Interior Designs

by Pamela Browning

  "Cathryn," said Susannah breathlessly, turning to the stunning man on her right, "this is Will Atherton. You remember. My first husband."

  Cathryn did remember. Except for Avery, he had been the best-looking of Susannah's spouses. Cathryn recalled being a bridesmaid at their wedding, and how, at the time, she had joined Judy and the other bridesmaids in gushing over the bridegroom's handsome looks. He was tall, smiling, affable and supremely sexy, with a rakish mustache and a diabolical gleam in his eye.

  "Nice to see you again," she said politely, wondering how in the world Susannah had happened to contrive a date for Cathryn with her first husband.

  Susannah read her friend's mind. "It's all right," she said hastily with a confirming look from Avery. "Will and I are still good friends."

  "Oh," said Cathryn doubtfully, wondering how she was going to make it through the evening. The arrangement struck her as, well, odd.

  "Do you have a drink around here anywhere?" Will's eyes swept the room, presumably looking for a liquor bottle.

  "Uh, no, but we could call room service."

  "I've always got my flask," said Will, and with a grin he fished a silver bottle out of an inside coat pocket and upended it. Cathryn caught the unmistakable fragrance of gin.

  Cathryn wanted to laugh at the distasteful expression on Avery's face. Clearly he had not known this side of his wife's ex-husband.

  "Shall we go?" said Avery quickly, offering Susannah his arm.

  Cathryn tried to keep a straight face. At this rate, Susannah's husband number one would be tipsy by ten o'clock. Which was just as well, because then she'd be able to duck out.

  They proceeded by taxi to the Waldorf. When they stepped out of the elevator on the floor where the ballroom was located, they met teeming groups of men and women dressed to the hilt in long formal dresses and white-tie-and-tails for the occasion. The sweet strains of violins floated over the milling gathering, and the lobby of the ballroom was bright and well-lighted.

  "What are you doing?" she hissed to Susannah when Avery was out of hearing range at the coat check. "How on earth did you happen to set me up with him?" Will lingered behind a potted plant, surreptitiously fumbling with his flask.

  For once, Susannah looked distressed. "Will called to wish me a happy marriage, and I asked him to escort you to the ball. Avery had met him once before and liked him, and I thought it seemed like a good idea at the time. I had no idea Will was drinking so much." She shrugged helplessly and surveyed the crowd uneasily as if she were looking for someone.

  "If I disappear halfway through this, please understand. I have no desire to spend the whole evening holding up a man who is so drunk he can't walk, much less dance."

  "Cathryn, I'm sorry, really I am. If Will gets to be too much of a nuisance, we can send him home in a cab. For that matter, I suppose we could leave now if we think of some excuse." But for some reason, Susannah looked reluctant.

  "No, no, I can manage," Cathryn replied hastily as Avery caught up with them and Will slipped out from behind the plant.

  "Now," said Will, smiling his charismatic smile, "how about dancing with me, Cathryn? As I recall, we danced rather well together at my wedding reception."

  Will took hold of her arm, guiding her firmly toward the highly polished dance floor. With one last nervous look back at Susannah and Avery, Cathryn allowed herself to be propelled.

  As they reached the dance floor, the band quickly ended its piece and, with a great deal of fanfare, began a new one, a waltz. Will pulled her into his arms and focused dreamy eyes on Cathryn. She was the only one close enough to notice how bleary they were.

  Will's mustache twitched as they rounded the floor for the third time. "I could use another drink right about now, how about you?"

  "No thanks," she said, concentrating on her dancing. He was a good dancer, at least, if a trifle loose. He flung them in extravagant swoops around the ballroom.

  "Do you have a boyfriend back home? Anybody special?"

  "No." She hoped her tone of voice would convince him that this wasn't an avenue of conversation that she cared to pursue.

  "Good. I've always liked you, Cathryn. You know that, don't you?" He pulled her a bit closer; she edged away.

  "Mm," she said noncommittally, concentrating on following.

  The waltz ended and everyone clapped. The band struck up another waltz.

  "Hey, let's not sit down! Let's dance this one, too!" Will Atherton smiled at her and suppressed a belch. She didn't resist when he drew her into his arms again because there was no point in making a scene. They waltzed in great swirling circles around the dance floor until the throng of people on the sidelines blurred into a sea of faces.

  A spotlight switched on, beaming down at them from one of the balconies. Somebody with a camera was busily filming the people who were dancing.

  She drew a deep breath, ignoring the smell of gin. It looked as though it was going to be a long night. If only someone would turn off that awful blinding spotlight!

  * * *

  Once they dipped so close to him that Drew thought she must surely see him, but she was so wrapped up in Will Atherton that she stared right past.

  How was he to get what he wanted—a chance to speak with her alone? There were so many people. In vain he tried to spot Susannah, who had assured him that she and her new husband would be there. They were nowhere in sight.

  What should he do? He had to talk with Cathryn. It was the only reason he had come there tonight. He racked his brain, trying to think. He hadn't come this far only to give up. But it was so hard to think of anything when his Cathryn was in the arms of someone else.

  In sheer desperation, it occurred to Drew that perhaps it would not be improper etiquette for him to cut in. Yes! It was the only logical course of action.

  He should have thought of it in the beginning.

  Cathryn couldn't believe her eyes. Her vision was hazy from dizziness, to be sure, and the spotlight made her see dots. But she could have sworn that she'd spotted Drew Sedgwick standing at the edge of the dance floor as she and Will whirled around the ballroom.

  She looked for him again as they approached the place where he had been. Suddenly her palm went damp in Will's hand. It was either Drew Sedgwick or his exact double, all dressed up in white-tie-and-tails.

  She and Will glided away, and she snapped her head around to stare. Her eyes locked with his, and there was no doubt in her mind that it was Drew.

  But how? Why?

  Why on earth would Drew Sedgwick be here at the Waldorf at the exact same time she was?

  But perhaps she had been wrong. The next time they swooped past the place where Drew had been standing, he wasn't there.

  She bit her lip and fought back tears as she stared resolutely at the space over Will Atherton's right shoulder.

  Obviously, it had been a mirage. She had thought about Drew Sedgwick so much in the past few weeks that she was imagining him in places where he couldn't possibly be. It was just one more sign that she needed a vacation, and the sooner, the better.

  "May I cut in?"

  Cathryn's heart fell to the pit of her stomach. Will looked dazed. They both stopped dancing and stared at Drew Sedgwick.

  "Do you know this guy?" Will asked Cathryn with a frown.

  "I, well, yes. We're old friends." Try as she might, she could not take her eyes off Drew's face. His eyes searched hers. He couldn't be real, he couldn't! But did a mirage walk and talk? Did it clasp your hand?

  "I have to see somebody about something anyway," Will said ungraciously. He wove around through the other dancers, barely avoiding collision.

  "Let's get out of here," said Drew. He held on to her hand tightly, as though she would disappear if he let go.

  "But Will is my date. Susannah..." Her eyes scanned the crowd, looking for her friend.

  "I've squared it with Susannah. You have her blessing. Avery's going to call a cab and send Will home." Drew charged into the crowd around the dance
floor, pulling her with him. Where the crowd thinned out in the back of the room, he paused and put his arm around Cathryn's waist.

  "Drew?"

  "I have to talk to you," he said firmly. A glance toward the lobby of the ballroom told him that people were still arriving. The elevators would be mobbed, and they would be much too slow.

  "Is there a quick way out of here?" he muttered in desperation.

  "There's bound to be a service elevator near the kitchen," she said. "But why do we have to hurry?"

  "We have a lot of time to make up," he said, urging her toward the swinging doors where the waiters kept going in and out. On the other side of the doors was an elevator, a big one. Drew pushed her inside and punched a button on the panel. The door closed after them and the elevator sped downward. Cathryn was afraid to look at him for fear she'd laugh. This was ridiculous!

  They reached the basement with a solid clunk, and the elevator door opened automatically to reveal a long concrete corridor that veered off into labyrinthine passages beneath the hotel.

  "Now what?" asked Cathryn, who had made up her mind not to be surprised at anything in this crazy sequence of events.

  Drew, guessing at their whereabouts, pulled Cathryn toward a flight of stairs topped by a door. It opened on an alley furnished with several overturned garbage cans and a heap of black plastic bags bursting with trash.

  "Where are we going?" she asked as they stood indecisively in the alley.

  "We're not staying in this alley, I can tell you that," Drew said, rushing toward the street and pulling her along in his wake. They reached the street and, almost as though it was written into the script, a cab pulled over to the curb.

  Drew pushed her, none too gently, inside.

  "Where to?" asked the cabdriver, running his eyes over them curiously. They didn't look like the type of people to come running out of an alley in New York.

  For the first time, Drew drew a blank. "Where to?" he said to Cathryn.

  She stifled a smile, but she was equal to the occasion. "Central Park. The horse-drawn carriages."

  "Good idea," said Drew approvingly. He slipped his arm around the back of the seat and toyed with the strand of hair that curled along one side of her neck. She'd left her evening cape behind, but she scarcely noticed the autumn chill in the air.

  "Nice to see you again," Drew said, an understatement.

  "Why are you here?" she asked him. His eyes were bright above his wide smile.

  "I'm trying to get you back," he answered truthfully. She looked confused. "I saw you being interviewed on TV this morning. That's how I knew you were in New York. It was a terrific interview, by the way."

  "It was just ordinary." She shrugged.

  "But you're not an ordinary person. You looked fabulous," he told her.

  "Oh," she said. Now that the initial shock had worn off, she still found it hard to believe that Drew Sedgwick could be in New York now, at the same time she was. The odds seemed stacked too heavily against such a situation.

  The cab stopped. "Central Park," said the driver.

  Drew pressed bills into the man's hand. They got out of the taxi and into one of the carriages.

  "Drive slowly," Drew told the driver, who tipped his hat genially. Drew slid close to Cathryn so that they sat with their thighs touching.

  "What are you doing in New York?" asked Cathryn, unable to contain her curiosity any longer.

  "Conferring with Talma's lawyers," he said, surprising her.

  "What about?"

  "Child custody." His eyes rested warmly on her face, taking her all in. There was no icy distance between them now, and he was glad.

  "Has something happened?"

  "Talma wants to stay in Italy with Alfredo, and she wants to take Selby out of the country. I've been looking into their lifestyle, and I'm totally against Selby's living with Talma. I've enrolled her in school in Palm Beach, and I've decided that I'm going to press for custody, even if Talma wants to fight it. These past months have shown me that Selby's stronger emotionally than I'd imagined, and she's sure that she wants to live with me."

  Cathryn was surprised at this, and yet not so surprised. Also disconcerting were the feelings of elation surfacing in her own mind.

  "What do you think about it?" he asked. A lot hinged on her answer. Cathryn would have to want Selby just as much as she wanted him. There was no doubt in his mind that Cathryn still loved him. It was written all over her face. Somehow, some way, if indeed she wanted Selby, they would work out a marriage. They had to. It was as simple as that.

  "I think it's wonderful about Selby," she answered dispelling all his doubts. "Wonderful."

  His eyes sought hers and found them. She touched his cheek gently. "I've made a mistake, Drew. A terrible mistake."

  His arms went around her and drew her close. He felt her bones melt against his.

  "Would you like to try again? Maybe try it until we get it right?"

  "Our relationship, you mean?" Her head tilted back so that she could see his face. He was smiling.

  "Yes, our relationship, and more when you're ready. I still want to marry you, Cathryn."

  She placed her head on his shoulder, and it was a homecoming of sorts. "I have to finish my work on the office building. And I'm designing an interior for Susannah's house in Connecticut. But then..."

  "Then what?"

  "Then... I don't know. I'm not going to go on the way I have been. I'm either going to sell Cathryn Mulqueen Interiors or turn over more control to my assistants."

  He rested his cheek against her forehead. They could hear the sound of the horse's hooves on the hard pavement. It was as though they were far away from the city and everything else. But he knew Cathryn and was well aware of how she felt about her career. "Are you sure that's what you want? Sure you can be happy not working twelve and fourteen hours a day?"

  "I'm sure," she said convincingly. "Very, very sure."

  "Selling seems like such a drastic measure. Maybe we could work out something with Sedgwick's. You know, expand your Design Boutique so that customers can only obtain your services through the store. You could let Zohra and Natalie handle most of the business, let them actually run the show. But you could handle designing for certain clients and be very selective."

  "I hadn't thought of that. It's a possibility, isn't it? Oh, Drew, I like the idea!" Her smile when she looked up at him was radiant, glowing.

  "The custody fight is going to be a nasty battle. I wouldn't go through with it if I didn't think I'd win. I'll need your support and help, and so will Selby. I may need your consolation if I lose. This won't be easy, Cathryn. It's going to be hanging over our heads for a long time."

  "Everything may not be wonderful all the time," she said, slowly and earnestly. "Life isn't like that. But we'll have each other, and that's what is important to me."

  "And what if I don't get custody of Selby? You won't be disappointed?"

  She sat up straight and stared at him. "Of course I'll be disappointed! But it won't affect the way I feel about you. I'll stand by both you and Selby and help any way I can. If you don't get custody, Selby will still be able to visit us in the summers or whenever else we can arrange it. What's important is that we love each other."

  "I've cut way back on my hours, but I'm going to cut back more. Bud Turney is perfectly capable of taking over a lot of the business of running a chain of department stores. That way I'll have more time to spend with Selby. And with you."

  He tightened his arms around her, feeling a transfiguring joy that eclipsed any emotion he'd ever felt. She reached up and stroked his hair gently once before curving her fingers around the nape of his neck, where they fit so well.

  "I love you so much, Cathryn," he said unsteadily. He looked down at her face, her dear and beautiful face, before fumbling in his pocket.

  Cathryn's eyes widened at the sight of the large gleaming square-cut emerald encircled by a wreath of small brilliant diamonds. She held her breath as D
rew slipped the ring on her left ring finger and kissed the skin above it.

  "I told you once that you should wear emeralds," he said softly, his adoring eyes never leaving hers. "And as my wife, you will. Yes, my Cathryn, I do want to marry you. But what about you? Will you marry me?"

  "Tomorrow, if you like," she said serenely, surely.

  "Tomorrow? But there's the license to get, and Selby will want to be there, and—"

  "Tomorrow or whenever," she amended, snuggling even closer. "And do you have any plans for tonight?"

  He smiled at her tenderly, lovingly. "Tonight, tomorrow, and always," he said, lowering his lips to hers.

  Epilogue

  From Palm Beach Parade:

  The marriage of Cathryn Claire Mulqueen to Drew Anthony Sedgwick took place on February 14 at a candlelight ceremony at the Whitecaps Beach Club in Palm Beach, Florida.

  The elegant bride is the daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Mulqueen and is the owner of Cathryn Mulqueen Interiors. She is a graduate of the Parsons School of Design. The groom is president and CEO of Sedgwick Department Stores and the son of the late Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Sedgwick of West Palm Beach. He graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in business.

  The bride's gown was a slim long-sleeved sheath of white satin and lace designed by Vera Wang. Her floor-length tulle veil was secured to her upswept coiffure by a circlet of crystals and seed pearls, and her bouquet was a cascade of white roses mixed with baby's breath and trailing ivy.

  Best man was Ron Carruthers, and groomsman was Bert Stuckey, classmate of both bride and groom at Sun Lakes High School.

  Maid-of-honor was Mrs. Ron Carruthers of West Palm Beach, and serving as bridesmaid was Mrs. Avery Clark of Greenwich, Connecticut. They wore matching dresses of blush-pink peau de soie and carried bouquets of miniature white orchids interspersed with seashells gathered from the beach at Mr. Sedgwick's house in Hobe Sound.

  Amanda Carruthers, junior bridesmaid, wore a peau de soie frock similar to those of Mrs. Carruthers and Mrs. Clark. In place of a bouquet, she carried the wedding rings on a lace pillow.

  Flower girl was Selby Sedgwick, who was heard to yell an exuberant "Yippee yippee do!" as the bride and groom kissed at the end of the ceremony. She wore a dress of ivory velveteen embellished with pale pink satin piping at the neck and sleeves.