"Shelby. You are about to get married and settle down for the rest of your life. You need to go out and have one crazy celebration before you start your married life. Right, Sam?"
Sam frowned and said, "Well… I guess. If that's what you want to do, Shel."
Savannah continued smoothly, "Even if it's just the three of us, we're going to have a girls' night out. I have a car and driver; we don't have to worry about driving anywhere. Joey will take care of that. So leave it to me; that's the maid of honor's job, you know."
Maggie said, "That's true. I hadn't thought about it, either."
"And I bet you never had a girls' night before your wedding either, did you?" Savannah asked.
"No," Maggie admitted. "All I was thinking about was getting married."
"So, we'll celebrate for both of you. There are traditions for these things, ladies. Gran, do you want to go?"
And just like that, Shelby was having a bachelorette party.
Chapter 3
The long, black limo pulled to a stop in front of the door to the brightly lit nightclub, and Joey stepped around to hand the three women out. The doorman stamped their hands and waived the cover charge that was normally paid before entering. He held the door for them, letting out a wave of booming music. The three of them weaved their way through the crowd and grabbed chairs at a tiny table. They ordered drinks and struggled to shout to each other over the head splitting volume of the music and the crowd. After fending off the advances of several overconfident suitors, they looked at each other, nodded in agreement and headed for the door.
Joey had champagne in an ice bucket, and Savannah poured them each a glass while they debated their plans for the evening.
Shelby said, "I vote for food before we get too far along."
Maggie agreed, and Savannah thought for a moment and then said, "Joey, take us to the Slippery Noodle. Shelby's right; it's too early in the evening for clubbing."
Maggie said, "Either that, or we're past the clubbing stage in our development."
Savannah said, "Bite your tongue. We're not too old for anything. We're just going to be choosy about what we spend our time doing. The Noodle is perfect. Great food, no screaming hip hop band, quiet enough to actually have a conversation, but live blues too."
Shelby said, "That sounds great; I love blues!"
"And later, I have another place in mind."
They spent a good three hours at the popular pub, enjoying the food and the music and the reactions of the men who saw the twins for the first time. Savannah dragged them onto the dance floor and flirted mercilessly with the men who joined them there. When they left, they laughed all the way to the car at Savannah's account of the man who had promised to whisk her off to a beautiful tropical paradise in Florida. Savannah had fluttered her eyelashes at him and gasped in awe at his description of the places he could take her.
"But I'm so sorry, I have to leave soon. I have reservations in Monaco in a few days," she turned him down prettily.
Crestfallen, he said, "Reservations where?"
"Monaco. In the French Riviera? You've heard of it, right?"
Although no comprehension dawned in his eyes, he nodded and said, "But if you change your mind, just call, anytime. Here's my card; my cell number is on the back."
Savannah fluttered her eyelashes at him again and tucked the card into the bodice of her dress, causing his mouth to open and close like a fish gasping for breath. Shelby flopped back on the seat of the limo, laughing helplessly at her sister.
Savannah said, "I was about to call you over to gang up on him."
Maggie said, "It might have been too much for him. You could have killed him."
"Good point. Joey, did you get the tickets?"
"I did, Miss Savannah. You're all set."
"Good." Savannah nodded in satisfaction.
Shelby said, "I should call Sam while I have a minute."
"No, you are not going to call Sam. This is your night, your last night out as a single woman. He knows what you're doing, and he knows we have Joey to watch out for us."
"Okay," Shelby said reluctantly, still feeling that she really ought to check in with Sam. She decided to send a quick text, but before she could finish, they had arrived at another club.
Maggie had been feeling the same as Shelby, that she ought to check in with Carter. He had warned her earlier in the day to be careful.
"Savannah will get you in trouble, I'm just telling you. She won't feel a bit bad about it, either. Use your head, and don't let her get you into anything you don't think you should get into. Savannah does whatever feels good at the moment and to hell with the consequences. So watch it."
Maggie had laughed and kissed him. "Stop worrying. We're just going out for a simple girls' night out. She's your sister. She's not going to get me in trouble."
Carter had shaken his head and let it drop.
Savannah said, "Let's go, ladies."
The three of them got out of the car, and Joey handed the tickets to Savannah.
"What is this place, Savannah?" Shelby asked as they waited in line at the door to the little brick building.
"It's a bar with a stage area. They have all kinds of productions here. Comedy, music, and, tonight, a burlesque show."
Maggie and Shelby were surprised.
"Burlesque?" Shelby said. "I thought that was a thing of the past, like a long time ago."
"It was, but it's made a comeback in the last few years. If you've never seen it, you need to. It's an art form, and it's really fun. This is a good troupe. I've used them in…I mean, I hired them for a private party once."
They got glasses of wine at the bar and went into the staged area to find their seats. It was a small place, but the seats were filling rapidly. The crowd was noisy and clearly having fun. The emcee came out on the stage and checked the microphone. She was dressed in a low cut, short dress with stockings and stiletto heels. When she spotted Savannah, she gave her a huge smile and a wave, throwing kisses.
When the show began, the little auditorium was packed. The emcee walked out to a raucous chorus of shouts and whistles. Smiling and waving, she introduced herself to a crowd who obviously knew her well.
"Hi, y'all, and welcome to our show tonight! I'm your emcee for this evening's show, Lily Mae, and before we get started, I want to introduce you to some special guests. Miss Savannah Beauchamp is here tonight with her twin, yes, twin sister, Shelby, who is getting married next week. Some of you know Savannah. Stand up, ladies, and give us a big hello."
Savannah grabbed a furiously blushing Shelby by the hand and pulled her to her feet, waving at the cheering, whistling crowd.
As they took their seats, Lily Mae said, "Don't y'all think that Savannah and Shelby Beauchamp are just made to be burlesque performers? Unfortunately for us, Savannah is a world traveler, and Shelby is a first grade teacher. And that just begs for a story!"
The crowd laughed and applauded. For the next two hours, Maggie and Shelby were fascinated by the show. There were bawdy, clever skits that left them laughing and cheering, musical numbers that showed off wonderful voices, dancing, costume changes, and always sexy fun. They had an intermission after the first hour, and Savannah bought them a bottle of wine to take back to their seats after they drank their second glasses while milling around in the bar area during the break. The performers who were finished, still in costume, mingled with the crowd until the intermission was over.