Rush (Eligible Receivers #3)

Chapter Twenty

Sitting in front of her closet, a mess of stuff piled around her, Nora searched through a duffle bag, digging to the bottom. She pulled out an old t-shirt. Tossed it. A black belt that she didn’t even remember packing. Toss. A half-used tube of toothpaste. Toss. Toss. Toss.

“Looking for something?”

Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Linc leaning in the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest. He looked calm, cool, and relaxed. Three things she was not.

Did she mention calm?

How could he be so calm?

“I can’t find my other red shoe!” Which matched the cute peplum top she was wearing perfectly.

“What’s it look like?”

She glanced back at him, her brow pulled down in frustration and huffed, “It’s red.”

He slapped on a tolerant smile which kind of pissed her off more. “I meant, other than red.”

She took a deep breath to calm her irritation, then grumbled, “They’re leather with a closed toe and a strap around the back with a low heel.”

He took a few steps into the room, squatted, flicked a shirt aside, and picked up a red shoe by the strap so it dangled on his finger. “This one?”

She dropped her head, all her anger deflating from her with a sigh. She looked back up feeling contrite. “Sorry for snapping at you.”

He stood, walking over to stand above her. She took his offered hand and he pulled her up from the floor.

Correctly guessing what her freakout had been about, he took her into his arms and assured, “Everything is going to be fine and you’re going to be great.”

She dropped her forehead to his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist. “You don’t know that.”

Pinching her chin between his thumb and forefinger, he gently nudged her head up. “I do know because you have the voice of an angel. You’re going to blow every act that performs on that stage today out of the water.”

His earnest amber eyes coated her in a wave of tranquility, going a long way to settle the nerves in her stomach.

At least to the point she didn’t feel like throwing up any more.

“Promise?”

His thumb brushed along her jaw. “Baby, I would not lie to you.”

Body deflating, she plastered herself to his front, squeezing him with her arms. “How are you so calm?” she mumbled against his chest.

“I didn’t used to be.” She raised her head at his admission. “It’s embarrassing to confess this but my rookie year, I threw up before every game. That’s how nervous I got, worried I was gonna miss a pass that would cost the team yardage or worse a touchdown.”

“But it got better after your rookie year?”

“Yeah.”

“How?” She would really love to fast-track that knowledge right now.

“When I realized it’s impossible to be perfect. I was gonna miss passes even if the throw was dead on target. And I learned that was okay. The team wouldn’t be mad at me and the fans wouldn’t hate me and do you know why?”

She shook her head.

“Because for every perfect pass I missed, I did the impossible. Catching an overthrown ball with my fingertips or throwing myself to the side to catch a wayward ball and still land on my feet. Or, the best, plucking that Hail Mary out of thin air in the endzone.” He tenderly swiped her cheek with his thumb. “So, tell me why you’re so nervous and I’ll try to fix it.”

She thought about what’s been worrying her most. “What if I forget the words to the song?”

“We’ll bring the karaoke machine and you can read them from the teleprompter.”

Okay, that helped her nerves a little but… “What if I fall while walking to the microphone or hit a bad note or, hell, sneeze in the middle of the song!”

“I’ll pick you up, sing over you so the audience doesn’t hear, or I’ll say bless you and hand you a fucking tissue.”

An unexpected laugh burst from her, so powerful it brought tears to her eyes and washed away the last of her anxiety.

When she had herself back under control, she wiped the moisture from her cheeks and said, “I feel better, thanks.”

“You got this.” Then he cracked a grin. “In fact, you got the eye of the tiger, you’re a fighter, and I want to hear you roar.”

That just made her laugh all the harder.

***

The venue Colt acquired for the talent show was massive. And that was intimidating because the place was packed. Even with thirty minutes still left before the show was to start, most of the seats were already filled. Groups of people were standing in the aisles and even more were milling outside the open front doors. Nora pulled her head back in from the curtain and made her way to the wing of the stage where Emerson sat with Sophie. Linc was off signing autographs somewhere, most likely out front.

“No offense, but you’re not looking so hot. Your skin is a pale shade of chartreuse,” Emerson said when Nora sat in the metal folding chair beside her.

“My stomach is a bit queasy. Have you seen how many people are out there?” All of Linc’s encouraging words of that morning had vanished somewhere in the sea of spectators.

“Let’s get you something to drink. Maybe take a walk outside so you can get a bit of fresh air.” The look of concern on her sister-in-law’s face was so evident it had Nora worrying her face really was chartreuse and that Emerson’s comment hadn’t just been a metaphor.

They used a back door to stay clear of the crowd, stopping to grab a couple of bottled waters from a cooler on the way out.

“How did you get out of performing, anyway?” Nora cracked her water open and took a long drink before twisting the cap back on.

“Oh, it was easy. I told Oz I’d ban him from the pub for a month if he even thought about making me participate.”

Nora chuckled. “What’s his act?”

“Him and a couple of buddies are dancing to YMCA. He’s the construction worker.” She dropped her head in embarrassment and Nora laughed.

After a few more minutes of walking, Emerson asked, “Feeling better?”

“A little, yeah.” Nora glanced down at Sophie, and catching the worried expression she still wore, squatted in front of her. “I’m okay, really.” Nora realized too late she should have tried to hide her anxiety in front of her better. “I just have a bit of stage fright. Do you know what stage fright is?”

Getting a negative response, Nora explained, “Stage fright is when you’re scared to perform in front of a large audience. It’s making my mouth dry and my palms sweaty, and it feels like butterflies are doing somersaults in my tummy, but it’s nothing that can hurt me. Okay?”

At Sophie’s nod, Nora smiled. “Good. And do you know what the best way of getting over stage fright is? Getting on that stage and doing what you’re afraid of. In my case, singing. So even though I’m scared, I’m going to get on that stage and sing my heart out.” Nora let that sink in and then added, “There’s something you can do to help me be less afraid though. Would you like to do that?” Sophie agreed and Nora said, “When I’m on that stage singing and I look over at you, will you wave at me?”

Sophie smiled enthusiastically.

“Oh, good because that would make me feel so much better. Now give me a hug.” Nora wrapped her up, loving the feel of her little arms squeezing her around the neck. “Thank you,” she said once she released her. “Just knowing that, I feel better already.”

“Hey,” Emerson said quietly once Nora stood back up. “Try not to look directly, but there’s a guy in the bushes to your right, taking pictures of us.”

Nora discreetly looked in the direction Emerson specified and spotted the guy right away. He wasn’t really trying to hide though he was standing in the bushes. He held a camera to his face, the lens pointed at Sophie. Damn, the paparazzi weren’t usually too interested in Sophie but Nora guessed without Linc around, she was the next best thing.

“Let’s get out of here,” Nora said, taking Sophie by the hand.

“Paparazzi always know how to ruin a good time,” Emerson huffed as they made their way back to the rear door of the venue.

“It’s almost time for the show to start anyway,” Nora placated.

Emerson glanced at her phone. “You’re right. The show starts in five minutes. Sophie and I had better find our seats. You’ll be okay if we leave you alone?”

The wing of the stage had filled since they’d been gone. Several members of the Phantoms were there—some dressed in outlandish costumes. One guy recognized her and waved. She waved back before saying, “I won’t make a break for it if that’s what you’re worried about. Besides, there’s too many witnesses now.”

Emerson chuckled, “That’s true, but I still hate leaving you alone.”

“Go,” she said, giving Emerson a light push on her shoulder. “Linc should be back here any minute.”

“Okay. Ivy got us seats right in the front row, so look for us there.”

Nora watched Emerson and Sophie disappear through the door that led to the main room before glancing around to take a better look at the performers. One guy looked as if he’d be doing magic, holding a wand and wearing a cape. Another guy in a martial arts uniform was practicing kicks. A man and woman had on matching outfits but Nora couldn’t tell what their act would be.

Colt had told them fifteen acts had signed up and they were one of the last to perform, so Nora figured she had at least another hour to stew before it was time to go on stage. Not good. She longingly glanced at the back door with the fleeting thought filtering through her brain that she really could make a break for it before anyone noticed she was missing.

“Hey, beautiful.”

Damn, she missed her opportunity.

Linc gave her a kiss in greeting, and she pried her eyes off her last means of escape. “You’ve been gone awhile. Sign a lot of autographs?”

“Until my fingers were cramped.” He held up his right hand in the shape of a claw. “See.”

Nora chuckled, taking his hand and massaging it as she wryly cooed, “Oh, you poor baby.”

“Why do I get the feeling you’re not taking my injury seriously?”

She chuckled again but then turned serious. “Emerson caught a photographer snapping pictures of Sophie when we went out back for some air.”

“God damned paparazzi. They’re like fucking vultures.”

“I thought you should know so you’re not surprised if you see something in a tabloid.”

“Yeah. Thanks. They were swarming out front too. Thankfully Colt barred them from the building. Only a few credentialed news crews were allowed in.”

Nora’s stomach sank and the nerves she’d been trying to hold at bay consumed her to the point where she felt nauseous. She should’ve assumed there’d be press in attendance, after all, Colt was trying to raise money for charity and needed all the publicity he could get, but she honestly hadn’t made the connection. Not only would she be performing for the hundreds of people here, but also the millions who watched the news.

Linc took hold of her upper arm. “Hey, are you okay?”

“Yeah. I just didn’t think about reporters being here.”

He cupped her face, tilting her head back. “Babe, I’m telling you, you’ve got this.”

“I know. I’m sure I’ll be fine once I get on stage.”

She wasn’t fine.

An hour and a half later, she and Linc walked out onto the stage. They were the last act to perform and she could immediately see the kids in the audience were getting restless. Some were talking, some were crying and fussy, and all were fidgeting. All of them except Sophie who sat straight in her seat smiling broadly.

She’s who Nora concentrated on as she stepped up to the mic stand.

The music began to play and she missed her cue. She looked over her shoulder at Linc who stood just behind her to her right. He smiled and gave an encouraging nod.

“Sorry,” she said into the microphone. It blared a loud screech of feedback and a twisted smile formed on her lips along with a nervous giggle. She leaned her head away from the mouthpiece and said, “Let’s try that again.”

The background music came to a stop. Palms sweaty, she swiped them on her jeans before white-knuckling the microphone as the music started again.

The first line of the song came out shaky. She took a deep breath and sang the second. That one was better. She finished the verse, waited the few beats, then sang the chorus, her voice growing stronger with each line as the audience showed interest. Kids stopped talking and fussing, and their fidgeting turned into dancing in their seats.

She belted out the hook. People clapped. She looked back at Linc, a huge smile on her face. He gave her a wink before letting out a mighty roar .

The crowd went wild and she had to suppress her laughter and raise her voice to be heard while singing the next verse.

When the song ended with a final roar from Linc, they were given a standing ovation. Nora even heard a few shouts of “more” which caught on and grew into a chant.

“Want to give them another one?” Linc asked with a sly smile.

“Not on your life.”

Chuckling, he threw an arm around her shoulders and walked her off the stage.

A few seconds later, she heard Colt’s echoing voice trying to calm the crowd down.

Nora soaked up the cheers. It was a great feeling.