Page 8 of Wrong Number

CHAPTER FOUR

* Tana *

I tried not to let it show too much, but this was incredibly exciting to me. Everyone in the room was probably used to these sorts of underground art events, but I’d never been to one. Especially not one that was literally hidden underground in some strange warehouse basement that must have been the artist’s personal studio.

Tyler introduced me to some of his friends as if we were already dating. Maybe that was a little forward, but it just felt right.

It was natural to learn a bit about a person by the company they kept. Tyler’s friends were all warm, interesting, and included me in the conversation, asking me lots of questions. His buddy Dale was even excited that I worked at an optometrist’s office, since he was pretty sure he needed reading glasses. It was charming how excited he was now that he had a recommendation.

A man with messy bright orange hair was standing in the center of a semicircle of large sculptures of giant pink flamingos that were almost six feet tall. They all had different textu

res, from choppy concrete to feathers to sequins. I’m sure it meant something very important that was beyond my understanding, but they looked outrageous and fun.

Tyler led me over to the makeshift bar made from an oddly shaped plastic table that must have once lived in a fancy boardroom in the eighties.

“Tyler!” the tall blonde woman wearing a ton of bright purple eyeshadow exclaimed. She was also wearing a bright purple dress, armbands, and hair clips.

“Good to see you,” he said, leaning in to give her a hug. Then he turned to me, “Tana, this is Sylvia, the most talented bartender in the city.”

I shook her hand as she smiled warmly. “Lovely to meet you, Tana. What can I get you to drink?”

“Oh, I have no idea,” I said, looking around at the huge selection of fancy liquor bottles. “Whatever is easiest, I guess.”

She held up her hands, laughing. “Easy isn’t the point tonight. We’re mixing unique cocktails so that we come up with something new for the opening party.”

“Oh. Well…” I looked up at Tyler. “I’m not really a cocktail expert. What are you having?”

He took my hand again. “Just give her a hint, and she’ll make something that you’ll love.”

“Okay. I like anything with fruit and ginger ale, I guess.”

She looked me up and down as if she was analyzing my soul, somehow. “Do you like flavors that are a tiny bit sweet, but not too much?” she asked.

“Yes.”

She snapped her fingers in the air. “Got it.”

She fussed around with various bottles, a little ice, a can of sparkling water, and an old-fashioned brandy snifter. “For the moment, this is called The Tana,” she announced with a laugh, adding a spear with a maraschino cherry as she handed it to me.

I took a sip, my eyes growing wide as I handed it to Tyler. He tried it, then instantly began nodding with me.

“I’m not normally big on pineapple,” he said, “But with the cherry juice, lime, and passionfruit, it fits right in there.”

“This is amazing,” I said. “Thank you, I don’t think I’ve ever had anything this good.”

Sylvia leaned over the table , looking at me carefully. “Now be honest. What would you do to make that even better? Think outrageously.”

I stared into the glass. “Well, I’m not going to suggest using a pizza slice as a coaster, because that’s a little impractical.”

It felt weirdly satisfying to have them both laughing with me. I was normally pretty quiet, but with Tyler right beside me, I felt far more comfortable speaking up.

“I guess if you wanted to balance the flavor, you could add a chunk of pineapple or lime,” I pondered. “But if you want to be outrageous, and really make a point, you could have five spears with cherries so that they sat in a circle.”

Sylvia nodded, thinking.

“It might be too much,” I said quickly, “But it would be like the drink is being surrounded by the cherries.”

“Holy shit, you’re right!” I spun around to see the orange-haired man who I assumed was the artist and host running from the room.

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