Eight
DARLA SAT ON her bed, fingers stroking white stockings laid out beside her. She stared at the Alice in Wonderland costume hanging on the closet door. Pinned to the skirt was a note that said: Wear me. It was a beautiful outfit. Expensive-looking. Lacey always did go for the best.
She’d talked with the Reverend Irene daily since her blow up with her sister. Partly because she was nervous about the party, seeing her mom and all, and partly because she felt guilty about the things she had said.
The Reverend reassured her that she’d done the right thing. You need to remove Lacey from that pedestal you’ve got her on. Be less dependent. She isn’t the concerned sis you think she is.
Darla took the dress from the hanger. It was classic Alice. A blue dress with puffed sleeves, Peter Pan collar, and white apron. Lacey had even bought her a headband, the stockings, and black Mary Jane shoes.
She liked it. She would have liked a costume that hid her identity more. That way she could stay lost in a corner and be on the lookout for her mother. But this would do.
She loved the Alice in Wonderland story. The cat that grinned. The caterpillar that smoked. The queen that roared, Off with their heads!
She giggled. And there was Alice, in the middle of it all, growing big, shrinking small, making sense out of things that didn’t make sense.
Darla related. She was a person living a life that didn’t make sense.
All week Lacey had ignored her. Never once, did she try to change Darla’s mind about moving out together. Never once, did she drag her downstairs to talk to Jake. That was something Darla wished she would do. There were no conversations about guys or the movie Lacey’d worked on. The only reason Darla knew the movie job was over was because yesterday and today Lacey had left the house dressed like a normal person.
Darla tossed the costume over her head and zipped it up. She put on the stockings and the shoes and admired herself in the mirror. She would ask Lacey for help with her hair and makeup when . . .
No. She better not. The Reverend wouldn’t like it. She could do that herself. The old children’s books she and Lacey used to read, including two versions of Alice in Wonderland, were in the library. Maybe she should get them.
But then again, maybe not.
She felt her heart beat faster at the thought of going inside the library. She hated that room. It scared her. Located off the foyer, next to the sitting room, its heavy, wooden-door entrance was inside a small alcove. She found the door as intimidating as the room itself. It reminded her of the entry to a medieval castle. Behind it were unspeakable things. Why she thought this, she didn’t know.
She didn’t really need the books, but now that she thought about it, she knew she had to go. Not long ago, somehow the topic of the library had come up in a discussion with the Reverend Irene. The Reverend had insisted she face her fear. This was the opportune moment. Darla took a breath and closed her eyes for a moment.
She stole downstairs. With any luck she wouldn’t run into Grandfather. Father was home, but he was in bed nursing a mean cold. It wouldn’t matter if she ran into him anyway.
She paused at the library entrance and felt her heart hammer harder than before. At least the children’s books were on the shelf nearest the exit. She could grab what she needed and run.
Pushing the door open only a few inches, the scent of old leather and aged paper overwhelmed her. It wasn’t an awful odor or even very strong. But she smelled it distinctly and a sense of dread shot through her. She nearly turned around and fled, but then she heard a familiar voice.
“I don’t think he’s started the ball rolling because he just sprang it on me.”
Darla opened the door a little more and saw a young man in a business suit standing beside the big mahogany fireplace. A cell phone was pressed to his ear and in one hand he held the brass urn shaped like a book that supposedly held her mother’s ashes.
She stared. His back was to her and she couldn’t see his face.
“I told him I met with Martin about this territory dispute we’re having and he said to forget about it. Delp could handle it. Then he said, as soon as he got a security clearance on me, I’d be managing sensitive contracts.”
She recognized the voice. It was the gorgeous guy at the Huntington. Was she dreaming? Was the library playing tricks with her head? She opened the door some more and, still clinging to the door handle, stepped inside the room.
“Yeah. I’m working on that right now.” He put the urn back on the mantel. “Our timing is perfect.”
She couldn’t trust what she was seeing. He couldn’t really be here, could he? Anxiety ripped at every organ and she took a step backwards.
“Well. I’m . . .” His head turned. He spotted her and she became a statue. Immediately he smiled, his teeth so bright they were nearly blinding. “I’ve got to go.”
He hung up.
“Will wonders never cease. I certainly didn’t expect to run into the beautiful young artist from the Huntington. Although I must admit, you’ve been on my mind ever since.”
Was he for real? He’d been thinking about her? Her anxiety intensified.
“I could have kicked myself for not asking for your phone number. And now, here you are.”
Elation mixed with her anxiety. She wanted to ask him who he was and why he was in her house, but the words remained stuck in her throat. She saw him give her dress a questioning once-over.
“It, um, ah. It’s my costume.” Her voice was a murmur. She cleared her throat. “It’s a costume.”
“Well, it’s very nice. What you were wearing the other day was very nice, too.”
“No, it’s really a costume. My sister’s having a party Saturday night.”
“Sister?” His eyes moved back and forth like he was thinking. “You mean Lacey? You’re Lacey’s sister?” Another look of surprise.
So he was one of Lacey’s conquests. She should have known. Elation vanished like air in a pricked balloon.
“Um huh. She’s not home.” Darla turned to leave without the books she had come for.
He chuckled and she stopped. “I know what you’re thinking,” he said. “I admit we went out a couple of times. But I’m not here to see her. I’m Randy. I work for your father.”
He wasn’t one of Lacey’s boyfriends? Darla turned back around.
“I just met with Harper upstairs. Guess he wanted to make sure I had a shot at catching his cold.” He smiled. Darla didn’t react. “That was a joke. Feel free to smile.”
Darla made a feeble attempt.
“Anyway. Your dad had some things he wanted to go over with me and I ducked in here on the way out to . . . Well, you heard me. A lot of boring business details.”
Darla nodded, but not because of anything he said about her father or business. All she could focus on was the fact that he wasn’t there to see Lacey.
He stopped talking and stared at her, his smile still bright. His eyes mesmerized her until she grew self-conscious of her stare. She wanted to have a nice conversation, but she couldn’t say what she was thinking: You’re gorgeous. I’m glad you aren’t here for my sister. I’m glad you thought about me after we met. I wish I weren’t so awkward with boys. Uh, men. You. I think I might pass out.
She made a move for the door.
“Always in a hurry to get away from me.”
She stopped. “Huh? No. I thought we were done.”
He lifted his brow and looked amused. “Done? I think we’re just getting started.”
Her face grew hot and she feared her knees might give way.
“You are certainly nothing like your sister.”
No. She wasn’t, and she didn’t think that was a good thing. Suddenly any hope he might really be interested in her vanished.
The sounds of the front door opening and raucous laughter crashed her thoughts. Lacey’s voice boomed: “Okay, Big Boy. You wait right here while I . . .”
She caught sight of Darla and stopped. “Hey. Th
at costume was made for you.” She came toward the library door and saw Randy. Immediately her demeanor changed. “What’s going on?” She walked inside.
“Nothing,” Darla quickly said. Why was she feeling guilty? Like she’d been caught doing something she shouldn’t do.
A bald guy with a handlebar moustache, chains clanking from somewhere on his person, clomped into the room behind Lacey. He had to be thirty-five or forty, wore jeans and a tank top with a skull and roses design. His arms were beefy, his chest massive. He scared the hell out of her. Then his face broke into a friendly grin.
“Alice! I always wanted to give Alice a ride on my hog.”
Darla hugged herself, shoulders hunched. She looked at her sister, but Lacey’s eyes were focused on Randy.
“I take it Daddy doesn’t approve,” Randy said.
“What?” Lacey looked confused for a second, then said, “Ah, no! I just met Big Boy. He’s doing me a favor. Well, if you pay someone, is that them doing you a favor?” Her tone said she didn’t really care.
Big Boy took a couple of steps closer to Darla. “Where’s the tea? I heard Alice has great tea.” Light caught a silver cap on one of his front teeth. It glinted.
Darla stepped back. “Lacey. Tell him to leave me alone.”
Lacey looked at her. “He won’t hurt you, but . . .” She looked at Big Boy. “Leave her alone. She gets nervous.”
Big Boy made a face that said, Sheesh! I’m not doing nothin’. His eyes remained focused on Darla. Darla stared back, afraid if she took her eyes off him he’d pounce.
“What are you doing here?” she heard Lacey ask Randy. “Still Daddy’s golden boy?”
“If you say so.”
Darla turned to look at Randy and her sister. Their eyes were locked.
Lacey grinned. “If you’re not here for Daddy, you must be here for something else. Don’t tell me little sister and you—”
“Would that be so bad?” Randy asked.
“I don’t know. She’s only seventeen.”
“Almost eighteen.” He cocked his head.
“How do you know that?”
“Eighteen comes after seventeen.”
“Funny. No breaking her heart.”
“Lacey, we’re not . . .” Darla took a step toward her sister and felt a heavy hand on her shoulder.
Big Boy put his face in hers. “Really. You wanna go for a ride?” His breath smelled of stale cigarettes. Her hands balled into fists and she crossed her arms against her chest. Then before she could call to Lacey again, someone had his hands on the big guy and was guiding him to her sister.
“I think this one is more your style.” It was Jake. For a second Darla was worried Big Boy might punch Jake’s lights out. He outweighed him by eighty pounds at least.
But evidently Lacey was right. Big Boy was a pussy cat and wasn’t into hurting people. He looked dejected. “I was just being friendly. I never met Alice in the flesh.”
“I’ve been waiting.” Jake stared at Lacey.
“Okay. You’re right. I just gotta get some cash for Big Boy.”
“How much?”
“I’m short twenty-five.”
Jake peeled twenty-five bucks from his wallet without missing a beat and shoved it into Big Boy’s hand. “Your work here is done.”
“Always glad to help.” Big Boy glanced at Darla. “You sure? She purrs like a lion.”
“She’s sure,” Randy piped up.
Jake glanced at the businessman, apparently noticing him for the first time.
Big Boy left the house, chains clanking and boots beating the floor.
Jake returned his attention to Lacey. “How’d you manage to get your car impounded?”
“Your car got impounded?” Darla’s eyes went wide. Lacey could be crazy, but she wasn’t a screw up. This was a first.
Lacey’s hair bounced with the toss of her head. “We can all thank Dan-the-Man.”
“Who’s that?” Jake asked.
Lacey shrugged. “A cop who gave me a ticket last week or the week before. I can’t remember. He pointed out that my tags were expired and I forgot about it. He pulled me over for speeding today. And since I hadn’t taken care of the tags and they were six months overdue, he said I needed a lesson. Some mumbo jumbo about saving my life with a wakeup call about responsibility. And here I thought he was a decent guy.”
“You don’t seem all that upset,” Randy said.
“I’m upset.” She motioned at her face. “This is me being upset. But what can I do? Get my car. That’s what I can do.” She took Jake by the arm. “Come on. Let’s go. You two play nice.” She tossed the words over her shoulder at Randy.
Jake looked at Darla. “You owe me a visit, Rabbit Face,” he said before Lacey had him out the door.
Darla felt her insides turn all mushy, then suddenly Randy’s hand was touching her arm. “Who is that guy?”
She looked at his fingers on her skin. “That’s Jake. He’s the chauffeur’s son.” Her eyes traveled up to meet Randy’s.
“Oh, the chauffeur’s son. I’ve heard about guys like him.”
Darla didn’t understand and she frowned.
“That was a joke.” He grinned. “Does seem to be a bit of a ruffian though.”
“What? I don’t think so.”
Randy’s smile faded and his fingers tightened just a smidge. “Do I have something to be jealous about?”
Darla’s entire body caught fire. Had he just made some sort of declaration? She had no experience in these matters and her body shook. What was she supposed to say back? Something light and funny? Oh, you’re such a kidder. That sounded stupid. He’d been with Lacey. He’d been with someone who knew how to flirt. Anything she could think to say would sound pathetic. She chewed on her lower lip. It was best not to say anything at all, but words spilled out of her mouth before she could stop them.
“Jake’s a friend.” She backed away from Randy. She couldn’t handle anything more.
Darla stared out her bedroom window, her thoughts on Randy. Was he interested in her or was he just a flirt? Lacey would know, but she wasn’t around to ask. And since their relationship had been on the rocks all week, she wasn’t sure she could ask.
Why would a guy like Randy be interested in her? He seemed sort of sophisticated, while her world consisted of a twenty-thousand-square-foot box. A mansion, yeah. A big house, for sure. But it was a small playing field. And she made it even smaller by spending so much time in her room reading romantic novels, pretending to be the heroine.
She relived her encounter with Randy at the Huntington and then in the family library. She remembered his touch and goose bumps erupted on her skin. Reverend Irene had been right about facing her fear. If she hadn’t gathered up her courage and gone to the library, she wouldn’t have run into Randy.
After an hour of daydreaming, she caught sight of Jake returning in the Caddie. Lacey, however, never appeared in the Spyder. She must have decided to go somewhere and blow off steam, Darla thought.
She watched Henry pull the Lincoln out of the garage and go to work detailing it. Jake said something to his dad, went upstairs, came back down, and took off on his Harley. By late afternoon father and son were in the apartment and there wasn’t any activity to watch.
Darla took out her journal. She jotted down some thoughts, mostly about Randy, but then diligently wrote about her father and Lacey to satisfy the Reverend Irene.
Day headed for dusk. She watched the distant mountain behind the house turn several shades of purple as the sun lowered behind it, and she realized that she hadn’t eaten since yesterday. No one in the family ate together. The housekeeper just kept food ready in the fridge. Darla wasn’t hungry, but she knew she should eat.
Before hopping off the bed, her eyes shifted and she saw through the window that Jake was sitting on a chair beside the garage, Lacey’s stray cat rubbing against his legs. He was feeding it nibbles of some kind.
Some ruffian, she thought, smil
ing at Randy’s incorrect assessment, and then she remembered what Jake had said to her: You owe me a visit, Rabbit Face.
Her stomach muscles tightened and her breath caught in her chest. She wanted to talk to Jake, but what would she say? Hi, how are you? What about after that?
She could thank him for taking stinky Big Boy or Big Guy or whatever his name was out of her face.
Yeah. She could say that.
Darla forgot about dinner and hurried downstairs before her confidence waned.
The cat purred on Jake’s lap now and Jake was scratching it behind its ears. She swallowed and came closer.
“Jake.”
He raised his eyes as he stroked the scrawny tabby. “Well. Well. Well. Look what the cat dragged in.”
She bit her lip, worried, and then remembered. That was his sense of humor; he had a cat in his lap.
“So serious,” he added.
Her breath hiccupped. She was serious. Too serious. Jake always told her that when she didn’t laugh at his jokes. Lacey always laughed.
She smiled and tried to look relaxed. “The cat didn’t drag me. You did.”
He tossed the animal aside and stood. “Kicking and screaming, I bet.” He looked at her, a small smile on his lips. The eyes were the same. Ready to tease.
“Um.” She squirmed.
“Darla. Darla. You never did know what to say. That’s one of the things I love about you.”
Her jaw lowered, but nothing came out.
“You’re too skinny, I can tell you that. I didn’t notice it the other day when you ran past me. All I could think about was how your grandfather is still an ass. And how you still haven’t learned to not let him get your goat.”
She looked at the ground. She hated talking about her grandfather.
“And you still do that when I mention him. So forget I said anything.”
She raised her eyes. “I came to thank you.”
“Thank me?”
“For getting that guy out of my face.”
“Oh, that.” He sort of shrugged. “And here I thought you finally came down because we were friends. I told Lacey, if you didn’t acknowledge me soon I was going up to your room and stand there until you did.”
Bouquet of Lies Page 6