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She made an acknowledging hand gesture as she walked away, and seconds later, the crowd roared with applause as Jake finished his song and took a bow.
The grin on his face stretched from ear-to-ear when he returned to the table and took his seat.
“Well I must say, well done, Captain Wright,” I complimented, clinking my glass to his bottle.
“Thank you, thank you. That was a rush. It’s been ages since I sang karaoke.”
“You did great. Do you think the costume helped?”
“Yeah, it definitely made a difference. It’s kind of like getting into character.” He slipped the glasses off his face and tucked them into a pocket. “Speaking of, it doesn’t look like you’re in a costume.”
“No, I’m not. We didn’t realize there was a contest, if you can believe it. Tessa and I come here pretty much every month, and it’s usually dead. I think we do it out of habit more than anything.”
“If it makes a difference, I think you look great either way.”
Warmth spread across my cheeks. “Thank you.”
“So where did Tessa go? I didn’t scare her off, did I?”
“Nah, she’s hunting.”
His head tilted. “Hunting, like hunting with a gun?”
“No,” I laughed. “It’s sort of a long story, but I’ll try to keep it brief. A while back, Tessa met a guy, and even though she knew he was only in town for the week, she was really into him. She thought they had something, and she was all invested in the idea of a long-distance relationship. Like she was ready to go all in.”
“After a week?”
I shrugged. “I know. She can be impulsive like that. Anyway, they have a great week. He promises to keep in touch, and does a little at first, but just gradually replies less. Then she gets a message from someone explaining that they were the guy’s fiancé and to stop texting him.”
“Ouch!”
“Yeah. So she told her what that guy had done while he was here, claiming he was single and thinking of moving to Aspen Ridge in order to hook up on his boy’s trip. After that, Tessa has taken it as her personal mission to get back at guys like that.”
“Woah, she tracks down their girlfriends and everything?”
“Nah, she’s more clever now, and she doesn’t really want to get involved. She mostly flirts and strings them along—so they don’t try it with anyone else, you understand—and then ghosts them on their last night in town. It’s kind of diabolical, but also kind of hilarious.”
“Remind me never to get on her bad side.”
“Will do, but just so you know, she already said she likes you.”
“It was the mustache, wasn’t it? Ladies love the ‘stach.”
Laughter bubbled out of me. “No, definitely not the ‘stach. But take the compliment, she doesn’t like many people.”
“Well, thanks, I think.”
“You’re welcome.”
Our conversation piddled out, and we focused on our drinks. The current singer was a woman in a hot pink, ruffled dress with black fishnets on her arms, belting out a Pat Benatar song, and she was fantastic. When the applause for her died down, Andy announced, “Now it’s time for some of our regulars. Let’s get Ellie and Tessa up here!”
“That’s me!” Tessa shouted, sprinting for the stage with her hands up. I followed, suddenly self-conscious that I wasn’t in costume. Tessa had stolen some guy’s baseball cap, and with her faded KISS t-shirt and ripped grey jeans, she almost looked like she was in costume.
“Let’s kill this,” she flipped the cap backwards on her head and bumped my hip with hers, handing me a second mic.
I don’t know why, but sudden nerves wriggled in my belly. I was used to this place being dead when we sang.
A loud whistle caught my attention, and I glanced through the bright stage lights to see Jake with his fingers in his mouth. The whistle ended, and he waved, cheering us on.
