Nancy’s Theory of Style (25 page)

“For an eventual run at statewide
office?”

“As
California
goes, so goes the nation,” Bailey
said. “I haven’t decided if I want to hold office. A consultant not only makes
a better living than an elected official, but we’ve got more flexibility.”

“Do you aspire to be a puppetmaster?”

“If I held office, I wouldn’t be
anyone’s puppet,” he said with a grin. “Of course, bachelors rarely get elected
above the county supervisor level. People don’t trust us.”

“Should they?”

“No one should ever trust a person whose
career depends on popularity.”

“I didn’t realize you were so cynical.”

“I’m a complete optimist or I wouldn’t
be trying. My life is all about trying to do the things people tell me are
impossible.”

“Bailey, please don’t make me listen to
your stump speech. I’m sure it’s brilliant.”

He laughed. “Most people are riveted by
the narrative of my rise from genteel poverty. Of course, it’s easy to climb
when that’s the only direction available. Your situation is more challenging.”

“I’m glad my parents held me to high
standards,” she said. “They are delightful people, even though now, with Todd… They’ve
been concerned.”

“Todd knows you can’t stand living out
there especially with half the development empty. If I had the money, I’d buy
adjoining lots and wait out the market,” he said. “The house is another thing. Do
you break up a marriage over bad architecture?”

“I don’t know, but I think excellent
architecture can keep a marriage happy. My parents’ Craftsman is a gem.”
Nancy
was dying to see
the ramshackle mansion that Bailey was renovating, and she asked, “How is your
fixer-upper going? Will anyone ever see it, and does it have good bones?”

“Spend tonight with me and I’ll give you
a tour in the morning.”

“So sorry, but I have a meeting with
Derek and I can’t cancel it.”

“You have a meeting with Derek tonight,
or tomorrow morning?”

“Yes,” she said and laughed.

“Should I be jealous of him?”

“Absolutely. He’s like a best girlfriend
and a stunning man all rolled into one. He can dish about style and get things
off the top shelf. He helped me dress this evening.”

“I can help you undress.”

“I can do that myself. I’ve always
wanted to have a maid who arranged my hair and wore a white lace cap and called
me Miss Nancy. I don’t suppose you have a maid’s uniform.”

“No, you have to play dress up with your
assistant. My interests are strictly masculine.” Bailey’s leg stretched under
the table so that it was next to hers.

She was enjoying Bailey’s flirting even
though she didn’t know if he was really interested in her. “You agreed that
we’d have dinner as friends, and you told Todd that you were taking me out as a
friend.”

“I’d have an easier time treating you
like a friend if you weren’t so damn pretty.”

“Let’s talk about something safe. Tell
me about your boat.”

Bailey had bought the sailboat at a
ridiculously low price from one of his many benefactors. As he discussed the
repairs it needed, she studied his face. There was no doubt that he was
handsome, but no particular feature stood out as either good or bad. His nose
was thin and she wondered if he’d had rhinoplasty.

Bailey said, “I’m really lucky to have a
friend who helped me acquire it.”

“You were able to buy your house through
a friend, too, weren’t you?”

He tilted his head and studied her. “Yes,
if it wasn’t for my friends, I’d be scrounging to get ahead in some crappy job,
and living in a crappy apartment.”

“I’m not criticizing you, Bailey. I
think you’re lucky that people like you so much,”
Nancy
said. “Poor Todd just gets on the wrong
side of people and even when he’s got a good idea, he has to fight for it.”

“Like that sports medicine business.”

“Exactly. He put his whole heart in it
and it’s a growth field. It should have done better,” she said, thinking of how
depressed Todd had been when the business had foundered. She remembered that it
was Bailey who’d suggested the investment. “You were involved in that, too,
right? I hope you didn’t lose too much.”

Bailey smiled and said, “I’m surprised
that didn’t work out for Todd. I’m going to try to work with him, Nancy, on his
people skills.”

“I’m sure that would help him.”

“Anything for a friend. Would you like
to go out on my boat sometime?”

Nancy
thought of how much fun she’d had when
she was about Eugenia’s age, going out with her family. If Eugenia was still
here, she’d need a lifejacket. “Perhaps in June, after the fundraiser.”

“Promise?” Bailey asked, but he was
looking at someone across the room and lifting his chin in greeting.

Nancy
wanted him to understand that he
couldn’t just take her out to fill a seat, so she said, “Thank you for a lovely
dinner,” and picked up her pewter metallic clutch.

He looked surprised even though his
forehead was strangely immobile. “Don’t you want dessert or coffee? It’s still
early.”

“Is it? I haven’t been keeping track of
time.”

“Have I bored you?”

“Yes, terribly. It’s been unendurable.” She
turned her head to hide her smile.

He laughed and reached for her hand. “I
thought we could go out somewhere else. We could hit a club.”

“That’s what people do on dates.”

“To hell with my promise. I want this to
be a date.”

Nancy
said, “A married lady doesn’t date,
Bailey.”

“A married lady could go to a group
event, couldn’t she? A friend is having a party. We could go to that and be
surrounded a hundred chaperones and stand at least a foot apart when we dance.”

“If you really want me to, I could go,
as a friend.”

“I really, really want you to.”

They left the restaurant and walked a
few blocks until they reached a hybrid SUV. “The mileage is very good,” he said
a little apologetically.

Bailey drove them South of Market to a
mess of industrial buildings, some of which had been converted to restaurants
and nightspots.
Nancy
was disappointed by the hobo-ish crowd outside the clubs. Where was the glamour?

When they reached the warehouse where
the party was being held, valets were out front, and a few decently dressed
people milled about. Bailey got out of the car, tossed the keys to the valet,
and ran around to open the door for her.

“Hey, Bailey,” one guy called out.

“Stuckler, what’s up,” Bailey responded
and then said quietly to
Nancy
,
“Kirby Stuckler, big in winter sports equipment fabrication.”

The doorman, tapping a clipboard against
his thigh, said, “Hey, Bailey, how’s it going?”

“My man,” Bailey responded, and
Nancy
admired his
man-of-the-people ease in exchanging a fist bump and a slap on the back while
remembering to tip the guy.

Once off the dirty street and inside the
warehouse,
Nancy
felt more comfortable. Bailey took her through an entry hall curtained with
billowing white parachute silk and into a vast room where individual bamboo
cabanas surrounded a dance floor.

In minutes they were lounging on the
cushioned benches of a cabana as guests of Bailey’s friend, who produced
corporate videos. She looked at the crowd dancing and saw skinny, gawky GP
coming toward her with a big smile.

“Hey, princess! I didn’t know you’d be
here.” He joined them and suddenly she started seeing old friends and
acquaintances. The band was playing swing music, bottles of champagne appeared,
people were moving from cabana to cabana, everyone was dancing, and she felt
the way she used to.

She felt like Nancy Edith Carrington,
the cutest and most popular girl in the room.

“
Nancy
!
Nancy
!”

She searched through the crowd and
spotted Junie Burns, whose transformation was even more obvious in party
clothes. Junie’s flippy skirt hid her hip problem and a delicate halter drew
attention to her attractive shoulders. “Junie!”

Junie was flushed prettily, and
Nancy
thought this party
must be very exciting for someone like Junie who rarely got out of the office.

“Junie, you were supposed to call me!
Especially if you have time to get out.”

“I came at the last minute,” Junie said
as she looked around at
Nancy
’s
group. “Oh, Bailey!” she called and waved back to him. Then to
Nancy
she said, “Are you here with anyone?”

“No, just Bailey. It’s part of my
get-out-and-promote Froth strategy. Todd thought it was a good idea when Bailey
asked him. Are you here with anyone?”

Junie shook her head. “No, just seeing
friends.”

“That’s what I love about the city. Everyone
can go out and just be friends. It’s not all couple-ey.”
Nancy
wanted to ask Junie how Lizette’s party
had been, but she wasn’t going to let it get back to Lizette that she cared in
the least.

Nancy
mingled with everyone while Junie was
nearby, so her friend wouldn’t get the wrong idea. But when GP asked her to
dance, she said yes, because not even Junie could misinterpret that.

After he stepped on her feet a few
times, she said, “Do you even know how to swing dance?”

“How hard can it be?” he said and
counted, “One, two, three, one, two, three…”

“I am ebullient about the fundraiser. Do
you have any updates?”

“I’m meeting someone next week who will,
one, two, three, help me with the actors. Did you read Ashbury’s history of the
Barbary Coast
?”

“Yes,” she said, because she had looked
at the cover before putting it on the bookshelf. “You really rescued us with
your concept of an authentic theme.”

“I’m stoked that you’re okay with that.”

“Of course, I am,”
Nancy
said. “Why wouldn’t I be? I want it to
be exactly the
Barbary Coast
that Ashbury
describes so vividly.”

“Totally. I’m getting pretty good at
this,” he said, dipping her again.

“Whoo!” The champagne made it all so
much fun.

Then Bailey tapped her partner’s
shoulder and said, “May I cut in?”

Nancy
was whirled around into Bailey’s arms. He
held her close and smiled.

He danced well, a necessary skill for
someone who is welcome as an extra man for a dinner party.

She asked, “What happened to dancing a
foot apart?”

“It’s not really dancing unless I can
feel you next to me,” he said, pulling her close.

She swayed with him to the music and
realized how much she’d missed dancing. “A few minutes, but then I should go.”

But a few minutes turned into a little
longer, then not quite yet, and then everyone went for drinks at a raucous bar
that was playing her favorite arias on its classic jukebox. Local actors and
performers began showing up, including a troupe of burlesque dancers.

 
Bailey was caught up in a discussion about
city zoning law with a restaurateur, so
Nancy
excused herself and made her way to the most stunning of dancers, a tall, buxom
brunette, who sat in one of the red booths. She wore a red velvet costume,
trimmed in white and blue, a pillbox hat with an explosion of snowy ostrich
plumes and red boots.

Nancy
went to sit beside her and said, “Love
the look. What’s the inspiration?”

“Jackie O and Wonder Woman, but I don’t
think anyone but me gets it.”

“I love Jackie O. She had a deep
understanding of her own style, moving from those simple Oleg Cassini sheaths,
to Valentino, and Carolina Herrera as her life progressed.”

“Is style really a reason to admire
someone?”

“Knowing your style means knowing
yourself and knowing how you want the world to perceive you. Jackie’s style
showed an appreciation for beauty and the art of fashion.”

“You’re right,” the dancer said. “But I
wonder what her life would have been like if she hadn’t had to be the good
girl.”
 
 

“And why Wonder Woman?”

“That was my boyfriend’s idea. Ex-boyfriend,
actually. He dumped me today. The empowered beauty, he claimed, but I think he
just had the hots for Wonder Woman when he was a kid.”