Page 131 of Must Have Been Love

The Karaoke party is well and truly underway. Right now somebody is absolutely strangling their version of “Mamma Mia”, but nobody seems to mind. The bar is full of people dancing – so many of them dressed in seventies costumes. More than a few of them are authentic – probably stolen from their parents or grandparent’s closets.

“You’re up next,” Jesse tells me. He put himself on last, mostly because he doesn’t want to put everybody off. We all know he’s the best at singing on Liberty.

“Okay.” I nod.

“I saw the song choice,” he says. “Nice.”

“Thank you. You sure you don’t want to sing with me?”

“And have everybody know you’re the talented one in the family?” he teases. “No thank you.”

“Mamma Mia” finishes and I hear my name being called. Autumn is behind the bar and she squeals with excitement as I walk to the stage in the corner.

“Hi everybody,” I say and there’s a loud cheer from the crowd. I look at the DJ in charge of the karaoke machine and nod. He puts the lyrics on the screen in front of me and the music starts. I take a deep breath, readying myself for embarrassment.

And thenhewalks in and I feel tingles all up and down my body. Our eyes catch, and my mouth twitches when I realize what he’s wearing.

Hudson Fitzgerald, the grumpy, uptight businessman who loves control isn’t wearing his usual designer suit and sharp tie. Instead he’s wearing a pair of flared jeans, tight at the hips, stupidly wide at the ankles. And a shirt so tight I can see everything, as can every other woman in the room because they’re all staring at him.

He’s also wearing a wig and a beard. He looks like he just got in from the seventies.

“Oh my God,” somebody whispers.

I start to smile, but then the ball lands on the first word and I have to sing.

I don’t know why I chose this one. It just felt right. Maybe part of me always knew that Hudson would walk in at the right minute. The first line of “You Make Loving Fun” – this one written by Christine McVie – tumbles out of my lips as I sing how sweet and wonderful he is.

And yes, I’m looking straight at him as I sing. I hit a bum note at the end and he grins.

I don’t know how I get through the entire song, but somehow I do. And when I finish on a high, telling him how he makes loving fun, everybody claps and cheers, even though I’m probably one of the worst singers here.

He’s waiting for me when I clamber down from the stage.

“Nice outfit,” I tell him.

“I’m trying something new,” he replies solemnly.

“It suits you.” My lips twitch because he looks so stupidly uncomfortable it’s not funny. “Lindsey Buckingham?” I ask.

“How did you know?”

“It’s the beard. And the wig.”

He touches the curls on his head.

“Next up we have Hudson Fitzgerald,” the DJ calls out.

“You’re singing?” I ask him. “Seriously?”

“Gotta go,” he tells me. “Stay right there.”

I’m not sure I could move if I tried. Hudson Fitzgerald is about to sing karaoke and I’m pretty sure that must mean the world is ending. He strides onto the stage, flares flapping, and takes the mic.

“This one is for Skyler. Always,” he says, then the music starts and I am frozen still.

I know what song it is as soon as the first note hits. It’s a Billy Joel song. “Just the Way You Are”. Hudson leans into the mic and starts singing straight at me, telling me not to change.

I blink at the thick sweetness of his voice. Like honey dripping from a spoon. He can sing? Why didn’t I know he could sing?

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