Chapter 22
The Halloween bash was at the home of one of the nurses—a big Arts and Crafts bungalow with pillars in the living room that had narrow glass-fronted bookcases in the bases. “I would kill for those pillars,” Alyssa whispered as they walked in with boxes of pirate paraphernalia.
“That would seem more menacing if your cutlass wasn’t plastic,” Janet said, nodding to the box in Alyssa’s arms. Alyssa laughed. The decor was kitschy, lots of orange and black. There were sashes, cutlasses, and cheap felt pirate hats for all the revelers laid out on a table by the front door. It was covered with a black cloth on which Alyssa had sewn a white skull and cross bones. Gluing it would have been faster, but this way she could snip the threads later and reuse the cloth. The appetizers were displayed on trays that looked like little pirate boats and on black glass trays with handles that resembled femurs. They’d made ice cubes shaped like skulls, but they were stashed in the homeowner’s freezer to preserve the detail until the guests arrived.
“The drinks island is my favorite part,” the homeowner, Melinda Zhang, said.
“Definitely where I’d want to get stranded,” Alyssa said, standing back to look with her. They’d put a blue plastic cloth on a card table and piled it with sand to make an island complete with little palms and a wrecked ship that held swizzle sticks. The bottles were behind the island, the glasses to the side. A not-to-scale treasure chest would hold the skull ice cubes and a pair of tongs once the guests started to arrive. The chest was small and would need constant refilling, but it was worth it for the look of the thing. “I’m so glad you decided to have this party,” Alyssa said.
“We need to let off some steam,” Melinda said. “The hospital has been … well.”
Alyssa nodded and opened her mouth to say something appreciative of nurses, but never got the chance.
“I need to speak with you,” Janet hissed. She gave the homeowner a brittle smile. “Everything’s fine!”
The doorbell rang then, and Melinda opened it. Three middle-aged women stood on the porch, beaming. “Happy Halloween!” they sang in unison. Melinda ushered them into her home, and Alyssa ran to the freezer for the ice cubes. Everything else was ready—from the olives to the sugar-cookie skeleton they’d asked the caterer to make as a nod to the guests’ profession.
“Did you notice what isn’t here?” Janet said.
Alyssa glanced around surreptitiously. “We got it all. I plugged in the purple and orange lights outside. We’re good.” She dumped some skull cubes in the treasure chest and stowed the rest back in the freezer.
“We are not,” Janet pronounced. “Where’s my sexy pirate?”
“He’s coming later,” Alyssa said. “After they’re drunk, right?”
Janet held up her phone. “Nope. He’s at the hospital.”
“Well, give him this address. The party’s here.”
“He’s in the hospital—with food poisoning.”
Alyssa’s eyes flew open. “No sexy pirate?”
Janet’s expression was determined. “Oh, we promised them a buccaneer. They’re getting a buccaneer.”
Alyssa waited.
“I need you to call him. Melinda said she wants to do another party at Christmas. These nurses are under a lot of pressure and will need to cut loose on the regular.”
Alyssa looked at her, utterly confused.
“Call him,” Janet repeated.
“The sick guy? I don’t think we want—”
“Nick. Ask him to be our sexy—”
Alyssa inhaled sharply. “Absolutely not! Are you crazy?”
“Yes.” Janet nodded. “You already knew that. Now pick up your phone—”
“And ask him to drive to a random house to gyrate for some nurses? Or give lap dances or something?”
“He was just supposed to walk around and be eye candy. Talk like a pirate and have nice abs. Maybe flirt a little.”
Alyssa gave her a baleful look. “Nick and I do not have a pirate-based relationship.”
“Then call someone else with abs like that. Now.”
“There is no one else with abs like that.”
“Exactly.”
They stared at each other over the beverage table while Melinda answered the doorbell and more of her coworkers flowed in, along with the sounds of laughter and chill October air. The guests moved to the hors d’oeuvres table and began munching and telling stories. Melinda made sure they all had their pirate hats.
Alyssa finally thought of the best argument. “There is no way he owns a pirate costume. In fact, I’ve seen his closet. He has more suits than normal, but he does not own a pair of breeches. Ha!” She folded her arms across her chest and looked at Janet with smug satisfaction.
“The costume’s here,” Janet said. “And maybe we could get him here too.” She gave Alyssa a probing look. “I think you’d like to see him, wouldn’t you? You’ve been mopey,” she said gently.
“I’d love to see him,” Alyssa acknowledged, and her eyes prickled. “But that’s not going to happen.”
“Okay,” Janet said. “You don’t have to text him.”
“Thank you,” Alyssa said. “We’ll just get the nurses good and drunk and tell them he was here.”
“That’s one plan,” Janet said. She walked into the kitchen, leaving Alyssa to wonder what had just happened.