“You could do that?” His voice rose in pleased shock. “You remember all those tunes? There must have been a dozen different pieces. That’s amazing.”
“Twenty-one actually. Plus, I picked from the same few a couple of times, just different parts. I’ll make you a list.”
“Wow. You can play that many songs without music? I’ve never known anyone who could do that. That’s a phenomenal skill. Color me impressed.”
“It’s not that impressive.” She blushed at his praise. She’d been playing piano since she was four. Music was who she was, part of her soul. It was the one thing her brain was good at. She wouldn’t mention how many pieces she’d committed to memory after playing them a few times. Probably thousands. Occasionally, she’d brush up her skills with a particular piece by listening to it again or reviewing the sheet music. Her mind wasn’t perfect. It just had a talent for remembering melodies.
“That piece you were playing when I came in, you created it, right? How many others have you created? What do you do with them?”
“I record and sell them on a music site where users can listen to them. People can buy them to use in the background of videos. I sell the sheet music on another site. Today I got a contract to have one of my pieces in a movie.” She couldn’t hide the giddiness in her voice.
“Seriously! That’s incredible. Why are we sitting here? We should be celebrating, drinking champagne!”
“You do realize it’s only noon, right?” She laughed at his enthusiasm.
“So what? This is big. If music is like writing a book, one deal can lead to a chain of good events. Tonight, I’m taking you out for supper and a celebratory drink.”
His enthusiasm was contagious. She hadn’t known who to share her success with. It felt silly to call up her cousins, but she wanted to shout her success to the whole world. Zane’s excitement validated her own.
“That would be awesome. I’d love to go out and celebrate.” A surge of warm happiness washed through her. As if someone had strummed the perfect note for her soul.
“What’s the fanciest restaurant in Coyote Creek? We’ll go there.”
A giggle bubbled out of her. “Can we go to Tammy’s instead? It’s fish chowder day and I’ve got a craving.” As much as she wanted to celebrate, she didn’t want him spending all his money on feeding her. “Since we’re celebrating my success, I’m buying.”
“Not a chance in hell. It’s my treat. You pick the place and I’ll pick up the bill, or the deal’s off.” He tried to look menacing and failed. “I’ve eaten at Tammy’s and if that’s where you want to go, I’m okay with it. They don’t serve alcohol. We’ll have to have that celebratory drink somewhere else.”
“Here? I can skip out for a while, but I don’t have night staff. Let’s do something here. We can invite my guests to join us.” She paused. “If that’s okay with you.”
“Of course, it is. This is your celebration. We’ll do it your way. I’ll run out and pick up some champagne, and some alcohol-free sparkling wine or juice for Wren and the children. I’ll meet you here around six and we’ll go to dinner, if that works for you.”
“Perfect.” Giddiness made her grin until her cheeks ached. This moment was incredible. The validation of her career choice and musical talent meant the world. “Thank you for sharing my success.” Hopefully, the depth of her gratitude came through in her voice.
