“Oh, dear Lord, why does everyone doubt me?” she asked, pulling a handkerchief from the sleeve of her pink cardigan sweater. She dipped a corner into the water and held it to her forehead.
Merry cleared her throat. “He was drinking out of that puddle.”
“Gaaaa!” Dottie jumped to her feet and backed away.
“What happened, Aunt Dottie?”
Merry liked the gentle tone he took with his aunt. Dottie had a flair for drama, but she had actually fainted, so it seemed as if a little compassion was warranted.
“I heard the door open across the hall, so I peeked out the peephole and saw Konrad standing there, stark naked!”
“Are you sure? I mean, maybe he was wearing a flesh-colored suit and fig leaves for a Halloween party. Where did the dog come from?”
“It was awolf, and I don’t know. I had a bottle of holy water nearby, because of… well, just in case, all right? So I grabbed it, all set to toss it onto his disgusting nakedness when I opened the door and there was a wolf! Did you say the wolf wasdrinkingthe holy water?”
“Where’s Konrad now?” Merry asked.
Dottie shrugged, then her eyes flew open. “Do you think hesickedthat thing on me?” She marched across the hall and banged on Konrad’s door. “Open up!” She waited less than three seconds and pounded on the door again.
“He’s probably gone out,” Jason said. “We’re about to go out too. Will you be all right? Where’s Uncle Ralph?”
“He went to the convenience store for Halloween candy. I told him not to count on any trick-or-treaters, but I suspect he wants it for himself, anyway.”
Ralph rounded the corner at the bottom of the stairs and glanced up. “Hey, Jason.” He jogged up the stairs and stopped suddenly. “Whoa.” He stared appreciatively at Merry. “Well, it looks like you’re headed out on a hot date. Has my wife been bothering you?”
“No, not at all.” He glanced at his aunt. She stood by quietly. “She just had a little scare. She’s all right, though.”
“A scare, huh? What else is new?” Ralph spoke quietly behind his hand. “And she hasn’t beenrightfor years.”
“I heard that, Ralph Falco.” Dottie folded her arms and scowled.
“You were supposed to. Here.” He thrust a bag of bite-size candy bars toward her. “Eat a few of these. You’ll feel better. Now let’s go inside and leave the kids to their night on the town.” He winked at Jason. “Have fun.”
In the parking lot, Jason and Merry exchanged a quick kiss before he entered the function hall by the back door, and Merry walked around to the front. Inside, she couldn’t believe the crowd of noisy women all vying for seats close to the stage.
A runway had been set up, so the stage took on a T formation. She imagined the guys being expected to strut their stuff down that runway and back. No wonder Jason dreaded this! She didn’t think he was the type to swagger or strut.
After buying her ticket, which came with a numbered sign shaped like a ping-pong paddle, she tried to find a seat. She held number sixty-nine and smiled, hoping it was an omen of things to come.
People were still arriving. The press in attendance had good seats right up front. She noticed one woman rush in with a camera and press pass at the last minute. When she elbowed her way past Merry, they made brief eye-contact, and the woman looked away quickly—a little too quickly. Then she pushed her way into the crowd faster.
What was that about?
Merry finally spied a seat about four rows back from the end of the runway. She said, “Excuse me” a dozen times as she stepped carefully over the feet of the women already seated in that row. A woman had her large, leather, Prada bag sitting on the unoccupied chair.
“Excuse me, is this seat taken?”
The middle-aged woman surrounded by real fur frowned as she appraised Merry from head to toe, then said, “Can’t you see that it is?”
Merry, surprised by the rudeness, didn’t apologize and “accidentally” stepped on the foot of the woman as she passed. The woman gasped and displayed marked annoyance as Merry made her way to the aisle on the other side.Okay, so Jason was right about the high-maintenance women at these things.
At last, she settled for a seat three rows from the very back of the crowded hall. Maybe if she stood while waving her sign, she’d be seen. Perhaps she should let the bidding start without her and come in only as other bidders dropped away.
Glancing around her, she noticed every type of society woman she could have imagined based on the cliché. Well-dressed, perfectly groomed, examples of the “beautiful people” she had anticipated. She only noticed one woman wearing dark jeans and they were topped by a black cashmere sweater with lots of pearl detail. Her jewelry made her attempt to look casual ridiculous. Merry suspected those wererealdiamonds decorating her ears, throat, wrists, and hands. Merry’s two items of sparkle were cubic zirconia.
What the heck am I doing here?She felt as if she had walked into a native tribe and was the only outsider. Or more accurately, with her dark coloring, she was the tribal one invading a WASP convention!
Several uncomfortable minutes passed, which she spent watching women greet each other with air kisses and carry on excited conversations about people she’d never heard of and probably wouldn’t like if all that gossip were true.
