Authors: Tara McTiernan
"No, he likes you," Bianca said, nodding and grinning again. Look at her. Sharon was like a schoolgirl - that easily embarrassed and that transparent when it came to men. "And you might like him a little, too."
"What!" Sharon said. "Definitely not. Never. Not a chance in hell."
Bianca shrugged her shoulders and said in a sing-song voice, "The lady doth protest too much, methinks."
"No, but-" Sharon sputtered.
Bianca felt a tap on her right shoulder and, steeling herself for round two of cat-and-mouse with the leering Adonis, turned to see Kate Palmer at her side instead, looking nervous, her pale lash-less eyes darting about. Now this was a mouse she was interested in. A little country mouse. Alone in the big scary city with only her new friend, Bianca, to guide her.
"There you are!" Bianca said and smiled warmly at Kate. "So glad you could make it. I was wondering."
"Sorry?" Kate said, eyes darting around at the heaving crowd around them. "I got lost? All these one-way streets got me mixed up. But here I am now?"
"Yes, here you are. And we're just about to sit down and eat. I know, I just said drinks, but sometimes we get dinner too. That's okay?"
"Oh? Sure? Okay?"
Bianca nodded. "Good." Wow, to this one everything was a question. In fact, Kate was all about questions - such as: why would Grant marry Kate? And what made Grant tick? And how would Kate help Bianca get Grant without knowing it? These were the questions and Bianca was sure she could get the answers, somehow.
She turned to Chelsea and Sharon, observing with satisfaction that Sharon's face was still pink and moist-looking, and said, "Chelsea, Sharon, this is my friend Kate. One of my doctors' wives. She's new in the area. Originally from Vermont."
"Friend? Oh, thanks!" Kate said and giggled.
"Nice to meet you," Chelsea said, smiling and nodding at Kate. "Okay, let's go sit down already. I'm starving. Where
is
Lucie?"
"Hi, Kate. Nice to meet you," Sharon said, looking almost sad, and turned to Chelsea. "I'll get Lucie and we'll meet you at the table. I have to go to the bathroom anyway." She pushed away into the crowd, her head wiggling a little as if she was swimming upstream.
Bianca noted that Sharon didn't look at her once during that exchange. So, she
did
like the jerk-neighbor and she didn't appreciate Bianca pointing it out, obviously resisting feeling that way. Well, if Sharon gave her any more trouble tonight, she'd go sic the tall goofy-looking neighbor on her. All Bianca had to do was give him a friendly little push, a hint that the interest was mutual - she could tell. She peered at him at the end of the bar and saw that he was craning his neck to see where Sharon was going. Yes, it would be easy.
She turned back and saw that Kate was watching Sharon’s exit as well. Kate said, “I’m so glad someone’s wearing jeans? I didn’t know this place was so dressy. In Vermont? The bars are really casual? Like this?” Kate pointed down at her pink lightweight sweater and jeans. “This would be dressy?”
“Come on,” Chelsea interrupted, scooping the air between them. “Let’s go.”
Bianca shrugged. “All right.”
They started to make their way to the hostess stand near the door when there was a shout behind them. Bianca looked over her shoulder. It was the Adonis. Holding her mojito and a beer aloft.
“Hey!” he shouted again after her. “Where are you going?”
She smiled and stopped, turning toward him and hearing Chelsea’s frustrated whine behind her, but not caring. Kate, who had been right behind Bianca and not expecting her to stop, stepped on her foot.
“Ow!”
“Oh? Sorry?” Kate said, looking terrified and putting her hands up in surrender.
Bianca narrowed her eyes at Kate for a second before resuming her friendly act. “Oh, don’t worry about it.” That’s right, surrender, you ugly little mouse. I’m going to win anyway, so why bother fighting it? Grant is mine. He just doesn’t know it yet.
“Really? I’m sorry?”
“No, it’s okay.”
The Adonis reached them. Either ignoring Kate or oblivious to her, he stepped in front of her. “Your drink. Don’t you want it?”
Bianca tilted her head. “Sure. I guess.” She took it from him. “Thanks.”
“So, what were we talking about? Oh, that’s right, your name.”
Kate sidled around him, clearly not grasping that she’d just been dissed. “Oh, her name is Bianca?”
“Bianca! What a beautiful name. But of course. I-“
Irritated with both him and the ultra-clueless Kate, Bianca lost her patience and cut him off. “We’re going to have dinner. Just us girls. Thanks for the drink, though.”
“What?”
“Bye,” Bianca said, turning and walking away, watching the crowd open up and feeling the many pairs of eyes tickling as they played over her. Ah, the spotlight. Where she belonged. Holding the glass containing the Adonis’s offering, she slinked down the aisle cut through the crowd by her power, savoring the heat and electric energy of the moment while Kate scampered after her.
Corona
Kate wanted to cover her ears. It was so loud in the bar, the cacophony an assault. And the glamour of the place, too, was aggressive. Shiny and sleek and too beautiful – those words could be applied to the bar as well as the people within it.
Bianca’s friend, Chelsea, was a buxom drop-dead bombshell of a blond decked out in a sexy shiny blouse and a short skirt with mile-high heels, sparkling hoop earrings peeking out on either side of her Barbie-doll face. She was definitely a blond that had more fun, as opposed to her, Kate, whose hair color was unremarkable even though it was nearly the same pale shade. It was amazing what glamour could do. And if she had been dazzled by Bianca back at the office, here at Ibiza Grant’s old schoolmate seemed to radiate something that made Kate feel both sick and zippy.
Thank goodness for the other friend, Sharon, an older woman who appeared to be in her late thirties. She looked like one of Kate’s friends from Vermont: normal, nice, and wearing jeans, praise-be. Kate watched Sharon heading off toward the bathroom through the pressing crowd and then turned back to Bianca.
“I’m so glad someone’s wearing jeans? I didn’t know this place was so dressy. In Vermont? The bars are really casual? Like this? This would be dressy?” Kate pointed down at what she thought would be perfect for a local bar, a nice sweater and new designer jeans she’d been excited about wearing for the first time. Instead, she and Sharon were the only ones in the bar not dressed up in fancy evening clothes.
“Come on,” Chelsea interrupted, scooping the air between them. “Let’s go.”
Kate started to follow the two women toward the front of the restaurant when Bianca suddenly stopped and turned around. Kate felt her foot land on something soft.
“Ow!”
Kate looked down and realized she’d just stepped on Bianca’s foot that was clad in the same red heeled pump from earlier, but now paired with a red dress instead of a red suit, “Oh? Sorry?” Kate said, looking up and seeing Bianca’s thunderous look. Kate put her hands up. Oh, no. She’d already made her new friend mad.
Bianca’s face was abruptly friendly again. “Oh, don’t worry about it."
“Really? I’m sorry?”
“No, it’s okay.”
Just then a man stepped between Kate and Bianca and started talking to Bianca. Kate, realizing he hadn’t seen her, stepped around him just in time to hear him asking what Bianca’s name was.
She piped up. “Oh, her name is Bianca?”
The man’s face brightened with a smile. “Bianca! What a beautiful name. But, of course. I-“
Bianca interrupted him, “We’re going to have dinner. Just us girls. Thanks for the drink, though.”
Kate saw that Bianca now held a glass filled with what looked like leaves. Where did that come from? Well, she just thanked the man, so he had given it to her. But Bianca was already walking away, still holding the drink. The man was watching her go, apparently in shock.
“Sorry?” Kate said to him and hurried to catch up, feeling stranger than ever.
Where she grew up, if you accepted a drink from a gentleman you sat with him and made conversation. It was the polite thing to do, the only thing to do other than refusing the drink. To take a drink from someone and then walk away - it was unheard of, rude. But Bianca was nice. No, obviously, that's the way things were done here. Kate would have to start taking notes. Fairfield County might as well be Botswana, it was such a foreign place. She caught herself feeling that old ache for home and stopped herself. This was where they wanted to be, where she had insisted they move so that their family could have a better life. She would make Connecticut her home, the Gold Coast as they aptly called it. She just had to get used to it, that was all. And here she was, already going out to exciting "hot" restaurants with new friends. And she was going to have her own car!
A stick-thin haughty gentleman wearing an all-black suit led them to a table near the front window, a large orange silk-upholstered banquette that put them on display to both passersby and the crowd in the bar. The table had a bouquet of white flowers on it and low votive candles flickered gently in a circle around the bouquet’s squat vase.
"How pretty?" Kate exclaimed, pointing at the flowers while the other two women slid into their seats.
Chelsea wasn't paying attention, her large blue eyes riveted on the menu she’d already opened, but Bianca looked at her and raised her eyebrows coolly. Uh-oh. Another mistake?
But then Bianca’s face broke into another warm smile. "Come. Sit by me."
"Okay?" Kate sat down next to Bianca, feeling the strange nauseous energy grow stronger with their increased proximity. She turned to look at Bianca. Wow. She was magnificent. Kate had never seen anyone so beautiful in person.
"So. How are you liking living here? Is it very different from Vermont? I've only been once, skiing," Bianca said, resting her elbow on the table as she faced Kate and cradling her face in her hand. The drink, sipped once, had been abandoned on the table beside her and the menu ignored.
“Skiing? Oh, that’s nice?” Kate said, wanting to talk about Bianca, not herself. Skiing was expensive and no one in her family had the money or the time for it – but she wasn’t surprised that Bianca skied. Bianca was obviously a jet-setter. Kate had seen that right away when she met her. Kate’s eye had practically been put out with that enormous glittering diamond engagement ring and the equally elaborate wedding ring Bianca wore alongside of it that was studded thickly with diamonds and rubies. Kate wondered what Bianca’s husband did for a living to be able to afford such jewels.
And where was Bianca's husband tonight? Probably at home watching TV while Bianca had her night out with the girls. Or did rich people just hang out watching TV like that, curled up on the couch? Did they all have big home theatres with leather seats instead? Oh, it was all so amazing. How wonderful for Kate and Grant's children to have so many opportunities, to be in such a world! Their lives would be a million times better than Kate’s, free from worries and fear.
“Yes, skiing. But Vermont. Tell me about it,” Bianca said.
“Oh,” Kate said, giving a little shrug. “That’s boring. Let’s talk about you?”
“No, you. I’m the boring one. Come on – what’s it like moving here from there? Do you miss it? You must.”
Kate felt a lump harden in her throat, hearing Bianca’s sympathetic concern. She nodded, her eyes misting slightly. “Yes? A lot.”
“What? What do you miss?”