Page 106 of Getting it Right (Addy's Rollercoaster)

Kyle with his dark hair and silver eyes wearing a Led Zeppelin T-shirt. Claire with her blond hair wearing a band tee. Again, I had that sense of the past repeating himself, especially with them both being into music like Collin and I had been.

I watched them navigate the space together. It was early afternoon. No one was sitting at any of the tables yet, just a couple of regulars at the far end of the bar.

I didn’t even think of stopping my niece. Rachel might have, but if she did, she would only be delaying the inevitable. Kyle and Claire would just find another place to be together. In Southside, teens grew up fast, and knowing how quickly life could take a turn for the worse, didn’t they deserve what pleasure they could find?

In Southside, every day held danger. Claire’s having made an enemy in La Rasa Prima made that point.

Just as the couple was about to enter the back hallway, Bob appeared. My eyes burned at the sight of what he held ... Collin’s ebony ESP. The sunburst finish was as glossy as it had been seventeen years ago.

I swallowed hard and abandoned my spot behind the bar. I had to get a closer look. No wonder I’d never been able to find that instrument for my ABCR collection.

“Here.” Bob thrust the vintage acoustic at Kyle.

Closer to the trio, I withdrew my ever-present bar towel from my shoulder and pretended to wipe down an already clean table. But I didn’t need the ruse. They didn’t even notice me.

“Thanks, Uncle Bob.” Kyle sighed as he took the guitar. “That’s very thoughtful.”

My lips twitched. Rachel’s stopping Claire wasn’t necessary. Bob had unknowingly performed her role.

“You’re welcome.” Bob gave his nephew a hopeful look. “Can you play ‘When Doves Cry’?”

That was a favorite of his. Any song related to birds, Collin had once told me. No wonder Bob had scurried off to grab the guitar.

“How about ‘Blackbird’ instead?” Kyle asked his uncle.

“No.” Bob stubbornly shook his head.

“I can’t hit the high notes on that song, bud.” Kyle shifted his gaze to my niece. “But Claire can.”

“No way.” Claire shook her head.

At that, I stiffened, paying even closer attention. I knew Claire played the guitar, but I didn’t know she sang. Was she as talented as her mother?

“Two bird aficionados giving me grief.” Kyle shook his head at Claire and then Bob.

I marveled at another connection point. Claire loved birds because her father had. I wondered if Kyle was passionate about them because of his uncle.

“C’mon, babe,” Kyle said, his pleading silver eyes locked on my niece. “I’m playing. The least you can do is sing with me.”

Had Claire sung with him before? When?

“Oh, all right.” Claire turned and gestured to the stage. Since I didn’t have any bands playing early in the week, it was empty. “You go up first. I’ll follow you.”

“You first.” Kyle threw a diamond-patterned guitar strap over his shoulder. Wisely, Bob had brought it along with the instrument. “I wanna look at your ass in those tight jeans.”

A knowing smile played on my lips. I had a feeling Kyle and Claire’s relationship had been going on longer than her mother or I had suspected. And another thought followed.

Was Kyle the guy who had been with Claire the night her father died? If so, why was a Southside boy in Lakeside? I didn’t know the answer. Needing to know, I felt my spying on them was justified.

“Kyle ...” Claire glanced at Bob and blushed. She seemed to be as susceptible to her skin revealing her embarrassment as I was.

“Go,” Kyle said. “Hit the stairs. Quit stalling. I also wanna make sure you don’t bolt.”

“That was the me I was before you,” she mumbled, walking toward the stairs.

Grinning, Kyle followed her.

While I continued to ponder how long they’d known each other, I noticed someone else entering Footit’s. Another blast from the past, a tall, broad-shouldered, and confident one with black hair, brown eyes, and strong features that resembled his father’s.

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