Page 54 of Hazel and Elijah Find Out: First They F*cked Around

I had never seen it this full.

“Oh my god,” I whispered to the windshield.

After parking in the lot of a neighboring business, I went through the employee’s only entrance.

Emily, the bartender, lifted a case of something. “There you are! We’ve been looking for you.”

“Uh… yeah, I—” I stammered, and shrugged. “I’m late.”

She threw her head back, her blond ponytail swinging. “Yeah, you are. Girlie, it is crazy out there. You have to go and say, ‘Thank you,’ to start the show.”

My stomach flipped sickeningly. I tripped on nothing as I followed her out. “I have to say something?”

“I think so.”

That was all the explanation I got before she exited through the swinging doors. When they swung open, the sounds of people—mostly women, talking and laughing—carried to the backroom. The roaring cacophony matched the volume of my internal thoughts, which were screaming,I cannot speak in front of all these people!

Sweat beaded on my forehead, and I hadn’t even been handed a microphone yet. It felt like a reoccurring nightmare, where I’d arrive to high school for my exams, and realize I hadn’t been going to my math class all semester or know where the classroom was in the building.

I wiped my brow with the back of my hand. I swallowed, then squared my shoulders and plastered on a smile.

This was my nightmare, but all these people had shown up for a cause that really mattered to me.

A chorus of, “Hazel!” greeted me on the other side of the swinging doors. It started at the bar with the people nearest to me and fanned back to the walls. It drowned out Tim McGraw’s “I Like It, I Love It,” for a moment.

I had to force a small smile, but I lifted my hand and waved.

“There’s the woman of the hour!” Ben moved next to me, throwing a heavy arm over my shoulder. “Everyone, raise your glass for our girl, Hazel, and the animals we’re going to save together!”

The last part of his sentence was drowned out by whoops and hollers. I guffawed, absolutely in shock at the gathering in front of me.

His eyes were full of excitement as he looked down at me. “Moscow mule?”

“Yes, please,” I yelled back.

“Double?”

“Triple!”

He laughed, the smile lines fitting into the corners of his blue eyes. Holding up a finger for me to wait, he moved down the bar to prepare my drink.

I scanned the crowd, looking for Elijah, but instead, I found Nora working through the mass of people. They parted for her with little resistance. There was a no nonsense set to her jaw. She was in her element, orchestrating this event and guiding all these people to her goal. Not for the first time, I thanked my lucky stars that she was on my side.

“Hey, babe.” She leaned against the wall to our left.

“Hey right back. Look at all this.” I gestured at the packed bar.

She shrugged. “I knew it was the right idea.”

I rolled my eyes, but there was no fighting her logic.

It was then I noticed her twin sister, Olivia, trailing behind her, but unlike Nora, the crowd closed in around Olivia. Squeals of excitement marked her progress as people realized she was in town.

“I didn’t realize Olivia would be here,” I said.

Nora scoffed. “And miss out on the juicy gossip? Plus, I think she wanted to see everybody before she and Anton move to Denver.”

“Is she excited?”

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