Chapter Nine:
That evening Katherine was in her closet, excitedly digging through her few cocktail dresses. Selecting two, she whipped off their plastic dust coverings; one was a strawberry-colored gown, one-shouldered with a fitted bodice. Then there was the second one, a white affair with simple lines, Grecian style, and it had a coiled, golden snake fastened at the waist. She fingered its silky material, remembering the New York shopping trip she’d bought it on. Her mind counted the time. Was it only last spring, right before she’d broken up with Wesley? She’d never had the chance to wear it but concluded tonight was the perfect night to break it in.
Wesley.
Johnny had never been much of one for the ritzy nightclubs Wesley frequented. He complained about the people, about his lack of dancing skills, about having to dress up, having to socialize. Yet earlier today he had seemed excited at the chance to take her out. Whatever accounted for this new change of attitude, she liked it, and a smile was on her lips as she quickly undressed and slipped the gown over her head, wriggling into it as it fell about her.
She briefly struggled with the back zipper but quickly gave up on the caught fastener and, ignoring it, added some simple diamond teardrop earrings. She swept her pout with red lipstick and examined herself, turning slowly before a full-length mirror. It was as flattering as she remembered and hit all the right places, she thought with a bit of fear—but it wasn’t too provocative, she decided, and Johnny had told her to wear her swankiest.
And with that she stepped out of the bedroom, too jittery to remain there, passed through the drawing room, and entered her small office. Drake’s desk had been delivered earlier in the day and she wandered over to it, running her fingers over its side, letting them fall in and out of the intricate grooves etched in by the woodcarver. Had it been worth a hundred dollars? No, probably not. Chalk that up to her stubbornness in refusing to let two men outbid her, that and the beautiful horse that adorned the side.
She was glad she’d bought it. It might have made her office a bit crowded, but now at least she had a lucky desk—and no excuse for slacking on work. She slid open one of the thin drawers which graced the front, only to sneeze from the film of fine dust that dispersed into the air. She pushed it back in. Tomorrow morning she’d take her time cleaning it up. No point in getting her new dress dirty before going out.
The loud shrill of the doorbell startled her out of her thoughts so that she jumped and quickly shut the door to her office and headed to open the front door. There Johnny stood in a freshly pressed black suit that emphasized the green of his eyes, making Katherine’s skin tingle. His rugged good looks never failed to impress her.
He removed his fedora and let out a low whistle as he looked her up and down. “Swell gown. Looks pretty fancy. Where’d you come by it?”
Feeling suddenly self-conscious, she nonetheless swiveled back and forth slowly to display the front, then explained, “I’m having trouble with the zipper, would you mind?” And she turned the bare expanse of her back towards him. Then she felt his hand on her shoulder, his fingers gliding up her back slowly sealing up the dress. His hands rested at the top, and she wished they could stay there for the rest of the night. She slowly drew away, turning around to face him. The approval in his eyes, that same, hungry look made her feel alive and yet slightly frightened her. “Do you like it?” She stammered. “I got it last summer when I was in New York . . . first time I’ve had the chance to wear it.”
He reached out to draw her to him. “Is that a hint for me?”
She looked up to meet those eyes and hoped he couldn’t hear her heart, which seemed to have quickened to a hammering. “Only if you want to take it as such.”
He laughed and narrowed his eyes and suddenly kissed her hard and slow on the mouth before taking a break to peer around the room. “Got a drink around anywhere?”
“No!” She laughed off his request. “It’s late enough as it is. You can order a drink there.”
“What if I want one now and one later?” His manner was joking, but Katherine sensed he was serious.
“Sure.” she replied, gently pushing away from him. He was usually in a better mood when he drank anyways. “The usual?”
“Of course.” His eyes became hidden as he lit a cigarette while she poured a golden whiskey. “Desk arrive yet?”
“Yes.” Katherine returned with his drink while she hoped he wasn’t going to make anything out of it. “Just about an hour ago. It’s in my office.”
“Thanks.” He downed the whiskey in a gulp and handed her back the glass with a chuckle. “That all?”
“Yes!” She playfully pushed him out the door, taking pause when she saw something flash across his face, an expression of anger? He must’ve been serious about that second drink, she thought with some fear. But he was already walking away towards the car.
Retribution Page 16