Lucky Charm (4 page)

“Oh, right, I forgot
.
Jeremy is too artistic for HBO,” Lilly muttered.

Once
they took a seat at their usual booth in the neighborhood diner, Lilly asked,
“What are you having?”

They had lunch at the same diner at least once a week
. S
till, Lilly never failed to examine the menu thoroughly every time, as though expecting something new to appear.

“I think I’ll have a tuna melt with coleslaw and extra pickles.”

“I’ll go for
a
Greek salad.”

Annabel eyed Lilly inquisitively
. I
t was not like her to order such a light fare
. T
he girl could eat steak every day and not gain an ounce.

“I know, I know.” Lilly nodded. “Pretty lame choice
.
I’d go for a burger, but Simon is taking me out to dinner tonight
,
and I’m planning to wear this really tight dress, so I don’t want to get bloated. And truth be told, I’m not even that hungry.”

“This must be love.” Annabel watched Lilly with amusement
. I
n all the years the two of them had been friends, she had never seen Lilly alter her diet because of a guy.

“God, I hope not! Because if this is what love is, I think I was better off without it. All I can think of is seeing him tonight
. W
hat am I, fifteen?”

“There is no age limit on falling in love,” remarked Annabel. She had to admit that it was entertaining to watch Lilly in the throes of a crush
. S
he had never seen her friend so completely gaga over a guy, and Lilly had always had her pick of men. “That’s how I felt about Jeremy when we first met.”

“I guess I owe you an apology for ridiculing you all these years.”

Annabel sighed.

“What’s wrong?” Lilly frowned.

“Nothing, I was just thinking.”

“What is it? Something is wrong, isn’t it? And here I am, babbling away.”

“Promise not to tell anyone?”

“Cross my heart and hope to die.” Lilly rolled her eyes. “But seriously, have I ever betrayed a secret?”

“O
kay
,
o
kay
, I’m sorry. Yesterday, when I met with Meredith, I saw Doug.”

“And?”

“And he was not alone
. H
e had his arm around this blond bimbo
. S
he looked like she was barely eighteen.”

“No way
! G
et out of town! You always talk about him sneaking around, but to catch him in the act! Did Meredith kick his pathetic ass?”

“That’s the thing
. S
he was there with me, and I know that she saw the whole thing, but she acted like nothing happened.”

“What do you mean she acted like nothing happened? Maybe she didn’t see him?”

“She saw him all right
. H
er face got all pale, but she would not say a word about it. She just said she had to go home because she had a headache. I didn’t press her because I could tell that she wanted to be alone.”

“Well, I hope that she gives him a good thrashing. I’ve got to say, given the fact that her father got him started in the business, Doug should be way nicer to her.”

“Is that why you think Doug married her
? B
ecause of her father’s connections?”

“I don’t know
,
and I don’t want to judge.”

This was a first for Lilly.

“It sure does look like it, but for the life of me, I can’t understand why Meredith keeps putting up with it.”

“Maybe because she loves hi
m,” mused Annabel.

“Maybe, but still...
Is that why you are so upset?”

“Yes and no. I don’t know
. L
ately I’ve been worrying
. W
hat if Jeremy and I end
up
like that too? I’m sure Doug was not always cheating on Meredith, not when they first met.”

“Do you have any reason to think that Jeremy might be cheating?”

“I swear, Lilly, you should seek employment with the FBI as an interrogator. No, I don’t have any reason to believe that
. I
t’s just that lately things
have
kind of cooled down, and I’m worried that it might be my fault. I’ve been so busy at work and then planning this wedding… I’m just afraid of getting into a rut. That’s why I wanted to buy something lacy to spruce things up a bit
. Y
ou know.”

“Oh, that
.
I wouldn’t worry about that
.
I’m surprised it took that long for you to bring it up. I mean, the two of you have been together for what, six years?”

“Seven
,
if you count college.”

“Exactly. I once dated a guy for only six months
,
and we almost stopped having sex entirely, so I dumped his ass.”

Annabel could not help flinching
.
Lilly was never one to hold back about the details.

“And you’re right about wanting to spruce things up
. I
t’s the only way to keep a guy interested
. M
en love with their eyes. I know exactly what you need and just the place to get it.”

After lunch
,
Lilly insisted that they head to Bloomingdale’s, flatly rejecting
as amateurish
Annabel’s idea of checking out the neighborhood lingerie shop.

“So, what did you have in mind?” inquired Lilly as she picked out a lacy black bra and a matching black silk thong for herself.

“Oh, I don’t know
. S
omething pretty, but not too crazy. I kind of like this.” Annabel picked out a pale blue slip with lace trimming.

“It’s pretty, to sleep in,” Lilly conceded. “But if you want to get Jeremy all hot and bothered, I would go with this.” She thrust a black garter belt with red lace trimming at Annabel. “And these.” She handed Annabel a matching corset and thong.

“Don’t you think it’s a bit much? It looks like something a stripper would wear
.
I don’t think I could carry off something like this.”

“I thought you wanted to surprise Jeremy. Try it on.” Lilly pushed Annabel into the fitting room.

“Are you ready to come out yet?” Lilly called out several minutes later. “And don’t even try telling me that it did not fit
.
I know your size.”

“I can’t get it to close,” Annabel panted
. G
etting into this contraption required more work than she had realized. Finally, she hooked the last clasp and cautiously parted the dressing room curtain.

“Let me see,” demanded Lilly, shoving the curtain open. “Wow, this getup makes
me
hot and bothered. Poor Jeremy
. H
e might have a heart attack.”

“Do you really think it looks good?”

“That mousy slip you picked looked good. This little number looks hot. You should definitely buy it
,
and I’m not taking ‘no’ for an answer.”

“How much is this thing anyway?” Annabel fumbled with the price tag and gasped. “This is crazy
. Y
ou could buy a suit for this price.”

“A suit won’t get you laid,” Lilly observed flatly. “Do you have a pair of black stilettos?”

Annabel nodded
. T
he word
“
stiletto
”
was not in her vocabulary, but she did own a pair of black pumps and thought that they should do just fine.

“Perfect. Wear black stilettos with this tonight
,
and Jeremy will be all over you.”

Back at the apartment
,
Annabel unwrapped her purchases, laying them out on the bed. Suddenly, she was overcome with buyer’s remorse
. S
he had spent close to three hundred dollars on lingerie.
Big mistake,
she thought - a mistake that would cost her
. S
he would have to eat yogurt for lunch for a month in order to balance her checkbook after this splurge. It wasn’t as if she had money to burn
. F
or now she was still the breadwinner, and every penny was accounted for in their tight budget. She could still scrap the whole idea and just return everything
. L
uckily, Bloomingdale’s had a very forgiving return policy.
No
, she thought,
I want to give this a tr
y.
I want to do something special for Jeremy
. And despite every practical thought that was thudding through her mind, Annabel had to admit that she felt her pulse kick as she imagined Jeremy’s reaction to the racy lace
. S
he wanted to be irresistible to him.

She glanced at the clock on the wall
. I
t was five o’clock.
Jeremy should be here soon
, Annabel thought
. H
e had left her a message on her cell phone when she was at Bloomingdale
’
s with Lilly, saying that he would be running late, but should be home by six. She had tried to call him back, but his phone went straight to voicemail.

She hurried into the bathroom and turned on the shower. After lathering up with passion fruit shower gel and meticulously shaving her legs, she toweled off and critically surveyed her reflection as she combed her long, brown hair. She had worn her hair the same length
-
slightly below the shoulder blades
-
for as long as she could remember. Maybe she should try something different – a pixie cut, like Lilly. In all the years that she had known Lilly, Lilly must have tried at least a dozen different hairstyles
. L
ike the men in her life, her best friend’s hair constantly changed.
Probably something like a bob would be more realistic or maybe just some layers for starters
, Annabel thought, w
ary of drastic changes. She plugged in the hairdryer and began the familiar ritual of wrapping her hair, strand by strand, on a round brush under the hot stream of air. Afterwards
,
she applied a bit of mascara to her eyelashes and a light dusting of powder and blush to her face
;
just the right amount of make
up to make her look like she was not wearing any
. She
dabbed some perfume behind
her
ears.

Ok
ay
, this is the moment of truth
, Annabel thought, as she stared at the lacy garments on her bed. She wriggled her body into each piece of the intricate ensemble, leaving the garter belt for last. Then, she unwrapped a pair of stockings that she had bought to go with the garter and attempted to fasten them to the garter strips – a task that was easier said than done
,
as she failed at it again and again, cursing the tricky garter clasps that kept slipping through her fingers. After almost ten minutes of struggle, she finally managed to secure the last strap and stepped into her black plumps.
Not bad
, she thought, straining to see her full reflection in the three quarter mirror that hung in the foyer. Of course
,
the extravagant attire she had on was not all that comfortable, but she was fairly certain that once Jeremy got home, she would not be wearing it for much longer.

Annabel checked
the clock again
. I
t was six o’clock. Any minute now
,
Jeremy would walk through the front door
,
and she would surprise him. A smile spread over her lips as she thought about what would happen next. She lit some candles on the magazine table by the couch and put out two cognac glasses along with the bottle of Hine that she had bought on her way home
. I
t was Jeremy’s favorite brand of cognac.

But half an hour later
,
there was still no sign of Jeremy. Annabel propped herself on the couch, reaching for the TV remote
,
and immediately
she
felt the corset pinch her sides
. S
he shifted this way and that, until finally attaining a half-reclined position that was somewhat comfortable.
It took me all this time to get into this thing
, she thought
.
I’m not taking it off until Jeremy comes home and sees it.

It was almost eight o’clock when Annabel heard the key turn in the front door lock. She had dozed off without realizing it
. T
he noise startled her
,
and she jumped off the couch, hastily adjusting her now slightly crumpled outfit in place. The candles had almost burned down to the core, and she blew them out, thankful that she woke up in time. She straightened up and, feeling a sudden jolt of adrenaline, hurried to greet Jeremy as the front door began to open.