The Blind Date

“Think we can get her into a different outfit? Jeans and a T-shirt aren’t exactly the standard.”

I glare at Arielle. “I’m not changing clothes. I’m not going.”

“Like hell you’re not. Arielle put out the Bat signal and got everyone rallied on short notice. You always take care of us. It’s our turn to take care of you. What do you need?” Eli prompts.

“Chocolate cake, vodka, and a bath,” I answer drolly. I don’t think he expected me to have an answer, much less that one.

Arielle’s eyes narrow. I’ve seen this face before. It’s the one she uses on non-compliant patients when she’s about to steamroll over them and get her way. “I can make all three of those happen, but first, you’re coming out with us. You need it.”

Eli moves to stand at Arielle’s shoulder, presenting a united front. He talks to Arielle as if I’m not sitting right here in front of them. “Flip flops would be easiest.”

“On it,” Arielle answers, and then she disappears down the hall. A moment later, she comes back with the pair of flip flops I wear when I go to get pedicures.

“Ready?” Eli asks . . . Arielle again, not me. She nods, and I shake my head, even though this conversation apparently doesn’t involve me.

Eli charges me, dropping his shoulder to my middle and scooping me up from the couch to toss me over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. I guess his workouts are helping after all because he heads for the door with ease.

“No! Eli! Put me down!” I yell, kicking my bare feet.

Arielle uses my own flip-flop to spank my ass. “Hush. You’ll thank us later. And everyone’s already waiting, so we don’t have time to prod your whiny ass into action.”

“Waiting where? I don’t want to go to McGillicutty’s,” I argue. Truthfully, I don’t want to go anywhere, except maybe to bed to sleep off this headache I have from crying.

Eli carries me to the curb and tosses me in the passenger seat of his car unceremoniously. “Don’t tell her. It’ll be like a fun surprise,” he conspires with Arielle as he buckles my seatbelt.

He closes the door on me, both him and Arielle going around to the driver’s side. He opens the back door for Arielle like a gentleman, which pisses me off for no good reason. And then Eli gets in and starts the car.

“I kinda hate you right now. You know that, right?” I ask him snottily. Like actual snot, not like I’m being bitchy. I do wonder if that might have a better effect because Eli is immune to my grossness.

“It’s a thin line between love and hate,” he tells me, though he glances in the rearview mirror. Ugh, I wish they’d get things straightened out between them. They deserve to be happy, even if I never get the chance to be.

Eli drives to the place it all began . . . Briar Rose Mall. But he parks at the line-up of stores that surround the mall’s parking lot. We’ve been here before too. The window fronts and door are black-out tinted, and there’s a large neon sign proclaiming Karaoke. When we don’t do Irish pubs and hoops, we’ve been known to drink too much and sing badly here.

“No. Absolutely not,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.

Arielle leans forward and pushes the button to release my seatbelt, telling Eli, “Just grab her again.”

My jaw drops in shock. It drops even further when Eli scoops me out of the passenger seat, back over his shoulder, and starts walking toward the door.

“Everything okay?” the lady doing check-ins at the front desk asks as we come in.

“No. They kidnapped me,” I intone flatly from my upside-down vantage point.

“Bad fight with the boyfriend,” Arielle says as if that explains everything.

“Ooh, sing some mad chick songs then. Get that fire out of your belly. You look like an Ariana Grande sort. You got one less problem without him,” the front desk lady sings the last part in perfect pitch.

“What if I’m the problem?” I ask as Eli carries me past her.

He must see Simon, Becky, and Loretta because he seems to know where he’s going. I’m not sure because I’m still upside down and the neon lights are messing with my vision. I just know I’m plopped into a booth in a small private room.

“Hey, baby,” Loretta says, scooting in next to me on one side. Arielle and Eli file in after her on my left. Becky and Simon slide in on my right. I’m trapped, which I’m guessing was their intention. “How’re you doing?”

I look at their eyes, full of worry and concern for me. I try to force my lips to lift into something resembling a smile. “I’ll be okay. Thanks for this,” I mutter, waving my hand around, vaguely gesturing to them and the karaoke club.