For herself. Just to see what kind of reaction she’d get. Just to prove to herself that maybe she wasn’t a total loser.
It had been a lot of years since Germany. For all these years she’d hidden her voice in her house, when all she really wanted to do was sing, to have people hear her. To be judged, just one more time. And if she got booed off the stage, then she’d know.
When the song was over, she and Ty went back to their table and Jenna ordered a shot.
Ty arched a brow. “Ready for some hard drinking?”
She steeled her nerves and directed her gaze at him. “I’m going to sing.”
“Really.” He leaned back in his chair. “What song did you choose?”
“I have no idea.” She grabbed the book and flipped through it, looking for songs she recognized enough she’d be comfortable standing in front of a crowd singing. She found a few she loved that were in her vocal range, then grabbed a card and penciled one in. Before she lost her nerve, she carried it up to the deejay and handed it over.
That’s when panic set in. She went back to her chair and flopped into it. Her heart pounded and her palms began to sweat as nausea swelled in the pit of her stomach.
“You going to live?”
She jerked her head up. “I’m not sure yet. Why?”
“You look pale. You don’t have to do this.”
“I want to. It’ll be fun.”
“Yeah, you look like you’re about to go live on national television.”
She leaned her head against her hand. “Shut up.”
“In case you throw up on the stage, I’ll run a bucket right up there.”
She glared at him. “You are so funny.”
She had to wait through three more singers, and then her name was called. The dread in her stomach turned into hot and cold flashes. Her feet felt numb as she pushed the chair back.
Ty stood and grasped her hand, forcing her attention on him. “Have some fun, Jenna. You really can sing.”
She nodded and walked up onstage, not realizing how many people were crammed into this club until she looked out over the sea of expectant faces. The deejay handed her the microphone, introduced her and the song she was about to sing, then stepped back, leaving her alone in the spotlight.
What if she failed tonight and people laughed, or even worse, booed her? Tyler said she was good, but she was having sex with him, so his vote didn’t count.
This was the real test, and as the music started up, she knew there was no changing her mind now. She lifted the microphone and started to sing, the song as familiar to her as her own name. She’d sung it hundreds of times before. It was a twenty-year-old song, but one of her favorites. A sweet pop song about love and romance and the man of her dreams.
Her legs were shaking. Hell, everything on her quivered, but her voice didn’t, thank God. She gave the song everything she had, pouring herself into the lyrics, singing to the crowd, forcing herself to look right at them. She found Ty out there, saw him smiling at her. She latched on to his face and stayed focused on his gaze, relaxing her body and sinking into the music, making it through to the last note.
When she heard the thunderous applause and cheers, she couldn’t quite believe it was real. She thought maybe she had dreamed this entire night. She was sure she’d wake up any minute in her bed.
She finally forced her feet to move as she backed away.
“You have a killer voice,” the deejay said as she returned the mic to him. “I hope that’s not the only song you’ll sing for us.”
She grinned and hugged him, then left the stage, soaking in congratulations on her way back to the table, where Ty scooped her up in his arms. She kissed him, pouring her relief and gratitude into the way her lips moved against his.
“Whoa,” he said when they pulled apart. “Who knew that singing turned you on so much?”
She finally relaxed enough to smile. “I’m just glad I got through it.”
“You were incredible. Did you hear the crowd? They were one hundred percent behind you.”
They sat and she took a long drink of water. “It was unbelievable. I would have never thought…You know, I loved it back in Europe. The crowds seemed to love me. But I always sung with bands. Never alone. I never knew it could be like this. And then when they cut me and told me I wasn’t good enough…”
“Well, now you know you are good enough. You’re amazing, just like I told you.”
Adrenaline kicked in, and she suddenly couldn’t sit still. She wriggled in her chair and she was ready to leap back onstage and wrestle the mic away from the guy who’d just gotten up to sing. “I might want to do it again.”
He leaned back in the chair. “I imagine you would. Who doesn’t love an audience? I know I do. It makes me skate faster.”
She laughed. “Is that why I’m shaking all over and I want to kick everyone else off the stage and take over for the rest of the night?”
One side of his mouth lifted in a knowing smirk. “Exactly.”