Love at Large (22 page)

Felicia placed an arm around her friend’s shoulders. “Hey girl, we all have those guys that we wish we’d kept. It’s part of being a woman, but none of us can live on what might have been. But since you do have that fortune maybe you shouldn’t completely ignore the past.”

Everyone laughed and toasted the elusive someone from Fallon’s past, while she hoped the person from the fortune would be Marcus. The four friends finished their meal, paid the bill, and caught a cab to the karaoke bar.

The bar was more crowded than usual, but they had no problem getting a decent table. Fallon noticed many men watching them as they moved across the small dance floor to the available table, although the others seemed oblivious to the admiring looks thrown their way. She wasn’t surprised because each woman was eye-catching and beautiful, and she knew they made a stunning picture.

Felicia’s short, cropped blonde hair contrasted with her milk chocolate skin and vibrant green eyes, and she used chokers and flashy earrings to accentuate her features. Even though the woman had a top-heavy build, Fallon knew she always selected clothing to accentuate her cleavage.

Camille was the tallest of the quartet, and Fallon admired how she showed off her height by wearing spiky heels at every opportunity. Camille’s envy-inducing waist-length chestnut hair and almond-shaped eyes the shade of pewter gave her an exotic look. Fallon appreciated how her friend never slumped nor slouched, but carried her larger body with pride and dignity, wearing clothing to flatter her shape.

And then there was Sandra, slender yet curvy in all the right places, but the smallest of the foursome. She had confided in Fallon that sometimes she wished she were larger, but tried to never let that discourage her when she was in the midst of their voluptuous beauty. Fallon thought Sandra was stunning with her classic brunette hair and blue eyes.

Over the din of the crowd in the dimly lit bar, Sandra asked Fallon what had her looking so pensive. Fallon gestured for her friends to draw closer, and the three women leaned toward her. “I’m still thinking about Marcus. I’m sorry, I just can’t help myself.”

Felicia placed her hand on her friend’s shoulder. “Girl, I know it’s hard to forget some of the guys from your past, but we all know they rarely turn out to be as perfect as they are in our memories. Face it, Marcus is probably some deformed, hunch-backed ogre, just waiting to capture a sweet, tender morsel like you.”

Camille furrowed her brow and snorted. “An ogre? Where’d that one come from?”

Felicia shrugged. “You never know. He might have a bushy uni-brow or walk with his knuckles dragging the ground.”

Fallon grinned. “You are too funny. He was handsome in a ‘smart guy’ kind of way. He had these sweet nervous tics of either pushing his glasses up his nose or running his hand through his hair when he got agitated or excited.” She sighed. “It’s probably just wishful thinking on my part, but I’d like to think that he’s still the same. He definitely wasn’t typical as a teen-aged boy. At sixteen, he was telling me I was his personal ray of sunshine and that I completed him.”

She closed her eyes then opened them. “I just wish I’d known then what I know now, because I never would have let him go. I’m not even sure why I lost contact with him anyway.” She snorted a wry laugh. “I feel like such an idiot, and you know how I hate that.”

The other women smiled, and Felicia tilted her head. “You’re beautiful and intelligent, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Marcus thinks about you as much as you think about him.” She winked. “I might have told you not to dwell in the past, but it seems like everything is conspiring to keep you there.”

Fallon gazed at her. “You’re right, enough about the past, no matter how sweet and wonderful it might seem.” She wrinkled her nose and placed a finger in her ear. “Right now, what’s not so sweet and wonderful is that horrible caterwauling.” She inclined her head toward the stage.

Camille, Sandra, and Felicia turned and nodded in agreement at the man butchering Queen’s “We are the Champions.”

Felicia leaned forward and asked, “Could he sound any more like a cat being skinned?”

Her friends giggled, and Camille said, “Well, Felicia, it sounds as if we’re in need of some relief. Time for you to show ‘em how it’s done.”

“Yeah, I probably should.” Felicia grinned. “I just don’t know what to sing tonight. I want something a little different from my usual stuff.”

Fallon snapped her fingers. “I know. How about something upbeat, something to get their toes a-tappin’?”

“What did you have in mind?”

“Disco.”

Felicia’s eyes sparkled. “Oooh, I like the sound of that. A little something to make people boogie oogie oogie, and that’s it. I’ll be right back. I’m going to turn in my request.”

Camille leaned over and asked Fallon, “How about you? Are you going to sing tonight?”

“Yes, I’m thinking about singing one that seems to go along with the theme of my first kiss.”

“‘Tonight, I Celebrate My Love’?” Sandra asked.

Fallon nodded.

“That’s a good song.”

Camille agreed, “Yeah, I wish they wrote more songs like that.”

Felicia returned to the table. “All right, Fallon, get up there and make your request. Alan’s expecting you.”

Fallon grinned at the mention of the bar’s deejay. “Do you think he’s ready for me in a nostalgic mood? I’m going to make it easy on him tonight, because I’m pretty certain he’s going to have my song.”

“What song?” Felicia asked.

“‘The song.’”

“Roberta Flack and Peabo Bryson?”

Felicia’s smile was infectious, and Fallon returned it. “Yeah.”

“Good choice.”

“I was thinking about dedicating the song to Marcus and the memory of that night.” She wrinkled her nose and scrunched up her face. “Not that he’s going to be here to hear the dedication.”

“It’s still a cool idea,” Felicia replied. Her eyes widened, and she said, “It would be spooky if Marcus happened to be here and heard you dedicate it to him.” She snapped her fingers. “That would definitely count as that fortune coming true. He’s someone from your past, and he already seems to have stolen your heart.”

Fallon raised her eyebrow. “I don’t see a remote possibility of him being here.”

“And why not?”

“Come on, surely Erik would have mentioned it by now if Marcus lived here, wouldn’t he?”

“You never know. Perhaps Erik didn’t think it appropriate considering the history between you and Marcus, especially since Marcus was married. Maybe Erik didn’t want to stir up any trouble,” said Felicia.

“I hadn’t thought of that. But why not mention it now that Marcus is single again?”

“I don’t know, but I’m just saying he
could
show up here, right?”

“Technically speaking, yes. But even when we met, we lived in separate states.”

“Right, and you moved out here after college. Who’s to say he didn’t move out here too?”

Fallon furrowed her brow. “I don’t know. It would be too coincidental, don’t you think?”

Felicia shrugged. “Maybe. But stranger things have happened. Let’s drink a toast to strange things happening tonight.”

They raised their glasses, and Camille said, “Here’s to truth being stranger than fiction, and to Marcus showing up here tonight.”

The other three women said “Here, here,” then turned to watch the next person on the stage. Fallon excused herself and walked up toward the front of the bar to turn in her karaoke request.

A
T A TABLE
on the other side of the bar, a man covered his face with his hand and groaned, then peered at his friend from between his splayed fingers. “Erik, tell me again why on earth you wanted to come here. You don’t strike me as the karaoke type.”

“Oh come on, Marcus, what could be more fun than watching a bunch of tipsy people butcher songs and make idiots of themselves?” Erik smiled and sipped his beer. “And you never know, there might be a decent singer in the lot.”

Marcus rolled his eyes and shuddered in revulsion. “Maybe a few, but not enough to make up for this woman. I don’t think she could be any more off-key if she tried.” He inclined his head toward the stage and the woman slaughtering “Black Velvet.”

Erik laughed. “You might be right, but I could probably top her.”

“Please, have mercy on me and everyone here, and don’t.”

“Hey, I seem to recall you had a pretty decent singing voice at one time. Why don’t you get up there and perform something?”

Marcus arched his eyebrow. “And why should I do something like that?”

“Because I deserve to hear something better than this.”

“Ha! You brought us here, so you suffer the consequences.” He lifted his glass in salute and took a large gulp, then glanced around the crowd, pausing for a moment as he stared at a table across the bar with four beautiful women. Leaning over, he strained to see the women clearly and cursed the dim lighting. He wished he could see more than just the flash of red hair, and wondered if his eyes were playing a trick on him.

He jabbed his elbow against Erik’s arm. “Hey, look over there. Doesn’t that redhead seem familiar?”

Erik looked in the direction of Marcus’ gaze. “I’m not sure. I can’t tell much in this place. It’s too dark.”

The two men watched the voluptuous, titian-haired woman walk over to the sign-up area and make a request then return to her table.

“She seems familiar, but I just can’t tell in this lighting,” said Marcus. He closed his eyes and reached for his non-existent glasses. His desire to see Fallon again was making him hallucinate.

Erik clapped him on the back. “She may or may not be familiar, but from what I can see in this light, she’s pretty. Why don’t we go over and see?”

Marcus shook his head. “I don’t know, Erik. I think it’s just a bad case of wishful thinking on my part. What with the conversation about first kisses this afternoon and seeing a redhead, it’s a case of wishing it was Fallon. And I don’t think I want to go to all this effort only to find out it’s not her.”

“Suit yourself, buddy. Check it out. It looks like one of her friends is taking a turn at the mike.” He rolled his eyes. “I just hope she’s a decent singer at the very least.”

The blonde haired African-American woman left the table and sashayed up to the microphone. At the sound of her smoky, sultry voice filling the bar, Marcus arched his eyebrow and looked at Erik. Erik smiled when she began moving her hips to the music.

“She’s good,” Marcus said.

Erik stared at the woman. “She’s also hot.”

Marcus laughed. “Now I know why you wanted to come here. You’re on the prowl again, and I think I know who your next ‘victim’ will be.”

“Maybe.” Erik grinned. The woman invited the crowd to sing and dance as she shook her body to Taste of Honey’s “Boogie Oogie Oogie.” When she finished, they stood up and cheered.

She returned to her table, and Erik kept his gaze trained across the room. “She’s really good; better than the last singer. I’d like to meet her, and you could meet that redhead.”

“I tell you what, I’ll get us another drink while you head over there.” Marcus stood and lifted his glass to take another sip.

Erik grinned. “I’ll take you up on that offer of a drink, but I’ll wait to go over there.”

Sipping the last of his soda as his gaze returned to the redhead, Marcus grabbed the glasses from the table and headed for the bar. Halfway across the room, he stopped in his tracks and looked around when he heard a somewhat familiar sound.

He muttered, “It can’t be. I’m just imagining things. There’s no way that was Fallon.” He frowned. “It’s an auditory hallucination brought on by Cassie LeBeau and her damn talk about first kisses.”

He resumed his trek through the tables then waited at the bar to place his drink order. He considered mentioning his suspicion to Erik when he returned, but knew it was too incredible to hope that the red-haired woman and someone with a similar laugh meant Fallon was there.

F
ELICIA RETURNED TO
the table and asked her friends, “Well?”

They smiled but didn’t speak.

“What? Do you want us to fall to our knees, bowing and scraping, and saying, ‘We’re not worthy, O great one’?” Fallon teased after a moment, “Do you want us to tell you that you sounded fantastic up there? You know you did, so don’t push your luck, girlfriend.”

“Yeah, I know.” Felicia spread her mouth wide in a cocky grin.

Fallon snorted. “You’re just fishing, and you know it.”

The women elbowed each other and rolled their eyes before turning to face the current singer. The deejay called Fallon’s name four songs later, and she strode up to the microphone. Once onstage, her vision was blinded by the bright spotlight, and she couldn’t see a thing but the lyrics

She cleared her throat and spoke into the mike. “I know a lot of you listen to Cassie LeBeau and probably heard her discussing first kisses this afternoon. She brought back memories of my first kiss, so I’d like to dedicate this song to someone from my past. On my sixteenth birthday, he gave me my first kiss, and this song was playing in the background. I always think of him when I hear it.”