Miss Scarlet's School of Patternless Sewing (33 page)

The first drink went down like Kool-Aid on a summer day. Mary Theresa dried her clammy hands on her dress and exhaled as if to blow on a whistle. She looked out the window of the lounge to see a happy couple and their two children, about the same age as Rocky and Lucy, taking turns going down a giant waterslide, two-by-two, in the indoor pool. She stared until the faces on the gleeful couple morphed into hers and Hadley’s. She liked that vision. Without realizing exactly how “breezy” she had become, she stretched out her long, toned arms across the booth and rolled her head along the top of the cushion and let out a “Mmmmm…”

A rash of goosebumps flooded up her legs and arms as she felt someone staring at her. She slowly opened her eyelids to see Hadley, holding a drink in his hand, admiring her from across the room. When their eyes met, he fumbled his glass and almost dropped it.

Mary Theresa sat up straight and stretched her lips into a smile and waved hard at her husband. He picked up his drink and went to the bar to tell the waitress something. Mary Theresa used the spare moment to bend down and check her breath.

“Hi, honey,” she said, popping back up to see the businessman from the atrium standing at her table.

“Hi.”

Right then, Hadley slid next to her in the booth, so close she could count the stubble on his face. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close.

“She’s taken, buddy,” Hadley said.

Embarrassed, the gentleman apologized to Mary Theresa and then to Hadley. “All the good ones are taken,” he joked.

“That’s right, they are,” Hadley said, turning to his wife.

Mary Theresa reached for her rum punch and took a long sip while she gathered her thoughts. The entire flight over, she worried about what mood she might find Hadley in. Laid back in his usual style, or uptight now that he had a full-time job? And what would he think of her visit? Would he think she was checking in on him—which she wasn’t, but she did want to check on
them.
She had to admit, the flirting executive certainly put her in a desirable light.

“Let’s try this again—Hi, honey!” she said. “My mom has the kids all weekend, so I thought I’d pop in and surprise you.”

For being married to this man for almost ten years, she felt as nervous as a teenager on her first date.

“I’m surprised,” he said. “Pleasantly surprised.”

She placed her hand on top of his and felt the cold silver of his wedding band. He may have been away in presence, but he had never really left her in spirit.

Hadley’s eyes roamed over her from forehead to chin, across her shoulders, and down her long neck to her cleavage. He moved in closer and brushed his nose against hers, first on one side and then the other.

Mary Theresa licked her lips and stared at his. She had forgotten how beautiful and red they were, but she did remember how good they tasted. She almost couldn’t catch her breath, but her instincts picked up where her insecurities left off and she opened her mouth next to his. He smiled and stroked her neck before meeting her for a long, loving kiss.

Mary Theresa didn’t pull away or make an excuse to stop like she used to. She didn’t care that they were sitting in a public place, or whether Hadley was on the clock. She had his full, undivided attention and was not about to cut it short. Hadley was the first to separate his lips from hers.

“Does this mean you missed me?” he asked.

“It’s been a long nine weeks,” she whispered, skimming her fingers around his ear and then his hairline. “Love the buzz cut. It’s sexy.”

“I love seeing your long hair again.”

“I like my long hair too,” she said. “I’ve been wearing it down lately.”

He kissed her again, longer, until she squirmed from anticipation. “Come on, let’s go. I have a bungalow suite, you’ll love it.”

She downed the last of her second rum punch, bit the pineapple slice, and stuffed it inside the tall hurricane glass. “You’ll have to show me more than that; I rented a bungalow suite on my own.”

“I think that can be arranged,” Hadley said, sliding out of the booth and holding out his hand for Mary Theresa. She took it, stood up, and straightened her dress while he lifted her hand above her head and guided her around in a circle.

“Welcome to Mary Theresa, version two-point-oh,” she said.

Hadley bit his lip and smiled. “No, this is the original. This is the woman I remember.”

S
carlet didn’t need to poke her finger with an embroidery needle to know she had been thrust into the middle of every wannabe fashion designer’s fantasy.
Funny how fate happens,
she thought.

Only yesterday she met Johnny Scissors face to face, and tonight she would be his date at the movie premiere of
Work What You Got
, a
Thelma & Louise –
inspired comedy starring Oscar-winner Eva Alegria. Scarlet loved her some Eva. She read in an interview that Eva loved to sew. Scarlet would be sure to bring along a gift pack of goodies in case, by chance, she met the star. If she could meet Johnny Scissors, practically get hired by him, show up to a red carpet event—on his arm—during her first week of living in New York, anything was possible!

Scarlet stepped out of the shower and snuggled into her sunshine-colored terrycloth robe. She wiped the steam from the mirror and ran a comb through her long red hair. She had to be downstairs in the lobby in four hours and she still hadn’t decided on what gown to wear. The pressure loomed—her first big event in the Big Apple—she couldn’t afford to end up on the worst-dressed list standing next to Johnny Scissors. He’d send her cactus booty all the way back to Arizona. She narrowed
her choices to three but had yet to choose. Just then, Scarlet heard a knock on her door.

She peered through the peephole. Ronnie! She opened the door and he handed her a garment bag with a card hanging from it. Scarlet flashed him a quizzical glance and he shrugged his shoulders in an “I’m just the messenger” way.

“Have fun tonight,” he said before leaving.

Scarlet set the bag carefully on her bed, opened the card, and froze.

Here’s an original Daisy for tonight. Good luck, Miss Scarlet.

—Louisa

Scarlet held her breath, unzipped the padded vinyl bag, and slowly removed the dress from its protective cocoon.

“Well, razz my berries, Louisa, you know how to pick ’em!” Scarlet said aloud as she held the dress up and inspected it from neckline to hem. She had only seen this gown in old magazine pictures. Daisy had created it for the famous Italian actress Gina Lollabrigida. A low-cut, red satin asymmetrical mermaid gown that twinkled with miniature diamond clusters sewn all around the bodice. Scarlet had never been this close to a Daisy dress. She skimmed it across her face to feel the texture of the silky fabric on her cheek. She closed her eyes and imagined Daisy, circa 1971, her hair propped up in a ponytail, in Capri pants and an art smock, conversing with the masterpiece-in-the-making as she brought it to life. And now, decades later, Scarlet cradled it in her arms.

*   *   *

When Scarlet climbed into the Hummer limo, Johnny took one gander at her outfit and had a hissy fit.

“You can’t be seen in that garment,” Johnny fumed. “Where did you get it?”

Scarlet’s heart dropped about a thousand gears. “Louisa sent it to me. Am I not supposed to wear it because it is a treasured antique?”

Johnny punched his Bluetooth headset, asked for Louisa, and scolded her. Scarlet couldn’t make out the full scoop, but it seemed he worried that Scarlet’s dress would upstage the one he’d designed for Eva Alegria. He insisted that Louisa deliver a replacement gown for Scarlet ASAP.

Scarlet pretended not to notice the meat of the conversation. Security guards would have to tackle, shackle, and tase her before she would take off Daisy’s dress.

“There has been a misunderstanding. You must change when we arrive at the theater. Louisa is bringing you a new dress.”

This man had access to fashion history gold, yet refused to flaunt it. If Scarlet didn’t know better, she’d think he was jealous of his aunt’s work.

“Oh, OK, sure,” Scarlet agreed. She let a moment of silence pass. “I thought Louisa wanted me to show off this little number to build buzz for Daisy’s fiftieth-anniversary gala next week,” she said as she admired her outfit. “You know, like House of Tijeras is ahead of the curve with the hoopla?”

Johnny folded his hands across his round belly and simmered on Scarlet’s words. Apparently deciding she made a good point, he pressed his Bluetooth button again. “Cancel that last request. Over.”

Scarlet’s eyes twinkled with satisfaction.

Johnny cleared his throat. “We’re lucky there is no snow this week. Tell me, Scarlet, have you ever attended a red-carpet event?” he asked as they rode across Manhattan to the ziegfeld Theatre.

“Not unless First Fridays in downtown Phoenix counts,” Scarlet joked as she straightened the long cream velvet shawl around her shoulders.

“The reason we’ve brought you tonight is to practice for the Met event next week, which will be five times as big as this. I want to see how you handle yourself and how the press takes to you. As long as you stick with me, we’ll make it a night you will never forget.”

She nodded and stroked the chunky multistrand, red-and-pink Daisy-made Lucite necklace she’d brought from home. She bought it at an estate auction for $750 a year ago. She had been saving it to wear for a once-in-a-lifetime adventure, and this certainly qualified.

“I heard Eva is wearing one of your dresses for the premiere tonight,” Scarlet said.

Johnny lowered his brows. “How did that get out?”

Not wanting to throw Ronnie under the catwalk, she improvised. “I thought I heard it on the radio today. Everyone was looking forward to seeing it,” Scarlet said just as her gaze latched onto the monstrous marquee that was mounted to the top of the Ziegfeld Theatre. Framing the flashy movie house was a gigantic woven copper arch that sparkled with strands of blinking white lights from one end of the structure to the other. Scarlet whipped her iPhone from her silk pouch, snapped a photo, and uploaded it to her blog with the headline: “Wearing a Daisy gown, going to a movie premiere at THIS theatre!”

Johnny clapped his hands and asked Scarlet to concentrate so he could repeat the etiquette rules to her three times.

1. She was to stay on his arm and was forbidden to speak, no matter what.
   
2. If he tapped her arm once, she was to break away and stand approximately two steps behind him.
   
3. To pose for pictures, she needed to balance on her back leg, lower one hip, and put her hands on her hips.
   

She knew the rundown but didn’t want to show disrespect, so she politely agreed.

Scarlet would tell her future grandkids about the experience of the next moment. The driver opened the limo door, Johnny Scissors popped out, grandstanded for the hundreds of fans and press, and waved his arms in the air like a champion. He then turned to help Scarlet out of the vehicle.

The movie fans and paparazzi were captivated from the first glance. They screamed, cheered, and whistled at the mysterious woman who stepped onto the red carpet and waved to them. Her sleek, bright auburn hair gracefully lay in finger waves across one side of her head, topped off by a small feathered headpiece. Someone in the crowd noticed right away that the dress was a Daisy de la Flora original, and from that point on the cameras popped and flashed from every direction. Scarlet thought she even heard a group of people talking about DaisyForever.com

Johnny reveled in the attention as he led Scarlet down the long walkway, stopping every few seconds to wave. He clenched her close to ensure he would be in every shot. Scarlet held her face poised and polished, and modeled all her favorite poses she had practiced in the mirror ever since childhood.

At one point, Johnny let go of Scarlet to kiss the cheek of a young starlet on the other side of the carpet. Doing as instructed, Scarlet didn’t move or talk. Even when a reporter shoved a microphone into her face and asked her name, she paused. Johnny’s hand appeared out of nowhere and shoved the mike away, then signaled for security to guide them to the front of the theater. Two uniformed men tugged open the heavy cop
per gates. Scarlet and Johnny passed through and waited until the theater’s doors closed behind them.