everything. Frank wasn’t here to remind her of what he had done, what he had taken
from her. She could move on, move forward, and hope again. Couldn’t she?
Chapter 3
Kyla pushed through the door to Music & Motors, or the Music half of it anyways. She’d
walked by it for what felt like a hundred times in the past week, but had stopped
herself from going inside. Mainly because many of those times she’d seen Cooper either
outside or through the window, behind the counter, and she’d chickened out. The man
made her nervous.
But Cooper also owned the car shop that was currently home to her Mustang, and he
owned the music store. That right there, had her curiosity piqued. She also missed
being around music. Perhaps though, the most important reason for going in was that
she needed to talk to Cooper about her car. Her money was going to run out soon and
she had to make a plan, or in the worst possible scenario, ask her mother for a loan.
The bell over the door rang as she stepped inside. The place was a throwback to the
sixties with seventies punk, eighties hair bands, and a few of the nineties boy bands
thrown in. The colors were loud, the furniture and music displays scattered, and there
didn’t seem to be much organization to the space. Lenny Kravitz’s greatest hits CD
was playing over the speakers. It was a hodgepodge of records, tapes, CDs, musical
instruments, and musical accessories. One corner of the shop sported a large television
mounted on the wall. At the moment, three teenagers were hunkered down on the couches
and chairs, yelling and shooting at monsters and zombies on some video game.
Kyla’s eyes moved to the counter, which was sparse and sat across from the front door.
She didn’t see Cooper, or anyone, working in the store. As she was about to leave
she caught sight of a piano in the far corner. She walked over and ran her fingers
over the ivory keys. Until she heard the soft sound that escaped from the light touch,
she didn’t realize just how much she missed playing. She slid onto the bench, not
caring about the dust on the seat, and began to softly play Canon in D. It wasn’t
a hard piece, it was something she’d learned early on in the piano lessons she’d taken
as a child, but it was still one of her favorites.
Kyla was so focused on the piece that she hadn’t heard the teenagers stop playing
their game. She hadn’t sensed them move either. A glance over her shoulder told her
that they were behind her, mouths agape as they watched her play.
As she finished the piece one of the teenagers spoke. “Whoa. I haven’t ever heard
anyone play that thing. Ever. And I’ve never heard anyone play like that. You’re really
good.”
Kyla smiled, “Thanks. I’ve been playing all my life so I’ve had a lot of practice.”
The boys chatted with her a bit more and then, after she played another piece for
them—this time a rock piece from the early nineties—Kyla found the courage to ask
the question weighing on her mind.
“Um, have you guys seen Cooper, the guy who owns this place and the car shop?”
One of them guffawed, “Women are always looking for Cooper. He’s got a line of women
in town that follow him around. Never catch him though.”
Kyla rolled her eyes. “I’m not looking for him to ask him out. He’s fixing my car
and I need to talk to him about that.”
The teenagers didn’t seem to believe her by the looks they were giving each other.
“Sure, lady, you need to talk about your car. I saw him leaving earlier in the tow
truck, so who knows when he’ll be back, but try the garage. Phil will know when to
expect him.”
Kyla sighed as the boys wandered back over to their video game, and the store was
filled again with the sounds of zombie heads being blown off and the boys’ high-fiving.
Kyla considered going to the garage, to talk to Phil, but decided against it. Instead,
she turned back to
from her. She could move on, move forward, and hope again. Couldn’t she?
Chapter 3
Kyla pushed through the door to Music & Motors, or the Music half of it anyways. She’d
walked by it for what felt like a hundred times in the past week, but had stopped
herself from going inside. Mainly because many of those times she’d seen Cooper either
outside or through the window, behind the counter, and she’d chickened out. The man
made her nervous.
But Cooper also owned the car shop that was currently home to her Mustang, and he
owned the music store. That right there, had her curiosity piqued. She also missed
being around music. Perhaps though, the most important reason for going in was that
she needed to talk to Cooper about her car. Her money was going to run out soon and
she had to make a plan, or in the worst possible scenario, ask her mother for a loan.
The bell over the door rang as she stepped inside. The place was a throwback to the
sixties with seventies punk, eighties hair bands, and a few of the nineties boy bands
thrown in. The colors were loud, the furniture and music displays scattered, and there
didn’t seem to be much organization to the space. Lenny Kravitz’s greatest hits CD
was playing over the speakers. It was a hodgepodge of records, tapes, CDs, musical
instruments, and musical accessories. One corner of the shop sported a large television
mounted on the wall. At the moment, three teenagers were hunkered down on the couches
and chairs, yelling and shooting at monsters and zombies on some video game.
Kyla’s eyes moved to the counter, which was sparse and sat across from the front door.
She didn’t see Cooper, or anyone, working in the store. As she was about to leave
she caught sight of a piano in the far corner. She walked over and ran her fingers
over the ivory keys. Until she heard the soft sound that escaped from the light touch,
she didn’t realize just how much she missed playing. She slid onto the bench, not
caring about the dust on the seat, and began to softly play Canon in D. It wasn’t
a hard piece, it was something she’d learned early on in the piano lessons she’d taken
as a child, but it was still one of her favorites.
Kyla was so focused on the piece that she hadn’t heard the teenagers stop playing
their game. She hadn’t sensed them move either. A glance over her shoulder told her
that they were behind her, mouths agape as they watched her play.
As she finished the piece one of the teenagers spoke. “Whoa. I haven’t ever heard
anyone play that thing. Ever. And I’ve never heard anyone play like that. You’re really
good.”
Kyla smiled, “Thanks. I’ve been playing all my life so I’ve had a lot of practice.”
The boys chatted with her a bit more and then, after she played another piece for
them—this time a rock piece from the early nineties—Kyla found the courage to ask
the question weighing on her mind.
“Um, have you guys seen Cooper, the guy who owns this place and the car shop?”
One of them guffawed, “Women are always looking for Cooper. He’s got a line of women
in town that follow him around. Never catch him though.”
Kyla rolled her eyes. “I’m not looking for him to ask him out. He’s fixing my car
and I need to talk to him about that.”
The teenagers didn’t seem to believe her by the looks they were giving each other.
“Sure, lady, you need to talk about your car. I saw him leaving earlier in the tow
truck, so who knows when he’ll be back, but try the garage. Phil will know when to
expect him.”
Kyla sighed as the boys wandered back over to their video game, and the store was
filled again with the sounds of zombie heads being blown off and the boys’ high-fiving.
Kyla considered going to the garage, to talk to Phil, but decided against it. Instead,
she turned back to
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