Chapter Eighteen

The night Norah had planned for weeks was about to get underway, much to the excitement of the women filling the auditorium of the Charleston Civic Center. From her position in the wings, she had a great view of the action. The mood was definitely festive with a backdrop of beautifully decorated Christmas trees and holiday music playing in the background. Other than a few minor setbacks, one of which was temporarily running out of red tablecloths, everything had gone smoothly.

At precisely six fifty-five, the lights dimmed. Those who hadn’t yet found their seats scurried to do so. Norah felt rather than saw Lance come up beside her. She turned her head to look at him. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach.

“Are you sure I can’t talk you into giving the welcome speech?” he asked, smiling.

“Very sure. I’d faint from sheer fright.”

“Why? You talk to groups of people every day.”

“Not this many at one time.”

“I’ve spoken in front of large groups before, but never one this animated.” He glanced at his watch. “Time to get this thing started.” With that, he stepped out of the wings and walked over to the podium.

“Good evening and welcome to the first ever Jingle Bells Bachelor Bash. I’m Lance Langston. On behalf of Fallen Heroes, I want to thank each and every one of you for being here tonight. Your generosity will have a tremendous impact on countless military spouses and their families.

“Before we go any further, there’s someone else I need to thank. This person worked tirelessly to make this night happen. She took a few half-formed ideas and turned them into the largest fundraising event we’ve ever had. I won’t embarrass her by asking her to come out here, but I did want to acknowledge her efforts. It’s not an exaggeration to say that without Norah Comstock, this bachelor auction wouldn’t have happened.

“I’m going to turn things over to Jim Sampson, host of Good Morning, Charleston. He’ll explain the rules and introduce our first bachelor. Happy bidding, ladies!”

There was a roar of applause along with a shower of whistles. A few women asked if they could bid on him. Lance looked a little embarrassed by the attention, something Norah found both adorable and endearing.

“Thanks for not making me go out there,” she whispered when he rejoined her in the wings.

“I make no promises about next year,” he whispered back.

His reference to the fact that they’d be working together warmed her heart as did his comment earlier in the afternoon when he said they made a good team. They might never be more to each other than what they were right now, but Lance made even friendship something very special.

From the time the first bachelor was announced, the pace of the evening shifted to warp speed. The only weird moment for Norah was when it was Perry’s turn. She hadn’t purposely tried to avoid him, but neither had she sought him out. Two days wasn’t long enough to forget what passed between them. As sad a fact as it was, she hoped it would be a long time before they ran into each other again.

Just before they called his name, Perry said in a low voice, “Some people want love so badly that they see it where it doesn’t exist. With you, it’s the opposite. You fail to see it where it does.”

There wasn’t time to ask what he meant. He was already stepping out of the shadows into the light.

* * * * *

Carolyn came to where Lance was leaning against the wall at the back of the auditorium. “I think we can call this evening a resounding success.”

“I agree. It was worth the price of admission just to watch it all unfold. I can’t think of another experience to compare with it.”

“Maybe the date Iris won with the fireman will turn into something. That would get her out of your hair.”

“We can only hope.”

“Did Jody leave already?”

“Yes. She wanted to be home before Logan went to bed.” Lance didn’t add that Hunter had volunteered to babysit so Jody could have an evening out. He had little doubt that Carolyn would pick up on what was happening soon enough. Like most women, she had a nose for that sort of thing.

“I need to head that way myself.”

“Thanks for coming, Carolyn.”

“I would have come just for you, but there was plenty of added incentive.”

He chuckled. “I noticed. Got any ideas for how I can get all these people to leave?”

“As long as you’ve got shirtless guys willing to have their pictures taken, you’re not going anywhere. I’ll see you on Monday.”

“Enjoy the rest of your weekend.”

As he looked around the room, he realized he hadn’t seen Norah since the auction ended. She had to be here somewhere. She wouldn’t have left without telling him, plus Perry was still here, surrounded by a crowd of admirers. As expected, the billionaire bachelor generated the most excitement and by far the highest bids of the evening. Lance had no particular ax to grind with Perry. He only envied him one thing.

He spotted Louise coming his way. “I think you’ve found your calling.”

She laughed. “Doing things like this is similar to eating a piece of chocolate cake. It’s great every now and then, but it doesn’t work as a steady diet.”

“I take it that means I can count on you next year.”

“I’d be upset if you didn’t. I’ll send some pictures to the newspaper as well as to Shirley. She can pick and choose what she wants to use for Fallen Heroes’ website and social media. Were there any calendars left?”

“Are you kidding? We sold out before the show started. Women were buying two and three at a time.”

“To give as Christmas presents, I guess. I need to find Angela. She and I rode together. I’ll probably have to drag her out of here. She won the date with Perry. Oddly enough, he came by the shop yesterday. They talked for quite a while.”

“I think they know each other. I saw them together the day we were at your studio.”

“Very interesting.”

“Interesting, how?”

“I sensed lots of chemistry between those two.”

Lance laughed. “Are we back to that?”

“I’m going to make a believer out of you yet.”

It was a good thing Louise didn’t know how tempted Lance was to believe her. “I’ll let you track down Angela. I need to find Norah.”

“I saw her heading backstage with Jim not long ago.”

“Then that’s where I’m going.”

She winked at him. “Remember what I said about those wedding plans.”

He grinned. “You don’t give up, do you? See ya around, Louise.”

Lance found Norah talking to one of the civic center staff. When she finished, she walked over to where he stood waiting.

“I was making sure nothing got left in the dressing rooms. Are things winding down out there?”

“Not much. If you could induce Perry to leave, that might get the ball rolling. I’m sure he’s had his fill of glory for one night.”

She didn’t smile as he thought she would. “I agree, but I’m not the person he wants to see right now.”

“Why? Is he afraid to advertise the fact that he’s got a girlfriend?”

“No, it’s not that.” Her eyes shifted away from him. “Perry and I broke up.”

Lance ignored the sudden roaring in his ears. “When?” he asked more sharply than he intended.

“Thursday night.”

A flame of white-hot rage swept through him. “The arrogance and conceit of this guy is unbelievable,” he said through clenched teeth. “He gets a second chance to make things right, and he throws it away. For someone who’s supposed to be a genius, he’s incredibly stupid. What is his prob…” He felt her hand come down on his arm. 

“Lance! Listen to me! You’ve got it wrong. I’m the one who broke things off.”

He could hardly believe what he was hearing. “I…see.” 

A faint smile touched her lips. “Do you?”

“Not really,” he admitted, running his fingers through his hair. “Based on everything that’s happened since I showed up at Rico’s, this is the last thing I expected you to say.”

“That’s not surprising. My actions since that night you mentioned have been inconsistent to say the least. It took me a while to figure out that what I thought I wanted wasn’t what I wanted at all.”

Violet’s words floated through Lance’s mind. The reason Norah and this other guy broke up before might still exist. How they deal with it will determine whether they make a go of things a second time. “How did Perry take the news?”

“Much better than I probably would have. It sounds strange to say, but I think he was expecting it.”

Lance certainly hadn’t been. This was a turn of events he’d never seen coming. “I’m sorry all this happened when you already had so much going on with the auction.”

“I didn’t mind that. It gave me something else to think about. There’s always an emotional letdown when a relationship ends. The person who’s been so much a part of your thoughts and actions isn’t there anymore. You’re back to square one.”

Square one? That’s the words Jody used to describe where Lance was. That meant he and Norah were finally in the same place. He started to smile. “That’s where having a fake boyfriend on retainer comes in handy.”

“I’d forgotten about that. As a matter of interest, are you still in need of a fake girlfriend?”

“I am. The holidays are always a bad time of year to be unattached. What do you say?”

Her smile was wistful. “I’m game if you are.”

“How soon are you available? I could use a date for the tree lighting. Jody invited Hunter to come with us. I’m sure Hunter would probably prefer I make myself scarce, and to be honest, the idea of being a third wheel isn’t very appealing.”

“That could work. I don’t have a date for the tree lighting.”

“Excellent.” He held up his hand to his ear. “It’s awfully quiet out there. We should probably go find out what’s going on.”

Later when he escorted Norah to her car, Lance was still trying to wrap his head around the sudden change of events. He didn’t know if he believed in Louise’s ‘chemistry’ theory, but he did agree with the old saying ‘strike while the iron’s hot’.