The Wives of Beverly Row 6: Lust Has a New Address (7 page)

“He’s got a good head on his shoulders,” Gabe said, “but I’ve got better.”

“So he went up to three and a quarter?”

“He’s greedy,” Gabe said. “He thinks the five million is a sure thing.”

“He might get it,” Ariel said. It would be just like Jake to get sucked into something like this and still come out ahead, but she had plans for every dollar he ever made out of this deal.

“He’ll be lucky if he does,” Gabe said. “It will be no easy task fooling the museum. Getting it past Douglas Landfeld was one thing. Getting the museum to pay the reward, it could take years.”

“And he’ll always have to worry that we’ll spill the beans about the painting’s authenticity,” Ariel said.

“Well, that’s the whole point, isn’t it?” Gabe said.

“Yes,” Ariel said. “That’s exactly the point.”

“I feel like we should go out and celebrate,” Gabe said.

“Don’t go spending any of that money,” Ariel said.

“Why not? I earned it.”

“That money is to make sure Zola gets a fresh start,” Ariel said. “It was for her that we did all this.”

“Oh, I know,” Gabe said, “but something tells me Zola’s not going to have any trouble getting a very generous settlement out of Jake now.”

“Well, we’ve got him by the balls. One word from us and he can kiss that five million goodbye.”

“So,” Gabe said, “what are we doing to celebrate?”

Ariel smiled. Gabe was so eager to spend time with her now. Divorcing him had been the smartest thing she’d ever done it seemed. It had really made him appreciate her.

“Why don’t you come over here for dinner?” Ariel said.

“To your house?” Gabe said.

“Yes.”

“And you’ll cook?”

“I’ll come up with something,” Ariel said.

When she hung up the phone, Ariel had to steady herself against the counter. It had worked! Jake had fallen for the bait. Three and a quarter million dollars! Zola’s future was secure. That’s what it meant.

She wanted to call Zola but she knew Jake would become suspicious if Zola started acting differently. Ariel decided not to tell Zola anything just yet. She didn’t call Jake either. First of all, she didn’t want to speak to him, but more importantly, she didn’t want him to know that she and Gabe had such close communication about the deal. She’d spent a lot of time convincing Jake that she was trying to double cross Gabe.

She went upstairs.

“Becky,” she called out. Becky was in her room, working on a school project.

“Yes, mom.”

“Will you help me cook dinner tonight?”

“Really? What’s the occasion?”

“We’re having a guest.”

“Oh, mom. If it’s one of your dates, you can leave me out of it. I don’t need to meet some random guy you’ve picked up.”

“Becky West! Is that any way to speak about your father?”

“What?”

“You heard me.”

“Dad’s coming over for dinner?”

“Yes.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“We’re celebrating. We just sold a really expensive painting.”

“Oh.”

They looked at each other a little awkwardly.

“If you’ve got a question you can go ahead and ask it,” Ariel said.

“Well,” Becky said. “Are you getting back together with dad?”

“We’re not jumping into anything,” Ariel said, “but we’re going to give things a try and see how they go. We’ve remained friends through the divorce.”

“And dad’s changed a lot, hasn’t he?”

“It does seem like that,” Ariel said.

“Oh, mom,” Becky said.

She got up and hugged her mother.

“Don’t get ahead of things,” Ariel said. “I just thought I should tell you that we’re looking at our options.”

“Oh, I know mom. I know it doesn’t necessarily mean anything, but it would be really nice if dad was a part of your life again.”

“He’s always been a part of my life,” Ariel said. “And he always will be. He’s your father after all.”

“I know, but I’m just glad you two are giving things a try.”

“Me too,” Ariel said, smiling.

The two of them spent the next three hours cooking the biggest turkey they could find at the supermarket. Ariel prayed she hadn’t jumped the gun in telling Becky about her and Gabe. The disappointment would be terrible if things didn’t work out.

But something about the way he had been acting since the divorce told Ariel that things might just work out better this second time around.

XI

I
T FELT LIKE IT HAD
been a long time since Ariel had spent any time with Trudy but sitting there at Trudy’s kitchen counter it was as if no time had passed at all.

Trudy came over to the counter with two cups of coffee and took a seat on a stool next to Ariel’s.

“So, Zola has told me that you’ve been very busy on her behalf,” Trudy said.

“Yes I have,” Ariel said.

“Well, I think that’s wonderful. That woman needed someone to stand up for her.”

“This is going to change everything.”

“What exactly is going on?” Trudy said.

“Well, it’s a long story,” Ariel said, a sly smile crossing her face, “but basically, I’ve got Jake’s balls in the palm of my hand.”

“How so?”

“Well, I’ve got over three million dollars of his money!”

Trudy almost spilled her coffee. “You are kidding!”

Ariel shook her head. She had to admit, she felt very proud of what she’d managed to pull off.

“How the hell did you get that to happen?”

“Jake bought a painting from Gabe.”

“For three million dollars?”

“Three and a quarter! Yes!”

“So what’s the story? What’s wrong with the painting?”

Ariel laughed. “It’s a good thing I wasn’t trying to get one up on you. I never would have pulled it off.”

“Well, there’s so much glee in your face right now, I know something’s up with that painting.”

“Well, it’s a little complicated, but essentially, the painting could be worth five million dollars to Jake.”

“So he’s going to make money on it?”

“Yes, but only if no one finds out that it’s a fake.”

“It’s a fake?” Trudy said.

“Yes, well, that’s the thing Jake doesn’t know yet.”

“How do you know it’s worth five million?” Trudy said.

“It’s a stolen painting. There’s a five million dollar reward if the museum it was stolen from can be convinced that it’s the real thing.”

“And do you think Jake will be able to convince them that it is?”

“Yes. Yes I do. It won’t be easy, it will be a long, drawn out process. But ultimately, they should fall for it. We’ve built up a convincing cover story, the forgery is technically perfect. Unless someone comes forward with the real painting, this should work.”

“But only if you keep quiet,” Trudy said, smiling.

“Yes, now that Jake owns the painting, he’s got a lot of money on the line. He’s going to find out tomorrow that the painting’s a fake.”

“How’s he going to find that out?”

“I’m going to tell him,” Ariel said.

“Won’t he go to the police?”

“The police won’t be able to prove it’s a fake. Only I can prove it’s a fake, and I won’t.”

“I see,” Trudy said.

“Basically, I’m going to tell him it’s a fake, but I’ll also tell him that no one ever needs to find out.”

“So that he can still collect his five million?”

“Exactly.”

“But only if he lets Zola go?”

“Yes,” Ariel said.

Trudy shook her head. The way she was looking at Ariel was different than how she’d ever looked at her before. There was a new sense of admiration in her gaze.

“That’s quite a plan,” Trudy said.

“It’s pretty simple when you think about it,” Ariel said. “Jake can let Zola go, give her a generous divorce settlement and let her start a happy new life. If he does that, he can pass off his forged painting as the real thing and collect the five million from the museum.”

“And if he doesn’t?” Trudy said.

“There is no alternative. Once he thinks about it for a while, he’ll realize that. His only alternative is to start yelling that his own painting, something he just paid over three million dollars for, is a forgery.”

“He could do that.”

“He could, but all it would do would be to make the painting worthless. He’d lose over three million. That’s not Jake’s style.”

“Wouldn’t you and Gabe get in trouble.”

“Like I said, there’s no way of proving it’s a fake.”

“So if he went to the police, all he’d really do is screw himself with the museum?”

“They’re the only ones who really care about the painting’s authenticity. The police have better things to worry about,” Ariel said.

“That’s pretty foolproof,” Trudy said.

“Thank you,” Ariel said with a little curtsy.

“You’re hilarious,” Trudy said. “But you know, you’ve still got to tell Jake what you’ve done.”

“I’m well aware of that,” Ariel said.

“Are you looking forward to it?”

“A little, I have to admit,” Ariel said, “but there’s also a big part of me that’s dreading it. Jake can be a pretty dangerous guy. He’s also got a lot of friends from his internet forum who could make quite an unpleasant scene if he wanted them to.”

“It would be pretty priceless to see Jake’s face when you tell him.”

Ariel nodded. She’d imagined the moment a number of times already.

“You know,” Trudy said, “I might be able to help you with the confrontation.”

“How?”

“Well, there is a group of frat boys at UCLA that I’ve been spending a little time with lately.”

Ariel burst out laughing. “A group of frat boys, Trudy? Really? Are you kidding me?”

“I’m serious,” Trudy said.

Ariel shook her head. “I can’t believe you.”

“Believe it. I’ve had these boys in my bedroom. It was exquisite!”

“How many of them?” Ariel said.

“So far, just two, but I’m trying to get them to bring another friend next time.”

Ariel shook her head. “Well you sure do know how to have a good time.”

“Anyway, I can ask them to come. A little bit of muscle couldn’t hurt. It would be good to show Jake that you’ve got backup.”

“You’re right,” Ariel said. It was true. It would be better for Zola too if Jake saw the amount of support that she had. It would make him think twice about screwing with her later. “Bring your muscle then,” Ariel said.

“Perfect,” Trudy said.

XII

Z
OLA WAS EXCITED TO BE
seeing Veronica. They were meeting for coffee at a small place close to Veronica’s new restaurant. Zola hadn’t even been to the restaurant yet and she was excited to see that too. It seemed like everyone was beginning a new adventure in their life or getting a new start in some way.

She hugged Veronica when she came into the cafe. “Oh my God,” she said, “I hear you’ve got some pretty big news.”

“Who told you that?” Veronica said, laughing.

Zola could see that Veronica could hardly contain her happiness. She was practically bursting with it. “Ariel told me yesterday,” she said.

“I’m getting together with Matt.”

“That’s wonderful.”

“It is,” Veronica said. “It’s an amazing feeling, Zola. To finally realize that you are allowed to spend the rest of your life with the man you love.”

“That’s so great,” Zola said. “And how’s Hank taking it?”

“Very well,” Veronica said. “I’m actually amazed at how understanding he’s been. He’s not angry at me at all.”

“He knows you were in love with Matt.”

“Yes, and what’s more, he understands, and he forgives me for it.”

“You’re a lucky woman to have two such great men in your life,” Zola said.

Veronica felt bad for Zola then. She knew how difficult this period had been for her. Zola had been crying more than ever and was so scared of what Ariel was planning that she was finding it difficult to sleep at night. Looking closely at her, Veronica could see the signs of the stress on Zola’s face.

“What about your life?” Veronica said.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Zola said. “I’ll just be happy when this is all over.”

“Ariel’s going to confront Jake soon, isn’t she?”

“Yes, that’s what she says. I’m just so scared.”

“What is she going to tell him?”

“Well, it’s about the painting. To be honest I’m not even sure about all the details. All I know is she thinks she’s got him by the balls now.”

“I heard he’d transferred over three million dollars to her and Gabe.”

“Yes,” Zola said.

“So she’s going to use that as leverage?”

“I just hope she doesn’t make any mistakes. If she’s taken a misstep somewhere along the way, Jake is going to make my life a living hell.”

“You can’t think like that,” Veronica said. “You’ve got to be strong. Have faith.”

“I know,” Zola said.

“Ariel wouldn’t do anything to make your life worse.”

“I know,” Zola said again. “I’m just scared is all.”

“Well, I think Ariel wants us all to meet up at the Roosevelt tomorrow.”

“So that’s when she’s going to confront Jake?” Zola said.

“I would imagine so,” Veronica said.

XIII

A
RIEL WAS IN THE PENTHOUSE
suite of the Roosevelt. It was her first time in the room since the orgy almost a week earlier. So much had changed in that week that she almost didn’t feel as if it was the same room. Last time she’d been there, Jake held all the cards. He’d been in control of everything, especially Zola’s life. He had Zola so far under his thumb that she was terrified of confronting him. Even today when Ariel told Zola to come to the hotel, Zola was terrified. If it wasn’t for the fact that Veronica was going to personally bring her, Ariel would have been afraid Zola might not show.

She sat by the window and waited for Jake. He thought he was meeting her there for sex. He was in for a surprise! She looked at her watch. It was almost eleven. He should be arriving any minute. She was nervous and excited at the same time. She knew that Gabe was waiting in the next room with Trudy and her frat boys. Matt Harkness and Hank Roycroft were there too. Veronica was supposed to be bringing Zola. All she had to do was call out and they’d all come in and back her up.