Page 44 of The Friendship Pact

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“Did you know about this?” Nick asked Cole.

From the confused expression on his brother’s face, it seemed he was as surprised as Nick at the popularity of ’80s Night at the Blue Ox.

Cole’s grin widened as he glanced around the bar. “I think Chloe should plan more theme nights. Look at all these people who came out on this cold December night. Brilliant!” While Cole looked at the crowd and calculated the financial windfall, Nick’s eyes were scanning the room for Kate.

Hearing high-pitched squeals from behind him, he turned and stared at his friend. Except if she knew his thoughts at the moment, the pact they’d made would be off the table. Paige flung herself at Ethan with so much gusto he nearly toppled over. Both laughed and then played tonsil hockey. It was time to look away.

Kate came up from behind and clasped her hand in Nick’s. “Hey, friend.”

Seeing that she was clearly tipsy, he smiled, bent down, and whispered into her ear. “You look amazing.” The compliment earned him a slap to the shoulder, her hand resting on his chest.

“Aww. That’s so sweet,” she said.

She probably wouldn’t be so flirty if she knew he wasn’t trying to be sweet, but wanting to kiss her luscious red lips. Before he could make the mistake of kissing Kate in front of the entire crowd, Chloe came over, gathering her girlfriends. “We’re up next!”

As the girls gathered by the stage, Cole motioned the guys over. He had acquired a stand-up table and had already commandeered a bucket of beers for everyone.

“Who’s the sexy brunette?” Ben asked Nick.

Nick swallowed half his beer and answered, “Kate Davis. She’s opening the coffee shop in town.”

Owen nudged his friend. “Watch it, Ben, Nick’s interested.”

“Nope, just friends.” Nick knew by the smiles forming on the guys’ faces that he hadn’t fooled anyone.

“Next up, we have the Bangles plus two,” the DJ crooned into the microphone.

The entire bar reacted with hoots, hollers, and whistles, and the attendees of Ethan’s bachelor party were the loudest by far.

As hard as it was to tear his eyes away from Kate, Nick focused on Rachel. He studied her for a moment, his eyes glossing over as he thought of her late husband—Nick’s best friend. He’d be so damn proud that she had made friends, carrying on and dealing with life and single parenthood as well as could be expected. Though the haunted look was still present in her face, she was smiling, and for that, Nick was grateful.

The ladies did a rendition of “Manic Monday,” the crowd singing along, then transitioned into “Walk Like an Egyptian.” As they moved on to “Eternal Flame,” something happened: they started out singing together, as they’d done with the other songs, but quickly left Kate belting out the lead. The others swayed to the music, content to sing backup, and the shocked look on their faces indicated they too were astonished by their new friend’s incredible voice.

Owen whispered to Nick, “Did you know Kate could sing?”

The lump in Nick’s throat grew as Kate placed her hand upon her chest while singing the ballad, staring at him . . . singing to him. He toyed with the empty bottle in his hand and said, “No idea,” never taking his eyes off her.

* * *

There are moments in life when you’re unsure how someone will react to you, and this was one of those moments. Kate didn’t know what possessed her to sing to Nick. The rum cocktails served before her karaoke performance helped heighten her confidence. She’d performed only one other time in front of a bar full of strangers, in Hawaii on her twenty-first birthday. Tequila sunrises had been the culprit then. Tonight, however, she was dangerously close to overstepping the friendship rule of be friendly, not flirty.

After taking one last bow to the boisterous crowd, Team Bride headed for their private room. The guys followed.

“How did you find us?” Chloe asked.

“From the picture on Town Talk,” Nick said, and grinned at his sister.

“Well, there’s plenty of food,” Chloe said. “Help yourself.”

Nick made his way to the food table and smirked at the R-rated cupcakes. He picked up one of the anatomically correct cupcakes and set it on Ethan’s plate when he wasn’t looking.

“Oh, hell no!” Ethan yelled, causing everyone to turn. Kate’s face heated. Adorable.

Paige moseyed over, reached for the cupcake, and sucked the frosting off. Ethan devoured her mouth afterwards. Everyone left the two lovebirds alone.

Nick sat in the empty chair next to Kate and nudged her. “Your creations?”