Almost in Love (9 page)

“Barrett! I love it!” This from an overly excited Zac.

Barry wasn’t sure what Zac was so excited about.

Another guy leaned over to say, “My last name is Barrett. Kevin Barrett.”

“Oh. Okay, nice to meet you.”

“I’m your understudy. I’m Samuel, the Pirate King’s lieutenant.”

Barry saluted. “Aye aye, lieutenant.”

“Ooh!” Zac squealed.

“Hi, Bare,” a group of women sitting nearby sang.

He waved and walked over. “And who are ye lovely ladies?”

“I’m Zoe,” a pretty woman with curly black hair said. “I play Mabel, one of the Major-General’s daughters, in love with the dashing Frederic.” She batted her eyes at Zac, who blew her a kiss.

“Pleasure be mine,” Barry said.

The women smiled dreamily. It was the pirate effect. He met Lauren and Meg, who also played the Major-General’s daughters, and then he spotted Amber walking down the aisle of the auditorium with another woman, and he forgot about everyone else. Amber wore another halter top, white with pink polka dots, with a black skirt that ended just above her adorable bare knees. He exited the stage and met Amber halfway.

“Ahoy, wench,” he said, “welcome to the great ship Eastman High School.”

Amber laughed. “Hey, Bare. This is my friend Steph. She’s one of the Major-General’s daughters.”

“Nice to meet you,” Steph said. “You were amazing at the audition.”

“That’s because I am the Pirate King!” he boomed with a fist in the air. He smiled and winked. “Thank ye by the way.”

Steph laughed. The three of them headed to the stage. Toby, the director, arrived, along with a few other people Barry didn’t know yet.

“Okay, people,” Toby called, scripts in hand. “Gather ’round. We’ve got six weeks to pull this together. That means rehearsal every night except Sunday for two shows Friday and Saturday night. If you miss more than two rehearsals in a row, you’re out. Anyone that can’t handle that, door’s right there.” He gestured to the exit.

Nobody moved.

“Good. Let’s get started. I’m Toby Whalen, your director, as many of you know. I’ve been doing this a hell of a long time, so you’re in good hands. I’ll let the rest of the staff introduce themselves.” He nodded to the young woman in a leotard and shorts on his right.

“Hi, I’m Jasmine Davis. I recognize a lot of you.” She smiled. “I’m the choreographer.”

“That’s my sister!” Zoe hollered.

“And I’m Zoe’s older sister,” Jasmine said with a smile.

A petite older woman sitting next to Toby stood up and waved. “Hello, everyone, I’m Edith, Toby’s mother.” She smiled. “And also the stage manager.”

“She’ll keep everything running smoothly,” Toby said. He pointed toward the piano. “Will Levi on piano.”

Will stood and waved. “Hey.”

Toby turned to them. “Will’s dad, Brian, will
not
be joining us this year because he’s on a booze cruise to celebrate his retirement followed by a month at the beach. What a bum! All right, let’s get started. Edith will pass out the scripts; then we’ll start with the first song. That’s ‘Pour, oh pour, the pirate sherry.’ I want all of the pirates on stage. When it’s not your turn, take the time to study your lines. We’ll be going without scripts in two weeks. Any questions?”

“Where’s our Major-General?” Zac asked.

It must’ve been a cue because just then the auditorium doors burst open, and a middle-aged man with a pith helmet started marching down the aisle. On his arm was a middle-aged woman with hair teased to a giant black halo around her head.

“I am the very model of a modern Major-General,” the man boomed. “And this young beauty”—a few people snickered—“Delilah is the lovely nursemaid Ruth.”

The woman curtsied.

“Very nice, you divas,” Toby said. “Now go get your scripts.”

The Major-General saluted, and the pair strolled down the aisle to the stage. Barry smiled. This was going to be fun.

~ ~ ~

Amber continued painting the pirate ship in the band room while the cast rehearsed in the auditorium. She added some gold decorative swirls and highlights that would pick up the light on stage. A short while later, Bare and the rest of the pirates came into the band room to practice the Pirate King song. She listened while the pianist Will played the song over and over. Will never corrected them, merely cringed when something was off-key, played the note alone, and waited for them to catch on.

Bare held his own in the song, but she noticed Kevin Barrett kept belting out the words loud enough to block out Bare’s lead voice. Will kept lowering his hand at Kevin. The chorus shouldn’t overtake the lead. She knew Kevin. He’d played the lead last year in
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
He was talented, but he didn’t dominate the stage the way Bare did.

A few times she'd felt someone staring at her, and she’d look up. Bare would wink at her even as he sang. There was something different about pirate Bare. It wasn’t just the silly pirate talk. There was something tender that came through on stage, along with the swagger, that pulled at her. Something more than just the friendly, good-natured guy she’d gotten to know.

Will finally called a halt and gestured for the group to follow him back to the stage.

Bare stopped in front of her. “Ahoy, me beauty.”

She set her brush down and stood. “You don’t have to talk pirate to me. You can just be yourself.”

“But ye like the pirate in me.”

Then he turned her and dipped her over one arm. She let out a squeak. He slowly pulled her upright and stayed close enough she could feel his heat. His eyes dropped to her mouth.

Yes
, she thought.
Let’s try this again
.

“Anyone see Bare?” a voice called. “We need him on stage.”

Bare took a step back from her. “To be continued, wench.”

“Tease.”

“Tease?” he said in mock indignation. Then he called toward the hallway. “Be right there.” His eyes narrowed in on her, and her heart pounded in anticipation. “I’ll show you tease.”

Then he yanked her up against him and plundered her mouth. There was nothing gentle about the kiss; no, it was a hot, deep, take-no-prisoners kiss that left her deliciously breathless. She clung to him as he kissed her into a puddle of need. He slowly pulled away, gazing at her lips. She couldn’t seem to let go of her grip on his shirt. She wanted more.

He groaned. “I wish I didn’t have to go. I wish—”

“Me too.”

He cupped her cheek. “Until later, me buxom beauty.”

She glanced down at her not-so-buxom chest. “Buxom?”

“Curvy?”

“Where’s our Pirate King?” Toby demanded, sounding extremely irritated.

Amber loosened her grip on him. “They need you.”

“Bye,” Bare said before making a fast exit.

“Bye,” she said to no one. She smiled as she heard Bare declare on stage a moment later, “Gangway! The Pirate King has arrived!”

~ ~ ~

Amber joined the cast and crew on stage for a quick meeting after rehearsal. She sat next to Steph, who was gesturing wildly for her to join her.

“I’m so happy you’re here,” Steph said.

“Me too.” She glanced at Bare, on the other side of the stage, still looking every bit the pirate, and found herself smiling. He suddenly looked up and returned the smile, and she went warm all over.

“Okay, people, we’ve got a long way to go,” Toby said. “Will tells me half of you are off-key. This is a musical. Everyone has to be in tune. Please practice at home. And, Kevin, you must blend your voice in.”

“I can’t help how I sing,” Kevin retorted.

“He’s a star,” Zac sang, tossing his hair, which was so short it barely moved.

Kevin shot Zac a dark look that had Zac simmering down quickly.

“You can help it,” Toby said. “And, people, I know we’re reading the script at this point, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t acting. I want some expression, some emotion coming through. Especially between Frederic and Mabel. The audience has to believe you’re in love.” He paused and took a moment to look them all over. The cast squirmed, probably wondering who he was going to call out next. “Now I know you all like to go out after rehearsal, but I ask you to keep the drinking to a minimum. We need you here at one hundred percent every night if we’re going to put on the kind of show we’re known for. We have an audience who expects a high level of professionalism. That means you know your lines, you hit your marks, you sing on-key. Any questions? No? Good.”

A few people had their hands raised, but Toby ignored them. He clapped once, dismissing them. “See you all tomorrow, seven p.m. Don’t be late.”

Everyone stood and started talking amongst themselves.

“And study your lines tonight!” Toby added before leaving.

His mother, Edith, smiled at them all. “You did a good job for your first rehearsal. That’s my ride.” She followed him out the door.

After Toby and Edith left, Zac said, “The torture begins. Toby was brutal tonight. I need a drink. Who’s in?”

Everyone agreed and, on Bare’s suggestion, they all headed to Garner’s Sports Bar & Grill. The place wasn’t crowded on a Monday night, and they all found seats at the bar. Bare gestured for Amber to sit on a stool next to him and slid his arm around her waist. Before long, Bare was telling stories with the enthralled cast gathered around him. All except Richard, the Major-General, who was hitting on some young, pretty women at the other end of the bar.

Bare’s warm fingers stroked lazily on the bare skin of her lower back while he shared tales of his old job at a software engineering firm in California and the crazy people that used to work there. The wrestling matches they had with
Lord of the Rings
figures late at night when they needed to blow off some steam. The challenge to see who could build the most complex polygon out of office supplies. The way they decided who would get to ask out the new single female in the office first—hand over hand up a light saber, hand on top won.

“It didn’t matter who got to ask her out first anyway,” Bare went on. “The answer was always no.”

Everyone laughed.

“If you were smart, you worked your way up from friendship.” Bare smiled at Amber, including her in his tale. “Which I quickly learned. Some of these guys were too desperate to slow it down like that.”

“Slow it down,” Lauren, one of the Major-General’s daughters, said. “I like a guy who takes his time.”

Steph rolled her eyes. “Tell us about The Dancing Cow.”

“Not much to tell,” Bare replied. “That’s my frozen yogurt shop. You’re all invited anytime with ten percent off.”

“Cool,” Lauren said, smiling at Bare like she wanted to lick his cone. Amber rested her hand on Bare’s thigh, who responded by resting his hand on hers and squeezing.

“I’ll be there,” Zac said.

“I heard you dance there,” Steph said.

Amber shook her head at Steph. She did not want Bare to demonstrate his Irish jig at the bar. No matter how good he was at it.

“Yeah,” Bare said. “That’s just for the kids. They love it. Sometimes they bring presents for the cow.”

Amber turned. That was so sweet. “Like what?”

“I’ve got crazy straws, cow figures, bouncy balls, little parachute—”

“What theater have you done?” Kevin interrupted.

“Let’s see,” Bare said. “Now this was all in high school, mind you—”

“High school?” Zoe, who played Mabel, exclaimed. “I can’t believe that. You’re so good.”

“Well,” Bare said modestly. “It’s not hard to play a pirate. Just a few yo-ho-hos thrown in there.”

The chorus of Major-General’s daughters—Zoe, Steph, Lauren, and Meg—quickly protested this modest claim.

“You’re such a good singer,” Steph said. Everyone agreed heartily.

“I really believe you’re a pirate,” Lauren said.

“You shine on stage,” Zoe said, stars in her eyes.

“Well, ladies, thank you,” Bare said.

“Are you single?” Lauren asked. The girl couldn’t have been more than twenty-one.

Steph turned to Lauren. “One, he’s too old for you—”

“I don’t mind an older man,” Lauren pouted.

“I’m thirty-one,” Bare protested.

“And two, he’s holding hands with Amber,” Steph said. “Come on!”

“Are you two together?” Lauren asked.

“Yes,” Amber said.

Bare turned to her in surprise. He grinned. “Yes, we are.”

“So,” Kevin said flatly. “What’s on your”—he wrinkled his nose distastefully—“
high school
résumé.”

Amber squeezed Bare’s hand. He glanced at her, giving her a quick smile. “I was Danny in
Grease
, Linus in
You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,
the prince in
Shrek the Musical
, and part of the chorus in
Anything Goes
.”

“Not much of a résumé,” Kevin muttered.

“Don’t mind Kevin,” Delilah drawled. She played Frederic’s plain nursemaid Ruth. “He’s a wannabe. Not everyone has
it
.” She took a sip of her martini. “I’ve been doing this for twenty-three years. Believe me, I know
it
when I see it. And Bare here has
it
.”

“Well, thank you, Delilah,” Bare said. “You’re also quite good.” He turned to his audience. “She has it too. We all do. Hey, we wouldn’t be here if we didn’t.” He raised his beer in a toast. “To us. The few, the proud, the its.”

Everyone laughed. They hung out for a while more, until Bare announced he had to get home. The party broke up. Amber walked out of the restaurant, hand in hand with her Pirate King.

He stopped at her car. “Still think I’m a judgmental bird-cow man?”

She cringed. She’d said that in anger, but, in retrospect, his reaction to her dancing with another guy wasn’t that far off the mark. Most guys would’ve balked at that.

“I think you’re a chameleon,” she said, thinking of his transformation from friendly neighbor to dancing cow to swashbuckling pirate to fabulous kisser.

“That’s better than the other thing.” He tapped the roof of her car and saluted her smartly. “Godspeed!”

She watched him get into his Honda and got into her little Toyota. There was no question he was geeky, but he was also a hell of a lot more fun than the usual hot guys she typically went for.