“And I was so thrilled she did.” Taking his hand from my knee, Lucas put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. “Best surprise ever.”
I managed a tight-lipped smile before taking a big swallow of wine. “You know me. I love surprises.”
Lucas squeezed my shoulder and kissed my cheek. “Want another glass of wine?”
“Yeah,” I whispered in his ear. “To throw at her.”
This could be a long night.
Chapter Six
5 Annoying Things (Out of 100,
but that’s only after two hours—the real number
is probably more like 1000) About Jessica
1) She tosses her hair. A lot. Like she’s in a goddamn L’Oréal commercial.
2) She laughs at everything Lucas says, often leaning over to slap his leg or punch his shoulder.
3) She enjoys bringing up old times, inside jokes, and wink-wink anecdotes that involve Lucas, and whenever he or anyone else tries to include me in the conversation, somehow she maneuvers things so that I can’t contribute.
4) She speaks f**king French. Fluently. And she takes great pleasure in conversing with Lucas in a language I do not understand.
5) She sings. And she’s good.
At some point in the evening, the jazz trio took a break and the pianist, a wiry bald guy named Mark, came over to say hello to Lucas. Jessica knew him too, and while they played another round of Remember When, I turned to Andrea and asked where she lived in New York, and we got into a discussion about various neighborhoods in the city, and how Detroit compared to New York.
So I missed the part of the conversation when it was decided that Lucas and Jessica would get up and do a song together.
“Do you mind, Mia?”
I turned to Lucas with a blank look. “Mind what?”
“Of course she doesn’t.” Jessica was already out of her seat and tugging on his arm. “I’m sure she loves hearing you play.”
Confused, I glanced at the corner where the trio was set up and saw the guitar resting on the floor next to a wooden stool. “You’re going to sit in?”
“He’s going to do a song with me. One quick tune.” She flashed me her fake smile. “Any requests?”
Yeah, go f**k yourself.
“Mia, I don’t have to.” Lucas looked at me like he was trying to read my face, which I’m sure said Stone Cold Bitch.
I tried to warm it up a little. What good would it do to make a big deal over this? It was just a song, and I didn’t want to give Jessica the satisfaction of knowing she got under my skin. “No, no, go on, please. I love hearing you play.” Digging my fingernails into my thighs, I even smiled ghoulishly at Jessica. “How fun!”
With a triumphant smile, she sauntered toward the corner with Mark.
Lucas kissed my cheek. “Be right back.”
Over the rim of my wine glass I watched Lucas pick up the guitar and get situated on the stool while Mark returned to the piano. Jessica stood between them, and the three chatted briefly before Mark handed Jessica the mic.
She introduced herself and her “old friend” Lucas before thanking Mark for letting them sit in “for old times’ sake.” Then she f**king winked at Lucas and tossed her hair. I sipped my wine.
Nostrils. Flaring.
I glanced at Lucas’s friends to see who was picking up on the tension, but none of them made eye contact with me except Andrea, whose isn’t-this-exciting smile barely hid the note of you-poor-thing in her expression.
Did I say sipped? I meant guzzled.
As Mark played the opening chords of the song, I said a quick prayer. Dear God, I know this is not nice of me but please, please let her not be that good a singer. She doesn’t have to be awful, just unpleasant enough that I see some noses wrinkle in the crowd.
No such luck.
To my chagrin, Jessica’s voice was genuinely sweet and lovely, a marked contrast to her tart personality and saccharine smile. She sang “Bye Bye Blackbird,” and the crowd, which had been noisy a moment before, quieted from almost her very first note. I was so busy hating her I forgot to listen to Lucas’s guitar playing, but I did notice the way they occasionally looked at each other during the song. Was that really necessary? Despite the sub-zero temperatures outside, my blood was boiling. I felt like walking outside to cool off.
Calm down. She’s making eye contact with Mark too. They both are. They probably have to watch each other in order to figure out who solos when or how to end the song.
When the last notes faded, the room echoed with applause. Resisting the urge to boo, I half-heartedly clapped a few times, only so I didn’t appear rude.
“Lucas is really good,” said Andrea.
“He is,” I agreed, although I honestly hadn’t heard one note he’d played.
They returned to the table, and Lucas put his arm around me right away. “You OK?”
I forced a smile. “Sure. That was great.” And really f**king annoying.
“We should do that more often, Luc.” Patting his shoulder, Jessica sat down and sipped her water. “I almost forgot how good you are.” She winked at him. “At everything.”
Oh, f**k that.
“I need to use the bathroom.” I lurched to my feet, my jaw tight. “Any idea where it is?”
“I know where it is.” Jessica picked up her clutch from the table and stood. “I’ll go with you.”
Lucas looked as if he wanted to protest, but what could he say? And I’d have rather gone to the bathroom with Jack the Ripper, but I couldn’t think of a polite reason to decline her offer. “OK. I’ll follow you.”