Me:Ivy, I could use a ride.
There. The idea of not turning up on my own was extremely appealing. Some of my nerves abated.
Ivy:Perfect. I’ll grab a shirt for you too and bring it when I come. 6:40 good for you? That will get us there by seven.
I sent her a thumbs-up and rolled out of bed. Time to get my day started.
That evening I was cocooned in the passenger seat of Ivy’s Jeep as we crawled over the speed bumps on the park road leading to the mansion. Maeve and Allyson were in the back, and the car had been filled with chatter the entire fifteen-minute ride. They had been a last-minute addition, and as a result, we were running about ten minutes behind. Ivy assured me that we were fine to walk in late, that whatever this was, it wasn’t a problem to enter after it began. I had a funny feeling I was the only one in the dark here—Maeve and Allyson both worked at the mansion, seeing as how the second location for their café was there, so they likely knew what we were headed to. And Ivy had told Noah it would be “memorable.” Why they couldn’t share, I had no idea, but they told me it was going to be a lot of fun. I had to trust them and pray this wasn’t some strange book club initiation.
I smoothed down the white shirt I’d been handed to wear that matched the other girls. In red vinyl it read:HighlandFalls Smutty Book Club: The spicier the better. And there were three chili peppers below the text. Sweet Jesus. It did look cute with my boyfriend jeans and red sneakers, and I had to admit the clear message that I belonged with this group of women was nice, if unfamiliar.
A thought popped into my mind just then. “Um, is my aunt Lou going to be here tonight?”
Ivy cackled. No exaggeration, the woman positivelycackled. “Heck yes, she wouldn’t miss it. She might have been early even.”
Oh boy, that was telling. Something Lou would be excited about…
Minutes later we were parked and at the side door to the mansion while my mind conjured so many different scenarios. Even from out here, I could hear bass pumping. Was it a dance party? I wasn’t a great dancer but loved to do it. That could be fun.
Upon entering the space, Maeve immediately led us up to an unfamiliar gentleman who was standing just inside the door with a clipboard. The man had muscles upon muscles, and the fitted clothes he wore left nothing to the imagination. I mentally cataloged his look for any future inspiration I might need.
Mr. Muscles looked at our crew, noting our shirts. “You the last four for the book club?”
“Yep.” Maeve spoke up. “We’re in the party with Maggie Sullivan.”
He nodded, crossing something off on his list, his forearms bulging as he did. Whoa. “Your seats are in the front on the left as you walk in, and the rest of your crew is there waiting. Think you can find it? We still have a few remaining guests that I need to greet or I’d walk you in.”
“We’ve got it,” Ivy assured him.
“Behave yourselves,” he said with a wink as he gave us a wide grin.
“No promises,” Maeve said as she ushered us all up the hall toward the music.
“Is he from Highland Falls,” I murmured to Allyson. She shot me a small smile and shook her head, saying nothing more.
We reached the end of the hall and then turned to what was a large room that ran the length of the mansion. I’d visited this space as a kid with my parents as well as with Lou and Verdell. At a quick glance I could see windows to the lake on my right along with a bar in what I knew was the solarium, and in front of us were rows and rows of chairs filled with women all facing a stage at the far end of the room opposite where we were now standing. The lights were low and pulsing different colors. On stage were several men in different states of undress and…
Oh. My. God.
“Is that Aunt Lou?” I gasped.
Maeve let out a whoop. “It sure as hell is. Let’s go.”
How do I even put words to the scene in front of me? We were clearly walking into something that would have been perfect to film for the movieMagic Mike.The guys on stage were dancing in some choreographed routine. And center stage was my aunt Lou.
I looked over to my crew, which I was still standing with since I was frozen in shock. Legs? Who knew how they worked really? Maeve and Ivy had their arms raised above their heads as they cheered loudly, encouraging Lou. There were probably just under a hundred women in this room and, over on the right, was that Verdell?
My legs found the will to move to someone who represented safety as I hotfooted it over to the bar in the solarium. Verdell was sitting at the polished wood counter, calmly drinking a cup of coffee and reading the paper on his iPad in the midst of thismayhem. He seemed as at ease as if he were at home in his kitchen.
“Um, Verdell?” I asked, my eyes shooting from my uncle to my aunt. She was in the same T-shirt as the rest of the book club and some capri-length linen pants. A dancer was gyrating on her lap as she raised her hands to place them on his glistening chest to the roar of approval from the crowd. I noted that Ivy and crew had made it to the front and Maeve appeared to be recording the scene for posterity on her phone.
“Hey there, Jules. I wondered if you were coming,” Verdell’s smooth voice pulled my attention back from the stage.
I gave him a horrified look. “Does Lou know you’re here?”
Verdell let out a deep chuckle. “Oh, sweetheart. Of course she does. I’m her driver. Well, the driver for Lou and her crew.” He nodded to the front, and I saw the gray heads of Lou’s best friends, Jeanie and Hattie, in the front where they were waving dollar bills at the dancers and, I narrowed my gaze, yep, they were stuffing the bills in the front of the dancers’ pants.
Yeah, these women would absolutely need a driver. “So you don’t mind?” I asked, still horrified by what was playing out before my eyes.
