“Sorry, Presley Ann. You know what happened last Halloween when you talked me into playing it. I even took it off my playlist.”
Ben knew exactly what song she was begging for without the title even being mentioned.
Presley Ann stomped her foot. “Fine, then. Maybe I’ll sing it myself!”
Pouting wasn’t a good look for Presley Ann. Ben wondered how many drinks she’d had already that she was ready to go karaoke on everyone.
Dave grimaced and pled silently with Ben as he made eye contact with him. “Please don’t, Presley Ann. But if you do, move away from the booth so I don’t get hit when people start throwing things at you.”
Presley Ann confirmed her intoxication level when she made a melodramatic clawing motion in the air, mimicking the Michael Jackson video, and began screeching lyrics over “Bad Moon Rising,” which was already playing.
“’Cause this is thriller, thriller—”
A wadded-up napkin thrown at her barely missed her face as Ben finally veered over to intervene, moving the inebriated socialite back over to the table she and her sister had taken earlier when they’d arrived.
“You know what, Presley Ann? You should come and sing for us on a karaoke night. Patrons would love that.”
Presley Ann gave him an owl-eyed look and said, “You don’t have a karaoke night, Ben.” Her lips curled up in what might have been an attractive smile if she hadn’t followed it with a loud belch.
And if I have anything to say about it, we never will!
Leah rolled her eyes and pulled her sister’s chair out as she mouthed sorry to Ben. To her sister, she said, “I’m gonna get Corinna to bring you a soda.”
“I don’t need it. I’m not drunk,” she said with an obnoxious tone reserved only for those who were drunk and knew everything. “I’m gonna go talk to those three big hunkalicious hotties at that table over there.”
Ben stifled laughter when she pointed to the table near the dance floor where Camilla’s friends, Cody, Heath, and Spencer, sat watching the dance floor.
“Sure, sis. After your soda.” Leah thanked Ben and then waved at their waitress.
Ben continued mingling for a few more minutes before he returned to the bar and switched with Ethan, allowing him to circulate for a while.
Seth Carter’s sister, Lucy, walked up to the bar and Ben greeted her. “Hi there, sweetie! What can I get for you?”
She was dressed in a black cleavage-baring corset, tight-fitting slinky long black skirt, and towering black beehive wig. Lucy smiled back at him. “I think I want one of your Divine Margaritas.”
“Sure thing.”
While he was mixing Lucy’s drink, Camilla snuggled up next to him and to Lucy she said, “You make a kick-ass Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, Lucy!”
Beck O’Malley and Patrick Owen, who were also sitting in the next couple of chairs down, both turned in her direction. Beck’s interest was hard to miss, and Patrick said, “That’s Lucy Carter? Damn!”
Camilla shot her friend a reassuring look, and Lucy stood up straight, cheekily boosted her ample cleavage together, and winked at them. “That’s right, boys!”
Presley Ann, who evidently had made a beeline to the bar after finishing her straight soda, stood next to Lucy while waiting her turn to order another drink. She looked over at Lucy and, with a curled lip, said, “Is that who you’re supposed to be?”
Camilla smiled at Presley Ann and said, “Tons of cleavage and a black beehive? It’s pretty obvious. What can I get for you?”
Presley Ann placed her order and then gave Ben a flirtatious smile as he poured Lucy’s margarita for her. After signing to Camilla to mix Presley Ann’s drink a little weak, he looked at Presley Ann and said, “Didn’t feel like dressing up tonight?”
She twiddled a long blonde curl and huffed in irritation. “No one gets my costume! I’m supposed to be Britney Spears. Duh!”
Camilla cast him a sideways glance and bit her lip, looking like she was holding back laughter. Presley Ann looked exactly the same as she did anytime he saw her.
Camilla handed her the drink she’d ordered, and after paying, Presley Ann said, “Well, laters, peeps,” and sauntered off.
Camilla made a trademark Presley Ann face at him and softly said, “Well, duh.”
Lucy gasped and nearly sputtered her drink. “Hey, hey, hey, hey! Whoa!” She set the drink down, and Ben immediately saw the cause of her upset as she grabbed the back of her corset.
“What happened?” Camilla asked.
Lucy’s eyes got big, and she grabbed the corset to her front, saying in a furious whisper, “My corset! It’s coming loose! Oh my gosh, where’s Jayne? It took us half an hour to get me laced up!”