Page 31 of The Baking Games

I start to notice that the women are lining up more in front of Rhett than in front of me. They seem to be coming from all around, and then I realize they’ve never seen such a tall and handsome man willing to paint the fingernails of the women at the assisted living home. Before I know it, he’s handling everything, and I’m sitting back, relaxing.

"Aren't you going to do something?" he finally asks me as he tries to keep up with the long line.

I shrug my shoulders and laugh. "I am doing something. I'm watching you."

RHETT

I am delicately painting the nails of Mrs. Johnson, who seems to be one of the feistier residents here at the assisted living center. Suddenly, the sound of a microphone squealing breaks my concentration. I look up and see Connor strutting toward the karaoke machine that is set up in the corner, pulling a reluctant-looking Lainey behind him.

"All right, everybody, who's ready for a performance?" Connor yells into the microphone, holding his mouth too close to it, flashing one of his over-the-top cheesy-looking grins. A few of the residents perk up, but most of them seem happy snacking on cookies or watching Savannah and me work our manicure magic.

Most other contestants are sitting with residents, chatting or playing checkers and chess. Only Connor is trying to become the center of attention.

Savannah leans over to me. "You're not going to believe this," she mutters, with an amused shake of her head.

I stifle a laugh. She clearly knows what's coming.

The opening beats of Shallow from A Star Is Born blare out, and Connor immediately launches into one very exaggerated stage act, clutching his chest dramatically. Lainey joins in, or at least tries to, her voice grating and terribly off-key from the very beginning.

I honestly can’t tell if Connor is trying to be funny or if he really sings like that. I’m hoping it’s the former.

They're making a mockery of the people that they're trying to entertain, which kind of annoys me, but it's hard to pay attention to that when you can't take your eyes off the train wreck right in front of you.

"Tell me something…” Connor warbles, missing every single note as he starts gesticulating wildly. I shake my head in disbelief at what I'm seeing. Savannah just smirks, as she continues applying the final coat of polish to Mrs. Palmer's bright-red fingernails.

"His singing could use some work, couldn't it?" I murmur to her.

"Oh, you have no idea," she confirms with a laugh. "You know we dated, and I had to endure way too many overly enthusiastic car sing-alongs from him."

I raise an eyebrow at her. "I guess I don't understand why you dated that idiot."

“I dated him for a whole two years until a few weeks ago."

"So what finally made you see the light and dump him?"

Then I notice something like a flicker of sadness that crosses her face before her jaw sets in determination.

"He couldn't handle how close I am to my little sister, Sadie. We had a pretty terrible childhood and a neglectful mother, who passed away several years ago. So I got guardianship of Sadie when she was twelve, and I basically became her parent. She's twenty now, and Connor couldn't stand that I treat her like my own child instead of putting him first. I'm a protective big sister. I care about her more than anything else. She's all I have left. He didn't want that. He wanted it to just be him and me and one day our own family, but not with Sadie. I missed out on college because I couldn't afford it while I was taking care of her, and then she missed out on college because I couldn't afford it while I was just trying to keep us both afloat. So this competition is my big chance."

“Well, this Connor fella sounds like an idiot to me, dear,” an older woman says. She’s waiting for glittery nail polish. Savannah smiles at her graciously.

The singing continues in the background, and it's apparent that Connor couldn't carry a tune if it had two handles. I suddenly feel a surge of respect for Savannah’s resilience and selflessness, and I admire her ability to put her younger sister first despite the obstacles she’s faced.

I can’t relate to it, of course. I’ve always had two parents with plenty of money and a very stable family structure. But she seems closer to her sister than I am to my entire family. Of course an egomaniac like Connor would be threatened by the unshakable loyalty to someone other than him.

Connor hits a particularly sour note, which shatters any charm he might've once had with the residents. An elderly man puts his fingers in his ears in protest, making Savannah and I laugh.

"Boy, he's really working hard to get those extra minutes of camera time in," I mutter, looking back at the hand in front of me.

Savannah smiles wryly. "Don't worry, this sideshow won't last long. His little tantrums were always short-lived, just like his talent."

That makes me laugh. Sure enough, after several more excruciating minutes, Connor finally runs out of breath from his failed attempt at hitting notes far too high, and his voice starts to crack and croak like a frog. He dramatically bows as Lainey gives a few awkward claps and follows along behind him. The karaoke machine is mercifully turned off, and I can't help but feel relieved that the painful audition is over. It’s like he thought he was at a nightclub karaoke night instead of an assisted living home.

I look over at Savannah, who has refocused on the resident sitting in front of her, and Connor's pathetic bid for fame is left in the dust. For somebody who's already overcome so much, I wonder if her empathetic heart and sensitivity will let her go far in this competition.

For a fleeting moment, at least, the pressures of the competition have faded into the background. I suppose there are worse fates than getting momentarily upstaged by your rival’s tone-deaf ex-boyfriend and his fame-hungry partner. Like realizing that you're actually starting to enjoy the company of the person you're supposed to be competing with.

SAVANNAH