“Excuse me.”
I glanced around into the face of one of the ubiquitous Elvises, leering at me as he leaned one elbow on the bar, his body invading my personal space.
I shook my head. “Not interested,” I said.
He straightened up. “Not interested in what?”
“In you.” I couldn’t be more blunt.
“Excuse me, miss, but I was going to ask if you would like to sign up for karaoke.”
So sue me for misunderstanding.
“It’s still a no.” I turned away from him and took a drink from my bottle.
“I’ll sign up!” Bitsy heaved herself off her bar stool and went over to him, telling him her name and saying she’d be up for singing everything.
I rolled my eyes at Joel, who grinned.
“She likes it here,” he said.
“We’re not here to sing karaoke.”
“You may not be, but I think she is.”
The bartender had handed Bitsy her drink over the bar and she carried it, sloshing only slightly, as she followed the karaoke Elvis and his clipboard up toward the stage. This was my worst nightmare.
“I don’t think I want to stay,” I said.
“We can’t leave her here alone.”
“I should go to the shop and check on Ace,” I tried.
“But then you’d miss Simon Chase.”
“He’s not coming here. I have no clue where he’s meeting Elise.” I finished off my beer, putting the bottle on the bar. I was about to get up when Joel put his hand on my arm.
“Don’t be too sure about that,” he said.
Instinctively, I started to turn to look toward the door, but he said, “Don’t look.”
It wasn’t as if Simon Chase wouldn’t notice us here, since we stuck out like the proverbial sore thumbs.
“Where is he?” I whispered.
“He’s going toward the back, toward the restrooms.”
I slid off the stool.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“To the restroom,” I said, seeing Simon’s head bobbing up and down among the Elvises.
I wasn’t quite sure just what I’d do when I confronted him, but this was a public place, it wasn’t his office, and he couldn’t kick me out. I would wait until Elise showed up.
When I turned the corner to go down the hall to the restrooms, he was gone. One Elvis brushed past me, but other than him, I didn’t see anyone. I paused when I reached the door to the men’s room, but I didn’t have the guts to push it open. An Elvis walked out, startling me, so I instinctively walked to the ladies’ room door and went in, my thoughts scrambling as to how I’d find Simon and Elise.
But the question was answered for me as one of the stall doors opened and Elise Lyon came out.
Chapter 39
She was adjusting her shirt, not paying attention. I leaned against the sink and folded my arms across my chest.
“So, fancy meeting you here.”
Her head whipped up and she got that deer-in-the-headlights look, her mouth forming a perfect “O.” She was faster than me, and she managed to push me aside as she ran out of the restroom, the door slamming back in my face.
I bounded out into the hall in three strides and crashed right into someone. I stumbled and fell, sprawled on the floor, which was a little sticky and smelled like booze.
A hand reached down, and as it pulled me up, I looked right into Simon Chase’s face.
He wasn’t smiling.
“I told you not to follow me,” he said.
I shrugged, smoothing out my trousers, which now had streaks of dirt on them, and my hands were speckled with whatever was on the floor, tacky against the material. I wanted to go wash up, but I had a feeling that wasn’t in his plan.
“I didn’t. I’m here for the karaoke,” I said more defiantly than I felt at the moment.
I did see a smile then, trying to come out, tugging at the corners of his mouth, but he kept it at bay. “You don’t seem the karaoke type.”
No kidding, but I had to keep this up now. “My friends and I, well, we’re all signed up.”
Simon took my arm and began to lead me back down the hall toward the music, which got louder and louder as we approached.
“I’d like to see how you do,” he said, not looking at me, which was a good thing because I was in full panic mode.
I hadn’t sung since I was forced to be in the choir in high school. And then I’d been kicked out by Sister Mary Eucharista, who proclaimed I had a “tin ear” and I was “ruining the joyful noise.”
I was going to be ruining more than that if I got up onstage.
“I have to talk to Elise,” I said. “Didn’t you see her?”
Simon stopped short, and I bumped into him.
“No. And you didn’t, either.” His eyes were dark, but instead of scary dark, they were searching mine, seemingly trying to tell me something telepathically.
Sadly, my telepathic powers were lacking. Much like my musical talent.
“What’s going on with her? Why is she running?” I asked.
He just shook his head and jerked on my arm, pulling me forward again.
I couldn’t tell if Simon Chase was a bad guy or a good guy. Was he helping Elise? Was that why she called him? Or was she calling him to confront him about what was going on?
We stepped back out into the bar, and I glanced over at the stage. Bitsy was singing her heart out, blue suede shoes and all that, accompanied by an Elvis who had to be at least six-four.
“Your friend is good,” Simon said thoughtfully.
A thought slammed into my brain. How did he know Bitsy was my friend? He’d met Joel, but not Bitsy. She’d been dissed by the TV people, so he couldn’t have seen her during the 20/20 segment. Where else would he have seen her?
I looked around for Joel. Second time in twenty-four hours that a three-hundred-pound man had disappeared. Made me wonder if David Copperfield wasn’t in town.
The Elvis with the clipboard was checking with everyone to see if they wanted to sing. He took one look at me and started to pass, but Simon stopped him.
“She wants to sing,” he said, his face daring me to contradict him.
The Elvis nodded. “They always come around in the end. How about next?”
One glance at the clipboard told me no one was drunk enough to sign up yet, except for Bitsy. Lucky me.
Simon handed me over, and I didn’t even toss a look back at him. I’d have to just get this over with.
“What will you sing?” the Elvis asked.
I shrugged. “I don’t care.”
“What song do you know?”
I thought a little, and the only Elvis song title I could think of was “Jailhouse Rock,” but who knew what it sounded like? I told him the song, and he grinned.
“Great choice.”
Bitsy was startled when she stepped off the stage and saw me being escorted up. I shrugged at her. I couldn’t think of any way to get out of this.
The Elvis handed me a microphone and showed me the screen where I’d read the words to sing, “just in case you forget them.” Just in case.
The music started, and I had no idea where to jump in, so I just started singing, if that’s what you could call it. My heart was pounding, and I needed a Xanax in the worst way. Fortunately the lights prevented me from seeing the audience, which started to boo about two lines into the song. I wanted it to be like The Gong Show, and someone would hook me around the waist and drag me offstage. But that didn’t happen. I got through the whole song, the booing and hissing aside, and when I stopped, applause broke out.
Probably because it was over.
I rushed offstage, tripping over my own feet as I went down the steps, scanning the room for Simon Chase, but he was gone. Great. He made me suffer my worst humiliation and took off on me.