He’d hosted a few client dinners with the help of a catering service, and nothing more. No friends came to visit, no Sunday football days with the guys, nothing. To him, his house was simply a place to sleep and shower. Since he didn’t have an office, he spent most of his workdays at various hot spots and clubs, doing business with clients and potential clients who wanted to “be seen.” As he had been voted one of LA’s top ten bachelors, women both young and old hankered to be seen with him. Chris didn’t think it much of an accomplishment in his shallow world of see-and-be-seen. Though there were those who would contradict him, who would trade places with him in a heartbeat.
Maybe with Toots coming to town, he’d actually find time to enjoy himself for a change.
Chapter 14
As soon as the plane landed and it was permissible to turn cell phones on, Toots called Abby, and just as she’d promised, Abby had a limo waiting for them on the tarmac at LAX. Toots couldn’t wait to see her daughter and take the girls to the Beverly Hills Hotel, where they would all be in need of a bit of pampering. She was so excited she was giddy with the feeling.
The flight had been smooth, and Toots was glad she’d hired a private jet for the trip. She could not imagine Ida on a commercial flight. White-knuckled the entire flight, Ida had remained quietly in her seat. Toots was sure it wasn’t out of a fear of flying. More like a fear of touching. Poor Ida. She had her first appointment with the shrink specializing in OCD tomorrow afternoon. And if the appointment wasn’t productive, then Ida was going to go for it cold turkey.
Before leaving Charleston, Toots had made arrangements with Henry Whitmore to wire ten million dollars to Chris’s escrow account for the purchase of The Informer. Henry sputtered and snarled, asking her if she’d lost her mind when she’d told him what she was buying. When she spoke to Chris about the pending sale, he hadn’t sounded as confident as usual. She felt a tinge of worry. What if she had to tell Abby she was the new owner of The Informer? Would Abby want to work for her mother? Toots didn’t think so. But if it came down to it, she would confess to Abby and risk whatever the fallout was.
Putting her concerns aside, Toots waited for the limo driver to secure their luggage in the trunk. Once he’d finished, she stepped aside, allowing Mavis to get in first since she would take up an entire section of the U-shaped seats. Joe had given Mavis a clean bill of health just this morning. The stress test indicated she could start a reasonable exercise program anytime she wanted. Mavis was another one who was going to go cold turkey if she didn’t perform and live up to the promises she’d made to lose her extra weight.
With Mavis seated and Coco snug in the carrier next to her, Sophie piled inside. “I can’t believe it. After all these years, I’m finally riding in a stretch limousine. I see them around the city all the time.” She smoothed her skirt and patted the place next to her. “Come on, Ida. I don’t have cooties.” Sophie laughed, and Toots couldn’t help but join in.
As though she were about to enter a minefield, Ida carefully eased herself into the seat beside Sophie. Toots climbed inside, sitting across from the trio.
A bottle of champagne chilled in an ice bucket with four crystal glasses placed beside it beckoned the ladies. Someone had propped a note card next to the ice bucket. Toots opened it. “This is from Abby.” She pointed to the champagne and scanned the note. “She says welcome to LA and that she will meet us at the Polo Lounge for dinner at seven. Seven will be ten our time, so we’ll have to take a nap, or at least rest a bit. What do you say?” Toots heard the excitement in her own voice, something she hadn’t felt in a while. Not since she’d up and married Leland. Well, Leland was six feet under, and she was alive and well and about to embark on a new adventure. Nothing could stop her from enjoying her life now, not that anything ever had. She’d just been a little more reserved back in the day—sometimes, anyway. Well, this was a whole new day! Toots was simply thrilled to be footloose and fancy-free. And she was damn well going to remain free this time around. No more men for her. Well, no more marriages, at least; she hadn’t completely sworn off men. Besides, eight husbands was enough of a track record.
“I say we go for it! I want to get that full-body massage you always rave about. I could use a cut, color, and a wax job, too,” Sophie said with a grin.
“What parts do you wax?” Mavis asked curiously.
“What parts do you think I wax?” Sophie shot back.
“I don’t know, that’s why I asked. I see on TV where women wax everything these days. And I mean everything.”
“Well, I don’t go that far. It kills me to get my eyebrows done. I can’t imagine what it would feel like ... you know”—Sophie looked at her lap—“down there.”
Toots burst out laughing. Mavis and Sophie were so naive. She knew that before Ida’s phobia, she’d done all those things. She looked over at her old friend and was surprised at the grin on her face. Maybe there was some hope for Ida after all.
“She asked,” Sophie commented drily. “What about it, Toots, have you ever gotten a full-body wax job?”
“Of course I have.”
“Where?” Sophie persisted.
“Oh, for God’s sake, stop asking questions like a teenager. No, I haven’t had anything below the belt waxed, okay? And if I had, I wouldn’t tell you.”
“You don’t have to get all pissy on me. I was just curious. Since I never had a full-body wax job, what’s wrong with asking questions. What about it, Ida? You live in the big wicked city. You ever go to one of those fancy salons for a wax job?”
“Sophie!” Toots chastised.
“I meant before she got all wacky with her germ thing.”
“Sophie Manchester, I’ll have you know that I have had that area waxed more than once. Actually, Thomas suggested it after he watched The Jerry Springer Show once. It’s not too painful.” Ida had a glazed look in her eyes.
The women stared at Ida in surprise. Coco woke up, barked at the high-volume discussion, her tiny tail straight in the air. Ida had been virtually silent the entire trip. They all tried to envision Ida sitting across from them admitting to getting a bikini wax.
“I think that’s more than we need to know, Ida,” Mavis mumbled. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am starving. Are we planning a snack before dinner?”
Coco barked again. The dog must know that the word dinner means food, Toots thought.
“Of course. I’ve arranged for each of our bungalows to be fully stocked with food and alcoholic beverages as well as diet soft drinks. We’ll have a light snack at my place before we have our massages. I even have a dog sitter lined up for Coco.” Toots stopped talking to gaze out the window. “Look at this! All this sunshine, the exotic flowers, it’s simply beautiful here. I’m so glad you girls came along. I say we make a toast.” Toots popped the cork on the bottle of champagne and poured each one of them a glass of the pale bubbly. She had a visitor’s view of the city, she knew, but she was just so damn happy, she wanted to shout it to the world.
“What are we toasting now? Not that I mind. It’s just that I don’t want to get drunk until later. That scotch threw me for a loop this morning. I haven’t had this much since nursing school,” Sophie said.
Toots held up her glass. “I’d like to make a toast to my best friends and to the best three godmothers a girl could ask for.”
For the second time that day, the foursome clinked their glasses together.
Traffic was unusually light, Toots thought, as they arrived at the Beverly Hills Hotel within an hour of their landing. Toots was impressed. As far as she was concerned, this was the way to travel. Top of the line, first class all the way. She had enough money, so why not spend it and enjoy herself? At the same time, she was treating her friends to a wonderful vacation. If something more materialized, all the better. If not, the girls would have a great memory to take back home. If nothing else, Toots was realistic. She knew a thing or two about the best-laid plans of mice and men—women, that is.
Amidst sprawling green shrubbery and a kaleidoscope of lush flowers blossoming from every direction, Toots felt like Dorothy entering the land of Oz as they passed through the private gates and entered the hotel grounds. Toots couldn’t remember ever seeing so many brilliant plants and flowers in one place, and Charleston was known for its flora. Her own grounds as well as her veranda were awash in a rainbow of color, but it was nothing like what she was seeing right at that moment.
“Would you look at this?” Sophie peered out the window as the limo crawled toward the entrance. “I don’t even want to know how much it cost to stay in a place like this.”
Mavis tried to peek out of the tinted window behind her, but she was too heavy to turn around. “Darn, I’m too fat to look! Oh, Toots, I can’t wait to rid myself of this blubber. I’m almost too embarrassed to enter the hotel. I’m sure it’s full of movie stars and Hollywood types.”
Toots saw real fear in her friend’s eyes. “Listen, Mavis, you are as good, no, you’re better than those people. So what if you’ve gained a few pounds? We’re here, and you’re going to enjoy yourself. You deserve this. And if anyone gives you one second of grief, they’ll have to deal with me.”
Mavis’s eyes glistened with tears. “Okay, okay, I can handle this,” she muttered over and over under her breath.
“Remember what you just said when I won’t let you off the treadmill or when I give you a plate of sprouts with a slice of lemon.” Toots grinned.
“I’ll do my best, I promise,” Mavis said. Toots knew her old friend meant it.
“I know you will. Now wipe off those tears, and let’s see a smile on your face. You, my friend, are in Hollywood now. God, isn’t it wonderful! And on top of that, we’re on a mission to make Abby’s life as perfect as we can.”
“And everyone in Hollywood smiles or else.” Sophie grinned as an example.
When the car came to a complete stop, the driver hopped out and opened the passenger door. One by one, the ladies stepped out of the limousine into the bright midafternoon California sunshine.
“Welcome to the Beverly Hills Hotel.” A young man dressed in white from head to toe smiled. “If you will, follow me, please.”
The Beverly Hills Hotel, located on Sunset Boulevard, was the hotel where movie stars could be seen on a daily basis, according to Toots’s travel agent, and that’s why she’d okayed the reservation. That, and because she wanted to sleep where Elizabeth Taylor had slept. As the new owner and publisher of The Informer, she wasn’t going to miss an opportunity for any news stories about Hollywood. If she had to make them up herself, she was prepared to do so. Abby was not going to lose her job because of that gambling, womanizing idiot she worked for. Not as long as Toots had breath left in her body.
“Come on, Toots, we’re waiting,” Mavis called.
Lost in thought, Toots didn’t realize the others were already inside the van that would deliver them to their private bungalows. She climbed inside for the short ride. “I got lost there for a minute. Sorry. Must be all the sunshine,” she said happily.
“And you really want to live here?” Sophie queried.
“Not all the time. At least not at this stage of the game. I plan on spending the next two weeks learning how to run a tabloid. I don’t think the actual running of the paper will be that hard since we’ll hire people to do that. I think it will be more overseeing things than actually operating the paper. What’s going to be difficult is staying undercover and pulling it off without Abby’s suspecting anything.”
Had she bitten off more than she could chew? She certainly hoped not.
“I don’t understand why you don’t just tell her you bought the paper,” Ida said out of the blue. “It’s not like she won’t find out eventually.”
“Get that thought out of your mind right now. And since you’ve been known to be a little too chatty on occasion, you better not tell her, or I will personally dunk your hand minus the latex glove in the nastiest garbage Dumpster I can find,” Sophie said.
“I didn’t say I was going to tell Abby. Of course I would never say or do anything to upset her. I just don’t understand why it all has to be kept secret. I’m for being up front and honest. You get into less trouble that way. Don’t threaten me, Sophie.”
Toots put her finger over her lips and nodded toward the hotel driver. “We’ll talk about this later. Right now I want to relax, enjoy the scenery, and have a drink to celebrate our visit. It’s almost a blessing to be out from under Bernice’s watchful eye. She’s wonderful, but she’s way too protective and a tad nosy. Normally, I don’t mind. Crap, yes, I do mind.”
“Oh, that’s not true! Nosy just means she cares about you. Admit it, you love her as much as the rest of us. You told me so yourself in an e-mail,” Sophie said tartly.
“True, but nonetheless it’s good to be on my own with no one hovering over me.”
“I totally understand. When I was teaching, I used to pray for the summers. By the end of the school year, the kids were antsy, and I would get really tired of being the English teacher. I just wanted to go home and relax, not have to worry about someone else. Of course, when Herbert died, I was so lonely I almost considered signing up to substitute. I don’t know why I changed my mind. Maybe if I had continued working, I wouldn’t have gotten so fat!” Mavis laughed at herself. Toots thought the laughter was a good sign.
“Well, you know what they say: The past is prologue. It’s time to move on to bigger and better things,” Toots announced.
“I already have the bigger, but I’m more than willing to take a chance on the better,” Mavis said, smiling from ear to ear.
“That’s the spirit!” Sophie encouraged. “Something tells me we’re all about to experience the ride of our life.”
Toots nodded. “Let’s just hope it’s a smooth one.”
“Teresa, do you really think I can overcome this ... this issue I have?” Ida looked down at her latex-covered hands. “I know this is crazy, but I can’t seem to help myself. I’ll do anything humanly possible to get back to a normal life. If you help me with this ... this problem, I’ll forgive you for stealing Jerry away from me.”
“You’ve already taken the first step. And of course I plan to be with you every step of the way until you can dunk your hand in a garbage can just like Sophie said. That’s what friends are for. We stick together. And, Ida, I did you a favor by marrying old Jerry. How many times do I have to tell you that? He couldn’t even ... well, let’s just say that most of our married years, we had nothing more than a platonic relationship.”
“I suppose I should thank you, then,” Ida said, with a slight tilt to her lips.
“Forget Jerry, Ida, and move forward with your life. The past is gone. We aren’t getting any younger, and I, for one, intend to savor my so-called twilight years.”
The van stopped at a discreet parking area near the bungalows. The driver stepped out and spoke to another young man wearing a matching uniform. Two more young men appeared and removed their luggage from the back of the van. The driver opened the passenger door and offered up a sweeping gesture with his arm. “Ladies, welcome to the Pink Palace.” It was so dramatic that, as one, the women burst out in laughter.
Chapter 15
Before she could change her mind, Abby dialed Chris’s cell phone number. She hadn’t seen him in ages, and she was sure he’d want to see her mom while she was in town. As far as excuses went, it was as good as any. She had a rule. No matter how much she wanted to see Chris or talk to him, she never called without a reason.
“Chris Clay,” he said.
“Whatever happened to hello?” Abby teased.
“I’ll be damned, you do come out of your cave once in a while, don’t you?” Chris said. Abby heard the laughter in his voice, could imagine the twinkle in his sexy blue eyes. Damn, she shouldn’t be having these kinds of thoughts. Then again, why shouldn’t she? She wasn’t a nun.
She laughed. “I do, and if Rag has anything to say
about it, I’ll soon be looking for another place to hide. He’s put the paper up for sale, and rumor has it he’s found someone stupid enough to buy it. While it’s just a rumor, there is usually a kernel of truth in most rumors, especially when they concern Rag.”
Chris was quick to say, “I heard that rumor.”
“News travels fast, but that’s not why I called. You won’t believe this, but Mother and my three godmothers are in town. They’re staying at the Pink Palace. I plan on having dinner with them tonight at the Polo Lounge. I thought you might like to join us.”
“I think I can manage that. I haven’t seen Typhoon Toots in a while myself. Want me to pick you up?”
Abby pondered the offer for a few seconds. Her car was dirty, Chester had slobbered all over the windows, and she hadn’t cleaned them yet. Probably wouldn’t look good to the valet parking guys at the Polo Lounge. “Sure, pick me up. The ride will give us a chance to play catchup without Mom hovering over us. Is six o’clock too early? By the way, which movie star are you dating this week?” she asked bluntly. She was glad Chris couldn’t see how childish she was with her crossed fingers.
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