Stilettos & Scoundrels (15 page)

“That’s ok
ay
. I think I got plenty.” Oh, boy
,
did
I
.
I
had been apprehensive at first about this interview since it was a bit out of
my
normal realm of expertise
, but I
had been
surprised
to find that I
actually enjoyed it.
I
felt excited
about
getting as much information as
I
could
to
share with
my new readers
.
I
just hoped Trevor liked what
I
wrote too.

“You will write a flattering article, won’t you? The Senator has done many great things. If you need more information
,
I am sure I can help
,
” Tobey said,
trying to get a gauge on what I would write
. Tobey was good at managing the PR, trying to fish
around and make sure I
was not, at least outwardly, upset with the Senator.

“I promise I will be very objective,”
I
assured Tobey, standing up to leave. “Although, I do have a question maybe you could answer. I overheard the Senator arguing with someone on the phone. I think he said his name was Peter
,
but he didn’t mention anyone named Peter when we were talking. Who could that have been?”

Tobey looked at
me
with surprise and trepidation.
I thought that was taken care of…
, he thought to himself.
Damn it, Tom must be at it again
.

“I’m sure it was no one. There are many people who may not like what the Senator has to say
,
and I can hardly keep track of them all. Now, if you don’t mind, I really have to go. Can you see yourself out?” As Tobey started to walk off,
I
remembered seeing him and Helen arguing last night and didn’t want to lose
my
chance to find out why.
I
figured he was already annoyed with
me
. What
was
a little more?

“One more thing, Tobey,”
I
said. He stopped and turned around, looking at
me
expectantly. “What were you arguing with Helen Daniels about at the Coffee Café last night?”
Tobey was surprised and his expression showed it.
He didn’t remember seeing her there and had hoped no one had noticed them. This is all he needed. He really needed to get a less stressful job.

“Nothing important, now I’ve got to run. Call me if you need anything else,” he said over his shoulder
,
obviously wanting to get aw
ay from me as fast as possible before I
asked any more questions.
I grinned—and I thought I
had such a winning personality.

As he walked off,
I
grew even more curious about the heated
phone call I’d overheard
. If it wasn’t anything that important, why would Tobey dodge it? It seemed neither the Senator
nor Helen w
as
easy to get along with these days.
I
looked
at
my
watch. There was just enough time to get back to
my
parents
’
house, write up some of
my
notes before
I
forgot, and take a shower before meeting Katy.
I
wasn’t physically dirty, but after being with
Tom
Daniels for a while,
I
sure felt dirty. And
my
heels were killing
my
feet.
I
also needed to call Trevor and ask
him
a few other questions.
I wanted to fill him in on how the interview had gone a
nd see when he needed this article.

Almost to my car in the parking lot, I
felt like someone was watching
me
.
I
glanced back over
my
shoulder and saw t
he
security guy, Simon, staring at
me
through the window. As q
uickly as I
saw him, he was gone.
Why was he watching her? Or was he?
I
shrugged it off
; it must have been
my
imagination.
I
was really curious
about what
the Senator
might be
hiding and even more excited about seeing
Cooper again
.
I
couldn’t wait to talk to Katy about
it
.

I
walked into La Cas
a a few minutes after seven, my
heels making those annoying tapping sounds on the worn linoleum
. The sound bothered me
, but not so
much that I
would ever stop wearing heels. It was just one of those things a person had to live with to be fashionable. Not that Alkon stood on ceremony, but
I
had an image to uphold. After the interview
,
I
put on black jersey trousers and a belted red silk shirt with enough buttons undone to show a hint of cleavage, but not enough to say
“
here I am, take me
.”
Considered casual in the city at most places,
I was a bit overdressed for the nightlife in Alkon
. However, the outfit gave
me
the chance to wear
my
“
hooker shoes,
” as I
liked to call the
m, so I
could live with being overdressed. Black patent leather, three-inch heels, with the toe cut so
that my
pedicured toes
could
peek through. Very sexy.
I
felt shoes made the outfit
,
and although
I
didn’t really have anyone to impress, nor did
I
expect to meet
my
next Mr. Right at the diner, it wouldn’t do to not be prepared
, j
ust in case.

Katy was already sitting dow
n in what, back in the day, we liked to call our
booth
—
the one in th
e back corner that afforded us
a view of everyone
who came and went. We
would sit there with sodas and fries gossiping about everyone who
came through the door. Now we
had graduated to margaritas and, well, more margaritas and gossip. Some things didn’t change. What more did a girl need? Katy had two frosty margaritas sitting in front of her.
I
couldn’t wait for that first cold sip.

“Those better not both be for you,”
I
said jokingly
,
sliding into the red vinyl
-
covered booth
that
accent
ed
the faux chrome
-
topped tables.

“They would have been if you hadn’t shown up. It’s against my religion to waste a perfectly good margarita,” Katy replied playfully. “These are too good to waste.”

Looking around the diner
brought back
good and bad
memories.
I
felt like
I
had
never left
; it was a nice feeling. The garish red and black 1950s
-
era décor with pink and blue neon accents was still the same. However, what used to be tacky and old was now cool
and
retro without trying. People would pay a fortune for this look back in the city
,
and it wouldn’t be nearly as authentic.
It was proof that e
verything really does go full circle.

“Remember this, do you? We made some great memories here. Though I’m surprised you remember since it has been so long since you’ve been back home,” Katy teased.

“I know, I know. I hear it enough from my mother, so I will say it again: I am sorry I don’t come in from the city more.
W
ith my new job
,
I am vowing to change. By the way, that color looks good on you,”
I
said commenting on Katy’s top, a cute turquoise wrap-shirt
, t
he kind that looked great when you had boobs to pull it off and weren’t shy about the amount of cleavage you showed. Plus, that shade of blue complimented her honey blond hair and looked good on her.

“Thanks. I got it at Target.” It wasn’t the first place
I
would think to shop,
but I
admit
I
have
purchased clothes from their Mossimo collection
on occasion.
They had some cute stuff
, e
specially in the casual realm
,
and their prices were awesome. “So
,
tell me about your new job and what happened to your old one. I thought you loved that job.”

“I thought I did too
, but
things change. I had been unhappy for a while
,
but it took my boss coming on to me one too many times to make me realize I didn’t need to put up with it and
that it was time to
move on. I was caught up in something that I had pursued for so long and was in a rut.”

“What are your plans now? You mentioned briefly some writing thing, and I know that’s why you’re here, but fill me in.”

After giving the server our
order and digging into the chips and salsa she left on the table to compl
e
ment and soak up the margaritas,
I
filled Katy in on
my
job change, my
mother’s antics last night at dinner
,
and the whole Brian situation.

“You know, your mother just cares.” Katy had always felt
I
should be more tolerant of
my
mother’s interfering. Katy’s mom ran out on her family when she was ten
,
and she grew up wishing she had a mom. She often sought out
my
mother as a surrogate, which
I
had loved. It took the pressure off
me
at times. While
I
could understand Katy’s thinking and sympathized with
my
mother, it still sometimes drove
me
crazy that Katy seemed to like to be the voice of reason on
my
mother’s behalf
—e
specially when
I
wanted to complain about
my
mother.
I
knew
I
was lucky to have two loving parents, but a girl still ha
d
a right to complain. What fun was life without something to bitch about?

“Do I really look that desperate? What’s so wrong with being single?”
I
asked.

“She just wants you to be happy, Presley. And your mother thinks this is how she can help.”

“But I am happy being single. I mean yes I would love to have my Prince Charming ride up on his white horse and rescue me
,
but I am a confident woman, most of the time, and I am ok being self-sufficient. Sometimes being self
-
sufficient is even better than having a man.” Katy laughed at that. “At first, I was so ticked. I couldn’t believe she did that.
But
I was nice to Brian because
,
after all, it isn’t Brian’s fault that my mom is a nut job. I will even admit it didn’t turn out too bad, at first. Brian and I were having some nice conversation at my parents
’
, catching up on old times, so we decided to go to the Coffee Café. Sadly, it was all downhill after that,”
I
said
,
shaking
my
head
and
taking a drink of
my
margarita.

“Why? What happened?” Katy asked
,
taking a big sip of her
own
drink.