“That’s it,” Cold confirmed, smirking at Jimmy’s pout as he slid the ring onto his finger. “Don’t look so disappointed.”
“Fine,” Jimmy lamented. “I guess I need to go get prepared? Throw some things? Be a diva?”
“If you’d like,” Cold chuckled, giving him another kiss. “Mmm, let’s go.”
Cold led him downstairs to Rowena, who barked some more and dragged Jimmy backstage to go over the set list one more time. After that, it was really a game of trying to stay out of the way as everyone continued to prepare for the big night.
The club finally opened and the band began playing as guests filtered in. Jimmy hadn’t seen Dario yet and peeked out from behind the curtains to see if anything interesting was going on. There were four large tables all pushed together right at the front of the stage, the Gentlemen occupying almost every seat with Cold sitting in the middle.
He couldn’t quite make out what was happening at the front of the club, but as far as he could tell everyone was being thoroughly searched. A new group of suited men had appeared, slick and predatory, their eyes stalking across every inch of the room. Jules guided them in, seating them at a bunch of tables to the left of the Gentlemen.
“Luchesis,” Dario’s voice suddenly hissed beside Jimmy, making him jump.
“Shit! Be easy, man!” Jimmy laughed nervously. “Where have you been? Wait, is that lipstick on your neck?”
“Probably,” Dario replied with a blushing smile. “Rowena needed to uh, relax for a few minutes.”
“Say no more,” Jimmy chuckled, peeking back out to the audience. “Seriously, those guys there. Those are the Luchesis?”
“Yup. The tall one in the blue? That’s Matteo Luchesi. And oh, look who’s with hanging out with them.”
A new figure had appeared, sitting proudly with the Luchesis.
Rufus Corman.
“That freakin’ traitor. He really is working with the Luchesis! What are they doing here?” Jimmy wondered out loud.
“Ha, Cold invited them!”
“Wh-what? Why!”
“I am not about to try and understand the inner workings of your man’s brain. That’s just what Rowena told me.”
“The crap, man.”
“Worry about it later,” Dario soothed, patting Jimmy’s shoulder. “You ready for the show?”
“Ready,” Jimmy said with a quick nod.
Dario took his place on stage, and Jimmy began to walk out toward the microphone with a sly smile. He didn’t worry about gangsters or murderers; when he was on stage, all he had to focus on was the performance, the music, the songs.
Taking a cleansing breath and smiling lovingly at Cold in front of the stage as applause lightly erupted around the room, as soon as Dario hit his cue, Jimmy began to sing. His body moved with the music as he guided the band through Sinatra’s ‘The Way You Look Tonight.’ They had agreed it was easier to use some songs they had already performed previously, following that up with another riveting rendition of Halsey’s ‘Hold Me Down.’
Cold was just as captivated as before, only looking away once when Jules came to whisper something in his ear. He glanced over at the Luchesis and nodded, his eyes snapping back to Jimmy on stage in a heartbeat.
Next was one that Jimmy was a little nervous about, Patsy Cline’s ‘Crazy.’ He tried to capture the same sorrow and beauty as he had heard when Suzanne sang it, pouring his very essence into each word. Dario joined him on the piano here and there, but for almost all of the song it was only Jimmy’s voice that rang out through the club, clear as a bell and strikingly haunting. He had barely finished the last few words before there was an adoring round of applause, and he offered the audience and Cold a blushing smile.
Cold’s face was nearly unreadable, but Rowena had leaned close and pressed a comforting kiss to his cheek. He casually wiped his eyes, brushing his sister aside with a quick smile.
Jimmy felt proud for having moved his icy boyfriend so, grateful that the last song was a bit more cheeky and uplifting. He heard Dario’s nimble fingers stroking the keys, quickly saying into the microphone, “This song is for a very special birthday boy... hope you like it.”
Cold blinked at the direct dedication, all the Gentlemen exploding into laughter and cheering for their leader as the band joined in for the song.
“I need a gangster,” Jimmy purred the opening words of the song, sultry and passionate. The words spoke of the need for a gangster, for a man that could love him better than anyone else. It would be a love that could survive anything, through thick and thin, and there was simply no one else who could satisfy him.
Pressing a hand to his forehead and glancing up at Jules and Rowena, Cold actually looked embarrassed. Jules was cheering, and Rowena was up on her feet, whistling as Jimmy held a note and Dario banged away on the piano. Valdemar hollered too, and Thirdsies pounded the table doing his own drums as Jimmy went on.
Jimmy drawled all of the words seductively, snatching at his bow tie and pulling it loose as he sang. Sliding his hands down his body, he smiled suggestively as he emphasized all the colorful sexual innuendo of the song.
