Age Before Beauty (10 page)

“Darcy’s here?” Allie brightened as she stepped inside. “I didn’t know she signed up to sell Varie Cose.”

The furnishings in the elegant entry hall, though sparse, were stunning. Allie longed to run a finger over the gleaming surface of a gorgeous hall stand with an etched glass mirror on the wall above it. Was it cherry? Whatever it was made of, it matched an exquisite grandfather clock that stood at the base of a wide staircase. If this was how a Varie Cose regional director could afford to furnish her house, Allie would probably triple her income at the state.

“You have a beautiful home, Sally Jo,” she said as she lifted the heavy infant seat in front of her with both hands.

“Thank you. I enjoy it.” She waved a manicured finger toward the room on the left. “Go right on in there, and I’ll bring you something to drink. Coffee? Tea?”

“Just water, thanks.”

She swept down the hallway, and Allie went in the direction Sally Jo indicated. Three women were already seated on the living room sofa, and a fourth in a wing chair that faced it. Allie carried Joanie to the only remaining empty seat, a second wing chair on the far side of a highly polished coffee table, next to the fireplace. From the sofa, Darcy grinned a greeting. Her baby sat in her lap chewing industriously on a teething ring. Drool glistened on his chin and his chubby little fist.

“I was hoping you’d bring your baby,” Darcy said as Allie set the carrier on the hardwood floor. She extended her neck, looking over her son’s head toward Joanie. “She’s so tiny!”

“How old is she?” asked the woman next to her.

“Six weeks tomorrow,” Allie replied. “How old is your baby, Darcy?”

“Almost six months.” She picked up the cloth diaper resting across one knee and wiped the child’s hand. “Gosh, it’s hard to remember him being so little.”

“Here you go.” Sally Jo entered the room with a glass of ice water in one hand and a coaster in the other. The ice tinkled against the glass as she set them on the table in front of Allie, then took her position center stage at the end of the coffee table. “Do all y’all know each other?”

Allie shook her head, as did several of the other ladies.

“Okay, then let me do the honors. There’s Allie, Nicole, Darcy, Kirsten, and Laura.” She pointed a lacquered fingernail at each woman in turn. “Welcome to your first Varie Cose meeting, ladies. Let me be the first to congratulate each of you for beginning what I hope will be a highly profitable career. As you can see, it has been for me.”

Her gesture encompassed the elegantly furnished room. One thing about her, she wasn’t modest. Allie caught Darcy’s eye and grinned.

“However,” Sally Jo continued, “I want y’all to know that you will get out of this business only what you put into it. It
is
a business. Y’all are businesswomen now.”

Kirsten, seated on the sofa next to Darcy, lifted a hand. “How long do you think it will take us to start making money?”

“Honey, that all depends on how hard you’re willing to work.” Sally Jo rested a hand on her collarbone. “I made back my initial investment with only two demonstrations. But then I took a long-term approach and took out a small business loan to invest in my inventory.” Her gaze circled the room. “That’s something you might want to consider.”

Allie leaned forward to pick up her water glass and didn’t meet Sally Jo’s eye. A loan? Eric wouldn’t go for that. She didn’t much like the idea, either. At least, not until she was able to prove that she could make money.

Sally Jo continued. “Today we’ll go over the products included in your start-up kit. I’ll show you how to demonstrate each of them. We’ll talk about how you get bookings and ways to grow your business. Then we’ll go over the order process, placing orders and distributing product to your customers. I’ll finish by telling you how you’ll get paid.” That brought a smile to everyone’s lips. Sally Jo clapped her hands together. “Okay, did all y’all bring a pen to take notes?”

Allie dug in the bottom of her purse and found a pen as Nicole said, “I have a pencil, but I need something to write on.”

“I’ll give each of you a pad of paper.” Sally Jo flashed her trademark smile. “Trust me. This is the last thing you get for free. Remember, you have to spend money to make money.”

Allie set her purse on the floor beside Joanie. She exchanged another glance with Darcy. When the girl rolled her eyes, Allie smothered a grin. As far as she was concerned, five hundred dollars was plenty to spend. The sooner she started making some, the better.

Eric was thinking about heating up his fried chicken when his cell phone rang. He glanced at the Caller ID.

He pushed out of his chair and jerked his gaze toward Molly. “I’ve been waiting for this call. Can you hold down the fort for a few minutes?”

She nodded. “No problem.”

He punched the Talk button while he walked toward the door. Better take this call in private. In the tiny building that housed the Dispatch Center, that meant outside.

“Hey, Dad. I wondered when you’d finally get around to calling me back.”

“Yeah, I’ve been busy. We got a big contract at work last month. I’ve been putting in overtime trying to make sure we don’t fall behind.”

Eric closed the door behind him and crossed to his pickup. The light breeze held an October chill, and he wished he’d grabbed his keys so he could sit inside. Instead he leaned against the tailgate and faced the warm sun. “Well, I guess that’s good. Keeps you off the streets, huh?”

His father laughed. That was one of his sayings. “That it does.” His tone took on a hint of reserve. “How’s your mother?”

Eric had called yesterday and left a message on the answering machine, letting Dad know that Mother was safe in Danville. In case he wondered. Though why he hadn’t called to talk to her, Eric couldn’t imagine.

Yes, he could. The Harrod family wasn’t big on talking. Never had been. They operated under the premise that a problem ignored was a problem solved.

“She’s fine. Seems lonely, though.” A stretch, for sure. Mother had maintained her aloof mask since the moment she arrived. Exactly as she had always done.

“I doubt that.” Dad paused. “Has she said when she’s planning to come home?”

“No, she hasn’t.” As far as Eric could tell, she had not given the matter a single thought. Or if she had, she apparently didn’t think it necessary to discuss it with him and Allie.

“Well.”

Eric ground the gravel beneath his heel. Dad wasn’t making this easy on him. “Actually, I was sort of hoping you could call and ask her yourself. I think she might like that.”

“No.” Dad’s response was quick and firm.

“No? Just like that?” Eric hefted himself off the tailgate and paced toward the edge of the parking lot. Loose rock crunched with each step. “Come on, Dad. She’s your wife. Don’t you think you should talk to her?”

“What for? She made her point very clear when she left.”

Now they were getting somewhere. “What point was that?”

“Said she’s tired of being a doormat. Said I didn’t
appreciate
her.” Dad paused. “I probably didn’t,” he admitted, “but I thought she was happy. Everything she ever asked for, I gave her. What more does a woman want?”

Eric shoved a cold hand into his pants pocket to protect it from the wind. He didn’t know how to answer that question. If he knew how to make a woman happy, Allie wouldn’t be upset with him right now.

“I don’t know, Dad,” he said. “I wish I did.”

“Huh.”

Dad’s grunt held a note of understanding, and Eric felt a sudden affinity. They were both pretty clueless when it came to women. Must be a trait shared by the men in his family.

Regardless, Dad couldn’t sit on his duff in Detroit and do nothing about his wife. “What if she doesn’t come home? I’ve gotta tell you, Dad, when she got here the other night, she didn’t sound like she was just coming for a visit. Don’t you think you ought to call her and find out if she’s considering making this, uh, arrangement permanent?”

“She’ll come home eventually. Where else would she go?” He paused. “Unless you’re planning on letting her move in with you.”

Eric ignored the hint of accusation he heard in his father’s voice. “Listen, you know Allie and I love having Mother visit.” An acceptable lie. “But she can’t stay with us forever. Our house isn’t that big. Things can get a little strained, if you know what I mean.”

“That’s women for you.” Dad sounded relieved, like he’d been worried Eric might let Mother live there permanently. “Females can’t live together. It goes against their nature to have to share their space with another woman. Like she’s a rival or something. Men aren’t like that.”

Eric wasn’t going there. “Anyway, I think you should call Mother and ask about her plans. I mean, surely you two have to talk about finances and stuff like that.”

He scuffed a foot across a strand of crabgrass that had inched its way over the parking lot. He had no idea about the financial arrangement between his parents. As a kid he couldn’t remember ever hearing them discuss the matter, and since he grew up, there had been no reason to ask.

“I have a better idea. She’s right there in your house. Why don’t you ask her how long she’s planning to stay? While you’re at it, you can ask her something for me.”

Stubborn old man. No wonder Mother left him. Eric struggled to keep the frustration out of his tone. “What’s that, Dad?”

“Ask her where she hid the remote control. It’s driving me crazy having to get out of my chair to change the channel.”

9

Allie gave the heavy box one final shove and scooted it across the threshold. She closed the front door and leaned against it, winded.

“Can I help with anything?” Betty stood in the kitchen doorway, her hands clasped and her face its usual solemn mask.

Allie shook her head. “Not unless you know how to put a set of shelves together.”

“I never have, but I doubt it’s that hard. I daresay we could figure it out between the two of us.”

Allie stared at her mother-in-law. Unless she misunderstood, Betty just offered to help her with a project. Was that the first sign of a thaw from the Ice Queen, perhaps?

“Thanks, Betty. Actually, I thought Eric could do it when he gets home. He put all the baby furniture together, so he has practice reading instructions that look like they’re written in a foreign language.”

Wordless, Betty gave a single nod and started to turn away.

“Uh …” Allie hated to let the moment pass. “Supper sure smells good. What are we having?”

“Baked chicken breasts. I saw the recipe in a low-calorie cooking magazine, so while you were out I went to the grocery store and got the ingredients.” She gave a little sniff. “Much less fattening than fried chicken.”

She disappeared into the kitchen, leaving Allie to grind her teeth alone. So much for the thaw. Betty had just managed to insult Allie for her weight and Gram for her cooking in a single comment. Two with one blow.

The handle on the front door turned, and Allie stepped aside to let Eric come in. She managed a quick smile of greeting in his direction. Last night’s scene at her birthday dinner was still raw, and she had been waffling between misery and anger all day. The combination left her wretched and unable to meet Eric’s gaze.

“What’s all this?” His gesture included the box and several full bags she had dropped in a corner.

“Business supplies.” She picked up the canvas bag that held the smaller of the products from her demo kit and pulled out a bottle of cleaning spray. “This stuff is guaranteed to eliminate household stains, including hard water stains in the toilet, or you get your money back in full. It’s amazing. Sally Jo showed us how to demo it today.”

“Do you take an actual stained toilet with you for the demo?” He glanced around the room, as though looking for one.

The sight of the corners of his mouth inching upward lifted Allie’s mood. She slapped him playfully on the arm. “No, we invade the hostess’ bathroom and clean hers right before her eyes.” She bent down and scooped a package out of one of the Wal-Mart bags. “Which is why we need these.”

He made as though to reach for the package of rubber gloves, but instead caught her around the waist and pulled her to him. “I love you, Allie.”

A burden lifted at the sound of his whispered words. Allie dropped the gloves and slipped her arms around him. Eyes closed, she buried her face in his neck. “I love you too.” This was the way life should be, her and Eric together instead of snapping at one another. Tears made her nose itchy, and she sniffled. “I’m sorry I acted like an idiot last night. I know you were just trying to give me something I needed.”

“No.” His hands grasped her shoulders and he pushed her gently back. His gaze held hers. “You don’t
need
the gym. I thought I was being helpful, giving you something you wanted. I don’t care if you lose weight or not.” His hands slid up her neck to cup her face. “I think you’re beautiful just the way you are.”

As Allie searched his face, warmth seeped throughout her insides. Eric was telling the truth. He really didn’t care if she was fat. He really thought she was beautiful.

She leaned forward and planted a kiss on his lips that almost threw them both off balance. Was she the luckiest girl in the world, or what?

“Ahem.”

At the sound of Betty clearing her throat, Allie pulled back and would have stepped away, but Eric refused to let go of her. He locked his hands around her waist and whispered in her ear, “Story of my life lately.”

Betty’s eyebrows arched. “Dinner will be ready in ten minutes.”

“Thanks, Mother.” Eric lifted his nose and inhaled. “Smells wonderful.”

Grinning, Allie gently pushed him away with a hand on his chest. “Help me get these bags into our bedroom. After dinner, I have a project for you.” She kicked at the long box.

Eric flashed a wry grin. “I can see that. But first, let me say hello to my second-best girl.”

While Eric bent over Joanie’s infant seat on the sofa, Allie looped her fingers through several bags and headed for the bedroom. He followed her a minute later, Joanie tucked in one arm and the rest of the bags dangling from the other. He dropped them beside hers on the bed.