Chapter 10 – Kirby
ten
Kirby
I stand next to her as Cheryl starts talking and I’ve never in my life felt a pull to someone like I do to her.
Even though I know it can never go anywhere.
Even though I know she’s not that person who would ever step out on her husband.
Even though I know in a few weeks I’ll leave here and I won’t see her.
The thought alone makes my stomach lurch.
I hear clapping and then look over to see Cheryl reaching for Darryl’s hand, leading her to the dance floor when I turn to Lexi.
“So what do you say, Lexi”—she stops mid-clap to look at me—“care to open the dance floor with the second co-chair?” I smile at her, holding out my hand as she nervously looks around her.
No doubt looking for that piece-of-shit husband of hers, who’s been mingling the whole fucking time, not once going to check up on his wife.
Her hands are in front of her, one hand in the other, as she contemplates my question when I tease her, “I dare you.”
She smiles and looks down at her hands before she looks back up at me, side-eyeing me while she tries not to smile too big.
“I mean, if it’s a dare,” she replies, reaching out her hand to put in mine.
“I sort of have no choice but to dance with the bachelors.” She steps into me as my hand goes to the middle of her back. “I guess so.”
“Well,” I laugh, “I’ll take it.” She puts her hand on my shoulder as I sway her to the side. “On a scale of one to ten, how nervous are you?”
She chuckles. “A million.” She looks around at the dance floor that seems to be filling up faster and faster. “I think I’ll only be able to do a sigh of relief once the bidding is over, and we see how much we’ve raised.”
“I don’t know how the last one went, but from the looks of this place”—I look around at the decorations—“it’s kicking the last one’s ass.” I laugh.
“You just said you didn’t know how the last one even went.” She shakes her head. “So you can’t compare it.”
“Well, I think this one is going to be better than the last one because you put your heart and soul into it.” I pull her even closer to me.
“All of the touches with the dances, the videos, the silent auction. Look around, everyone is having a great time and you did that. It’s just—” She looks up at me and I can see the compliments are all new to her.
“You look beautiful,” my mouth says before I have a chance to stop the words from coming out of it.
Her smile goes sideways as if she’s embarrassed.
“Thank you,” she says softly and my thumb moves on her back up and down. “You look very handsome,” she adds and immediately looks down at our feet.
“I mean, it’s not what I would usually wear.” I try to make a joke out of it.
“Oh no,” she joins in on the joke, “you don’t like dressing up in a tux every Saturday?”
I laugh. “I mean, I’m usually suited up on Saturday nights.” We sway side to side. “But that is only because I have no choice.”
“I forgot, you guys have to dress up before the games.” She softly laughs. “We used to call it the thirst traps.”
“What?” I can’t help but laugh at her.
“Yeah, the guys dressing up before the game and being filmed walking in. The swagger you guys have because you are being filmed.” She’s laughing now, and not a fake laugh, it’s a real fucking laugh.
A laugh that makes her eyes crinkle at the sides.
“Matty was the biggest one. Then Michael was second, for sure, no doubt about it. He would even give a little smirk. Dylan did it, not even aware he was doing it. Franny’s husband, Wilson, used that as his personal fucking Tinder.
” She mentions the men in her family with so much love and pride.
“I never even thought of it like that,” I admit to her, “but you might be right. I have to check next season when I do it if my follower count goes higher when I swagger in there.”
“I bet it does, for sure,” she assures me and she’s about to say something else when we both look to the side, hearing Cheryl speaking.
“Okay, time to switch out,” she says, letting go of Darryl and smiling at me. “Come here, handsome.” She motions with her head, and I let go of Lexi’s hand almost unwillingly.
“Be careful with that one,” Darryl warns, “she’s handsy.” He winks at me as he laughs at the joke, making Cheryl gasp.
“You should be so lucky.” She turns her head to the side.
“Burn, Darryl,” Lexi jokes with him, holding out her hand for him. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”
“I am feeling so much love right now,” he mumbles. “I don’t know what to do with it all.”
The three of us laugh as I walk to Cheryl and take her hand in mine.
“How amazing is tonight?” she asks me. I look back over at Lexi and see her in her gown, and again, she takes my breath away.
When I walked in and saw her, it was as if she was the only one in the room.
Her blue eyes shone even brighter as she talked to people coming in, and when our eyes finally met, it was as if the earth shifted under my feet.
For the rest of my life, I will be looking for that moment, and it scares the ever-loving fuck out of me, because I am petrified I’ll never find it.
“I’ve attended my fair share of fundraisers throughout the years, and this has to be the best one.” I smile at her.
“I totally agree and I wish I could take half the credit, but Lexi,” she says, her face filling with the biggest smile, “she is the one who did it all.”
“It’s always a team effort,” I remind her, “and knowing Lexi, there is no way she would let anyone think otherwise.”
“You know her well,” she observes and I want to answer that I wish I could get to know her even better.
The song ends and she lets go of my hand and I bow my head. “That was the best dance of my life.” I put my hand to my chest. “Thank you.”
“Oh, you are smooth.” She shakes her head. “Very smooth. Now get to your seat because the auction is about to start.”
I look around to see if I can spot Kylie when I see Lexi standing at the side next to Trent, who has a glass of whiskey or scotch in one hand, while the other is in his suit pocket instead of holding his wife’s hand. The two of them are chatting with Darryl and one of the other bachelors.
“If I can get everyone to their tables, please, we are going to be serving the first course and starting the auction.”
I walk over to my table and find Kylie walking back from the bar with a glass of champagne in her hand. The smile on her face is from ear to ear. “I feel so fancy.” She sits down next to me, putting her purse in front of her name. “Table two.” She wiggles her eyebrows. “You’re a big deal.”
“It’s only because they are auctioning me off.” I lean back in my chair and look over at the table beside me, seeing Lexi is sitting down next to Trent on one side, who is busy talking to the lady beside him, while Lexi just looks around the table.
Darryl pulls out the chair next to Kylie and introduces himself to her. “I’m this guy’s sister,” she quickly points out and I have to laugh.
“This guy has a name,” I mumble, trying not to look at Lexi’s table but failing miserably. He never fucking once tries to talk to her and she’s stuck talking to Cheryl’s husband, who is sitting with an empty chair between them, no doubt left for Cheryl.
“Did you bid on any of the silent auction items?” Kylie asks from beside me as the first plate is placed in front of me.
“I didn’t see them all,” I admit, grabbing my glass of water in front of my plate. “Why? Did you?”
“Not yet.” She smiles, taking a sip of her champagne. “But I will. What’s my budget?”
I can’t help but snort when she leans in. “How much can I bid on Darryl?” she asks right before she leans back to her other side as she chats with Darryl, the two of them laughing at whatever she said.
I barely eat the food, nervously waiting for the auction part of the evening. Cheryl stands up when they are clearing the plates of the first course, with Lexi next to her. “Okay, let’s get the bidding out of the way,” she begins. “There are ten bachelors.” She names us all.
She starts with the first bachelor and he goes up to the front and she makes him do a catwalk of sorts. “I’m not doing that,” Darryl quickly states. “I’m drawing the line.”
“I think you should,” Kylie urges him, and I just look over at her with my eyebrows pinched together.
It takes no time to go through the eight bachelors, most of them going anywhere from thirty thousand dollars to fifty-five. “You can bid up to eighty-five thousand for me,” I tell Kylie, who grimaces.
“Why would I bid on you?” she retorts, grossed out. “You’re my brother.”
“Okay, fine, you can bid on Darryl up to eighty-five and then seventy-five for me,” I tell her and she shakes her head.
“Kylie,” I hiss at her as Darryl pushes away from the table and tosses his napkin down on the table in front of him.
“Here goes nothing.” He looks at me and I hold out my fist and he fist-bumps me as the clapping starts, and he goes to the center of the dance floor.
He grabs the microphone from Cheryl. “Before you ask me to strut my stuff”—he looks at Cheryl—“I’m just going to say that whoever picks me won’t be sorry.
” He makes everyone laugh as he hands her back the mic.
“Shall we start the bidding at ten thousand?” she questions and it quickly goes up to fifty-five.
“Sixty,” Kylie says from beside me, and I can’t help but close my eyes and shake my head, laughing. “It’s for a good cause.”
“Seventy,” someone else bids on him.
“Seventy-five,” Kylie bids. “Now it’s personal.”
“For who?” I ask her, and I hear Cheryl egging on the other woman.
“Sold.” She points over to our table at Kylie, who claps her hands together. “Come and get your prize.”