Page 50 of Dreaming of You

"I noticed. But I have to admit, your grandfather's vinyl record collection—that is amazing."

"He's been collecting since he was seventeen. Did he play some records for you?"

"Oh, yeah, a lot of Elvis, a little of the Beatles, and even some Rolling Stones."

"Grandpa used to play guitar in a band when he was young. He has always been into music."

"We played a little together," Barrett said, surprising her with his words.

"You played guitar together?" she asked in astonishment.

"He had two."

"And you play?"

"I'm not bad."

She had a suspicion that was a vast understatement. "I'll bet you're pretty good."

"I can make my way through a song."

"Did you learn when you were young?"

"No. I wanted to, but my mother made me learn the piano. I think that was mostly because she wanted to date the saxophone teacher. That was when she was single, in between the divorce with my father and marrying her second husband. But she lost interest in my musical career once she found out the teacher was dating someone else's mom. I picked up the guitar on my own in middle school. I pretty much taught myself."

"Does your brother play?"

"A little. But not much. Matt tends to be impatient. If he doesn't master something right away, he's over it."

"But you'll take more time to get it right."

"If it's worth doing," he said, shooting her a smile. "Do you play anything?"

"No. I am not musical at all. I can't carry a tune when I sing and trying to read music feels like too much math. My grandfather did try to teach me to play guitar, but it never worked, and we always ended up irritated with each other. Eventually, he gave up on wanting me to play."

"I saw a photo of your mom and your grandfather playing together. She looked like she was a teenager."

"That was at the state fair in Sacramento. She was a singer, songwriter. She tried to make it in music for a while, but then she met my dad and got pregnant and having me derailed her career, at least for a few years. When I was six, she got an offer to sing backup with a country band, and she took it. She left me with my grandparents, and that was the start of her coming and going—mostly going."

"That's not good."

"She was this beautiful creature who would drop into my life every now and then. Once she wasn't tasked with my day-to-day care, she was a lot happier, a lot more fun to be around, but, of course, I couldn't really count on her. Her promises were not worth much. It took me a long time to realize that, to stop being disappointed every time she didn't show up. Eventually, I came to understand she was a free spirit. Or maybe she was just as afraid of commitment as my father was." She blew out a breath, realizing how long she'd been talking. "And, wow, you must be ready to kick me out of this car for talking endlessly about my messed-up family."

"I think I'll make it over the bridge," he said dryly. "And I have first-hand experience with messed-up families."

"Then let's talk about you for a while. What are your parents like?"

"My mother is very tightly wound. She likes everything to be perfect. She plans out her life to the last detail, and she isn't happy when others interfere with her plans. She has a caring heart, but it's not that easy to see. She can be cold and distant until you really get to know her—actually, until she decides she'd like to know you. She's into tennis, golf, and bridge, and enjoys her country-club friends. She's always concerned about what her peers think of her. She's perpetually having cosmetic work done, trying the latest diet, and working out with her personal trainer."

"She must look amazing."

"She's attractive." He paused, shooting her a quick look. "I love her, because she's my mother, but she doesn't always make it easy. She has a lot of opinions, most of which I don't agree with."

"That can be difficult. What's your father like?"

"He's outgoing, loud, loves to tell bad jokes, and thinks he's hilarious. He's charming enough to have found four women who wanted to marry him, and there was never a shortage of women in between those marriages."

"How old were you when your parents split up?"

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