His gaze traced my body and paused on my ass. “Like I said: out of this world.”
Giving him a short, teasing twerk, I blew him a kiss. “Thanks, Rocketman.”
He was too stunned to reply as I turned and made my way to the stage. His reaction gave me the confidence boost I needed, especially since Kaylie hadn’t shown her face yet. I checked my smartwatch one more time to find no reply from her. Whatever. If she didn’t want to come tonight, then she shouldn’t have told me she’d be here. I joined her at all of her events, even the ones I didn’t care for. She could at least attend the one that I was most excited about.
I wasn’t going to allow her absence to ruin my night. Besides, even if she were here, there was no way she would stand in the crowd while I was on stage. I loved the chick, but she hated missing a chance to be in the spotlight.
None of that mattered. The night was young, the event was terrific, and I could leave with Rocketman when the night was over. If he played his cards right, I might assist him with his blast off.
I chuckled to myself at my joke. While I didn’t originally plan on leaving this rave with a guy, after being stood up by my bestie, the idea sounded more and more enticing. It had been a while since I’d been with someone, and the thought of riding Clay was starting to appeal.
The stage’s security guard asked for my pre-registered event number, and I flashed him my lanyard before ascending to the raised platform. The whole stage was packed with a line of contestants from one edge to the other. For a moment, I feared I was the last one to enter the contest, until a blonde girl with a handlebar ponytail, dressed in a hot pink Princess Leia slave bikini, quickly filed in beside me. I sighed as my worries fled me.
I hated being last—or late, for that matter. A late arrival always drew unneeded negative attention.
“Cute costume,” the hot pink Leia whispered. “What are you? A space elf?”
“Thanks.” I shot a glance at her. “Space fairy, but close enough. I wish I could rock your costume.”
“Yeah, I never was a fan of Star Trek.” She shrugged. “But I figured the costume was too perfect not to wear to an event like this.”
“You mean Star Wars,” I deadpanned as I tried not to cringe at her mistake.
“Yeah, whatever,” she scoffed, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder. “It’s basically the same thing.”
I decided to drop the subject. It was apparent she didn’t care. The most important thing to her was looking hot and winning this contest.
I tried not to let myself get annoyed with her comment. My costume was clearly superior. Anyone could find a golden bikini, strap a few window curtains to it, and call that original.
Usually, I wasn’t this bitchy, but something about her attitude rubbed me the wrong way. Top that off with my night not going as planned. Maybe I was transferring my irritation with Kaylie onto the girl beside me. Whatever the reason, I needed this win to cheer me up, and to show Kaylie what exactly she was missing. Plus, the prize money was a nice bonus.
The music dimmed, fading until it just carried above the crowd’s chatter. I barely even noticed the change; after spending a while surrounded by loud noises, I’d grown used to the volume. The only indicator that the music quieted was the absence of heart-thumping bass that still reverberated through my bones.
“It’s time for the grand event!” The flamboyant presenter was dressed in an outfit that looked like a mixture between the host from Fifth Element and a resident in the Hunger Games capitol. Big, loud, and in your face—definitely the main attraction.
“Each contestant will introduce themselves before crossing the catwalk to show us what they got.” He paused as the crowd cheered. “Once they’re done, our three fabulous judges will give them their scores. The contestant with the highest average rating wins the grand prize!”
While the host continued his excited babbling, I surveyed the party’s crowd, trying to spot my Rocketman. Right when I was about to abandon my search, I found Clay near the far fence border, making out with one of many Star Fleet copycats.
It took all of my might to control myself not to react to the display.
First, I’d been stood up by my best friend, only to be dismissed as soon as I left by a guy who I thought was interested in me—even if it was just for a one-night stand.
Screw them. Tonight was supposed to kick off the beginning of my summer. Instead of getting upset at this rejection, I would channel my anger into my performance.
When my turn came to introduce myself, I did so proudly, with my chin up and a wide smile. I made sure to sway my hips with each step on the catwalk, finishing with a sexy bend and snap to make the crowd go wild.
Eat your hearts out!
When I glanced at the three judges, each one of them held up a sign with the number ten written enthusiastically on the whiteboard.
“It looks like we have a new leader, with a perfect score of thirty out of thirty,” the host announced. “Can our last contestant tie her, and send them both to the lightning round? Or will she come up short and make Tori tonight’s winner? Only one can win. Let’s see if she has what it takes.”
I blew everyone a kiss as I returned to my spot, confident in my current position in the contest. My runway walk was perfected over many years attending these events, entering every costume competition I came across. No one else on this stage had a better costume than me, and that included the fake Leia who was going last.
She gave me a sly smirk as she walked past me, obviously believing that she was going to be the victor. For a split second, I had the urge to trip her but quickly dismissed the idea. I was going to win fair and square, not because I cheated my way to the top.
She was gorgeous; I had to grant her that. She was a blonde with a rockin’ body, dressed up as almost every man's fantasy. But then, who wasn’t some sort of attractive here? SoCal music festivals were better than any other; the most beautiful people in the country came to party here.
What irritated me was her unwarranted confidence. This was a costume contest, where originality was the most significant factor in the score. Where I hadn’t seen another space fairy tonight, I had come across multiple other bikini Leias in the crowd, some even equipped in chains and pulled around by their masters. Sure, there were a ton of aliens in the crowd, but no one wore anything remotely close to what I had on, and at least I knew what the heck I was wearing.
She shot me a quick smile as she ended her performance, trying to bait me to react. Instead of playing into her hands, I focused on the judges. She knew that I cared about the competition, so she was intent on beating me.
“Here is the moment of truth,” the host announced. “Will Britni tie our leader, or will Tori be our Star Queen?”
The three judges shot glances at each other before they raised their signs one by one.
Ten . . .
Ten . . .
The last judge shook her head before revealing her score.
Five.
“It looks like Tori is our champion!”
The crowd went wild as the other contestants left the stage, one by one, leaving me standing alone beside the energetic host.
I couldn’t believe it. I won. Me.
I shot a glance at my watch. It was almost 1 AM. What a great way to start a new day.
The three judges surrounded me; each one congratulating me as they handed me my prize, a large silver crown. The crystal stars and planets surrounding the rim twinkled under the rave’s party lights. I bent down as the one female judge placed it on my head, feeling a rush of excitement pass through me as my victory became a reality.