Page 31 of Old-Fashioned

And tonight, their heads needed to be on a swivel.

Because tonight was Win-A-Date-Night.

Being the kind of man Caelan was, he was the emcee.

He jumped up on the little platform we had where we had live music two nights a week, grabbed the mic, and said, “Ladies and Gents. The night is here. The night where you can win a date with one of our waitresses.”

The crowd hooped and hollered.

Once they lowered the decimal in the bar, he said, “Now, I think it’s time to introduce you to the ladies that are to be a part of the auction. But…” the men all sounded out with boos. “Let’s go over the rules first.”

“Number one, you can bid on any of the women, however, if you win, you can’t bid again.” He waited for a beat and then continued.

“Number two, if they tell you no for any reason during your date, you are to adhere to that.” And with that, he narrowed his gaze on everyone standing there.

“Number three, the waitresses have selected a charity for the money to go to. And this month, the money will be donated to the local women’s shelter.” There were claps of approval from the small number of women that were here tonight.

“And the biggest rule of all number four. You will win one date with the waitress, they want to take it further, that’s on them.” Then he paused, “Not you.”

“If it comes to light that you mistreated any one of them, you will not be able to live in this town for a second longer than it takes us to find you.”

Once he got what he was looking for, Caelan called out, “Alright, first up, we have the lovely Isla. She will drink you under the table and sit beside you in church the next morning.”

Isla strutted from the side hall where they were all waiting. I shook my head at the tight red dress she had on, and thankfully, it made her hair color pop.

Once she was in place, “Next up, we have Jewell. She loves long walks on the beach and reading romance books.”

I didn’t watch Jewell, quite frankly I didn’t care to.

And I knew why when I saw Frank roll his eyes at her.

I snickered.

“Now, we have Tabitha. She enjoys family barbeques and football Sundays.” She had on a black fitted dress that sat just above her knees.

“And now, we have Shelly. Shelly loves romantic comedies and going to the drag strip.”

“Last but not least, we have the lovely Birdie. Birdie enjoys good ole’ rock and roll and makes a mean lasagna. From fucking scratch.”

I ignored the loudness in the bar which none of the other women got and tried to focus on what she was wearing.

But in my mind, it fucking killed me that he had enjoyed something she cooked.

Needing to get my head out of those thoughts, I looked at Birdie, and the moment my eyes could focus… I wanted to throw a blanket over her body and kidnap her where no one could see her.

No one but me.

Fuck me.

There was something about an emerald, green dress on her short stature that hugged every one of her curves. It made the blackness of her hair pop out.

Oh, what I wouldn’t give to have a superpower to make every single person in this place, hell the fucking world, blind.

Once the crowd calmed down, Caelan said, “We are going to ask our waitresses five questions, and you can bid on which woman you want to take out.”

Once the crowd settled down and he knew he had all their attention, he started, “What’s your idea of a romantic date?”

Isla – Good food. Good Company. Period.

---