Chapter 19
Lucky and Elizabeth returned to their table in silence, avoiding all eye contact the entire time. They sat down and immediately began to eat, looking for anything that would allow them to avoid talking to one another.
Charisma broke away from Rich and walked over to Luke, who was standing in front of the stage, looking very proud of himself. “Well, Luke, what do you think?”
“I think it’s still going to take a lot more to get those two crazy kids together, but after watching that, I’m convinced that it will happen,” he responded firmly.
Charisma glanced back at their table, chuckling at how they were trying to avoid one another. “You were right, though. They are both stubborn. They just need a bigger push.”
“Got any more bright ideas?” he asked with a smirk.
“Not at the moment. How about you?”
Luke chuckled and rested a hand on her shoulder. “I’ve always got ideas.”
She laughed at the expression on his face. “Care to share any?”
“How much time you got?” he asked, grinning.
“As long as Spence is on vacation, so am I,” she said.
“Spence?” Luke asked with a laugh. “So that’s what you people call him?”
She nodded. “It avoids confusion on the road. Speaking of which, part of the reason I’m here is to convince him to do a show in Port Charles, sort of a hometown concert. I don’t suppose you could influence him in any way to agree?”
“Darlin’, I stopped holding any influence over my son a long time ago. But, I can offer you a place to hold it once he agrees, which I know eventually, he will. I’ve got a blues club here in town.”
“Really?” Charisma asked, smiling at the idea. “That’s a great idea, to have him play at his father’s club. I’m going to get right on it. In the meantime, let me know when you have another plan. I’d love to help.”
“Will do. I can already tell you and I are going to make a good team,” he said with a grin, then walked away to find his wife.
Seeing that Lucky and Liz were still incommunicado, Charisma decided to stir things up a bit. She sauntered over to their table and tapped Lucky on the shoulder. “Hey, Spence. Come dance with me.”
“Huh?” he asked, glancing back at Elizabeth. “I don’t know if that’s allowed right now.”
Charisma laughed. “What are they going to do, throw you out? Come on, I have to talk to you about something.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him out of his chair. Knowing she wasn’t about to give up, he sighed and stood up.
“I’ll be right back,” he muttered to Liz before following Charisma out onto the dance floor. Liz watched them go with a mixture of relief and jealousy.
“Okay, what did you want?” Lucky asked, a hint of annoyance in his voice. He didn’t like being pulled away from the table like that, even though he was somewhat relieved to have a reason to escape the uncomfortable silence that had fallen between him and Liz ever since they danced.
“I’m going to convince you to do this show if it kills me,” she explained, wrapping her arms around his neck as they danced slowly.
“Charisma, I told you, I’m on vacation. I don’t want to do any performances!”
“It’s just one show, at your dad’s club. How bad can it be?” she asked innocently. She knew sooner or later he’d cave in.
“My dad’s club? Since when?”
“He just offered a few minutes ago. I like your dad, he’s got a fire in him.” She smiled at his shock that she knew him.
“Since when are you and him so close?” Lucky asked sarcastically.
“Actually, we just met tonight, but we already have something in common.”
“What?” Lucky asked apprehensively.
Charisma grinned up at him. “You, of course.” Lucky rolled his eyes. This could only mean trouble.
~*~
After Lucky left the table, Liz looked over at Jason wistfully. She hated that he was with Carly tonight, even if he hadn’t had a choice in the matter. He looked up and met her gaze, then turned to see where Lucky had gone. Seeing him dancing with Charisma, he turned back to Carly.
“I’ll be right back. I have to talk to Liz for a minute,” he said, standing up and leaving the table before she could respond.
Liz smiled as he approached her table. “Hey,” she said softly.
“You want to dance?” he asked, standing over her. “If Lucky can dance with someone else, why can’t we?”
“Sure,” she said happily, taking his hand and following him out to the dance floor. Once they were out there, she pulled herself into his arms and sighed, meeting his warm, blue eyes. “Jason, I’m sorry about what happened earlier. I didn’t want you to find out that way.”
“Yeah, well, I wasn’t too thrilled about it either. Why didn’t you just tell me after it happened?”
“I told you, I didn’t think it was a big deal. Lucky was trying to get these obnoxious girls to leave, and I guess I was the only one there he could kiss. It was so sudden and unexpected, I didn’t even realize what was happening until it was over. Don’t worry, I slapped him later,” she added, grinning up at him.
Jason chuckled. “Well, I guess that makes me feel a little better. Just make sure he knows it better not happen again.”
She nodded and snuggled up to him. “He knows, trust me.”
~*~
Carly sat by herself at the table, silently fuming. How dare Jason just up and leave her alone like that. They were supposed to be with their auction dates tonight, not their real ones! Not wanting to watch them any longer, she got up and hurried to the ladies room.
~*~
Nikolas and Emily were still dancing, one of the few couples who had remained on the dance floor after the first song. Emily glanced over at the others around them and frowned. “What’s up with that?”
“What?” Nikolas asked, following her gaze. “I don’t know. I thought he and Liz were finally getting somewhere. Who is that woman, anyway?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never seen her before. They look awfully friendly, like they know each other pretty well. Look, Liz and Jason are dancing now. I hope this doesn’t mean they’re back where they started.”
“Maybe. You didn’t really expect that after one dance, they would declare their undying love for one another, did you?” he asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.
Emily shrugged, tightening her grip around his neck. “Maybe not that extreme, but I thought they’d at least finally be able to admit to themselves that there’s something there. After that fight, I didn’t think Jason was going to go back to Liz so quickly. Especially since he and Carly looked so cozy out here earlier.”
“I know,” Nikolas said, watching as Carly jumped up from her table and rushed off to the bathrooms. He then looked over at Sonny and was surprised to see him talking very intently to Alexis. “I wonder what my aunt’s up to now?” he muttered.
“What do you mean?” Emily asked, looking over his shoulder. “With Sonny?”
“Yeah, they look kind of, I don’t know, intense. You don’t think...”
Emily shook her head. “No, not them. Last I heard she was still hung up on both Jax and Ned. I don’t think she can handle a third guy. Anyway, I thought her and Sonny hated each other!”
“Well, most people say that about Lucky and Liz, but weren’t we just talking about how perfect they are for each other anyway?” Nikolas asked.
“True...” Emily said, looking over at them again. The song ended, and the two couples broke apart and returned to their tables.
~*~
“What’s wrong with you?” Liz asked, seeing the annoyed expression on Lucky’s face. “You and Charisma looked like you were enjoying yourselves out there.”
Lucky shook his head. “She roped me into doing a show at Luke’s next week.”
“Why don’t you sound thrilled?”
“Because I didn’t want to do it,” he said angrily. “But she won’t quit when she gets an idea in her head, and I knew that no matter how much I refused, she would keep pushing it. I figured the sooner I get it over with, the sooner I can go back to being on vacation.”
“Makes sense to me. After all, this is your hometown. People probably expect you to do some kind of show while you’re here. I’m sure there are a few people around here that would actually want to see you sing,” she added, a look of distaste on her face.
Lucky rolled his eyes. “Here we go again,” he muttered.
