Page 36 of Snowed In with You

‘I think your vocals could—’ started Felix, holding up a finger.

‘You can play guitar,’ interrupted Andrea, leaning forward to block Felix’s view of Nate. ‘You are very good.’

‘I taught myself from YouTube,’ mumbled Nate. ‘I’ve never done that in front of anyone either.’

‘Being very drunk in a room full of strangers is extremely liberating,’ said Willem. ‘You should go on one of the TV talent shows. Like The X Factor, or The Voice. We watch the British versions on Dutch TV.’

Nate laughed and shook his head. ‘Definitely not. I’ve thought about it loads of times, but I’m never going to have the guts to do that in front of an audience.’

‘We are an audience,’ said Monica kindly. ‘A very lucky one.’

‘Well, thanks,’ said Nate. He stared at his hands, which were still shaking a little. ‘Who else is going to have a go?’

‘I definitely can’t sing,’ said Alex, looking slightly resentful about it. ‘But I’m happy to take the videos. Willem has a nice voice.’

‘Do you want to sing something together, Lucy?’ asked Willem. ‘I know the words to every Britney Spears song ever. Even the album tracks.’

‘I need to drink more wine first,’ said Lucy, draining her glass and reaching for the bottle. This whole situation with Nate, the rush of feelings she’d had when she’d seen him singing, had left her feeling agitated and confused.

‘I think Andrea and I should sing some more,’ said Felix, clearly annoyed that Nate had stolen Night Fever’s thunder. ‘Maybe “More Than A Woman”.’

Andrea headed over to the stool and picked up the guitar, throwing Lucy a glance that she decided to interpret as a cry for help.

‘Can Andrea sing something else?’ asked Lucy lightly.

‘What do you mean?’ replied Felix, glaring at her.

‘Oh,’ said Lucy, as Andrea shook her head frantically. ‘We love the Bee Gees, obviously. But I wondered if Andrea could sing something like . . . I don’t know. Maybe Adele?’

‘Only Adele can sing Adele,’ said Felix gruffly. ‘We sing the Bee Gees.’

‘Tragedy,’ muttered Alex, prompting Lucy to turn away, pressing her lips together to stop herself laughing.

‘Oh,’ said Nate, suddenly sitting upright and checking his old-school, functioning wristwatch. ‘It’s just past midnight, which means it’s actually Lucy’s birthday.’

Lucy looked at him and raised her eyebrows. Her birthday wasn’t until June.

‘Oh Lucy, happy birthday!’ cried Monica, as everyone else joined in.

‘Maybe just one Adele song, since it’s Lucy’s birthday?’ said Andrea, looking hopefully at Felix. He pouted for a few long seconds, which gave Lucy time to give Nate a what the fuck have you done? look. He shrugged and pulled a too late now face in return.

Felix sighed, rubbing his hand over his stubbly jaw. ‘Just one song,’ he said to Andrea. ‘I made a promise to Robin Gibb, remember?’

‘I know,’ said Andrea gravely. ‘But these are special circumstances. It’s just for Lucy, for her birthday.’

Felix nodded reluctantly and pressed the palms of his hands together against his lips, no doubt asking the Gibb brothers, alive and dead, for forgiveness. Andrea cleared her throat and strummed out the first few bars of ‘Make You Feel My Love’. Her voice was rich and pure, her eyes closed; she was entirely absorbed in the song. Lucy hugged her knees, a stupid grin on her face. She turned and looked at Nate, who spread his left arm along the back of the seat. It felt like an invitation, somehow, and for a moment Lucy was tempted to slide along and rest her head on his shoulder. Shoving her weird feelings aside, it still felt like some kind of . . . something might come out of this crazy shared experience. A friendship, maybe. Or an understanding. That obviously didn’t justify intimate physical contact of any kind, but it was a nice thought all the same. Especially as Chantal was looking at her like she wanted to poke her eyes out, which was a bonus.

The whole room sat in silence for the duration of the song, swaying along and listening to Andrea pour her heart into every line. She had a soulful, husky voice that was, by any standards, wasted on the Bee Gees.

‘That was beautiful,’ cheered Monica as Andrea’s voice faded out through the final line. She smiled, her face lighting up.

‘It’s actually a Bob Dylan song,’ huffed Felix dismissively, as Monica disappeared into the kitchen, dragging Chantal with her.

‘Then maybe Andrea should sing an Adele original,’ said Lucy quickly.

‘I would love to,’ said Andrea, before Felix could interrupt. ‘And since it’s your birthday, you should choose. What’s your favourite?’

Lucy thought for a moment, weighing up whether to ask Andrea for a crowd-pleasing belter, or the song she really wanted to hear.