Page 22 of Playing With My Heart Strings

I nod before getting out of the car. Brett falls behind as the camera crew hooks me up to a microphone and sends me on my way. I walk on the path as instructed until a flash of brown hair catches my attention up ahead. In a matching lilac workout set and her hair pulled back in a high ponytail, Katherine stands by one of those self-service bike rental kiosks.

“Katherine, hey!” I call, prompting her to whirl around with a wide smile on her face.

She meets me in the middle, pulling me into a hug as she greets me, “Hi, Dusty!”

I pull back for a moment to look at her. “You look beautiful.”

Her eyes sparkle as a rosy tint creeps into the apples of her cheeks. “Thank you, you also look incredible.”

“Let’s rent some bikes, shall we?” I gesture to the bike racks. “I haven’t ridden a bike in years, so we’ll see how this goes.”

She laughs at my admission but lightly squeezes my arm. “It’s been a long time for me, too, so we’ll struggle together.”

“Sounds great.” I chuckle as we each unlock a bike and grab a helmet. I secure the strap under my chin before Katherine isable to buckle hers, so I face her and tilt her chin upward before grabbing the straps. “Here,” I murmur as the buckle clicks together.

“Thanks,” she whispers.

I try to ignore the camera crew and the fact that we’re currently mic’d up, trying to treat this like any other date. But the knowledge that someone is watching us crawls up my spine.

I shake off the discomfort as I walk my bike backward. “Shall we?”

We start off slow, and a bit shaky, on our bikes. Well,Istart off shaky, but we get into a rhythm pretty quick where we can pedal side by side and have a conversation.

“So, I’m pretty sure I blacked out during the entire speed dating process,” I admit with a laugh. “Where did you say you were from?”

“I’m from South Carolina,” she replies, not giving me any sort of impression that she’s upset I didn’t remember. “My goal is to move out here permanently, but I do still live in South Carolina right now. Music was a hobby, until it wasn’t.”

“You said you’re a nurse, right?” I ask, remembering at least one detail about her from the whirlwind of a day I had yesterday.

“Yeah, I work in pediatrics. I love it wholeheartedly, and as much as I would love to stay, I tell those kids to follow their dreams. If I’m not following mine, then who am I to give them advice? I owe it to them—especially the ones who won’t get to follow their dreams—to chase mine.” Her face falls slightly, but there’s still a glint of passion in her eyes. I can tell she really loves what she does.

“That’s admirable, truly. The kids you work with are probably so proud that you’re here.” I reach out my arm to touch her shoulder, attempting to ride one-handed. The moment is fast, though, a bit too fast, as I start to lose balance and have to return my attention to the handlebars.

“I miss them, I really do, but I wouldn’t trade this opportunity for the world.” She looks over at me, a seriousness in her eyes. There’s no way I’ll send her home after this. She’s so…genuine. As much as this process is for me, I also want this for her.

“What’s one thing you want to do before you die?” The question pops in my head out of nowhere, falling out of my mouth.

“Like a bucket list item? Hmm…I really want to run a marathon.”

Damn, so she’s pretty, has musical talent, and is athletic?I think to myself.

“How about you?” she asks, after a few moments of quiet.

“Definitely not run a marathon.” I laugh. “I can hardly ride a bike, as you can probably tell. I’m not much of a runner either, so unless walking the marathon is an option, I unfortunately won’t be joining you on that venture. But in all seriousness, I’ve always wanted to play a big music festival like Stagecoach. Or during CMA Fest.”

“You haven’t done that before?” Her eyes widen. “But you’re a big country star?”

I shake my head. “I almost played CMA Fest, but something came up and I wasn’t able to anymore. That was when I was a newer artist, too, and the opportunity just hasn’t arisen again.”

“I hope you get to cross that off your bucket list one day, Dusty Wilder.”

We ride around for about an hour, chatting about things like favorite movies and musical idols. I learn that we have similar tastes in music, both preferring classic country over mainstream Nashville country, a bit ironic considering my label is trying to push me into the mainstream pool of music.

“Katherine, I’m so glad we had this time together.” I take her hand after we return our bikes to the rental kiosk.

“Me too. I feel like I learned a lot about you. And I think you’re a pretty great guy.”

My date with Katherine leaves my body warm and my heart thundering like wild horses in my chest. But I’m only given a couple hours to change and get ready for my next date—axe throwing with five of the other nine women—so I can’t dwell on it for too long.

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