Who Wants to Marry a Billionaire? (10 page)

       Daniel
nodded as he looked up and down the street and then back at the kids, quietly murmuring,
“Maybe triple.”

On the way back
to Boston, Nina and Daniel didn’t talk much about the whirlwind trip.  Nina
tried to get used to the giant rock on her hand, and Daniel often seemed lost
in thought.  But they had arrived at some kind of détente, and Nina thought
maybe now she could get through the charade and maybe, she and Daniel could be
friends and allies on the other side.  But they still had to get through the
engagement party before they even started brokering Panama.

Chapter Sixteen

       “Mom!” 
The shocked look on Nina’s face was enough to make Kennedy turn.  Kennedy was
on her knees, with a mouthful of pins, marking where the hem on Rita’s dress
needed to be adjusted.  She nearly swallowed the pins before getting them out of
her mouth and blurting,  “You can’t wear that!” 

       Nina sat
heavily on her beat-up old sofa, shaking her head, but saying nothing.  Vicki
furrowed her brow, puzzled, as she pulled at the top of her dress, adjusting it. 
“Why not?”

       Taking
one look at the strapless, gold lamé tube dress and clear Lucite platform shoes,
Rita put a hand on her hip and said matter of factly, “Because, Mom, you look
like a hooker.”

       Vicki
scrunched her mouth up, and looked ready to cry, “Really?”

       Nina got
up from the sofa and took her mother’s hand.  “You’re beautiful Mom, tall and
slender, just like when you modeled—but these people have different ideas about
things.  That outfit might have been great in Rio in the 80s, but it’s not
going to fly with the DeVeres.” 

       “We’ve got
all day tomorrow before the party, plenty of time to shop.”  Kennedy added
helpfully.

       “I—I
don’t have to go Nina.  Rita and Reuben can be your family.  I don’t want to
embarrass you.”  Vicki was still trying to absorb the whole idea of Nina
marrying some billionaire.  It had been a long time since her days in the fast
lane.

       The fake
engagement was starting to wear on Nina, because of everyone around her who
didn’t know that it wasn’t real.  She didn’t know what was worse, making her
Mom feel like she was inferior to the DeVeres, or confessing that it was all a
sham.  But the one thing Nina was certain about was that she couldn’t let her
Mom believe that she didn’t want her around for the most important event of her
life. 

       “Don’t be
silly.  Of course you have to be there.”  She gave Vicki a squeeze and teased,
“Someone has to push Reuben around in his wheelchair.” 

       Vicki
wiped at the tear trying to form in her eye and joked back, “No way, he has two
good arms.”

       Kennedy
finished pinning Rita’s hem and went and grabbed her tape measure.  “Let’s get
some measurements, Vicki.  You’ve got the figure to pull off something really
elegant.”

       Looking
down at her rather flat chest, Vicki laughed,  “I have no idea where Nina and
Rita got their boobs.”

       Rita shimmied
out of her dress carefully, mindful of the pins.  It was a gorgeous Valentino,
silk Mikado dress in a pearly gold color.  It was sleeveless and the neckline
was scooped just enough to tastefully reveal a hint of cleavage.  Braided trim
in the same silk outlined the neckline and accented the waist.   And while the
top was fitted, it had a flared, A-line skirt.   It was timeless, feminine, and
appropriate to her youthfulness.   Kennedy had paired it with a pair of Prada
t-strap, high-heeled sandals in silver with little golden studs.  Rita sighed dreamily
as she carefully hung the dress back on its hanger, “I really, really, love
this dress.” 

       “Yeah, I
love mine too,” Kennedy smiled.  “I never thought I’d own an Oscar de la Renta—at
least not one that I hadn’t killed for at Filene’s Basement!  I love all the
detail—the ruffled neckline, the bias-seamed bodice.  And the color!  I’ve
never seen silk faille in emerald green.  We are all going to look like perfect
ladies—none of this too slinky, too tight, too short, no underwear stuff.  Talk
about looking like hookers!  Too many of those celebutantes are
indistinguishable from the working girls downtown.”

       The dress
Kennedy picked for Nina was hanging on a hook over her bedroom door.  Nina stared
at it, wishing she had the same enthusiasm for her outfit that Rita and Kennedy
did for theirs.  Nina’s dress was sea foam, a color she would have never picked
for herself, and she rather wished it had an A-line skirt like Rita’s dress did
to cover her… assets.  Instead, it was a form fitting, sleeveless, Caroline
Herrera sheath dress in silk cotton, with a contrasting rolled collar in pale
grey.  Like Rita’s dress, it had a vintage feel about it, but hers seemed old
Hollywood somehow, and Nina worried that she wasn’t glamorous enough to pull it
off.   At least it hit her behind the knee, but the back had to have a vent so
she could walk.  The thing she was most worried about was her shoes.  She tried
talking Kennedy down to a two-inch heel, but she was only willing to compromise
with a three and a half inch heel with a half-inch platform.  The shoes were
very lady-like though, Ferragamo peep-toe, slingback pumps in blush patent
leather set off by a grosgrain bow, and she had a Ferragamo clutch.

       Rita
pulled some sweats on and then started knocking around in Nina’s kitchen,
calling back, “I’m going to make us some microwave popcorn.”

       “Great
idea, honey,” Vicki said, “I’ll come pour some soda.  Just let me change.”

       Kennedy
rolled up her tape measure after jotting some notes, “If any of you touch your
dresses with buttery fingers, I
will
have to kill you.”

       A short
time later they were all camped out together in the living room with a giant
bowl of popcorn.   Nina crammed a big handful of popcorn in her mouth, “I
probably shouldn’t be eating this, or my butt’s not going to fit in my dress,
but stress eating somehow seems like a fantastic idea.”

       Vicki
reached over from her seat on a floor cushion and patted Nina’s foot, “Better
than my daughter the Xanax queen.”

       Nina had
an old quilt wrapped around her, and she realized how good it felt to be with
her mom, her sister, and her new best friend.  Work and responsibility hadn’t
left her much time for a social life.  Other than a couple of college friends
she met for lunch once in a while, she rarely had any girl time.  Suddenly Nina
got a mischievous smile, “Is there any reason not to have champagne with
popcorn?”

       Vicki,
Rita and Kennedy all shook their heads ‘no’ in unison.

       “Good,
I’ve got some of the stuff Daniel buys in the fridge.”  She padded into the
kitchen, there was a “pop” and she brought the bottle back without glasses,
quickly taking a swig before the champagne bubbled over.  She wiped the back of
her mouth on her sleeve, burped a little from the bubbles, and handed the
bottle to Vicki.  “And who says we have to be ladies tonight?”

       When the
first bottle was finished, they started on the second.  Nina had the presence
of mind to tell Rita and Kennedy they were spending the night, and soon they
were in full-blown slumber party mode, laughing and telling stories.  Vicki
talked a lot about life with Nina and Rita’s father, Claudio, and how much fun
they had together—and how much they loved their kids.  Nina caught her tearing
up once, but mostly Vicki kept it light and funny, like telling them a story
about Reuben smearing ketchup all over himself as a toddler and how she was not
in the least surprised by his latest mishap involving condiments.     

       Rita took
a swig of the champagne, “So who all is coming to this shindig tomorrow night? 
How big is it anyway?”

       “Apparently
small by DeVere standards, a mere five hundred people,” Nina said
sarcastically. 

       Kennedy
threw a few kernels of popcorn in her mouth, “From what I’ve heard at La Bella,
blood is flowing in the streets.  It is THE event and people are doing anything
to wrangle an invite. It sounds like the DeVeres are keeping it classy, though. 
No starlets…and no donkeys or clowns.”

       Nina
nearly spit out her champagne, laughing.  Daniel was never going to live down
Cannes.  “Daniel said there will be quote royalty unquote and at least one huge
philanthropic rock star, but he wouldn’t tell me who.  He doesn’t want me to
get anxious, but geez, I’m not sure the secrecy is helping my nerves.”  She
reached for more popcorn.  “So, essentially I’ll have four guests, and they’ll
have 496.”

       Vicky
handed the champagne back to Nina, “That doesn’t seem fair.”

       Nina,
shrugged, “I don’t really have anyone else to invite.  Sad huh?”

       Kennedy
poked her, “Don’t give us any of that poor little rich girl stuff.  Once you’re
Mrs. DeVere you’re going to have everyone wanting to be your friend.”

       “Yeah but
will
I
want to be friends with them?”  Nina tilted her head back,
resting it on the sofa and staring at the ceiling.  “This is what real friends
do.”

Chapter Seventeen

       “That
little tramp hasn’t returned my calls today.”  Elsa was in a state.  “I
told
her I needed to personally approve every outfit before a major event, and
since your parents are letting that hussy of a mother of hers come to the
engagement party, I definitely need to vet
that
.”

       Daniel
wiped his mouth with the linen napkin and returned it to his lap with an
irritated flap.  “Is it impossible to just have lunch?  Couldn’t you just be
glad that things are working so far?  The engagement has hit the newspapers.  My
parents think it’s genuine.  Nina had been doing an excellent job of hiding
from the paparazzi and being absolutely charming when required.  What is your
problem?”

       Elsa
pushed her salad around with her fork.  “I just have this terrible feeling that
something is going to go wrong.  Why isn’t she returning my calls?  We’re seven
hours away from the start time.”

       “She’s
probably just out getting her hair or nails or something done.  You need to
calm down before you give yourself an aneurysm.”  Daniel discreetly signaled for
the check. 

       “Somehow,
she’s going to sabotage the plan.  Maybe not intentionally, but in the world of
high society, ignorance is not bliss.”

       “Look, my
parents aren’t troubled by her plebian background, so you need to get over it
too.  She’s smart, and she wants things to work.  I mean it
is
in her
financial best interest.”  

       “I know—I
know Daniel.  It’s your best interests, though, that I care about.”

       “Well, I
don’t think Nina is bringing any clowns or donkeys with her, so how bad could
it be?”

       Elsa
stabbed a piece of lettuce viciously with her fork.  “Don’t tempt fate Daniel. 
It’s never wise.”

       Daniel
reached across the table and put his hand over Elsa’s, “Look, stop worrying.  
I’m hoping you bought yourself a nice dress and put it on my tab?” 

       “I would
never abuse my privileges like that!”  Elsa looked horrified that Daniel would
suggest such a thing. 

       He looked
at his watch, “Well you have six hours and fifty two minutes to go get yourself
a new dress.  Loosen up Elsa!  It’s a party!  Just because it’s for a fake
engagement, it doesn’t mean people can’t have fun—including you.”  He waggled
his eyebrows at her.  “There will some eligible gentlemen there….”

       “Daniel! 
Really.”

       “I’m just
saying—if your knickers are in a wad, you might miss an opportunity.  Now go
shopping.  Boris is taking me over to the tailor for a final fitting on my
suit, do you want us to drop you off somewhere?”

       “Oh, I
guess Newbury Street.”

       “Fine
then.  Let’s go.”

Chapter Eighteen

       “There’s
a Vera Wang metallic sheath dress at La Bella’s that will look amazing on
you.”  Kennedy smiled at Vicki as she examined her fingernails.  “It’s a golden
jacquard print, sleeveless with a high round neckline.  But there’s some
tasteful bling—it has gold crystal beading around the neck.  Fitted bodice,
straight skirt—it’s absolutely gorgeous and you will be the prettiest mother of
the bride, ever.”

       Vicki
patted Nina’s arm.  “How’s that sound doll?”  Along with Rita, they were all
waiting for their polish to dry.  Nina wiggled her toes a little, checking out her
French pedicure.  “Whatever the two of you decide is fine by me.  I trust your
taste, Kennedy.”   Not so much her Mom’s, but Vicki was starting to bloom with
everything going on with the engagement.  Nina had to admit that she had never
seen her mother looking so happy; and Vicki’s fun, bubbly side was starting to
be balanced by a mature sense of responsibility.  She had done a terrific job
of getting Reuben through the worst of his medical procedures, and she seemed
to really want to make up for the hardship she’d caused Nina over the years. 

       Rita
piped up, “So we should have plenty of time to hit La Bella before the hair
salon, right?”

       “La Bella
is an easy in and out.  I’m like 98.5% certain this dress will fit Vicki
perfectly straight off the rack.”  Kennedy blew at her fingers.  “How much
longer do you think this polish needs to dry?”

       The group
ambled down Newbury Street with Nina hiding behind dark sunglasses and her
fedora sun hat, wearing ordinary clothes from her own closet.  “You know, it’s
only been three weeks and I am sick to death of avoiding photographers.  How do
real celebrities put up with this stuff?”

       Rita
shook her head, “I know, there’s something to be said for doing what you want,
when you want, and how you want.  But the designer clothes, and great
restaurants and interesting trips sort of make up for it, don’t you think?”