Page 27 of Melody

Kyle tried to make sure his words were as soft as possible. “I’ve heard that.”

“But, hey,” Scarlett said suddenly, looking up from her plate with a weak smile, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, “this isn’t fun talk for a date. Tell me aboutyourparents.”

Kyle wasn’t about to ruin their date with that sort of conversation, but he was also dealing with some new feelings for this woman, simply because she’d given him a peek inside.

“I don’t want to ruin your appetite. How about I tell you instead about the evolution of my band?”

“That sounds perfect.”

Almost as perfect as she was turning out to be.

CHAPTER 11

When they walked out into the cold, dark night carrying boxes of leftovers, Kyle said, “If you’re up for it, I have one more thing planned for us.”

“Not dessert, I hope.”

“No. Something the art gallery inspired me to do.”

Scarlett was intrigued. This date had turned out to be like none she’d experienced before, and it was all due to Kyle. Although the gallery had been one of the most uncomfortable places she’d ever been in, the art had been worth it anyway. It was rare that she was able to appreciate human artistic expression, and she’d found herself breathless more than once. That Kyle had bought her a print of one of the pieces had made the date all the more special.

Regardless of how their friendship ended down the line, this would be a night she would never forget.

“Okay. I’m game.”

“We’ll need to get in the car for this part.”

“Let’s do it.” Soon, they were getting into Kyle’s blue Charger. The door on the passenger side squeaked as he opened and closed it but at least she couldn’t feel the cold seat on her legs and butt, thanks to the long coat. She’d purchased it at aconsignment shop one block east of Tequilaville just two weeks ago and was glad she had.

Something she hadn’t expected from Kyle was how he’d shut the door for her before walking to the other side of the car. It was gentlemanly, a trait she hadn’t counted on. They’d placed their boxes of food and she’d also put her print in the backseat before getting in, and now she debated if she wanted to put her purse on the floor or hold it in her lap.

When Kyle got in on the other side, he started up the engine, revving it a couple of times, and said, “The heater will take a little bit to kick in. It’s better when I drive.”

“Sounds good.” She noticed the radio was on but it was so low, she couldn’t hear it over the defroster blowing. “So where are we going?”

She could see Kyle’s face spread into a grin, thanks to the light from the dash and the streetlamps shining in the windows as he drove west on Main. “It was going to be a surprise, but I might as well tell you. You know that painting on the wall above where the coat hangers were at the gallery?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s the view of Silver City from Razor Ridge Drive. Have you ever been there?”

“No. I don’t even know where it is.”

As the end of Main curved so that it ended at a stop sign where it met the highway, Kyle braked the car and looked both ways. “It’s just outside of town, and it gives you a hell of a view all the way around. And if you thought the painting of looking down at Silver City during the day was cool, wait’ll you see what it looks like at night.”

“How far is it?”

“Just a couple of miles. You can actually see part of the road from town if you look at the hills to the west. It’s not a hugetourist attraction, but when people find out, they drive to the top for the view.”

She was sold. “I can’t wait.”

In less than two minutes, Kyle had followed the highway so that they were now in the hills just to the west of Silver City, and they were cut off from much of the light. Scarlett knew there was a college campus over here somewhere, but she’d never had a reason to be out there. As they drove past the campus, though, there was no mistaking it. There were also a few scattered houses out this way, but they were now clearly out of the city limits.

It was another few miles and several minutes before Kyle slowed the car and turned to the right. A large sign announced that they were at Razor Ridge Drive, and there was a smaller sign with a lot of text that Scarlett assumed Kyle was familiar with. The only thing she caught as they drove past it was that the drive was a one-way road.

As they began the climb in near darkness, she asked, “Has anyone ever gone the wrong way on this road?”

“Not that I know of. There are huge signs on the other side that lets people know not to go that way.”

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