Page 35 of Cursed (Witchbane #8)
“I’ll go have a look,” Seth replied. “The rest of the food is yours. It’s pretty addictive.”
Seth walked away to see the displays, and Evan dug in. Lunch seemed like a long time ago, and he’d had a nervous stomach over the whole idea of shopping for engagement rings and actually, finally, being engaged .
Evan popped a chip in his mouth and paused as the light caught his new ring. We’re really engaged.
He had often thought about pledging their commitment to one another but hesitated because it never seemed like quite the right time, or he feared it might be used against them. Evan felt pleased that Seth had been the one to bring it up, reassuring him that he was not alone in his feelings.
He splayed the fingers on his right hand, moving his hand so that the light glinted on the metal and admired the craftsmanship of the ring.
It finally happened.
Evan hadn’t doubted his feelings for Seth since the very beginning. Time and shared danger strengthened their bond, and he had lost count of the number of times they had taken crazy chances to rescue each other.
He glanced up as Seth returned and caught his partner looking at his own ring. Evan laughed. “Still a little surreal, right? You okay with it?”
Seth met his gaze with a sultry smile. “Much more than okay. Just can’t quite believe it’s real.”
“I promise to make you very sure it’s real when we get home tonight,” Evan told him in his sexiest voice.
Dinner was even better than Evan expected, and he was surprised that he nearly finished his portion as did Seth.
“The food is fantastic, although I doubt they had the same options aboard pirate ships,” Evan said. “Or dessert.”
They ordered the cheesecake, and Seth checked his watch. “I should call Milo before it gets any later. He’ll have my hide if he hears the news from someone else.”
Evan waited as Seth called his mentor. “Hey, Milo. You and Toby doing okay?”
“Yeah…we’re fine. How about you? Everything going okay with the job?”
“We had good backup for the job—it’s handled,” Seth replied, speaking in code because of the people in earshot. “But I wanted to let you know: Evan and I are engaged.”
Evan heard a whoop in the background that he knew was Milo’s partner, Toby.
“Well, it’s about damn time,” Milo said, straightforward as ever. “We wondered when the two of you would get your heads out of your asses and make it official. Got a date planned?”
Seth and Evan both laughed at Milo’s response. “No date yet, but we bought rings,” Seth told him. “Don’t worry, when we figure everything out, you’ll be the first to know.”
“Damn right,” Milo replied. “We’d better be. You had help with this job. Everyone okay?”
Compared to some of the battles, they were pretty unscathed this time.
“Yeah, folks were drained and a little knocked around, but nothing serious. Teag and Rowan headed back to Charleston, and they’ll make sure the right people give the ‘leftovers’ a good home with them,” Seth said.
“I can’t say more now, but I can call later if you want details. ”
“You doing anything to celebrate?” Milo asked.
“Dinner and a drag show,” Evan replied, leaning toward the phone. “Doing the town in style.”
Milo and Toby laughed. “Wow, it’s been a while since we’ve been to one of those,” Toby said. “Enjoy yourselves and paint the town red.”
“We’ll call when we get on the road and fill in the details,” Seth promised as the server came with their dessert. “Gotta go, they’re bringing more food.”
“Stop in when you get the chance, it’s been a while,” Toby said. “And congratulations!”
Seth ended the call and looked at the plates in front of them. “That looks delicious, and I swear it’s the biggest piece of cheesecake I’ve ever seen.”
“I guess pirates lived large since they didn’t know if they’d live long,” Evan replied, not mentioning that they had some similarities to their own situation. “And no one ever regretted good dessert.”
The house-made cheesecake with raspberry sauce proved a perfect ending for their meal. Once they paid the bill, they drove to the club with the drag show Evan had chosen.
“I went with the reviews to pick where to go,” Evan told him, showing their tickets at the door and taking Seth’s hand as they moved inside. “Everyone said this one is lots of fun and there’s a sing-along. Figured it would be a good one.”
The Art Deco theater held a crowd but still felt intimate. Evan had been curious to see the other patrons, and felt surprised at the cross-section of people.
“They’ve got a good crowd,” Seth observed as they got comfortable in their seats.
“I’m guessing that they have a lot of regulars,” Evan replied after watching the audience for several minutes.
Many of the theater-goers talked to each other like acquaintances instead of strangers, catching up on life since the last time they had seen one another.
Others looked like tourists who were slightly out of their element, nervous until the show started.
Evan hoped that he and Seth fell somewhere between the two groups, if anyone was looking.
“I’ve never been to a drag club before,” Seth said.
“I went a couple of times with friends back in college,” Evan replied.
“We dared each other to go, and it was way less exotic than we were expecting. But it was a lot of fun, and I’ve always remembered how exuberant it felt.
I figured it was a good way to celebrate. Thanks for going along with the idea.”
Seth shrugged. “I’m game to try something new. It’s an adventure.”
Inside, the large room was set up like a supper club, with a bar against one wall and a stage at the other end of the room. Round tables for groups of eight left room between for performers and servers to make the rounds.
Still full from dinner, Seth and Evan bought drinks before choosing a table in the front third of the room, a rum and cola for Evan and just soda for Seth. Their seats made for a good view, but might be far enough back, Evan hoped, to avoid getting pulled on stage to participate.
“Interesting crowd,” Seth observed. They watched as the audience gradually filled the space.
Straight couples, gay couples, and groups of friends found seats, chatting excitedly as upbeat music played. The other attendees ranged in age from early twenties to retirees as well as a bachelorette party.
“Welcome, everyone,” the emcee, a slender dark-haired man in a form-fitting black suit, greeted as he bounced onto the stage.
“Prepare to be amazed. We have three very talented ladies tonight, along with our marvelous house band to entertain you with song and frivolity, and a dance party once the stage show concludes. Freshen your drinks, powder your noses, and get ready to be awesome!”
The audience clapped and shouted, and Evan felt himself getting caught up in the excitement. He smiled to see that Seth also seemed to be enjoying the moment and reached to take his hand, comfortable that the gesture would be accepted here.
BayBay Boom, a tall performer with bright red bouffant hair and a form-fitting scarlet sequin dress strode on stage as the band struck up a sultry classic from The Doors. She flirted with the first row, and Evan guessed from the back-and-forth that many of those people were regulars.
She strutted and vamped, belting out the song, clearly enjoying the crowd’s enthusiastic response. BayBay picked up the tempo with favorites by Fleetwood Mac and Donna Summer, before taking a bow to thunderous applause.
“Don’t worry, BayBay will be back for the big finale,” the emcee assured the crowd as they took their seats after the standing ovation. “Next up, please welcome Katrina Dynamite!”
“How do you like it so far?” Evan asked, pleased that Seth seemed to be having a good time. Two other couples had joined them at the table, a pair of women and a man and a woman, but none of them looked askance at Seth and Evan’s joined hands.
“It’s fun.” Seth sounded a little surprised.
“I really wasn’t sure what to expect. It kind of reminds me of some of the shows that used to come to the USO when I was in the Army.
They weren’t drag, but there were all kinds of performers—some famous, some less so—and they did a great job to entertain us. ”
Katrina’s bleached blond hair was piled high. With the hair and heels in addition to her height, Evan guessed she stood at least six feet five. She wore a slinky sequined dress in dark blue with silver accents, and also seemed to be a crowd favorite.
“Is everyone having fun tonight?” she called out to the crowd and got a loud, enthusiastic response.
“I need to hear you,” Katrina teased, and the audience roared.
“Aren’t you all just delicious? All right, boys,” she said to the band. “Let’s give them what they paid for.”
Katrina rolled into hits by Diana Ross, Madonna, and Chaka Khan. The crowd cheered wildly, and Katrina courted their energy, finishing with another standing ovation.
“They sure can sing,” Seth observed. “And I’m impressed by anyone who can walk in those heels.”
Chloe Cadillac was the third and final performer, and she did a series of Aretha Franklin’s greatest hits, which got the audience dancing in their seats. Before the finale, she paused and looked straight at Seth and Evan.
“Now I have it on good authority from a friend of mine that congratulations are in order,” Chloe said with a wink in Seth and Evan’s direction. “I won’t name names, but there’s at least one couple here celebrating their engagement. Let’s give them a big round of applause!”
Evan felt his cheeks color, sure that despite not being pointed out to the crowd, everyone could tell from his reaction. Seth looked wary, but when no threat emerged, he seemed pleased and smiled.
“Well, that’s it. We’re drag bar famous,” Evan murmured to Seth when the applause died down.