Lennon's Jinx (21 page)

As
the Winthrops set up the receiving line, Katie shoots a glance our way. Her
gaze locks onto Clive. His smile tells me and anyone else who’s looking that he
knows this girl indecently well. The groom doesn’t seem to have a clue.

My
mouth gapes open because one of the first guests is Rena. She skips the
receiving line and beelines over to us. Lennon grins at her. She gives me an
excited wave and sits next to Susan at a far table next to the stage.

Lennon
sits at the baby grand while Clive pulls out his violin. They play classical
music as the guests arrive. Danny Boy motions for me to sit down and relax.

Rena
pats the chair next to her. “How’s my date?”

“What?”
I ask.

“Lennon
invited me so you’d have someone to talk to and because I begged him. This is as
big as Kim Kardashian’s wedding. Celebs, Bulls, Bears. I heard Tiger Woods is
coming.”

“I’m
looking forward to it,” Susan says. “Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer are supposed
to show up.”

I
look at her strangely. “Who are they?”

Rena
throws her hands up in the air. “Come on, Jinx.
True Blood
. The sexiest,
steamiest TV show on the planet. Eee. I can’t wait to see them.” She throttles
my hand. I haven’t seen her this excited since Byron first asked her out.

Susan
nods at the bride. “Check that out.”

Her
bridesmaids clutter around her. They keep glancing at Clive playing the violin.
He’s incredible. I certainly can’t play as well as him or Lennon. They
certainly don’t need me.

Rena
studies the game of eye tag. “Oh my God. Katie boinked Clive. That’s awkward.”

Susan
studies the girls watching Clive. “More troublesome and deadly. Look at the
size of her husband Joel compared to Clive. Katie hooked up with Clive for a
few months while she was seeing the Bears receiver. Money talks, so she went
with Joel.”

I’m
laughing so hard at Susan’s comment I spit out my ginger ale. “Clive has money,”
I say. His dad is a professional musician, not sure about his mom.

“Not
two mil a year rich,” Susan adds. This is a whole other side of her, and I like
it. She’s not just a Danny Boy appendage. “Now if Lennon talks to his dad and
gets a recording contract, Katie will have to wait in line for Clive. But that
will never happen. Clive says when Jonathan and Lennon are in a room it’s like two
rams dueling over the herd.”

A
really pretty girl winks at Danny. He smiles at her politely while Susan
clenches her jaw.

“How
do you do it?” I ask Susan.

“Do
what?” Susan asks.

“How
do you put up with all the girls hitting on Danny?” I ask.

“I
don’t really.” Susan watches the girl making eyes at Danny. “It took me months
before I’d go out with Danny. Girls crawl all over band boys. It’s too much
temptation for most.”

“Has
he cheated on you?” Rena asks.

“Not
once. I worry about it all the time, but he says he’s had his fill of strange.
He’d rather fight and have makeup sex with me.” She laughs.

“There’s
hope for Lennon then,” Rena says.

“It’s
hard to fit that man-child and his ego in one room,” Susan says. “He’s got it
going on. By the end of the reception, a dozen girls will have hit on him. It’s
hard for any guy to say no to all that.”

“Danny
does,” I say, curious why he changed.

“Danny
comes from a normal home life,” Susan says. “His parents celebrated their
twenty-fifth anniversary last week. Lennon is a head-case. Clive says his
parents are both screwed up. I doubt there’s much hope for him. Clive will
probably grow out of his one nighters. He’s at least had a girlfriend or two.”

It
makes me sad for Lennon. No parents. No one who loves him.

My
breath hitches when Bailey walks through the receiving line with her plastic
surgeon dad, his ex-wife, and his twenty-something bride. That’ll put a damper
on Lennon’s carousing.

Lennon’s
mom is not far behind them. A black and white chiffon flows on her, and a black
brimmed hat shades her eyes. She’s movie-star beautiful. Even the young guys
trip over themselves when they see her. Mr. Winthrop kisses her hand. He’s obviously
quite the fan. While Mrs. Winthrop speaks with the mayor, Mr. Winthrop introduces
Heather to a Bulls player.

Alex
waltzes over to our table. My body trembles all over. His dad is one of the
coaches for the Bears. I don’t like Alex, and he knows it, so why does he keep
pestering me?

“Hey,
girls,” he says. “Jinx, I hope you save a dance for me later.”

“She’s
working,” Rena says in Momma bear mode.

“My
loss,” he says. “I’ll talk to you on break then.”

I’m
frozen solid to my chair. What’s wrong with me? I have to learn to stand up to sleazes
like him.

When
he leaves our table, Susan says, “Is it me or does he seem creepy?”

“It’s
not you,” Rena says. “He’s a jerk.”

I
don’t understand why Alex doesn’t understand the word no. It freaks me out
whenever he talks to me. I sit back and try to relax.

Lennon
and Clive play throughout dinner and the toast. They take a break and eat
dinner with us. They serve us as if we’re actual guests. Bailey eyes Lennon
like candy, but he doesn’t once look over at her. What’s up with that? I
thought he liked her.

Lennon
takes a glass of champagne from the waiter flirting with me earlier. When the
waiter winks again at me, I return it with a warm smile.

Lennon
laughs at this. “Why don’t you try for an athlete instead of the poor waiter?”

“I’d
rather have someone who won’t cheat on me.” I wince because that probably hurt
Rena’s feelings when it was meant for Lennon.

“Jinx
is right,” Rena says. “You can’t trust them. Money attracts a lot of maggots.”

The
maid of honor glides over to our table. She’s a bouncy little brunette. “You
must be Lennon Tyler. I’ve heard so much about you.”

Lennon
gives her that winsome smile. “All good I hope.”

It
makes me want to laugh.

Bailey’s
mom eagle-eyes Lennon while Bailey pouts. Her mom glares at Lennon like she
wants to put him on a spit and barbecue him.

Katie
waves her bridesmaid back. Her eyes linger a tad too long on Clive who gives
her the head-to-toe once over.

“Have
to go.” The bridesmaid’s hand slides over Lennon’s chest. “I’ll see you later.”

“I’m
looking forward to that,” he says.

“You
are such a tramp,” Susan says after the girl leaves, which are my thoughts
exactly.

Lennon
gets in her face. “I love it when you talk dirty to me.

She
gives him a shove back and chuckles. “Down, boy.”

“Even
better when you play rough.”

Danny
laughs nervously. I don’t think Lennon would do anything with Susan, but one
never knows. He does have a reputation.

“About
the third song in, let’s do the Billy Holiday number,” Lennon says.

I’m
so nervous I have to pee, so I get up and find the bathroom. As I pass the
bride’s chamber, I hear Katie laughing and Clive speaking low to her. He comes
out and clutches my waist.

“You’ll
do fine,” he says before wandering back to the band.

Why
would he go back there with her when Joel is in the next room? Is he out of his
mind?

The
guys are ready for the first set when I return. Lennon opens with
Falling in
Love with You
, an old Elvis Presley tune. His voice is a deep, rich silk
that sinks into me.

The
bride and groom dance close together. Joel wraps his fingers around her hand
and kisses it. When several people clink their glasses, Katie gives him the
kind of kiss she used to give the boys behind the high school bleachers. Iz and
I would sneak into the shadows to watch her because we both used to imagine ourselves
popular like her.

Mr.
Winthrop dances cheek to cheek with his wife when it’s my turn to sing the
Billy Holiday song. Clive gives me a squeeze just before the high note. My
throat loosens up. Danny reassuringly nods at me, letting me know I did good. I
exhale with relief.

By
the second set, most of the guests are lit up. The maid of honor has been
eyeing Lennon all night, along with several other girls. When we break in a
rear room, she comes back there and sits on his lap. Can she be any more
forward?

Her
hands interlock behind his neck. She sloppily kisses him with a lot of tongue. The
same thing happened at the bar last night. Girls crawled all over him. He’s
like an ice-cold beer in the middle of the Sahara Desert. It’s creepy and
fascinating at the same time.

Alex
wanders into our little soirée. “There you are,” he says to me.

I’d
like to run and hide, but I can’t move because I’m shaking so hard.

Lennon
loosens one arm from the bridesmaid. His hand seeks out mine. He leans over and
whispers. “It’s okay, Jinx. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

His
reassurance puts me at ease. From his recent behavior, I know he would never
take advantage or physically hurt me.

Alex
stares at the bridesmaid. “You should choose more wisely. This one’s infected.”

She
gives Alex a seductive smile. He stumbles and holds onto a chair for support.

“I’ll
make sure Lennon double wraps then.” Her mouth closes over Lennon’s, and he
lets go of me.

I’m
on my own, I think. Though for whatever reason, I believe Lennon will watch
over me like he does Currie and Zoe, and that comforts me.

“You
should go,” Lennon says to Alex when he comes up for air.

“I
was invited. I’ll do whatever I want.”

Rena
scoots close to me, so that we both turn our backs on Alex. Everyone in the
room ignores him until he disappears. I completely relax when he’s gone.

“Want
to go for a drink after the reception?” the bridesmaid asks Lennon.

“I’ve
got to be somewhere,” Lennon says. “Some other time.”

“No
time like the present,” she says.

Lennon
gives her a half-hearted smile. His mind isn’t with us. I know he went to the
hospital this morning to see Zoe. After the way he treated the girls to the
American Girl Place, it must bug him that Zoe’s suffering.

“Where
are you going tonight?” I ask.

Susan
throws a wadded wedding placement card at him. “Yeah, Lennon, got another girl
lined up tonight?”

The
bridesmaid waits expectantly for his answer.

“I’m
having dinner with the girls at the hospital until Mrs. Nowak comes back. She
wants to help Brea get ready for her first date.”

The
town slut is campaigning for sainthood. I don’t get him at all.

After
another twenty minutes or so, I check my watch. We only have another hour to play
before we can leave. I’ll drive home this afternoon, which gives Lennon more
freedom to be himself, a total slut. I’m sure he’ll squeeze in a brief
encounter of the fourth kind before he has to go to the hospital.

A
huge crash comes from down the hall as loud as a bowling ball striking all the
pins. Lennon practically dumps the brunette onto the floor he gets up so
quickly. He saves her by grabbing her arm. “Excuse me.”

He’s
down the hall before any of us can chase after him. Danny Boy and I follow.

Susan
stays glued to her chair and secures Rena from leaving by taking her hand. “It
doesn’t concern us.”

Lennon
turns to Danny. “Get Jinx out of here before we have a bigger mess.”

“Why
am I a problem?” I ask.

Danny
grabs my shoulder and pulls me back an inch or two while Lennon enters the
bride’s chamber. We peer around the corner. Joel has Clive by the throat.
Katie’s Vera Wang is rumpled. Clive has loosened his tie, or possibly Katie
has, and his clothes are a mess. There’s no doubt what happened here.

“It’s
okay, honey,” Katie says, her hands shaking as she touches Joel’s shoulder.
“Clive’s an old friend.”

Danny’s
trying hard not to laugh, clamping a hand over his mouth.

“Did
he—” Danny’s hand covers my mouth before I say what Clive was doing to Katie.

Danny
tugs me back, but we remain by the door to listen. “Lennon knows what he’s
doing, so keep quiet,” he whispers into my ear, “so we can watch the show.”

Lennon
palms Joel’s shoulder. He’s as big as the receiver, maybe bigger. “Nothing was
going on here. I’m sure Katie was just getting a good luck kiss from the
Irish.”

Joel
stomps his feet but loosens his hold on Clive who’s turning blue. “He’s not
Irish.”

“Oh,
yes I am,” Clive says, imitating an Irish brogue.

Oh
my God, he’s too much. Danny’s trying hard to hold back his laughter. I’m about
ready to lose it myself.

“Yes,
he is sweetie.” Katie kisses Joel so seductively that he stumbles backward and
loses himself in her embrace. I wish I could do that to a guy.

“I’m
not going to let him ruin our wedding,” Joel says.

Now
I’m the one who bursts out laughing. Danny has his hand over my mouth and jerks
me away from the open door.

Mr.
Winthrop marches past us and into the room. “What’s the disturbance?”

With
his back to Joel, Lennon winks at Winthrop. “Just a misunderstanding.”

Winthrop
barks at Katie. “Were you kissing your cousin again?”

“Yes,
Daddy. It was harmless. Just a bit of luck from the Irish.” Her voice is not
its usual smooth and even tone for lying.

Joel
falls for all this. He’s been had. Are all jocks this blonde? Or does he just
want to believe she’s real?

Winthrop
pats Joel’s back. “You have a lot of work ahead of you restraining my wildcat
of a daughter.” He hands Joel a glass of champagne and raises it in a toast.
“To fast horses and wild women.”

Joel
drinks his with some hesitation. Apparently, he’s just beginning to understand
what he’s in for or maybe not.

Katie
kisses Lennon’s hand like he’s royalty. “Would you play Daddy’s favorite song?
It would mean so much to both of us.”