Edwina (14 page)

“Your birthday is coming, buy yourself a gift
on me.”

“But it’s months away.” Edwina knew they
would go shopping. Cecelia would hang packages on her arm, and
she’d be stuck hauling the stuff all over the place. There she was
whining again. She didn’t like herself very much these days.

The ticking of the grandfather clock in
Cecelia’s living room kept her awake half the night. She was not
one to ease into a new situation easily. And morning would mean a
bagel and a tomato juice, then off to Saturday shopping in one of
the biggest cities in America. Edwina groaned and covered her head
with a pillow.

Chapter 24

T
he escalators became dizzying and the myriad packages
cumbersome as she tried to keep up with her sister. Her arms were
indented and felt like she’d been beaten with a whip.

“One more stop,” Cecelia announced, “then
it’s your turn.”

“My turn?” Edwina tried not to be unkind.

“Yes, I told you I’d buy you a birthday
gift.”

“I don’t want one... but thank you. Consider
the trip my gift.” She thought it appropriate. Besides, they’d be
here another two hours trying to decide on something.

“No. Not fair. What about . . .” Cecelia was
off again.

After an hour, Edwina wanted to cry. “Cece,
let’s go. I’m hungry and my feet hurt.”

“Well, if you’d buy yourself some decent
shoes—” Then she stopped.

Edwina crashed into her.

“That’s it, we’ll buy you some Birkenstocks
for your birthday.” Cecelia headed in the opposite direction.

“I don’t want Birkenstocks. I’d never wear
them.”

“You’ll wear them. They are the most
comfortable shoes, Ed.”

Twenty minutes and four stores later, they
were seated in “the best shoe store,” Cecelia had reminded her at
least three times on the way.

“What color do you prefer? Oh never mind, let
me choose. It takes you forever to make a decision.” Her sister
cooed at the shoe salesman as he carried out several boxes of
shoes.

Sure enough, the shoes were wonderfully
comfortable and had better be. Cecelia had whipped out one of her
credit cards and with one swipe tossed over two hundred dollars for
a simple birthday present.

“Never walk in puddles, oil patches, or wear
these shoes unless you want to impress.” Her sister taught the
etiquette class as they walked to the parking garage.

Edwina wished she had on the soft shoes on
this very moment, oil patches or no.

“Are you listening, Edwina?”

“I’m listening.”

“When we return, make yourself at home. I’m
off to another meeting.” She checked the exquisite piece of jewelry
at her slender wrist.

“I’ll be happy to make myself at home. Your
place is really nice, Cece. You’ve done a good job decorating and
taking charge of your life, especially after your father... well,
you know.”

“Yes, incredible isn’t it? I had no idea I
could do as well as I have without that income. It just goes to
show, if you work hard, everything will come to you.”

Edwina wanted to teach her sister a lesson of
her own. She knew very well that work did not always get you what
you wanted in life. A rich father, an actress mother, and a
beautiful bone structure were much more conducive to success in
this world than her sister realized.

Now she was being
facetious; in her heart of hearts, she knew that was not true. Not
even for a minute.
Sorry, Lord, I’m
becoming quite the complainer myself these days.

“Well, you’ve done well, Cece.”

“Thank you.” Cecelia seemed to want to say
more, but nothing came out of her mouth. They drove home immersed
in silence, which shocked

Edwina. Once parked in the garage, they toted
bag after bag to the elevator. “I’ll be off to my meeting. When I
get back, we’ll make chicken salad and talk.”

Cecelia was already planning dinner.

“I’ll put everything away,” Edwina called
out, glad to be home.

Cecelia was already in her room changing into
a fresh set of clothes. Edwina let the packages fall onto the sofa
and began to methodically take out the items, fold each sack, and
place each purchase on the coffee table along with its receipt.

“You are always so neat, Ed. It drives me
crazy. Throw the bags out.” She waved a hand. “And the
receipts.”

“What will you do if you have to return
something?” Edwina was shocked. The prices on several items were
worth more than a month’s rent at her apartment.

“Everyone knows me,” Cecelia puffed. “I have
only to voice my request and the item can be returned.”

Edwina truly did not know what to say. Did
Cecelia own half of Chicago too? Then she smiled, glad she would be
headed back home on the morrow. Back to her simple life, her simple
job. Heaven knows, with her brand new Birkenstocks, she’d come up
an entire rung on the ladder, at least in Cecelia’s eyes.

“Be back soon. Don’t answer the door. I don’t
like intrusions of my personal space unless they’re scheduled.
Besides, you won’t know how to handle a problem with the tenants.”
She waved a hand, talked over her shoulder, slipped on her own
Birkenstocks which matched perfectly with her embroidered navy pant
suit, and fished for her keys all at the same time.

“Don’t worry. No one will know I’m here.”
Edwina waved her off and locked the door behind her sister.

“Ah. Quiet. Peace. Not much noise way up here
on what, the twelfth floor?” She kicked off her new shoes carefully
and padded across the beige carpet that must have been two inches
thick and lifted the sheer mauve curtains back to check out the
view.

“Oh my... beautiful.” Lake Michigan was off a
good distance, but she could still see the shimmering blue expanse
from the window.

She let the curtain slowly fall back into
place and straightened the panel so it hung perfectly straight.
Yawning, she decided to allow herself one treat and lay her head on
the crème chenille pillow, which was an exact match of the
sofa.

Sometime later Edwina was wakened by the
ringing of a phone. It seemed distant, and just as she gathered
enough strength to get up, it quieted. Then as she was about to
mosey back to dreamland, it rang again. Jumping up, she had
forgotten the Gillespies might be trying to reach her sister. She
ran crazily, tripping on the China blue rug near her sister’s
bed.

“Hello?” she said as professionally as she
could muster after such a cozy nap.

“Miss Giatana?” came the Scottish brogue.

“No, it’s Edwina.”

“Ah, the elusive Miss Edwina,” came the quick
retort.

“The very one.” She laughed, happy to hear
the familiar voice.

“I am to understand your sister has tried to
reach us.”

“Yes. And I am so sorry to have called at
such an hour last evening. I’m afraid I forgot about the time
difference, Mr. Gillespie.”

“I’ll have ye know, there are worse things in
the world to worry ye pretty head aboot,” he replied.

Edwina could hear the smile in his singsong
voice.

“My sister is not here at the moment. But it
is my understanding that you know about the show you and your wife
are to appear on?”

“We are happy to accommodate Miss Giatana,
yer sister. We never thought to be on the tele. It is quite the
honor.”

“I’m so glad you feel that way, but there is
a matter of dates,” Edwina hesitated, not quite sure how Cecelia
would frame the question. “Well... it seems the producer has moved
the taping of the show up to August 20.”

“Ah, that will not do, lass. We will not
arrive in yer country until the first day of September.”

“I see.”
Now what
?

“Then it is a great problem?”

“I’m afraid it is, sir. I mean, I don’t know
much about these things, but the shows... well, they’re hard to get
on... and I’m afraid there’s nothing she can do to change the date,
you see.”

“A problem indeed,” he agreed. “We would love
to accommodate yer kin, lass, but ye see we have already purchased
our plane tickets and cannot change them without great cost to us,
I’m afraid.”

“Oh. That is a problem.” Edwina frowned. She
would not ask anyone to add extra cost when it had been their
intention to save money in the first place.

“Well, all is not lost to
ye. I shall check and see if there is a way. Ye say me and me wife
need to be there by the 20
th
day o’August?”

“Yes, Mr. Gillespie. That is the correct
date. And how is Mrs. Gillespie?”

“
She is fine as a bird’s
feather,” he said proudly. “She asks aboot ye.”

“Please tell her I am well. I must let you
off the line. It is expensive . . .”

“Ye speak the truth. I shall talk to me
lovely wife and call again. Soon,” he assured her.

“Thank you so much, and please forgive us for
the inconvenience. I do hope you can come.”

“Aye well, all things work out as they
should,” he said calmly. “Be off with ye.”

And he was gone. Edwina smiled at his curt
good bye.

Wandering to the kitchen, she opened the
refrigerator and took out the chicken. Cecelia must have known last
evening what she planned to fix. The least she could do was have
the meat cooked and ready to make the chicken salad.

The kitchen, she found, was loaded with
traps. She’d opened what she thought was the door to a trash
container, but it was the dishwasher, hidden behind a façade. She
pushed a button hoping to turn on the light and music came drifting
through the air from some secret place. Another switch that might
also have been a light opened a drawer with every imaginable
kitchen tool. The deep drawer closed when she touched the button
again.

Cupboard doors that should have held pots or
pans opened to garbage compactors, another to a display of wine.
Such contraptions. How did Cecelia remember where every- thing
was?

Even the faucet was different. When she
reached for it, it came off in her hand, sending a fine mist spray
directly into her face, down her T-shirt, and on the half circle
decorative window above the sink. Edwina wiped the window clean and
dabbed the water out of her T-shirt.

Finally, she found the secret compartment
where pans and lids were kept. The drawer could have contained the
entire dishwasher, it was that deep and that wide. And finding the
dinnerware, a simple fork and a mixing spoon, had been the
adventure of the afternoon.

She’d spent nearly twenty minutes hunting
down the tools to cook two chicken breasts. Exhausted, she made for
the living room. Time for a book before Cecelia came back and
started bossing her around again.

Ten pages into her
book,
Creating Romantic
Characters
, she heard the key in the door
and her sister entered.

They were halfway finished with their chicken
salad sandwiches when she remembered the call and told her sister
all the details.

“So will they be here?”

“They’re going to try.”

Cecelia set her sandwich
down. “They can’t try, they
have
to be here.” Her voice ranked one level below a
shriek.

“They are going to check
and call back. Don’t worry,
everything
will work out.”

“Easy for you to say. My entire career is at
stake, not to mention I’ll lose the biggest marketing opportunity
I’ll ever hope to have. It might even open the door to do a few
commercials, if I’m noticed, of course.”

Edwina smiled. “Oh, you’ll be noticed.” Then
she changed the topic. “Haven’t you enough to do?”

“I can do more. Besides, mother travelled,
worked as an actress, raised me, and handled my difficult father
all at the same time.”

“Point taken.” Edwina admitted.

The phone rang and Cecelia ran. Actually ran.
It looked funny to see her proper sister run through the house. “I
should have had a phone put in the kitchen.” Her voice evaporated
as she disappeared into her dark bedroom.

Not long after, Cecelia was back with a
smile. “They’re coming at exactly the right time,” she said
triumphantly.

“Good! How did they work it out?”

“
Some good deeder, or
whatever they call them, offered to pay for their tickets to fly
them over early. All I know is that they have the deal worked out.
I am guaranteed. Besides, they said it would give them more time to
visit with their son.”

“That’s
good Samaritan
.” Edwina smiled at
her sister’s blunder, then clapped. “Wonderful. I’m glad for you,
and I’m glad for them. They are really very nice.”

“Now that that’s done, I’m going to do some
brain- storming. Want to come along?”

“I’ll do the dishes and join you in a few
minutes.”

“Don’t worry. Set them in the sink. Spencer
will be by tomorrow. We need not do the work I’m paying him
for.”

Edwina shrugged and rinsed out each dish
anyway and set them neatly in the triple sink. She could have done
her laundry in those sinks.

“Did I mention I’ve booked us an evening
play?”

“What?”

“Don’t try to squiggle out. I got the free
tickets this afternoon, compliments of a very happy customer.”

“I haven’t a thing to wear.” Edwina thought
that was funny. More true than funny, but funny nevertheless.

“I told you to buy something today, but you
refused,” Cecelia said with a huff.

“You didn’t tell me we were going to a play.”
Cecelia checked her watch. That meant trouble.

“We have an hour and a half to dress you
properly. Let’s go.”

“What? No. I’m tired from shopping this
morning.”

“You had a nap.” Cecelia had her hands
planted on her slender hips.