Madam of Maple Court (22 page)

So what now?

When she got home she called Rob. "I talked to Marcy and we've agreed on the details for the party. She'll provide ladies and I'll have a bartender who'll double as a bouncer."

They talked for an hour, finalizing the budget and agreeing on food and drinks and agreeing on a time schedule. "Did you and Marcy agree on a signal for her ladies?"

"Marcy's worked that out quite cleverly. All her employees will be wearing a thin gold ankle bracelet with a tiny heart charm with a ruby center. So all the guys have to do is gaze at their legs, something guys do all the time anyway."

"That should work fine. By the way, I won't be able to stay with you afterward," Rob said. "I'll have to go back to the city with some of the guests."

"No problem."

"I miss you. I'm pretty tied up until the party, but how about the following week?"

She could hear the leer in his voice and she laughed. "I look forward to it."

She saw Gary for a quick lunch near his apartment on Tuesday of that week. "I'm so sorry this has to be so brief," he said after he kissed her hello. "I've got to pack. I'm taking a late flight to Stockholm for an important client." She loved the way he said Stockholm; it sounded so exotic. "I'll be gone for at least a month."

"Oh. That's too bad," she said, meaning it. She would miss him. She liked him a lot and he'd been hinting that she might spend a day with him and his children. She was dying to meet them. Children. Delightful little girls she could get to know. "I'll miss you."

"Me, too, Pam."

He was distracted during lunch and after gulping only half his coffee he stood, leaned down, and kissed her soundly. "I'll call you." Watching his back as he rushed out the restaurant door, she sighed. She really would miss him.

Linc did dress up real nice. He showed up at her house about an hour before the party was scheduled to begin, dressed in black slacks, a deep burgundy shirt and matching silk tie, hair slicked back and a small gold stud in one ear. "I look like a hood out of general casting," he said, "but I thought it would be appropriate."

"You look great," Pam said as she ushered him inside. Although it was almost seven, the sun was still well above the horizon. The weather had been poor all week but had cleared up that morning, so the evening was comfortably cool and tendrils of vapor danced in the lights above the heated pool water. The yard was lit with colorful lanterns and candles and she'd had the property sprayed with insect repellant to keep out the mosquitoes.

"This place is a fantasy come true," he said. "I could enjoy living here. What a place for an orgy."

"This isn't going to be an orgy," Pam snapped. "There will be lots of married folks here with their wives, husbands, or partners."

"Hey, chill out."

Chagrined, she said, "I'm sorry. I'm a little nervous about this whole thing."

"I'm sorry I joked about it." He put an arm around her shoulders and hugged her. "I shouldn't be flip. I know it's your first time hosting a party like this and it must seem really strange."

"It does."

"You'll be just fine, and you look fabulous."

She knew she did. She'd selected a halter-top jersey dress of white, with a black Greek key design around the waist and skirt bottom, and slipped on tiny white sandals. She'd put on a necklace of large white and gold beads with matching drop earrings and added a white and gold enamel cuff around the upper arm. Vin had always hated that cuff, and when she'd noticed it in her jewelry box she'd added it because she could. She had also removed her wedding band, stowing it in her jewelry box, and moved her diamond engagement ring to her right hand. She had intended to wear nothing on her left, but when she noticed the dent where the ring had been she added a cocktail ring with a flat onyx stone. "Let me show you were everything is," she said, then walked around pointing out the three open bar areas with adjacent tables of hors d'oeuvres and finger foods.

There were tables set up for folks who wanted to sit and talk, and the usual small dance floor. The DJ she'd hired was setting up his equipment and waved at her as they passed. She surveyed everything and it all seemed to be in order.

Linc let out a low whistle. "Quite a setup. This is really fabulous. I can see why parties are your specialty."

Rob arrived about ten minutes early with several friends, both male and female. Some of the women wore simple summer slacks and blouses, others were dressed to the nines. "I brought a bathing suit," one woman said. "Rob said you have a heated pool."

"I do, and it's a delightful temperature," Pam replied. "I hope you'll enjoy a dip while you're here. The spa is behind it," she said, pointing. "Just follow the little stream."

"Oh, I certainly will."

Pam showed her where the cabanas were and indicated a large pile of fluffy towels. "There are also several spare bathing suits for both men and women, so spread the word and please urge anyone who wants to make use of anything here."

Rob drew her into the den and closed the door behind him. He kissed her deeply on the mouth. "I can't tell you how great this place is, and you're wonderful." He glanced at her hand. "You've removed your wedding ring. Bravo!" He pulled a small jewelry box from his pocket. "A little token of my gratitude for all this."

She didn't take the box. "I'm being well paid," she said. "You don't have to add anything more."

"This is personal," he said. "Please."

She took the box and, hoping it wasn't anything too serious, untied the ribbon and pulled off the paper. Inside was a small, almost lacy, pendant, a spray of tiny flowers each in a different semiprecious stone. "This is lovely," she said, impressed by his good taste, "but I can't accept it."

"Of course you can. It's just to say thank you for everything." He grinned, showing even, white teeth. "And I do mean everything." When she hesitated, he added, "Please. It would make me happy to see you wearing it. Tuck it away and put it on the next time we're going to be together."

With a sigh and a smile at the lovely piece, she slipped it into the top drawer of the desk. Ironically, it lay beside some of Vin's secret credit card statements, the ones that had started everything.

A half hour later the house and yard were filled with people. Marcy's ladies arrived separately and deftly slipped into the throng, looking as though they belonged, tiny gold bracelets gleaming around slim, shapely ankles. They looked not unlike any of the women there, attractive but not gaudy. A tall black woman with a generous figure immediately gravitated to a still taller steel-gray-haired man who, after a glance at her ankle, welcomed her into the group of men he had been talking to with an arm around her waist.

A blond in a gauzy pink dress was quickly approached by a heavyset man in a pair of beige slacks and a burgundy golf shirt, and a brunette with amazingly blue eyes that Pam suspected were enhanced with tinted lenses was ushered into a group in which several men and women were talking animatedly. Every so often voices were raised in a heated exchange, from which all Pam could hear was, "The president is an asshole." Another group laughed heartily at a joke one of the women had told. Everything was going along beautifully.

Pam kept her eye on the revelers, making sure that everyone had a drink and something to eat and that no one was standing or sitting alone who didn't want to be. She saw Linc deftly mixing drinks, pouring wine and soft drinks, and neatly and easily fending off several women, smiling yet keeping his distance.

"Hello," a masculine voice said from behind her. "My name's Samuel Andala, and you don't seem to have a drink."

"Thanks. I'm not drinking right now."

As the man moved around her, she caught him looking at her ankle and she grinned and preened a little. Amazed, she looked at him again. He was of average height, pleasant looking with gray wings at the temples of his chestnut hair and steel-rimmed glasses.
Holy shit
, she said to herself as he again looked at her ankle.
He's interested, hoping I'm available
. It was the most amazing compliment she'd ever received, and her ego swelled with it. "Who are you here with?" he asked.

"This is my house, and I'm a friend of Rob Sherwood's."

"Ah," he said as if she'd made some kind of confession. "That's too bad." Did he know about their relationship? Who cared? They made small talk for several minutes, then he wandered off, probably in search of one of Marcy's girls.

Rob found her just after one a.m. and again pulled her into the den. He kissed her soundly, then thanked her effusively. "You were fabulous. So many folks told me how great the party was and what a beautiful setting. A few asked when we would be here again. I can't thank you enough, darling."

Darling? "No thanks necessary, Rob. I was glad to do it, and well paid."

He kissed her again. "I've got to get some of these guys and their ladies back to the city. I'll call you in the morning."

"Wonderful."

It was after two a.m. when the final guest left and the last band member and caterer had departed. She and Linc collapsed onto the sofa, looking around at the mess. "Can I give you some help cleaning up?" he asked.

"Not necessary. Housework has never been my thing, so I always have a maid service come in after a party and clean everything, including the carpet, where necessary."

With a long sigh, Linc kicked off his black loafers and put his bare feet on the coffee table. She noticed that he had long, sexy toes. When had she begun thinking toes were sexy? "I'm glad. My feet hurt."

Pam unbuckled her sandals. "Mine, too." She wiggled her toes. "Much better." Her feet joined his, propped on a pile of napkins. Just to avoid any trouble with anyone returning after the party for who knew what, Marcy had arranged to have Linc stay over. "You can stay in any guest room you like. Would you make sure everyone's gone from up there before you crash?"

"I already did. Several of the beds will need clean sheets, but everyone's gone."

"Great."

"Listen, I'm sort of juiced. Are you too tired to talk for a while?"

"I'm high as well. I think the entire thing went well."

"I've tended bar at lots of professionally run affairs, and this was as good or better than any. I don't think there was anyone who didn't have a great time. Having Marcy's girls here didn't bother you?"

"I was afraid it would, but it didn't. I never even thought about it."

"Good girl. I'm with Marcy on all this." He sighed. "What a great party."

"Thanks. It's hard work, but I've done it lots of times and I've gotten pretty good at it."

Linc ran his long, slender fingers through his hair. "I gather from Marcy that you used to do this for your husband."

They talked about her past for a few minutes, then she asked, "You're from Chicago originally?"

"Yup. My family is in retail. Dad is a vice president of a department store chain and Mom is an office manager. I have two sisters, both married with two kids each, and a brother, still single."

She learned that he'd graduated from the state university with a degree in business and, after a few years of working in the Midwest, had come to New York four years before to try his hand at acting and modeling. "My parents think I'm some kind of nutcase, but I've always wanted to perform and I decided that if I didn't try it before I was thirty I would never do it."

"Any success?"

"Some. Very limited. I did a few bit parts, one walk-on in an off-Broadway show that lasted for only two weeks, a few commercials, and several menswear catalogs."

"That sounds like quite a bit."

"Not when you try to pay the rent. So I moved into an apartment over the garage at a friend's house, rent free, and I do temp work. I'm a whiz with a spreadsheet, and," he seemed to hesitate, then continued, "I work with Marcy from time to time."

"That blows my mind," Pam said, feeling she could be honest with him. "It never occurred to me that women might want a…"

He tilted his head to one side. "Let's call it an escort and leave it at that."

She found this conversation more than a little arousing. She was talking about sex with an attractive, single man, in her living room, and she felt her pussy twitch. What would he be like in bed? He should be very good. After all, he got paid for it. She fantasized for a moment, then shut off that part of her brain. She wasn't about to find out. She floundered for conversation in the sudden silence. "Do you like that kind of work?"

"Being an escort? There's nothing better. I get to go to fabulous parties, like this one, with interesting women, or I get to fulfill their fantasies and be something I never dreamed of being. Acting and sex. What could be better?"

"What kind of fantasies do women have?"

"You're a woman. What kind of fantasies do you have?"

This conversation was getting very uncomfortable. "I don't have any."

"Bullshit. Of course you do. Everyone does." His hand found hers on the sofa and he idly stroked the backs of her fingers. "Wouldn't you like some knight in shining armor to make long, leisurely love to you, make you come over and over?"

She felt heat rise in her face and tiny tingles all over her body.

He laughed. "I'm sorry, I'm making you uncomfortable. I guess I was hoping I could interest you in a little nightcap."

"Me?" she squeaked.

He turned and cupped her cheek. "Of course you. You're lovely, unattached, and after an evening like this I often like a little drink and whatever. And who better to share it with?" He dragged his feet from the coffee table and wandered to the elaborate bar that had been set up in the corner. "What can I get you? How about something outrageous? Maybe a tequila sunrise?"

What the hell. "I've never had one."

"Great. Something new to start off this part of the evening." He efficiently poured orange juice and tequila onto ice in a shaker, then poured the cold mixture into two glasses and trickled grenadine down the side. "I make a beautiful sunrise, if I do say so myself."

The drink shaded from deep rose at the bottom to bright orange at the top. It was indeed beautiful. "It's wonderful," she said as she took the icy glass in her hand. "Thanks."