“Sure did.” I swung my legs off the sofa and excitedly rolled to my feet. I wasn’t sure it would get here in time. “Give me that.”
He stepped back from my reaching arms, eyeing me suspiciously. “Why are you making that face?”
“What face?”
“The evil genius face. Like a villain who’s cackling and stroking a cat while plotting the destruction of her enemy. That’s the face you’re making.”
“Maybe because Iamplotting the destruction of my enemy.” I leaned forward like I had a secret. “I’m going to win karaoke tonight. Now, give me my package.”
He handed it over. “Karaoke is not a competition. It’s a fun, casual bonding experience.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Jeremiah. Everything is acompetition. I’m going to win, and you’re going to help me. You owe me.”
He crossed his arms. “What do you mean, I owe you? What do I owe you for?”
“Lots of things. For snooping on me instead of asking me for the truth. Figuring out I shouldn’t be here and then not telling me. Leaving me with Holly.” I flicked my wrist. “Pick one.”
“I left you with Liam.”
“So you have two other perfectly good options to choose from.”
With a deep sigh, he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Lennon, honey. You’re talking about a suicide mission. Holly loves karaoke, and she’s not going to take kindly to being knocked out of the spotlight. Trust me, whatever you’re planning, you don’t want to do it.”
“I do. I really, really do.” I squeezed the package to my chest giddily.
“Tell me why this is so important to you.”
I chewed my cheek, searching for the right words. “I told the sheriff that I don’t have enemies, but the more I think about it, the more I realize that’s not really true. I have enemies. The trolls who harass me online. The postcard stalker. They know how to hit me right where it hurts. But I can’t hit back. I don’t know who they are. They’re ghosts. But Holly…she’s not some anonymous troll typing mean shit at three a.m. She’s flesh and blood. She has feelings. I can finally hit back.”
“Dammit.” Jeremiah planted his hands on his hips, staring at me. “All right. What do you need? You want me to sneak the machine up here for extra practice time?”
I laughed. “So I can make the squirrels out our window regret their life choices? No, thank you.”
He tilted his head in obvious confusion. “What do you mean? You can’t sing?”
“Not a single note,” I admitted cheerfully. “Female cats in heat have better vocals than I do.”
He blinked slowly. “Are you telling me you’re willing to humiliate yourself just to piss off Holly? You understand there’s no real winning here.”
My grin widened. “Oh, it’s much worse than that, I’m afraid. See, I’m not only willing to humiliate myself. I’m willing to humiliate you, too.” I ripped open the seal and pulled out the shrink wrapped bag inside. “I need scissors.”
Shaking his head, he moved to the efficiency kitchen and rummaged through a drawer. He pulled out the scissors, stared at them for a moment, then shook his head. “Like falling on my own sword,” he muttered, but he handed them over anyway. “I don’t know why I’m helping you. This is a terrible idea.”
“Men do all kinds of silly things for sex.”
He cleared his throat. “I was under the impression I was going to get sex anyway.”
I looked up. There was something about his expressionthat made me want to throw aside my evil karaoke plans and drag him to bed. Maybe it was the heat that made his blue eyes darken to twilight. Or the way his cheeks flushed whenever the subject of sex came up. “We could do that right now, if you want.”
He quirked an eyebrow at me.
“Fine,” I grumbled. “Keep wooing me, then.”
He grabbed the hand that was closed around the scissors blades and lifted it to his mouth, pressing a kiss to the inside of my wrist. “All right.”
I rolled my eyes despite the swoop of butterflies in my stomach. “Can I have my hand back, please? I have a nemesis to overthrow.”
“I still don’t understand how singing badly is going to do anything but make everyone feel sorry for you. Is that it? Are you going for the pity vote? You do understand that there isn’t actual voting involved, right?”
