Can't Get Enough (14 page)

"OH, MY,” MARILYN said, her eyes growing wide as she looked up from a stack of real estate listings. Barbara walked into the office, dropped her new Louis Vuitton bag on her desk, and twirled around slowly to show off her new outfit, from the snugly fitting black St. John jeans to the tweed Chanel jacket. At least someone appreciated her new look, Barbara thought. Bradford hadn’t so much as glanced at her that morning when they passed each other in the kitchen.

But then they weren’t talking much these days. In the past, such a lengthy freeze in their relationship would have been a sure route to the bottle for Barbara. But now she had her morning workouts, a job, and a brand-new look, thanks to the baroness and a few shopping sprees over the past week.

“You look fabulous, girl,” Marilyn gushed as she batted her eyelashes with surprise.

“It’s not too flashy?” Barbara paused with her hands on her hips and struck a pose.

“Not at all. It’s stunning. And I love the new reddish hair color.”

Barbara touched her hair. Veronique had finally persuaded her to take a trip to Pearl’s salon to lighten her drab brown color. When she first got a look at it in the mirror of the salon, she had almost cried, it was such a startling change. And when Bradford had seen it that night and hadn’t uttered a word, Barbara was certain she’d made a terrible mistake. She had called Veronique and Pearl, practically sobbing on the phone. They both assured her that the new color was perfect for her, and each day she had liked it more. Still, for your husband not to even notice such a drastic change, or at least pretend not to notice, was a huge blow.

So Marilyn’s vote of approval was more than welcome. If Marilyn liked it, that meant the changes were stylish without being overboard, and she could relax. She and Marilyn had known each other for years and had similar taste. And although Marilyn had always been more of a clotheshorse than she was, Barbara trusted her old friend’s judgment. Marilyn lived in Fort Washington, just south of Silver Lake, but she used the Silver Lake Country Club twice a week as a guest of Barbara’s. That was where they talked about any- and everything, and Marilyn was always full of good advice.

It was Marilyn who had saved her when she was at a real low point in terms of self-esteem about a year ago. Barbara had just discovered that Bradford was having an affair with Jolene Brown. It was the first time he had cheated with someone Barbara knew, and she had taken up the bottle after months of sobriety. Good old Mr. Belvedere had become her constant companion once again. Marilyn finally stepped into the picture and helped her regain her confidence by introducing her to real estate sales.

Marilyn stood, walked up to Barbara, and gestured toward the diamond studs in her ears. “How many carats?”

Barbara touched her ears. “Two each,” she said, smiling guiltily. “Bradford bought them for me, but I usually just wear them when I dress up to go out.”

“Well, well. So what brought all this on?”

Barbara shrugged. “Sometimes a girl just needs a change.”

“Yes, but I didn’t know you had it in you, Barbara.”

Barbara folded her arms across her waist. “And what is that supposed to mean?” she asked teasingly.

“Nothing. It’s just such a dramatic change for you.”

“I did have some help. The baroness.”

Marilyn nodded with understanding. “Ah. Now I get it.”

Barbara sat at her desk just as a tap came at the door, and they both looked up to see Noah standing in the archway.

“Good morning, ladies,” he said, nodding in the direction of each of them.

Barbara smiled. Just the man she wanted to see. “Morning.”

Noah looked at Barbara. “I wanted you to know that I’m taking Bernice and Bernard back out to Beacon Hill to look at houses today.”

Barbara nodded and stood. She wanted to make sure he got a good look at the new her. “So they’re still together, I take it.”

He smiled. “Still together.”

“Good luck.”

“Thanks.” Noah waved good-bye and disappeared.

“I’m surprised he didn’t say anything about your new look,” Marilyn said as she picked up her coffee mug. “He’s usually so observant.”

Barbara stared ahead as Marilyn left the office with her coffee cup. Marilyn couldn’t be any more surprised than she was. Maybe her new look wasn’t so appealing to men after all. First Bradford had ignored her, now Noah. Men. Would she ever be able to figure them out?

Barbara had just sunk back down into her chair when she heard another knock at the door. She glanced up to see Noah standing there again. He leaned against the doorjamb and folded his arms across his chest.

“By the way, Barbara, that new look is off the chain.”

Barbara raised her brows in puzzlement. “Off the chain? I hope that means you like it.”

“Very much. I didn’t want to start babbling like a teenager in front of Marilyn, but you nearly knocked me off my feet.”

“Now, Noah, I can’t picture you babbling about anything. But thanks.” She smiled and turned to her computer as he disappeared again. Now
that
was what she needed to hear, she thought. He had no idea how much.

“Um, so . . .”

She looked toward the doorway. Noah was back. “Yes?”

“Hmm,” he said, staring at her as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

She lifted her brow. “Yes, what is it?”

He shook his head. “Nothing. Just that you look very nice. I already said that, didn’t I?”

Barbara was tempted to giggle. She had never seen Noah act like this around her. She had never seen
any
man act this way around her. Maybe Veronique really knew what she was doing.

Barbara smiled seductively. “Yes, Noah, you did.”

Noah looked slightly embarrassed and backed away from the door. Barbara’s face fell as he disappeared around the corner. What happened? Was it her smile? Something she had said or didn’t say? Had she scared him so badly when she rejected his kiss that he was afraid to make another move?

She closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. This was all so confusing. She felt a headache coming on. The phone rang and she picked it up just as Marilyn reentered the office with a fresh cup of coffee and sat at her desk across the room.

“Barbara?” It was Veronique calling. “How’s it going at the office? Did you dazzle them?”

Barbara sighed forlornly. “Hello, Veronique.”

“What’s wrong?”

Good question, Barbara thought. What
was
wrong with her? She was acting like a fool, batting her eyelashes and flirting with a younger man at the office. Ridiculous.

“Say something, Barbara. Has Noah seen you?”

“Yes.”

“And?”

“He saw it. He liked it. End of story.”

“Hmm. What did he say?”

“Not much.”

“You’re awfully tight-lipped about this. When I talked to you last night you were so excited about wearing one of your new outfits and seeing him. Did I call at a bad time?”

Barbara glanced at Marilyn. She was talking on the phone and deep into a Realtor website on her computer. “No, not at all. It just wasn’t the reaction I expected. I think I scared him off for good. But that’s fine. I—”

“I see. So you’re disappointed.”

“Yes, and that’s annoying. I don’t think this is right for me.”

“Don’t give up so easily. Give it some time. Getting a man to ask you out during office hours can be tricky.”

“Do you understand what I’m saying, Veronique? It doesn’t matter.
No
time is good for me. In the office or out of the office.”

“Oh, Barbara. Don’t say that. You have to have more confidence in yourself than that. Although it looks like you might have to make the first move after all.”

“No. There’s no way I’m going to do that. I—”

“For goodness’ sakes, Barbara,” Veronique said, cutting Barbara off. “Do you think for a minute that Bradford would hesitate if it were someone he found attractive? Just ask Noah out for lunch or something. What’s the big deal?”

Barbara was surprised by the sudden harshness in Veronique’s tone. She was always blunt but also calm and collected. Now she seemed to be losing her patience with Barbara. Still, Barbara had her limits. “I’m not ready for that, not even close.”

Veronique sighed deeply into the phone. “Fine, Barbara. We’ll have to think of something to get the two of you away from that office. Let me think. Oh, I know. Perhaps it’s time I went house hunting again, this time in Northern Virginia.”

PATRICK WAS COMING over for dinner again, and as Jolene pulled a slinky black dress over her head she couldn’t remember being so excited about anything in ages. She slipped her feet into a pair of Gucci heels and checked herself in the mirror.

She had practically shoved Juliette out the door for her double date with some guy named Phillip. Like the teenager she was, Juliette spent more than an hour getting dressed, and even after her friends arrived to pick her up she was still changing. Jolene finally had to insist that she decide on an outfit and be done with it. She wanted Juliette out of the house before Patrick arrived.

Jolene dabbed a touch of Joy Parfum between her breasts then wiggled her dress up and put a little between her thighs. It was Patrick’s favorite perfume but only because he had no idea that the spicy scent cost her $400 dollars an ounce at Nordstrom. If he knew that, he’d probably learn to hate it. Patrick could be so cheap, and it used to annoy her to no end.

Jolene glanced at her watch. It was seven o’clock, and Patrick was already thirty minutes late. She skipped down the stairs, ran to the living room window, and peeked out between the drapes to see if his car had pulled up. She stretched her neck and looked up and down the block. No sign of him. She took a deep breath. She hoped Pearl wasn’t holding him up. The last time they had gone out together all it had taken was a simple phone call from Pearl to get him up and running off. What he saw in that woman was beyond her understanding.

She heard a car pull into the driveway and lifted the drapes again to see Patrick’s Nissan Maxima. A shiver ran down her spine and she tugged the dress’s cowl neckline down farther off her shoulders. Black strapless bra, black G-string, everything in place. Maybe later that evening she would give him a little striptease. After dating chunky Pearl, he needed to be reminded what an attractive woman looked like.

She put on her sexiest smile and opened the door. Patrick was standing there holding a single red rose. He looked so handsome in a gray suit and blue silk necktie.

She took the rose and inhaled the scent. “Thank you. That’s so sweet of you.”

He smiled awkwardly and Jolene thought he actually looked a little shy. She took his hand and led him into the dining room. White candles flickered in the windowsills, Barry White crooned in the background, and the table was decorated with her Tiffany bone china and crystal. She had spent more than an hour setting the right mood. She wanted everything to be perfect for him.

Patrick stopped at the entrance to the room. “Whoa. You did all this for me?”

She nodded. “You like?”

Patrick blinked, and Jolene put her hands on her hips playfully. “You don’t like?”

“Uh, yes. It’s nice. But I wasn’t expecting dinner let alone all this.”

Jolene almost dropped the rose. “But you said . . . you said—”

“I said I would stop by to talk. We said nothing about dinner. And where’s Juliette? You said she would be here.”

“Um, she went to a movie with some friends.” Jolene shrugged. “Last-minute thing.”

Patrick pursed his lips. “Not again? You couldn’t have had her wait just a little while to see me?”

“Don’t get mad, Patrick. I assumed since it was dinnertime that you would stay and eat, and then you could see her when she got back later tonight.”

He shook his head with disbelief. “Did it ever occur to you that I might not be here later tonight? Or that I might have other plans?”

No. It never occurred to her. “How can you have other plans when you can have
me
? Dammit, Patrick, do you remember what happened when we went out to dinner a couple of weeks ago? In case you forgot, we were that far from making love.” She held her thumb and forefinger an inch apart.

“I also remember telling you that things should never have gone that far. I let myself get carried away, and if I misled you, I’m sorry. But this has to stop now.”

Jolene wanted to scream. This wasn’t going at all as she had planned. She had thought for sure that they would cross the line this time. And now he was dishing out this crap. How could they have been so far apart on their thinking about tonight?

She bit her bottom lip. She had to stay calm. OK, so they were on different tracks now. That didn’t mean she couldn’t get him back on her track. All she had to do was lay on the charm. She could work it like the best of them. She could remember when just the right smile from her would turn Patrick on like a water hose.

She placed the rose on the sideboard and looked at him solemnly. “OK. I’m sure you didn’t mean to mislead me. It’s just that I was so excited about us spending some time together. When we went out to dinner, I got to thinking about the way things used to be with us. You, me, Juliette. I spent a lot of time fixing all this for you.”

He nodded. “I can see that. But Juliette’s not even here.”

“I know. If you want I can call her on her cell phone and get her to come home early. Say by about nine? We should be finished eating by then, and the movie—”

“I can’t stay that long. Pearl is expecting me later tonight.”

Jolene shut her eyes briefly and pretended she hadn’t heard that name. She walked up to Patrick and laid her hands on his chest. “Stay for just a bite, then. It’s pot roast. One of your favorites.”

He looked down at her. “You don’t give up easily, do you?”

“No. You know that.”

“Man, don’t I.” He smiled at her. “It’s obvious you went to a lot of trouble, so maybe I’ll stay and have just a taste.”

“Oh? A taste?” she said teasingly and moved closer to him.

“The pot roast, I mean.”

“Fine. We’ll save the best for dessert.” She gave him a seductive look, picked up the rose, and turned toward the kitchen. “I’ll go put this in water and fix us some drinks.”

Jolene walked into the kitchen and pumped her fist. “Yeah!” she said softly. She had him right where she wanted him. It had taken a bit of work, but that didn’t matter now. He was hers for the night. She would see to it.

She opened a cabinet and reached for the bud vase. Just as she placed it on the countertop, she heard an unfamiliar phone ring, probably Patrick’s cell. Something told her that she needed to check this out. She walked back into the dining room still holding the rose just as Patrick hung up his cell phone. He looked at her.

“Um . . .” He shook his head. “I’m afraid I won’t be able to stay at all.”

“Why not? You just said you would stay.”

“I know.” He sighed. “But Pearl wants me to come now, and uh, really, I think that’s best.”

Jolene threw the rose at his feet. She had had it with that woman screwing up her plans. Pearl this, Pearl that. “Shit. Don’t talk about that bitch in my house. You’re here with
me
now.”

He backed away nervously. “I’ll just see myself out.”

He turned and Jolene darted around in front of him. “What the hell is wrong with you? You’re going to pass me up for that . . . that fat-assed . . .”

He pointed a finger at her. “Don’t go there,” he said sharply.

“Well, excuse me, Patrick. But it’s true. She’s overweight and she combs and presses hair, for God’s sake. She looks like something out of—”

“She has a big heart,” Patrick snapped. “She’s sweet and generous and knows how to treat a man. She raised her son on her own, and she’s good with Lee and Juliette. You can make fun of her beauty salon if you want, but she built it from the ground up and it’s very successful. I admire so much about her.”

Jolene scoffed. “Please. Spare me the sermon.”

“Fine. I’m out of here. I made my point. And by the way,” he said, pointing at the rose on the floor, “I brought that for Juliette.”

He reached out to open the front door, but she planted herself firmly in front of him. “Wait, Patrick. I can’t believe you’re doing this. You used to be crazy about me. Now you act like you hate my guts. What happened?”

“I don’t hate you, Jolene. It’s just that I’m looking for something different now, and I don’t think you can give it to me. Yes, you’re prettier, and, yes, you’re more educated and glamorous. You’re loaded now, too. But that stuff isn’t important to me anymore.”

“Well, what else is there?”

“Unconditional love, to start.”

“Oh, well, I told you I’ve changed. I—”

“Look, I didn’t come here to get into this. I’ll just go.”

“What about Juliette? You know how much this divorce has hurt her. Don’t you even care about her anymore?” Jolene knew what she was saying was utter nonsense. She was grasping at straws, but she couldn’t help it. Patrick was about to walk out on her
again
.

“The fact that you would say something like that tells me a lot. You’re not thinking of Juliette or me for that matter. You’re thinking of yourself. As always. Now move out of my way.”

Tears welled up in her eyes and that startled her. She hadn’t cried in years. Then again, she hadn’t felt this miserable in years. She had been so certain that she could win him back.

“Please, Patrick, don’t do this.”

“Move out of my way or I’ll move you myself.”

He said it so coldly, as if he were speaking to a stranger on the street. She searched his face and for the first time realized that it was void of expression. The loving way he had once looked at her was gone. She stepped aside and in an instant he was gone.

She marched across the floor, stomped on the red rose, and squished it into the carpet with her heel. “Bastard!” she yelled. “Bitch! You can both go to hell for all I care.”

The way Patrick blabbed on and on about that woman and her stinking salon made Jolene sick to her stomach. So Pearl fixed hair. Big damn deal. Jolene Brown was a fucking millionaire. She could probably buy that stupid salon ten times over.

Pearl had him mesmerized with that fat pussy of hers. That had to be it. What else could he see in her?

One way or the other Jolene would make that fat bitch pay.