Tessa considered, then flicked her curls dramatically. ‘Only if we can be the Crafty Bitches.’
‘Oh, that we are.’ Alana smirked. ‘Bonnie, do you have a lipstick?’
Bonnie scoffed good-naturedly. ‘DoIhave a lipstick?’
She pulled out one of the top drawers behind the bar, revealing a display to rival Sephora. After all, what was the point of having your own bar if you couldn’t also have your own dedicated lipstick drawer?
Tessa grabbed a napkin and scrawled her trivia duo’s team name on it with a purple lipstick.
Kirsty and Hannah came up, Kirsty looking nosy, and Hannah sporting the same dazed expression that Bobby had worn when he’d shown up at the library.
‘Um, could we join in as well?’ asked Kirsty, who despite her outward cattiness feared being left out more than anything.
Alana gave Tessa a questioning look, giving her the out that Bonnie wished she’d afforded Effie more often in life. But Tessa seemed happy to add a few extras to the team, even if they were probably going to be more hindrance than help. She waved Bonnie’s friends in with welcoming arms.
‘The only caveat is that you have to come to my opening night,’ Tessa said.
‘Deal,’ said Kirsty and Hannah.
‘But only if you let me cater,’ added Bonnie.
‘And let me help with the decorations,’ added Hannah, glancing down at her phone, which kept buzzing. ‘I have about a thousand notifications on this thing. Was there an outage or something?’
‘Something like that,’ said Bonnie gently. ‘But we’re all back on track now.’
She hoped, anyway. Because she was ready to put this whole ordeal behind her.
She drew Bobby in, sharing her question sheets with him.
‘Bobby, do you want to do the honours?’ she asked.
‘I’d love to,’ he said, beaming.
Bonnie passed him the microphone. Bobby tapped it, sending a screech of feedback through the room.
‘Sorry, sorry,’ he said, with a crooked grin. ‘Well, not really. Thanks for coming out to The Silver Slipper tonight, everyone. I know it’s been a bit of a weird night, what with the weather and the raccoons, but I think we’re on top of it. Before we get started, I just wanted to give a shout-out to my favourite girl in the world. And no, it’s not my budgerigar, although she comes close. Bonnie, you’re a champ, and I can’t think of anything better than running quiz night with you until neither of us can think of another question.’
‘Ask Effie to help!’ called Tessa.
‘Good point. There’s no excuse for us running out of questions with a librarian in the house...family...you know what I mean.’ Bobby blushed. ‘Anyway, Bon-Bon, Bons, Bonnie-Bee, thanks for letting me hang around and keep you flush with pastries.’
Bonnie dropped her gaze. ‘And thank you for lifting heavy things so I don’t have to.’
‘As you can see, we’re a team.’ Bobby reached out an arm to pull her in against him. He gave her a kiss on the forehead, a tender gesture that would have made the Bonnie of old rollher eyes ironically. But the Bonnie of tonight broke into a deep, genuine grin.
‘All right, question one: who thinks someone else should take over this quiz so I can buy my girl a drink?’
A whoop went up throughout the crowd. Bowow and Bruce Dickens pressed forward, holding hands. (It had been a big night for romance in Yellowbrick Grove.)
‘The Number of the Pooch relinquishes its place at table number six,’ called Bowow. ‘Now gimme that mic and give that woman some sugar.’
Bonnie, for the first time in her life, was beetroot red. She didn’t even have to see a reflection to know that her cheeks were veritably on fire.
‘What’ll it be?’ asked Bobby, heading behind the bar. Now that she was off the clock, he could finally make her something stronger than a lemon, lime and bitters.
‘Anything as long as it’s not purple,’ said Bonnie ruefully. ‘Or chardonnay.’
As Bowow and Bruce bellowed out questions about local lore and customs to the crowd, Bobby mixed up twin apple martinis. He slid one across the counter to Bonnie, then grabbed the other for himself.
