Getting Even (10 page)

I
look amazing. If I do say so myself.

I’ve opted for color for this evening’s charity ball, so I’m wearing a floor-length red Versace gown. It’s an off-the-shoulder number that shows a good amount of cleavage. Quite frankly, it’s stunning. And I stand out in a good way because many of the women here have opted to wear black and other dark colors.

Adam is resting his hand on the small of my back as we walk through the crowd. All around us, people smile. Other high-profile families we know, many of them who will support Adam’s campaign for mayor when he announces his intention to run after our wedding.

Henry Dixon, an Atlanta judge, excuses himself from the small group of people he is talking with and approaches us. “Claudia,” he says, taking both my hands in his and spreading them wide to get a good look at me. “You look fantastic.”

“Thank you, Henry.”

“And Adam.” Henry pumps Adam’s hand. “Great to see you, as always.”

“Great to see you, as well.”

“This evening looks like a roaring success. You’re doing such wonderful work for children who so desperately need it.”

I slip beside Adam and link arms with him. “I’m so proud of him,” I say.

Adam, who has a law degree, gave up practicing a couple years ago to run the Wishes Come True Foundation, a charity to aid terminally ill children. He’s president of the board—a volunteer position. I fully supported his decision, and every day I admire the work he does. It’s such a great cause.

“It’s all about the kids,” Adam says. “What better cause is there than giving terminally ill children a chance to have their greatest wish come true?”

“I agree,” Henry says. “You’re doing great work. But I still think your talents are better suited to the legal arena.”

Adam chuckles softly. “I know what you’re getting at—and while I’m not ready to make any commitments
yet,
stay tuned after the wedding for a very special announcement.”

Henry’s lips spread in a wide and knowing grin. He clamps a hand on Adam’s shoulder. “That’s what I wanted to hear.”

Adam Hart for mayor. I can’t wait.

I’m gazing up at Adam lovingly when I feel a hand cup my ass so intimately that fingers graze the back of my vagina. I’m so startled that I gasp and nearly jump out of my skin. Adam quickly curls his fingers around my waist, and I don’t even have to look at him to know he’s the culprit.

“Are you all right?” Henry asks me with concern.

“Yes.” I surreptitiously pinch Adam’s arm. “I just had a…a chill.”

“I hope you’re not coming down with something,” Adam says, and I want to smack that smirk off his face.

“With all the planning I still have to do for the wedding? Not a chance.” I smile sweetly at him.

“Claudia!”

At the sound of my name, I turn, and there’s Lishelle, hurrying toward me while holding Glenn’s hand. She releases him only when she’s close enough to throw her arms around me. No polite air kisses from Lishelle. She’s my girl and shows me love no matter where we are.

“How you doing?” she asks, and I have to say, she’s never sounded happier. “God, you look amazing. You said you were gonna look hot, but I didn’t know this hot. Whoo!”

“Thanks. You look pretty hot yourself. That’s the Kate Spade?”

“Mmm-hmm. Classic but sexy.”

“That it is.” I suddenly realize that I’ve totally ignored Glenn. I turn to him and take one of his hands into both of mine. “Glenn, hello. It’s been a long time.”

“That it has. It’s good to see you.”

“Good to see you, too. I hear I’ll be seeing more of you.”

“A lot more,” Glenn agrees. Then he lifts Lishelle’s left hand to show off a brilliant three-diamond ring.

“Whoa.” My mouth hanging open, I reach for Lishelle’s hand. “I know you said it was serious, but—”

“He proposed this afternoon.”

“Lishelle!” Wow, she wasn’t kidding when she said that Glenn had finally gotten his act together. “Congratulations!” I give her another hug, then hug Glenn, as well.

I whip around when I feel hands circle my waist. Adam is looking toward Glenn, waiting for an introduction.

“I don’t think you’ve ever met Glenn, have you, Adam?”

“I haven’t.”

“Adam, this is Glenn Baxter. Lishelle’s fiancé. Glenn, this is my fiancé, Adam Hart.”

The two men shake hands.

“How are you, Adam?” Lishelle asks.

“Couldn’t be better.”

“Glenn and I just got engaged,” Lishelle gushes. “Should I tell them about the house in Duluth?”

“What house in Duluth?” I ask.

“Well…” Glenn shrugs.

“I shouldn’t say anything, because I don’t know if we’ll even get it, but Glenn took me to this fabulous house in Duluth, and that’s where he proposed. It was so romantic.”

I can’t help being skeptical. “Didn’t you just reconnect, like, last weekend?”

Glenn holds Lishelle close. “It’s been in the making for over ten years.”

“Congratulations,” Adam tells them. “That’s great news.”

“Thanks.”

“What do you do, Glenn?” Adam asks.

“I’m a pilot.”

“Ah. Which airline?”

“All-American Air.”

Adam nods politely, but I know what he’s thinking. He’s thinking the airline isn’t big enough and prestigious enough.

“Now you’ll be able to fly anywhere in the country,” I tell Lishelle, hoping Glenn won’t pick up on any of Adam’s snootiness. Really, I love him, but I hate how elitist he can be sometimes.

“That’s just one of the perks I’m looking forward to.” Lishelle separates herself from Glenn to link arms with me. “Where’s Annelise?”

“I haven’t seen her yet.”

“Then we should find her,” Lishelle suggests. She turns to Glenn and offers him her free hand. He gazes deeply into her eyes as he takes it, like a man hopelessly in love.

“I’m going to circulate.” Adam gives me a soft peck on the cheek.

“Oh, all right.” I’m a little disappointed, even though I know Adam’s going to want to make the rounds, thank people for coming out to support the event. “I’ll see you later.”

I force a smile as I turn to Lishelle and Glenn. “Come on. Let’s go find Annelise.”

When I spot Annelise, she’s grabbing a champagne flute off of a sterling-silver tray. No sooner has she taken the drink than she downs it—every last drop.

Something’s wrong.

As I get a little closer, I see that her eyes are redrimmed. She’s been crying.

Annelise’s eyes light up as she sees us. Releasing Charles’s arm, she floats toward me. We air-kiss, and then she does the same with Lishelle. “Glenn.” Annelise takes his hands in hers. “How nice to see you again!”

She’s a little too bubbly—like she’s had too much to drink.

“We’re engaged!” Lishelle flashes the ring.

“What? That’s so great.” When the tears flow from Annelise’s eyes, I know they’re not for Lishelle and Glenn. I wonder if Lishelle knows that, too.

Saying, “Excuse me,” I link arms with Annelise and pull her aside to a spot where there aren’t many people milling around. “Okay, Annie. What’s going on?”

“I’m so happy for Lishelle—aren’t you?”

“That has nothing to do with why you’re crying. And how much have you had to drink?”

“Just one, I think. Maybe two.”

“Stop lying. You can hardly stand straight. What’s going on?”

Annelise starts to cry discreetly. I take her hand and cross the floor to the bathroom, which is thankfully not more than a hundred yards away.

“…fucking son of a bitch,” a woman is saying as we enter. She’s passing Kleenex to another well-dressed woman, who is also crying.

Drama. There’s always drama in women’s bathrooms.

I lead Annelise to a sofa on the opposite side of the bathroom’s sitting area. “Tell me everything,” I say in a hushed tone.

“I don’t…” Her eyes sweep the bathroom. “I don’t want to talk about it here.”

“Is it serious?” I continue. I hate seeing my friend like this. “That’s what I want to know.”

“It’s just…I was supposed to do a wedding in the morning. But the woman called and canceled when I was already at the church. Said she found her boyfriend making out with a stripper at the bachelor party and she ended things.”

“And you’re this upset about it several hours later?”

“No…I also had a fight with Charles. But I think we’ll be okay,” she adds bravely.

I wrap an arm around her as we sit. When the two other women in the lounge area get up and leave, I immediately ask, “What do you mean you think
we’ll
be okay. You just had a fight, right? Nothing serious.”

Fresh tears fill Annelise’s eyes. For a moment, she can’t even speak.

“Oh, no.” I shake my head. “Annie, no.”

“He said I’m driving a stake into our marriage, that I’m pushing him away.”

“What?”

“Me—the one who’s always there for him. Always washing his clothes, making sure even his briefs are neatly pressed.”

“You’ve been nothing but a great wife to him.”

“According to him, because I’m doing everything I can to get him in the mood, I’m putting too much pressure on him.” Annelise pauses to blow her nose. Gone are the tears, replaced with a look of defiance. “You know what got him so pissed? That I booked a weekend away for us at that retreat in Arizona. Earlier this week, he told me he’d take some time off. Then I tell him I tentatively booked something for next weekend, and he got upset.”

“Come on.”

“I’m serious. I’m trying to save our marriage, and he got upset. Told me that he’s knee deep in work with the lawsuit, and yeah, I know he is. But he’s got to be able to book
some
time off, can’t he? He’s not the only one working on that case. Marsha Hindenberg can pick up the slack for one day, can’t she?”

“I agree.” I rub Annelise’s back. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him.”

“And it’s not just that. On Tuesday, I made reservations for dinner at his favorite restaurant. I’d called him earlier and he sounded excited about going out. But you know what—he never even made it home. He called from the airport to say he had to go out of town for a couple days.”

“Why didn’t you call me?”

“I’m so embarrassed about all of this. Is this my husband or a stranger? I don’t know anymore.”

“You’ll get past this. I know you will.”

“What if we don’t? What if he leaves me?”

“No. Oh my God, no. Listen, there were many times my father left my mother waiting after promising he’d be home at a certain time. Charles has a high-profile career. He’s working on a high-profile case.”

“Then why did he say I’m pushing him away?”

“Couples have arguments like that all the time. Say things they don’t mean.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“I am. Annie, you had an argument. That’s all.”

Annelise seems to consider my words but doesn’t comment. Instead, she gets to her feet and straightens her buttercup-yellow gown. It looks fantastic on her, highlighting her blond hair.

“We’d better get back out there,” she says.

“You’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” she assures me, and thankfully, she does seem fine. “Let me freshen up my makeup, and I’ll be good to go.”

We both spend a couple minutes retouching face powder and lipstick, then we head out the door.

I bump right into someone entering, and offer a quick apology before I see who it is. It’s Arlene Nash, and unlike me, she doesn’t offer an apology. Instead, she gives me the quick once-over, checking out my gown. Her lips turn ever so slightly in a barely noticeable frown.

“Arlene,” I say. I have to admit she looks gorgeous in a formfitting black gown. I saw the same gown at Fendi and almost bought it myself.

She forces a smile. “How nice to see you, Claudia. How are the wedding plans going?”

“It’s going to be
the
event of the season.” I can’t help boasting a little. I’ve often heard rumors that Arlene is interested in Adam. When I started dating him, she stopped inviting me to events.

“I can’t wait,” she says, but I don’t believe her.

Arlene continues into the bathroom, followed by a woman I don’t recognize.

“Whoa,” Annelise comments. “She’s a royal bitch, isn’t she?”

“You’ve met her only once and you figured that out.”

“I’m guessing there’s a story there.”

“Yeah, but I won’t bore you with it. Let’s find Charles.”

There’s something electric about Adam when he speaks. Something captivating. He has the power to mesmerize people, make them stop whatever they’re doing and listen to him, just as they are now.

And he’s so natural when he’s speaking before a crowd. It’s obvious to me and anyone who knows him that he should be in the public arena.

“The mother came to me in tears, and told me that the vacation to the Turks and Caicos brought a smile to her son’s face that she hadn’t seen since he’d first become ill. For the first time in a year and a half, he was able to be a child. To laugh and have fun without worry about treatments.” Adam pauses as his eyes move over the crowd. “That, ladies and gentlemen, is why I do what I do. It’s important work. The most important work.” There are nods and hums of agreement. “I thank each and every one of you for coming out tonight to support this great cause. With your help, we’ll make every child in need’s dream come true in Georgia!”

The crowd erupts in applause. I smile at Adam with admiration. He raises a hand in a wave to everyone, then, as the applause dies, makes his way off the stage.

I wrap my arms around him. “That was a great speech, Adam. You knock ’em dead every time.”

“Thank you, babe.”

I’m by his side as he spends time shaking hands. He’s already working the crowd like he’s on the campaign trail.

After several minutes, he takes my hand. “I’ve got to escape for a minute.”

He whisks me away. We hurry across the floor of Atlanta’s prestigious Supper Club. It’s a members-only type club, and you have to be invited to join. Of course, on a night like this, anyone able to pay the ticket price for dinner—the proceeds of which go to the Wishes Come True Foundation—is allowed entry.

I’m about to ask Adam where he’s taking me when he opens the door to what looks like a utility room. He ushers me inside.