Don’t be nervous, she wrote back.Everyone out there is rooting for you.
Me most of all.
His little smile when he read it made something flutter in her chest.
Thank u
Will i see u after?
Go get em, she wrote back,and then we’ll celebrate.
He met her eyes, finally smiling full-out, relaxed and brilliant, which felt like her most important accomplishment of the entire day.
24
As the minutes ticked downto the start of the pageant, Niko felt strangely calm. It helped that the mood backstage was nothing short of buoyant. Even as a few good-natured jabs flew around the room, there was still a feeling of camaraderie, like they all understood they weren’t really competing against one another, but working together for a common goal: to support the town they loved and, of course, put on a good show.
He tried not to think about the sold-out 350-seat theater, or the overflow room that had been set up with a live feed for anyone interested in paying half price. He told himself that even if he did catch a glimpse of the audience, he’d recognize the vast majority of those 350 faces. They were his friends, his neighbors, his clients. They sold him his coffee and cut his hair.
Of course, that thought wasn’t very comforting if he ended up completely embarrassing himself.
Someone had set up a curtained-off area for the contestants to change, so he got dressed in his suit, laughing off the exaggerated wolf whistles from the other contestants as he joined them again. He did sneak a glance at Merritt, though, who was looking at him likeshewas the wolf.
Daniela paced in the corner, muttering to herself with her eyes closed, looking as glamorous and beautiful as if she were a pageant contestant herself. Before he knew it, Lana, the stage manager, who also ran the local community theater, was ushering her into the wings, and muffled music began to play.
“Judges, you’re next,” Lana said, somewhat ominously. Merritt stood and followed the other two out the door. Niko had to stuff his hands in his pockets to avoid the temptation to reach out and squeeze her hand as she passed.
The judges would be seated onstage, providing both commentary and scores out of ten. Their scores would be combined with an audience vote in a complicated calculation that Freya, a devotedDancing with the Starsfan, was in charge of tallying. Even though he didn’t fully understand it, Niko felt reassured that Merritt’s vote wouldn’t have enough weight to tip the competition in his favor.
He strained to hear Daniela’s introductions, but Lana was busy corralling them into the order in which they would walk onstage, so all he could hear was faint applause. Once they were in line, walking into the wings, their playful chatter faded, the atmosphere growing serious.
“Now that you’ve met our judges,” Daniela said, “are you ready to meet the twelve finest specimens Crested Peak has to offer?”
The crowd roared.
“Hey, that’s my husband you’re talking about,” Susan joked, raising her voice to be heard over the crowd.
The final lineup ended up being fairly diverse, ranging in age from Luis, twenty-three, one of the chefs at Last Chair Pizza, to Bert, sixty-seven, the local librarian (and husband in question). Niko stood in the wings, listening to the other contestants get introduced, so absorbed that he was startled to realize Daniela was now talking about him.
“Our next contestant hails from Tallahassee, Florida, but he’s called Crested Peak home for the past eight years. I think it’s safe to say most of the buildings around here would be falling apart without him, and you know what? So would we. Please give it up for the handiest man in town, our own local Greek god, Nikolaos Petrakis!”
Breathe. Just breathe.
And smile, don’t forget to smile.
Okay, and walk, too. Breathe, smile, walk. Breathe, smile, walk.
The next thing Niko knew, he was standing center stage, next to Daniela. His heart thundered in his chest, drowning out the applause from the audience. A bead of sweat trickled down his spine.
He couldn’t do this. What the fuck had he been thinking?
But then he caught a glimpse of Merritt at the judging table, watching him with that familiar intensity, an encouraging smile playing at the corners of her lips, and it was like she’d thrown him a rope at the last possible second before he was swept out to sea.
He was able to get his bearings enough to exchange greetings with Daniela, his voice barely shaking at all.
“And who are you competing for tonight, Niko?”
He leaned his head down, getting closer to the mic. “The Crested Peak Affordable Housing Fund,” he said, clearly and confidently, and he heard a few scattered whoops from the crowd.
