High Maintenance

Chapter One

"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one," the bandleader counted down.
"Happy New Year!"
The room full of people joined in, cheering.

Deidre North raised her glass of champagne to toast. She tapped the crystal against that of the man next to her and, even in the noisy
room,
she heard the light tinkling sound. Sipping, she watched him over the rim of her glass.

He removed the stemware from her hand, setting it next to his on the table.
"Happy New Year."
Leaning in, he placed a light kiss on her lips. "Let's dance."

"Are you joking?" She glanced down at the plaster cast which covered her left leg, knee to toes.

"I'm very serious. Lean your crutches against the table." He took them from under her arms, setting them aside.

"I can't stand by myself." She held the table for support.

"You don't have to. Lean on me. Put your arms around my neck."

Uncertain if that was a good idea, she hesitated.

"Like this." He smiled, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Hang on." Clutching her around the waist, he lifted her effortlessly, carrying her to the edge of the dance floor.

Deidre had no choice but to latch on to his neck. "You're crazy!"

"Crazy about you."
He set her down on her good foot, but kept a tight grip. "I was really just trying to get you into my arms."

"You're a naughty, naughty man."

He chuckled. "I could be naughtier, if you'd give me the chance." He pressed his body against hers.

The hard ridge of his erection dug into her, sending a thrill down her spine, at the same time making her a little nervous. "I'm flattered."

"Where will flattery get me?" he whispered.
"Because I can come up with some more."

"You're awful," she teased, her face buried in the crook of his neck. He smelled heavenly. She breathed in deeply.
 
The intoxicating aroma was Calvin Klein’s Obsession, always one of her favorites.

"I'm a nice guy. You bring out the animal in me." He pressed his hips into her again. "Let's go to my suite. I don't want to wait any longer."

She pulled back, batting her eyelashes. "We barely know each other."

"Time alone will remedy that."

"I'm leaving the day after tomorrow."

"Then we'd best get started."

She smiled, but shook her head. She'd never been much of a flirt, but teasing him was too much fun. "I'm just not sure."

He stared into her eyes. "I'm very sure. Besides, you're about to get thrown out of here, anyway. You're making all the other women look bad."

It was the cheesiest pickup line she'd ever heard.

* * * *

One day earlier

"You should be in bed."

"Mother, please." Deidre rolled her eyes. "I spent yesterday in bed. I'll go crazy if I have to stay there any longer." She settled into the big chair, adjusting her left leg in its bulky cast on the ottoman.

"Someone needs to be here with you. I'll stay." Her mother shoved a pillow behind her back.

Then I'll truly go crazy.
"Mom, no.
You and Dad want to ski. We only have a couple more days of vacation. You lost a day because of me already. Please, go." She glanced around the comfortable lobby of the lodge. A wall of windows surrounded a crackling fireplace. It offered a panoramic view of the mountains, complete with lifts and skiers. She had a stack of magazines and the latest crime thriller novel. The desk clerk was in sight, and the restaurant just around the corner. "I have everything I could possibly need, right here."

As she spoke, an older black woman in a uniform came from the restaurant. "I heard we had a casualty out here. How are you?"

"I'm fine." Deidre smiled at her.
"Trying to convince my mother to go skiing."

"Of course you should go." She turned to Jana North. "My name's Winnie. I'll keep your girl fixed with whatever she needs. You run along, honey." Looking back to Deidre, she asked, "What can I bring you?"

"Hot chocolate?"

"You bet. Whipped cream?"

"Sure." She smiled appreciatively.

"Make it low fat," Jana told Winnie.

"Mother!"

"Your sister told me the outfit she bought you for Christmas was a size fourteen."

"So?"

Jana rolled her eyes and looked at the waitress. "Willie, can you add her food to our bill?"

"Of course, ma'am."
She didn't bat an eyelash, simply turned and left.

"Her name is Winnie."

"Whatever." Jana waved a hand. "I think you need to watch your diet. You've gained weight."

"Only a few pounds!
I have a stressful job."

"Your sister's job is stressful, yet she's the same size she was in high school, even after having a child."

"She's a flight attendant! I wouldn't compare passing out peanuts with being a social worker. Besides, they weigh her all the time. She has to stay a certain weight."

"You should be so lucky." Her mother patted her good knee. "Get some rest. We'll check in with you later."

"Have fun, Mom. Don't worry about me."

Jana waved and boarded the elevator to her room.

Deidre sighed, leaning her head back against the chair. The pillow her mother had shoved behind her was uncomfortable. She jerked it out, tossed it aside.

"Here you go." Winnie returned with a steaming mug of cocoa, piled high with whipped cream.

"Is it low fat?" Deidre made a face.

"Heavens, no."
Winnie set the cup on the table next to Deidre. "We make a wonderful French onion soup too. Think about that for lunch. It's rich and thick, with cheese melted on top."

"Will you adopt me?" She blinked, looking longingly at the waitress.

"I've got seven kids already. One more won't even be noticed." They laughed as she continued, "Something tells me your mother would miss you. She seems very…
doting
."

"That's a nice way of saying controlling. She has to do everything herself. When she gets like that, I'm afraid she doesn’t listen very well. Sorry."

Winnie waved a hand in the air. "No problem. It takes more than that to bother me. As much as I'd like to stay and chat, I'm needed in the kitchen. I'll check on you as often as I can. If you need anything, give a shout."

"You're very kind. Thank you."

The woman smiled. "Enjoy. See you later." She disappeared around the corner.

Deidre sipped the cocoa. Though too hot to drink, she could already tell it tasted wonderful. The food at the lodge was delicious. She couldn't remember the last time her mother had prepared such fare. The past several years, they'd eaten healthy.

Her father, David, worked as a busy bank executive. When Deidre was a junior in high school, he'd suffered a mild heart attack. It threw the family, especially her mother, into a tailspin. The stay-at-home homemaker immediately embraced a heart conscious, doctor-recommended diet, much to the chagrin of her family.

Deidre loved to eat. She'd been a good student, but didn’t have an active social life. She had babysat for money and spent the rest of the time with a book in one hand and a snack in the other.

Her sister Renee had been a senior and a cheerleader at the time. Deidre's polar opposite, she barely ate anything, but managed to complain about everything. She hadn't appreciated the bland diet any more than her sister or their reluctant father.

In college, on her own for the first time, Deidre's weight ballooned. She told her mother a few pounds, but knew it was closer to forty. She'd climbed from a size ten to a sixteen in no time.

After graduation she had been hired as a social worker for the Denver Department of Children and Families. It was a stressful job. She dealt with domestic abuse and violence on a weekly basis. Somehow she managed to get her eating under control, losing enough to raise her self-esteem and lower her dress size to fourteen.

According to her doctor, she was fit, save a few excess pounds. She exercised when it accommodated her busy schedule and loved to dance at nightclubs on weekends. She considered herself full-figured and felt comfortable in her own skin. Her mother wasn’t as easy to please.

"See you later!" Jana called across the lobby. Dressed in the latest trendy skiwear, she appeared ready to hit the slopes.

"Have fun!" Deidre called back and waved to her father.

He smiled at her, rolling his eyes at Jana. He'd always been the more laid back one of the pair, never quite as concerned with appearances as his high society wife. Both her parents had dark hair, looked fit and trim, more forty-
ish
than the fifties they truly were. They made a handsome couple.

She watched them leave before picking up the crime novel they'd given her. She realized, almost instantly, she couldn't concentrate on it. Setting it aside, she leafed through the magazines her sister had picked out. None of them particularly interested her. She was on vacation! It was almost New Year’s. She felt antsy, wanting to do something besides sit.