Unleash Me, Vol. 2 (Unleash Me, Annihilate Me Series) (16 page)

“
You
’
ll adjust.
”

“
I
’
m beginning to wonder.
”

“
You have no
idea how much I
’
ve
missed you,
”
she
said.
 
“
It
’
s
only been two weeks, but it feels as if it
’
s been months.
”

“
I was going
through withdrawals.
”

“
Twin
Separation Anxiety Disorder.
”

“
You
’
ve had it, too?
”

She pulled away from me with a wink.
 
“
I
did, but now I
’
m
cured.
”

“
With the
exception of when Alex and you were on the island, I don
’
t think we
’
ve
ever spent that much time apart.
”

“
Let
’
s not do it again anytime
soon.
”

“
I want to
talk to you about Singapore.
”

“
Later.
 
Tonight is all about you.
”

I looked behind her and saw Alex, who was dashing as
always.
 
Six-foot-two, gleaming dark
hair raked away from a chiseled face peppered with stubble, full lips, and eyes
that were the color of the sea.
 
They were his best feature
—
blue-green and framed by thick
lashes.
 
He was wearing a navy blue
suit with a white button-front shirt opened at the throat.

I gave him a hug, kissed him on the cheek, and in his ear,
whispered,
“
Thank you for everything.
”

“
There
’
s no need to thank me.
”

“
I think we both know differently.
 
So, please
—
let
me thank you for all of it.
”

“
You
’
re very gracious, Lisa.
”

“
What I am is grateful.
”

“
That
’
s some dress,
”
Jennifer said.

“
Barbara sent it over for me.
”

“
It
’
s perfect.
”

I lifted my foot.
 
“
And how about these heels?
”

“
They look oddly familiar
…”

“
Thanks for letting me borrow them.
”

“
What
’
s mine is yours.
”
 
She looked over at Tank.
 
“
And don
’
t you look handsome.
”

“
Lisa makes me look good.
”

“
Nicely said,
”
Alex said.
 
“
I
’
m
stealing that line.
”

Tank shrugged.
 
“
What
’
s
mine is yours.
”

We laughed at that before Blackwell cleared her
throat.
 
“
Are
you finished fawning over each other?
 
It
’
s getting embarrassing.
 
Take your seats, for God
’
s
sake.
 
Lisa and Tank
—
you
’
re
next to me.
”

“
You
’
re so bossy,
”
Jennifer said.

“
What I am, my dear, is the law.
”

I put my hand on Iris
’
shoulder and welcomed her before Blackwell interrupted
again.
 
“
Lisa,
”
she said.
 
“
The dress
—
divoon.
”

“
I love it.
 
Thank you so much.
”

She was seated opposite Iris and was facing the room, as
Tank and I would.
 
I took my seat
next to Barbara, and Tank sat next to me.
 
We were well paired
—
Jennifer was opposite me, and Tank
was opposite Alex.

“
I don
’
t know about any of you, but I
’
m
dying for a drink,
”
Iris
said.
 
“
I
’
ve
been thinking about having a martini all day.
”

Blackwell raised an eyebrow at her.
 
“
Really, Iris?
 
Already embracing the clich
é
?
So soon in the evening?
 
Is that it?
”

Iris, who had dressed beautifully for dinner in a fitted
black dress that accentuated a lovely figure I never would have known she
possessed given the way she usually dressed, leaned forward in her chair and
leveled Blackwell with a look.
 
I
’
d
never seen her with makeup on before, or with her unruly red hair pulled away
from her face in a tight chignon.
 
I
thought she looked elegant
—
and formidable.
 

Tank was right.
 
Blackwell is used to being the focus.
 
This isn
’
t
going to go well.

“
I don
’
t know what that means, Barbara,
”
Iris said.

“
It
’
s well known that you editorial types
like to be half in the bag on a daily basis, generally by mid-afternoon.
”

“
Is that so?
”

“
I can confirm that, by noon, your throat is likely battered
with booze.
 
You know, as if you
drank a quart of pancake mix.
 
It
would be that thick and that coated.
 
You
’
d be drunk.
”

“
I can assure you that none of that is true here,
Barbara.
 
My dear, sweet, bombastic
Barbara.
 
I rarely imbibe, but since
this is a party for Lisa, I can tell you right now that I will be imbibing.
 
Heavily.
 
All night.
 
And who knows?
 
You might have a mess on your hands if you
’
re
not careful.
”

“
Mon Dieu
.
”

“
But since you
’
ve brought up the issue of clich
é
s,
I think it
’
s fair to point out that you
’
ve fallen into a
sinkhole of your own.
”

“
Impossible.
”

“
Really?
 
Then
allow me to take you back to class.
 
When women of a certain age
—”

“
A certain age?
”

“
That
’
s right, a certain age.
 
Since one can be painfully deluded when
it comes to seeing what one
’
s become in the wreckage of one
’
s
downhill slide toward the depths of death, let me just break the news gently to
you
—
you,
my dear,
are
of a certain age.
 
When I see older women, such as yourself showing off too much d
é
collet
é
,
as you are now, I always smell a whiff of desperation.
 
A cougar on the prowl.
 
And I want to weep for the world.
”

“
Save your tears, Iris.
 
If you don
’
t, you
’
ll just salt your cocktails with
them.
”

“
Isn
’
t that clever?
 
And news to me.
 
Might I point out that
’
s
information only a weeping drunk would know?
”

“
I
’
m far from being a drunk, Iris.
”

“
You
’
re also far from being twenty-five,
so perhaps you should stop dressing as if you were.
”

“
I
’
m wearing Chanel.
”

“
Then the French hate you.
 
And why shouldn
’
t
they?
 
With all of that horse hair
on top of your head, not to mention all the whale bone and foam rubber you
’
re
using to give yourself something that resembles a figure, I don
’
t
know whether you
’
re a woman or a five-piece living room set at Frank
’
s
Warehouse.
”

“
This from a woman who typically dresses like a man,
”
Blackwell said.
 
“
Oh, how your words cut through my
heart.
”

“
And this from a woman who places her self-esteem in the
cold clutches of couture.
 
Oh, how I
wish my words could even find your heart.
”

“
You wouldn
’
t recognize couture if it bit you on
the ass.
”

“
Maybe not all the time, but as a sensitive person who can
tap into the ethereal at a moment
’
s notice, I always can smell that
faint scent of sorrow that enters the air when one
’
s
youth has left them forever.
 
And
that scent?
 
Oh, it
’
s
all over you, Barbara.
 
It
’
s
practically fumigating this place.
”

Blackwell gave a light, easy laugh at that, waved a hand in
front of her face, and glanced around at the rest of us.
 
Did she see our mortified
expressions?
 
If she did, I don
’
t
think she cared.
 
And I was
confused.
 
I thought she liked
Iris.
 
What was their problem?
 
Had something happened between them
before we got here?
 
I was about to
say something
—
anything
—
to change the conversation when
Blackwell stopped me with a warning look.

“
OK, everyone.
 
Now, tell me the truth.
 
Don
’
t
worry
—
if
you don
’
t agree with me, I can take it.
 
You won
’
t hurt my
feelings.
 
So, I need to ask.
 
Do I look a day over forty-five?
”

“
Oh, please,
”
Iris said.
 
“
Really?
 
Now you
’
re just looking for
sympathy.
 
And from your friends, no
less.
 
Here
’
s a
tip.
 
If you
’
re
looking for sympathy, you can look it up in the dictionary
—
right
along with
‘
death,
’
‘
shit
’
and
‘
suicide.
’”

Blackwell turned back to Iris and was about to say
something when Iris lowered her gaze and bit her cheek.

“
That
’
s right,
”
Blackwell said.
 
“
Look away from me in shame like your
mother did when she gave birth to you.
 
And while you
’
re at it, put your dentures in backwards and bite your head
off.
”

And with that, Iris
’
head snapped up, she was about to say something to
Blackwell, but then, inexplicably, the two women started to cackle with
laughter.

“
What the hell was that?
”
Jennifer said.

Blackwell took a sip of water while Iris dabbed at her eyes
with her napkin.
 
They were still
laughing.

“
The shame on my mother
’
s face when she gave birth to me!
”
Iris said to
Blackwell.
 
“
Oh,
that was priceless.
”

“
The French hate me!
 
A five-piece living room set!
”

“
Salting my cocktails with my tears
—
that
has to be your best line ever.
 
And
so off the cuff.
 
I almost lost it
when you said it.
 
It was perfect!
”

“
Is this a joke?
”
I said.

“
Of course it is,
”
Blackwell said.
 
“
Iris is one of the few people who loves bitchy word play as
much as I do.
 
We
’
ve
been doing this routine for years, only in private.
 
Tonight was a show just for you, my
dear.
 
A fine way to energize the
party.
 
Because of us, you won
’
t
soon forget this evening
—
and that is the point.
 
Now, Jennifer, close your mouth and stop
looking like a goddamned guppy.
 
Alex, you sly fox
—
you already knew what we were doing,
so bravo to you for keeping mum.
 
Lisa, stop looking so horrified or mystified or whatever the hell it is
I
’
m
seeing on your face.
 
Be more like
Tank here
—
I think he rather enjoyed the show, but I also think he was
on to us.
 
Were you, Tank?
”

“
I might have had an idea.
”

“
I thought so
—
you can
’
t get much past a
former SEAL.
”
 
She raised a hand to catch our waiter
’
s
attention.
 
When he came over,
Blackwell said to the table,
“
Showtime
’
s
over.
 
Let
’
s
order drinks so we can toast our guest of honor
—
Lisa
Ward.
”

*
 
*
 
*

When dinner was over and the plates had been cleared, I
felt happy and spent.
 
What an
evening it had been with my closest friends
—
and
with my new friend Iris Masterson
—
not to mention with my fantastic
boyfriend, who had held my hand beneath the table during those moments when we
weren
’
t
eating.
 

Marco Boss and Kevin were never mentioned, so the mood was
kept high and light, especially after Blackwell and Iris
’
unexpected
hijinks.
 
I was finally able to
catch up with Jennifer
—
we talked of her time in Singapore,
the movie deal, what it was like to work with Iris, how she couldn
’
t
wait to read the newly edited book, and how much she and Alex were looking
forward to joining us at the Wenn Publishing party.

“
We
’
ll all go together,
”
she said.

“
Done,
”
I said.
 
“
And
potentially fun.
”

“
I
’
ll be staying with Alex again tonight.
 
Send me the manuscript tonight via
email.
 
I
’
ll read
it straight away.
”

“
You
’
re practically living together at
this point.
”

“
I thought you needed to be alone so you could finish your
book.
 
You didn
’
t
need me lurking around to distract you.
 
After tonight, if you want, I plan on spending the rest of the week at
the apartment with you.
”
 
Her
eyes met mine.
 
“
After
all, we do have a lot to catch up on
…
.
”

That was code for
“
We totally need to talk about Alex
and me, you and Tank, and everything in between.
”

“
Agreed,
”
I said.
 
“
I
’
ve
missed you.
”

“
So, tonight, I
’
ll be with Alex.
 
And, you know, you might be with someone
else.
”

“
I think we
’
re being set up, Tank,
”
Alex said.

“
I can deal with being set up like that,
”
he said.

Alex nodded at him.
 
“
Same here.
”
 
He
turned to Jennifer and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek just as our waiter
approached the table with a martini on a round tray.

“
Final cocktail for the lady?
”
he said to me.

I hadn
’
t ordered it, but I wouldn
’
t
have put it past Jennifer to order one for me.
 
I looked around the table.
 
“
Are one of you trying to get me
drunk?
”
I
said.
 
“
I
’
m
only drinking it if the rest of you have another one with me.
 
Otherwise, no way.
”

The waiter smiled at me.
 
“
It
’
s actually from an
admirer, Ms. Ward.
 
He purchased the
martini and asked me to bring it and this envelope to you at the end of the
evening.
”

Blackwell rubbed her hands together.
 
“
My plan is working.
 
People are starting to recognize her.
”