Stilettos & Scoundrels (12 page)

“That’s what he said last time I talked to him. Does he really think he’s going to make it as an actor?”

“Who knows with him
,
Presley. But at least he goes for what he wants. Even if tha
t changes every few months,” my
dad replied.

“He just needs to get some direction
,
but you can’t rush that. Better he try out some different things than rush into something
,
”
my mother added.

“You always make excuses for him. It’s not fair.”

“You have always had a plan
,
Presley, that’s just the way you are. He’s always been a dreamer. He’ll find his way
,
”
my mother replied.

I didn’t disagree with my mother’s assessment of my
brother
’
s personality
,
and he always got so fired up about his new careers
that
you couldn’t he
lp but get excited with him. I
just got jealous sometimes that it seemed like
my
parents had different expectations for him than
for me
. You had to love family dynamics.

I took my
dishes to the sink
,
rinsed them off, and put them in the di
shwasher. This was the rule. My
mother always cooked, but if you ate, you were responsible for cleaning up. It was a small price to pay for such great food.

“What a
re you two doing today?” I
asked.

“I have a garden club meeting. We are planning the annual summer show. I hope to have my roses in there this year. I skipped last year because they just weren’t where they needed to be. I still think I under fertilized in the spring
,
but it’s so hard to know,”
my
mother fretted. “Who knows what your father’s doing.”

“Might go see if Bill needs any help. He’s restoring an old Corvette Stingray. Piece of junk now, but she’ll be cherry when she’s finished,” he replied.
My
dad loved old cars and was always helping his buddy
,
Bill
,
with his old clunkers. How
they spent hours out there, I
didn’t know. It didn’t always seem like they got a lot of work done for the amount of time they spent working. However, they did seem to have fun.

“Wa
ste of time, if you ask me,” my
mother said. “If I’d known this was how you were going to spend your retirement, I would have made you keep working.”

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t ask you, Sue,” he replied. Oh, for the love of Pete, the
y were at it again. This was my
cue to exit
. I
could only take so much of this.

After a quick shower, I
dried
my
hair
and
threw on a pair of boot cut jeans and a black lightweight turtleneck, perfect for a cool spring day. Black boots with two-inch heels and matching silver necklace and earrings completed
my
outfit. Simple and casual.
I
called Tobey and confirmed
my
appointment at three p.m.
with the Senator. Planning to come back to the house to change into something more professional looking before the interview,
I
headed into town to visit Katy’s Klassy Kuts
. On the way, I
thought about the past.
Katy and I
had been inseparable since second grade, but once
I
went to college and Katy sta
yed here and opened her salon, we
just drifted apart. Katy never understood why
I
liked the city so much. Katy
preferred to be
a big fish in a small pond. She always told
me that
the city was too busy and impersonal.
I
couldn’t see why Katy would want to stay here in this small town. It was
,
ironically
,
the same issue
I
had with Brian
,
but unlike with Brian
, despite
their differences
and the distance,
Katy
and I
still
were
great friends.

Katy and I
hadn’t seen each other in almost two years because
I
rarely came back home.
My
parents usually came to see
me in the city, but I was beginning to wonder if
maybe that was the wrong way of thinking. Good friends were hard to find
; I
needed to make more of an effort
with Katy
.
A
friend
who
could remember who you were at thirteen
was truly rare
. Those were the friends who kept you grounded
..
.
o
r at least helped you make fun of yourself.

Boy is Katy going to be surprised
,
I
thought as
I
pulled into the parking lot of the salon. The parking lot was full
.
Business must be booming
.
I
walked through the door with
my
resolve to be a better friend and could hear the
gossipy
chatter
of
the salon.
I
smiled as
I
heard Katy’s voice over the noise of the dryers. Looking around,
I
was impressed. Remodeled since the last time
I
saw it
,
the salon was decorated simply in white and black with small splashes of vibrant color here and there. It was laid out in several different mini rooms - one for manicures and pedicures, another for massages and facials, and the main area was for hair. It would give any of the salons
I
frequented in Chicago a run for their money. It sure didn’t look like a small town salon.

“I don’t know
,
Joyce. He looks pretty damn cute to me
…
”
I
heard Katy say as
I
snuck up behind her. “I sure wouldn’t kick him out of my bed for a small transgression like that.”

“But
,
Katy, he was ogling that new waitress and she was right there. All I can think of is what he must be doing when his wife is not with him.”

“Honey, men are always going to look. It’s in their nature and we can’t stop it. As long as he knows what you will do to him if he does any more than look
,
then I don’t see the problem.
He’s a fine looking man
,
and she doesn’t want to get rid of him.”

“Well then I wouldn’t either
,
”
I
interrupted, surprising Katy by walking up behind her. “You’ve always had good taste in men, even if you have a one track mind with what to do with them.”
I
had always admired Katy’s openness about sex. She knew what she wanted,
but
she didn’t always make the best choices. But who did?

Shocked, Katy turned around and squealed, “Oh my God! It’s really you, Presley Thurman in the flesh. You do still exist. And here I thought those Christmas cards were computer generated.” Katy gave
me
a big hug, excited. “What brings you here, and how long are you staying?”

Katy was exactly as
I
remembered from the last time
I
saw her. Beautiful blond hair, of course out of a bottle, like
so
many
others
, but hers sure looked natural. Five foot three with generous curves
—
the kind men liked to grab on to, in Katy’s words. She had always been a little self-deprecating when discussing her body and so tended to refer to how her body was built for sex. Even back in high school she did this, which was how she explained her many boyfriends.
I
wondered, as
I
got older, why Katy was still insecure about her voluptuous chest and curvy hips
,
w
hich many women would kill for
.
Katy was the kind of
girl
who looked great with an extra ten pounds, because they went to all the right places.
On me
, those pounds always went to the wrong places. Katy looked great in her form
-
fitting jeans and low
-
cut fuchsia top. She had on some great jewelry
:
large black costume jewelry that really accented the fuchsia. She did have on tennis shoes, which didn’t exactly go, but considering she spent most of her time on her feet, it made sense. Plus
,
they were really cute fuchsia Adidas.
I
thought
I
might have to see where Katy got those.

“I just found out yesterday
that
I would be coming into town and wanted it to be a surprise
.
”

“Are you here visiting your parents?”

“No. Actually, you won’t believe it. I am here to interview Senator Daniels. Then my plan is to stay a few days and visit before going back home.”

“You’re interviewing Senator Daniels? I thought you did something in human resources
,
” Katy questioned, as she continued to work on Joyce’s hair.

“Yeah, well, that was yesterday. Now I have a new career
,
and I feel like a whole new person.” Albeit it a scared one
,
when
I
thought about it too much
,
but
there was
no reason to let on to that right now. “I’ll fill you in later when we have a lot more time, but enough about me. You look like you’re doing wonderful for yourself
,
Katy. This place is gorgeous
!
I
’
m so happy for you,”
I
said, giving Katy another hug.

“Well, I have always wanted a good man too and that hasn’t happened yet,” laughed Katy. “But, as far as the salon, I can’t complain,” she continued, with well-deserved pride in her voice looking around at all she ha
d
built. “I forgot you hadn’t seen it since I remodeled.”

“She should be proud,” said Joyce, Katy’s current customer. “Nobody can do color the way Katy does. Look at this. You can’t tell this isn’t my natural color. Besides, who cares about men? Nothing but trouble.”

“You can say that because you’re married,” teased Katy.

“Happily married for five years. Five out of forty ain’t bad,” Joyce cackled.

The women in the salon laughed at that remark. Many other patrons chimed in with agreement to Joyce’s statement.
I
rolled
my
eyes
,
but admitted it was amusing and there was a fun energy in this place.

“Listen, Katy,”
I
said, “My appointment with Senator Daniels is later today, but I should be done by late afternoon. I was hoping we could get together for dinner. You know
,
catch up.”

“That would be great
,
Pres, but only if drinks are involved,” laughed Katy. “Meet me at La Casa at seven tonight. I’ll buy the margaritas.”

“Yum! La Casa has the best margaritas anywhere,”
I
said. La Casa wasn’t a Mexican restaurant
,
as its name implied. Rather, it was a melting pot of food. If you craved it, it was probably on the menu and could be counted on to be fantastic. How it got its name was anyone’s guess, but it was your typical greasy spoon with a liquor license.

“Even better than anywhere in your fancy Chicago?” Katy teased.

“Even there.” Just thinking about a cold margarita made
me
salivate, probably not a great thing to think about when it wasn’t even lunchtime.

“It’s a date. I get done here at six
,
so I shouldn’t be late,” Katy said.

“All right, see you then.”

******

At three o’clock sharp,
I
walked into the lobby of the Hilltop Marriott where Senator Daniels and his entourage camped out while in town. The lobby wasn’t busy for a Friday, but it wasn’t as if Alkon was a great tourist spot or the ideal place for conventions
.
I
t was too far off the beaten path for that. What the Marriott didn’t have in
the
way of regular guests today, they made up for with private security.
I
saw security agents wherever
I
looked, at least
I
presumed them to be some type of security as they were all dressed in black and had those cool earpiece thingys.
Must be nice to be this important…But why did Senator Daniels need all this security? Was it all for him? Who else could it be for? Was he really in danger?
He was a Senator
,
not the President
,
and Alkon wasn’t exactly the crime capital of Illinois.
I
hadn’t been inside the hotel in a long time, but it looked recently renovated and very upscale
: a
ll done up in dark, rich hues of red.
I
looked at the monstrosity of the chandelier and wondered if it was real glass or plastic. It must
have
weigh
ed
a ton if it was glass, but it fit right in with the deep red-velvet wallpaper and high
-
backed chairs in the lobby.
I was glad I
had gone
home and changed into a nice outfit for the interview
. I
had on one of
my
favorite suits
:
a light grey Donna Karan pantsuit with killer red stiletto heels that added some flair.
I
had
my
hair up in a French twist and had on
my
favorite set of triple
-
strand pearls, a gift from
my
parents.
I
exuded a confidence
I
didn’t necessarily feel, but a hot outfit, especially
by
Donna Karan, always made
me
feel good.