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Darla walk over to him. No, past him. She reached for Trevor, who reached back with a familiar embrace, and then a kiss that... whoa , practically set the stage on fire. Jeez, the two of them needed to get a room.
    I finished my drink, the watery taste of melted ice cubes and alcohol familiar, like the words “the end” on the final page of a book, and then, out of the corner of my eye, Darla stepped away from Trevor as a hand slid up her back, under her shirt. The hand was attached to... Joe ? Who then proceeded to...oh, dear. If they showed any more tongue I would think I was at a butcher shop.
    Who on earth was she actually with? The kiss with Joe went on and on until my own face started to flush, and the creeping red from my chest stretched up, then down .
    I felt like a voyeur, as if I weren’t supposed to be watching this, but what are you supposed to do when they’re onstage in front of a crowd? Trevor’s hand splayed across Darla’s ass, an ass about the size of my own. There I went comparing again—does any woman not? I admired whatever was going on in a sickly kind of way, my stomach twisting in knots. Was it possible? Were the two of them...no, the three of them...?
    And then Sam approached her. My whole body turned to melted chocolate, and then tensed up to granite, revolving in a cycle that left me weak.
    Then very, very angry as Darla reached out for Sam.
    Oh, no, she didn’t.
    I stood, hands twisted into fists, the blood pounding at my scalp, making the lights on stage go dim. Liam McCarthy jumped to the mic and shouted, “Are you ready to party?”My mouth went dry as I watched him own the stage. Hadn’t seen him in years, either.
    Seeing the person who took your virginity really should generate an emotional reaction, right?
    The crowd leapt to their feet and my view of the stage was obscured. Damn it! The raised arms, shrill whistles and screams from about a hundred fans made me lose track of what, exactly, Darla was doing to—or with—Sam.
    Liam tried to calm the crowd, arms out, palms down in a gesture of quiet. “Let’s get the raffle out of the way.”
    Anemic cheers.
    “Three prizes tonight.”
    “Free drinks!” Someone shouted. That got another round of hoots and some clapping.
    “Sorry—go hook up with someone in the crowd for that.” Loads of giggles from the women. Groans from the men.
    “First of three prizes—free tickets to our next concert!” I pulled my ticket out of my pocket. Why not? Going home with a prize was better than going home alone. Standing on tiptoes, I kept trying to catch a glimpse of Sam, and to see what Darla was doing to him. With him. Whatever. Liam called out a number that wasn’t mine. As the crowd settled back in their seats, I saw Joe and Sam setting up equipment in the background. No Darla. Good.
    “Second prize—a CD from our best live performances.” He read off a number.
    Not mine.
    “Third and final prize.” Cocky grin. “Let me call out the number and then I’ll tell you what you get.”
    “A night with you, Liam!” some drunk girl screamed.
    He cocked one hell of a sexy eyebrow at the crowd and leered. “That would make any woman a winner.” He drew the word winner out like a finger running down a woman’s breast, over her ribs, down her torso...and the women in the crowd shrieked.
    And then he called out my number.
    “Anyone?”
    I was frozen. Holy shit. What?
    “I’ll take you if someone doesn’t claim it!” a woman cried out.
    “Me, too!” screamed five or six other women.
    The waitress happened to pop over and look at my ticket. “Here! She won! Right here!” She pointed at me with a big gesture that caught the crowd’s attention.
    No no no no no . Sam couldn’t know I was here.
    “What are you waiting for, honey? Don’t be afraid. Go for it!” With a mighty shove, she pushed me out into the crowd, a spotlight finding my face.
    “Hey there! Our winner! And it’s a chick—whew!”
    Every woman I walked past