning on dating right now. Not last night on that blind date and I certainly wasn't counting on meeting anyone as great as you. I've had a rough few months and I just feel like I need to get adjusted first, you know. But I...” his voice cut off and he ran a hand through his chestnut hair.

He grinned. “I really like you.”

Nina smiled back, biting her lip, trying to conceal it. She looked down at her hands and realized she was absently wringing them, pulling at her fingertips. She smoothed her hands down the front of her dress and tried to steady herself.

“
Can I call you? When I feel like I have it a little more together?” he asked.

It wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear but she couldn't blame him for wanting some time to find a job, maybe unpack his house. She smiled and asked for his phone. Kevin slowly handed over the small piece of black plastic from his pocket with a confused face.

“
I'm putting my number in here so you don't forget about me,” she said. She opened the main screen and saw an alert message.