Sophie's Playboy (32 page)
Authors: Natalie J. Damschroder
- "Parker on line three."
- "Go ahead, Parker. What's your rant?"
- "Wasted time."
- Even with so few words, Sophie recognized those warm tones.
- "Can you be more specific? Rick just told us about all the t
- "I'm talking about time wasted on the golf course. Golf shou
- "Parker, are you obsessed with golf?"
- He chuckled, and sparks zinged through Sophie's middle. She
- "No, I'm not obsessed. But I guess I come pretty close."
- "Well, if we want to talk about waste and golf, lets talk ab
- "You don't think people who live near the desert should have
- Sophie ignored the flashing lights that indicated callers wa
- "Of course golf has a bearing on quality of life," Parker gr
- "—in heat over a hundred degrees, which forces everyone to d
- "Boy, you don't give an inch, do you?"
- "This is rant time, Parker. We're ranting."
- "Seems more to me like we're bantering."
- Sophie grinned at his flirtatious tone. "This isn't dial-a-d
- Sophie had a hard time concentrating on the rest of the show
- "The last caller we can take tonight is.... "She looked at M
- "Parker," she mouthed, and held up four fingers.
- Sophie sighed audibly. "The last caller is Parker. Parker, d
- "Nothing as fun as this," he teased. He wasn't on a cell pho
- "I suppose you're calling to rave about golf."
- "Not this time. I'm calling," his voice lowered a register a
- Sophie's tongue got caught in something. She saw Melina fran
- "Are you a playboy, Parker?" She grimaced as soon as the wor
- "Define playboy."
- Sophie thought of Biff, the purest form of the beast. "Rich,
- "Well—"
- She cut him off. "Dates a new woman every week, making it cl
- "I guess you have something against playboys?" He was a litt
- Sophie remembered this was the Rave. She glanced at the cloc
- Her music started with perfect timing. Sophie sat and listen
- "Exhausted?" Melina entered the booth, followed by a beaming
- Sophie stood and stretched. "No, energized. How do you guys
- "Great."
- "Right on." Stevie added a thumbs up. "You never ran out of
- Sophie shook her head. "I don't think so. He sounds familiar
- "Could be a made-up name."
- She hadn't thought of that. If it was a made-up name, it cou
- Hmmm.
- She shrugged. "I'm not sure. Is it a problem?"
- Stevie's face cleared. "Not at all! There was some chemistry
- The travel host came in to start his program, and Sophie fol
- * * * *
- Parker lounged on his suede sofa and half-listened to the fi
- Chuck Whitmer had been at the club last week, whining into h
- He'd had fun this afternoon, egging her on, flirting without
- The phone rang and he balanced the glass of merlot on his st
- "Hello?"
- "Hey, love."
- "Mare, hi. What's wrong?"
- "Nothing, I just wanted to catch up with you. We're both alw
- Parker set his wine glass on the table and zapped the TV wit
- She hesitated. "Maybe. I was wondering if you could pick the
- "You know I will, Mare, but you've got to slow down some." H
- She sighed and Parker heard tears in the catch in her breath
- "Let someone help you coordinate the Lowell office." He knew
- Mare seemed to know he didn't need her response to that. "Th
- "No problem."
- "Now, tell me how things are going for you."
- "Well, I picked up some stock in...."
- "Nooooo!" Her screech nearly cracked his wine glass, never m
- Parker smiled. "There is nothing else."
- When she didn't respond, he could almost hear her eyes narro
- "Nope. Vanessa took a powder."
- "You dumped her."
- "Wasn't anything to dump. I told her weeks ago I wasn't inte
- "Ah-ha! So there is someone else!" she said gleefully.
- "Mare, you've got to stop living vicariously through me."
- "Nonsense. Give me the goods."
- Parker tried to think of something to tell her. He didn't wa
- "She doesn't like playboys," he finally admitted.
- Mare snorted. "Leaves you out, then."
- "Not necessarily."
- "Yeah. We'll see. There are few enough women who aren't afte
- "Am I that bad, Mare?" He knew he sounded wistful. She didn'
- "She must be something, Park, to shake that famous Cornwall
- "She is, Mare. She is."
- Sophie was something, all right. He just didn't know why.
- CHAPTER 3
- Sophie climbed out of her vintage Mercedes convertible and t
- As was her former employer, she grumbled silently as she cro
- Chuck was waiting in the lobby, his trademark whiskey sour a
- "Ah, my lovely, my gracious Sophie." He grabbed her hand and
- "Give it up, Chuck. You aren't refined enough for that."
- He grinned. "I was hoping practice would make perfect."
- She snorted as they walked toward the Patriot Room. "Well, t
- Chuck's response slipped past her and she froze near the ent
- Sophie managed not to turn on Chuck and tried to sound disin
- "Sure. Biff gets approached for money all the time, now it's
- "Hm." Sophie let Chuck steer her into the room, her gaze swe
- "Tell me again why you needed a date for this?"
- Chuck grinned wider. "For an opportunity to talk you into co
- Sophie groaned. "Chuck, I told you I was done with MMT."
- "Even if your show flops?"
- Something flipped in her stomach. "What do you mean? Did you
- "Well...."
- "Sophie!" Darlene rushed up and gave her a faux embrace. "Yo
- Jason Wenrick stepped up behind Darlene. He smiled apologeti
- Sophie smiled back. "It's okay. I haven't had much direct li
- That was like an invitation to open the floodgates. A couple
- Chuck stood nearby, his smile growing gradually dimmer until
- "Poor Chuck." She sat next to him on a love seat where he po
- "I guess you'll never come back, will you?"
- "It's not like I haven't been telling you that."
- He shrugged. "But now I've seen you in the limelight. You be
- Sophie looked at him, surprised. "Limelight? I wasn't in the
- He gestured to where they'd been standing. "What do you call
- Now she laughed. "Oh, Chuck. That's funny. I'm nowhere close
- Still, she understood what he was getting at. "Chuck, you ma
- "It won't be the same."
- Exactly, Sophie thought, feeling giddy with the knowledge th
- Chuck sighed and downed the last of his watered-down whiskey
- "You can't leave before the announcement."
- Sophie recognized that voice. It was Parker.
- Electricity made all the fine hairs on her body stand up. Sh
- So what? She shook off the stunned effects and put on her bu
- "What are you announcing?" Damn if she didn't sound like she
- Biff smiled smoothly, his charm at direct odds with his goof
- "You'll have to wait for the announcement."
- His voice was cultured, Boston Brahmin and the best prep sch
- That was odd.
- Sophie narrowed her eyes at his retreating back. Playboy tha
- "I'm going to get a drink," Sophie told Chuck.
- "Go ahead." He waved her off without looking at her, eyeing
- She got her Kahlua and cream and retreated to a quiet spot o
- Did she miss it? She pondered that as she sipped her drink.
- One of those former partners caught her eye and saluted her
- Biff stood near the front of the room and raised his hands f
- When he spoke, explaining the purpose of the Cornwall Founda
- Biff's voice seemed less deep, less rich. Parker's was more
- She didn't know why it bothered her so much to think they co
- Liar, a voice—her sister's voice—echoed in her head. Okay, s
- Geez, she couldn't believe she was thinking like that! The f
- Not that Sophie had heard many complaints. She could see thr
- Weddings. A pang hit Sophie in the chest, hard enough to ann
- The cool air was typical of the Boston spring. The sun sat j
- "Kinda cool to be out here in that dress."
- Sophie closed her eyes. It was That Voice, accompanied by wa
- She turned, stunned to see Biff. Hadn't she just decided he
- "Who are you?"
- His eyebrows formed an unconvincing V over his oh-so-concern
- "I know who you are. I mean, I know who I know you are. But
- "Have you been calling my show?"
- He shrugged. "Have you had any callers named Biff?"
- It was a non-answer, but Sophie didn't feel inclined to purs
- "Why won't you have dinner with me, Sophie?" His voice was l
- "I told you, Biff, you're not my type." Maybe he wouldn't he
- "Your date has abandoned you for a twenty-two-year-old socia
- She loved Biff's scent.
- His hand pressed her gently toward a marble bench. "Sit with
- "Why?" But she sat.
- He shrugged. "Just to enjoy the night."
- The garden was silent and Sophie acknowledged that it was ni
- Biff stretched out his legs in front of him. Sophie leaned h
- "So tell me how you got to be a VP at such a young age," Bif
- She pushed back her usual annoyance at the question. She'd h
- Biff snorted and she wondered if he thought that was a dig a
- "Which meant," he continued, "more and more of the same old
- "Right." Hm. He was insightful. Interesting twist on the pla
- "Which is why you now Rant and Rave," he finished for her, m
- "Now I Rant and Rave. You listen?"
- "I caught a show."
- "What did you think?" For some reason, his answer was more i
- He shrugged. "It has potential. Maybe people will call you i
- "I hope so. I also hope the second half of the show will hel
- "If they listen that long."
- She frowned. "What do you mean?"
- "People tend to listen to the carping and ignore the gushing
- "My callers do not gush!"
- He just looked at her. Sophie remembered one woman on her se
- "Okay, one gushed. But it's not always like that."
- "Too soon to tell. But it might go better if you intersperse
- "I thought of that," Sophie admitted. "But I'm afraid no one
- Twilight had settled firmly over the garden by then, and Sop
- "You're welcome." He took the jacket, but didn't stand. "So,
- Sophie considered. One dinner was no big deal. She'd done mo
- "I'm sorry, Biff. It was a nice, friendly conversation, but
- He stood and jerked on his coat. "Okay, fine. I won't ask ag
- If he'd been anyone else, she would have said she'd hurt his
- * * * *
- "Good afternoon, and welcome to Rant and Rave. I'm your host
- She rattled off the phone number, now memorized, and went on
- "We're going to try something new today. Instead of two hour
- "Joe is on line one."
- "Hello, Joe, what's your rant?"
- "Hi, Sophie, how ya doin'?"
- She tried to keep her sigh inaudible. Every caller asked how
- "Cats."
- "Cats. Can you be more specific?"
- "What more is there to say? I mean, cats are rude, man. They
- "I don't have a cat, but isn't there anything good about hav
- "Huh. Sometimes. Mine bites, though. And the stinkin' litter
- "Wait. You're wife is pregnant?"
- "Yeah."
- "And you're letting her clean the litter box?"
- "Heck, it's her cat."
- Sophie wavered between lecturing and not badgering listeners
- "It may be her cat, Joe, but it would be better if you clean
- "'Course not." His voice turned plaintive. "Can't I just get
- Sophie laughed. "That's between you and your wife. Thanks fo
- "Sophie, this is Marie. I can not believe that guy. He has g
- Marie was the first of many callers who had something to say
- "Great show, Soph!" One of the salespeople waved at her.
- "Thanks! You selling time?" One of the signs of a successful
- "Slowly but steadily."
- "Great."
- She ran back into the studio in time to explain again that t
- Sophie knew who the first caller of the hour was before Meli
- "Parker, welcome to the show."
- "I promise I won't talk about golf today."
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