| Chapter 4: That Smile “So are you ready for this?” Lauralee asked Celia. “All set,” Celia smiled. After an extensive background check Laura and Lauralee had run on Celia, they knew she was the one. They had spent the last week showing her all of the ins and outs of the club, and also gave her leeway to her own style. The employees seemed to like her and gave her total respect. It came just in time, for Lauralee was going to New York, and Laura was having extensive meetings with her wedding planner, Colin, in two days. Tonight was the first night of Celia’s management. Lauralee and Laura were playing guests tonight, but made sure to be on hand in case of any trouble. Not only was it going to be a busy night, but also Club Passaro was going to host Krystal, the artist signed to the Boys’ new label. The whole crew was all going to be there as well. “OK, looks like we’re gonna open now,” Laura checked her watch. She gave Celia a hug. “Break a leg.” Lauralee handed Celia a ring of keys. “Show’s all yours now. Make us proud.” “Count on it,” Celia winked. The doors opened as people began to file inside. Laura and Lauralee took their spots at the VIP area, which was a floor above the main one, with a separate entrance. The girls overlooked the dance floor as the VIP door opened. “Everybody decent?” Alex poked his head inside. “Hey,” Lauralee went up and embraced him. Kevin followed suit, as well as the rest of the crew. “So, how’s the new manager doing?” asked Bianca. “So far, so good,” Lauralee answered. “Everything’s running smoothly.” “Krystal’s all ready?” Laura asked. “Yup, she’s in her dressing room,” Brian answered. “I can’t wait to see her perform,” Elizabeth smiled. “Yeah, thanks for giving her a solo spot,” Howie said. “Our pleasure. That girl’s got a bright future ahead of her,” Lauralee smiled. “Speaking of futures…” Kevin turned to Laura. “Colin left six messages on the machine this afternoon.” “Jesus, you think he’d remember my cell number already!” Laura growled. “It’s not like he can wait two days.” “Easy girl, or else you’ll explode,” Bianca laughed. “Lauralee, you there?” the intercom blared from the table. Lauralee pressed a button. “Yeah Celia, I’m here.” “Krystal is ready to go.” “OK, I’ll be right down,” Lauralee pushed the button once again. Lauralee headed down to the stage at the front of the club. The crowd cheered as she came down. “Hello everyone! How’s everybody feeling tonight?” The crowd cheered again. “I am really excited about this girl who is coming out now. She’s got the voice of an angel, and I know you will feel the same way. This is her first main gig since she got signed to her record deal, so I want you to give it up for Krystal!” Krystal came on stage performing her song “Supergirl” as Lauralee looked on from the side of the stage. The people were cheering and dancing to her performance and applauded loudly as she finished her first song. Lauralee headed back up to the VIP area where the rest of the crew was listening to Krystal’s performance. “Man that girl can wail!” Elizabeth yelled through the noise. “Like Lau said, she’s got the voice of an angel,” Brian said as he encircled his arms around Elizabeth’s waist. ~*~ Howie looked on as Krystal performed her song “Angel on My Shoulder.” He turned his head to Alex and Lauralee. “May I have this dance?” Alex asked Lauralee. Howie noticed Lauralee smile as they started to sway to the beat. The others followed suit as Howie leaned on the bar and sighed. Ever since the club opened, he was feeling so lonely. Every time he passed by the main hall showing Veronica’s picture with the rest of the girls, his chest would tighten up as if he couldn’t breathe. The others enjoyed being at the club. For him, it was pure torture. He was overlooking the crowd, when he saw a girl walking around the floor. He squinted his eyes and looked again. She looked so… familiar. What was it about her? Then the girl smiled. “Veronica?” he whispered. No one could have that smile except her. He closed his eyes and shook his head. OK Howie, get a grip… that girl isn’t Veronica. He looked again at her. She was different than Veronica, long hair and hazel eyes, but she smiled again. That smile… that damn smile. He couldn’t help stare at her as she walked around the floor, flashing her smile around to people. He didn’t want to look at her, but he felt compelled to stare. Her smile was hypnotic. Howie then felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see Lauralee. “Wanna dance?” Lauralee asked. “Sure,” Howie said as he grabbed her and started to sway. “So what do you really think of the place?” Lauralee asked. “I like it,” Howie said. “Really? You’ve seemed so quiet the past couple of weeks,” Lauralee cocked her head to the side. “Just been thinking about going on the road again is all.” “Howie, we’re at a club. Enjoy yourself.” “I know, I know,” Howie smiled. “Is anything else wrong? You know you can tell me,” Lauralee looked quite serious. Howie looked right into Lauralee’s eyes. “Lau, you worry too much. I’m OK, really.” “OK,” Lauralee said slowly. “But you know if you need me, be it on tour…” “I’ll call, I promise,” Howie smiled. “Come on, let’s dance.” ~*~ The night died down without a hitch. Lauralee and Laura looked on with a sense of relief. Celia did a wonderful job. There were no problems, no big emergencies to worry about. “Now that was the first night I could enjoy being here,” Laura smiled. “I know. Celia was excellent,” Lauralee agreed. “Now I feel better about leaving for New York.” “So where is the shining star of Club Passaro anyway?” Nick asked. “I’ll bring her up,” Lauralee said as she pushed the intercom. “Celia, could you come up here?” “Sure,” Celia said. “You guys are gonna love her,” Laura said as they heard a knock at the door. “That’s her. Come in!” Celia walked inside. “Hi everyone.” “Celia Graveri, this is Bianca, Elizabeth, Nick, Brian, Kevin, Alex, and Howie. Everyone, this is Celia, the best club manager in Orlando.” They all exchanged hellos. “You did a spectacular job!” Laura mused. Celia smiled. “Thanks, I was a little nervous. But it ran like clockwork.” Howie interjected. “Uh, look guys, I have to go. It was nice meeting you Celia.” He left rather quickly. “Um, yeah,” Alex said as Howie closed the door behind him. He shrugged his shoulders to everyone. “He probably wanted to make sure Tabu had as good a manager as Club Passaro does,” Bianca smiled. “Probably,” Kevin agreed. “Look, I’m gonna head out too. Our flight leaves in the morning.” He kissed Laura. “I’ll see you at home. It was nice to meet you Celia.” “We’re gonna split as well. Gotta get up in the morning,” Brian said as he as the rest of the crowd left. “OK, let’s go over the books for the evening,” Lauralee said as she, Celia and Laura headed to the office. Chapter 5 Contents Chapter 3 |