Secrets & Lies (15 page)

“I can tell, Gina. That much is evident. You look beautiful.”

“Aw, thanks, Dad. Should I call Josh out?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

She did and her paramour emerged, now dressed in street clothes. Gina jumped up, saying, “I'm going to change. You two get acquainted.” Then she ran off to her own locker room.

Josh joined me in the seats and said, “Gina is quite remarkable, Mr. Talbot. I've never had a student so determined and dedicated. Where does she get it? Are you or her mother athletic?”

“Not at all.” I shook my head. “I don't know where she gets it.” Of course that was a lie. I knew exactly where Gina got it. “Maybe her grandmother. She, uh, did gymnastics when she was a young girl.”

“That could be it,” he said. “Gina's told me about her. Your mother, right?”

“Yeah.”

“I'm sorry to hear about her condition. How is she doing?”

It was a little weird having a total stranger ask about Mom. “As best as can be expected, given her illness.”

“I had an uncle who had Alzheimer's. It's very hard on everyone. My sympathies go out to you, sir.”

“Okay, thanks, but let's stop with the ‘sir,' stuff. Just call me Martin, all right?”

He smiled again. “All right.” There was genuine warmth about the guy. Despite his intimidating size, he seemed like a nice person. “She's the best student I've ever had, Martin, and I've been instructing Krav Maga for over ten years. She is going to set a record for learning and mastering the system in a relatively short time. She has exceptional speed and ability. It normally takes at least seven years to obtain a brown belt—that's one below the black—but I predict she'll do it in five, and that's unheard of. She's a machine.”

“Great,” I said, but it was obvious I had no clue what the significance of it all was. It was also apparent that I would have to just go with the flow when it came to Gina. It made my anxiety level jump a couple of notches, but what could I do?

I hoped Gina and Josh didn't mind if I had a few drinks with dinner.

1961

A
PRIL
13, 1961

Be still my heart! What just happened tonight?

I had a date with Leo, that's what happened. He simply fascinates me. Oh, my gosh, I think I'm giddy from just being with him. Am I in love? He's so good looking and charming. He seems to have money, too, and that can't hurt!

It was a wonderful evening, despite the fact that I was on crutches. Yes, I found out yesterday that I sprained my ankle, but the leather boot prevented a broken one. I feel awkward and stupid and ugly, and you can imagine what it was like being seen with Leo in public and having to mess with crutches when you sit down to dinner or go to the theatre. It's an embarrassing bother.

A taxi took me to meet him at Sardi's and, surprisingly, I wasn't late. Traffic at that time of day is the absolute worst, especially in the Times Square area. I've never been much to frequent that part of town as the Stiletto because there are way too many people around. And way too many cops. But sometimes the place can be exciting whether you visit as a tourist or a native New Yorker.

Sardi's is a fun place to go. It's on W. 44th Street and it's been there forever as a Broadway hangout. I always enjoy it. The food is good and I like to look at the caricatures of Broadway actors and actresses
on the walls. I don't go to the theatre as often as I probably should. Lucy and Peter go a lot. When I have gone, I've enjoyed it. It is more expensive than going to a movie, and that's a deterrent.

Leo was there waiting for me, and he looked like a million bucks. He was wearing a shiny gray suit I simply wanted to
touch
. I should have warned him I'd be on crutches, but I didn't have a way to reach him. He was surprised and I think a little amused. He was a real gentleman with regard to taking charge of the blasted things when I was seated. Still, I was mortified, everyone in the restaurant turned to look at me. That tends to happen, doesn't it? When you're in a public place and someone comes in on crutches or in a wheelchair, you notice, right?

I was nervous, obviously so. The place was very crowded since it was the dinner hour before the 8:00 start time for shows. It felt like everyone was staring at me, not just Leo, ha ha. He
was
looking at me like he'd just opened a present on Christmas morning. I wore a low-cut dress that revealed more of my bust than I usually do. He told me I looked “spectacular” and that I have “striking eyes.” He asked me if I'd ever been a redhead, and I told him no. He thought I'd look good as a redhead. So right off the bat he made me feel self-conscious. I mean, I was flattered; I wasn't offended or anything like that. But he kept staring at me like he wanted to pounce.

But I relaxed as time went on and the food—and
drinks!
—arrived. We had champagne, dear diary, and some very nice wine with our sirloin steak and spinach cannelloni
au gratin
! It was a fabulous meal. It's a good thing we shared, or I'd be so full and uncomfortable in the theatre. The seats in those old theatres are too close together and allow no room for people with long legs, like me. But we make do.

Over dinner we talked about all kinds of things, but very little about his work because we covered that last time. He's in New York for a meeting involving equipment purchasing. I told him more about the gym and what I do every day. Then we started talking about movies and that's when it really got fun, because I love movies and so does he. I don't know if we have similar tastes, though. I told
him about that new French film I've wanted to see called
Breathless
. It's playing uptown, I just haven't had the chance to go. Lucy and Peter say it will change the language of cinema. Leo said he doesn't like subtitles.

We had great seats for the show, center aisle, about thirty feet from the stage. Leo tipped the usher extra to take care of my crutches. He's so sweet! Mike Nichols and Elaine May were very funny. Leo and I both laughed so hard we had tears in our eyes. My side started hurting! I think I'll have to get their record.

Afterward, neither of us wanted the evening to end, so we went to a coffee shop on 8th Avenue. I insisted on walking with my crutches; I told him it was good for me. The place was crowded, since it was after theatre, but we managed to get a nice table in a corner. He bought coffee for both of us; I refused the offer for dessert, I was still stuffed.

We talked about the show and he brought up Los Angeles again. “You should move there,” he said. “You'd love it.”

“You said that last time.”

“You could work at Flickers. Charlie even told me he thought you had class.”

“Charlie doesn't even know me!”

“He saw you that first night, the night you and I met.”

I laughed. “New York's not so bad.”

“Maybe not, but with you here in Manhattan and me in L.A., you can't be my kept woman.”

That shocked me. He gave me an enchanting smile and for a moment I believed what he was saying. Then I knew he was putting me on.

“Stop,” I said, lightly slapping his arm. “You're terrible.”

“Oh, I'm not so bad once you get to know me.”

He helped me get a taxi and, in fact, he rode with me in it all the way to the gym. By then I didn't care if he saw where I lived and worked. After the cab pulled up in front, he asked if he could get a tour. I told him it was too late, maybe some other time.

“Hey, you want to go to a ball game?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“I have two tickets to see the Yankees on Saturday afternoon. Let's go. After the game we can go to dinner again. I have to go back to L.A. on Sunday.”

I think I've been to Yankee Stadium less than five times since I've been in New York. It sounded like so much fun. Normally I'd be working, but was sure I could fix it with Freddie, so I said yes.

He told the cab driver to wait and he walked me to the front door. Then he put both hands on my head, drew me in, and kissed me. It was a wet, passionate kiss, and it lasted forever. Wow. I felt it from the tips of my toes to the top hair on my head, just like last time. Then he waited until I unlocked the door and got inside, and then he went back to the taxi and took off.

Well, there's no question that I like him a lot. He's got a show-business attitude, a little on the aggressive side, but that means he's very self-confident. I like that. A man who's sure of himself is attractive to me. That might put off some people, but I feed off of it. For such a little guy—and I don't mean that in a bad way—he's a bundle of energy. I know he's aware I'm taller than him when he kisses me, but there's no acknowledgment; it truly doesn't bother him.

He also makes me laugh. I sure laughed a lot tonight, and not just in the theatre.

I do sense, though, that there is something dark inside him. I've written this before. He has secrets. In the past when I've gotten involved with men who had secrets—and that's
all
of them—things don't always turn out so well. But in Leo's defense, I suppose everyone has secrets of some kind.

As do I. So there.

1961

A
PRIL
16, 1961

Okay, dear diary, here we go. Judy Cooper has done it again. I'm head over heels. I'm smitten and I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. Leo Kelly is a man of mysteries and complications, but he's also a gentleman, he's kind, and he's terribly sexy. He's a fantastic lover too.

Yes
, that's happened already. Last night I couldn't help myself. His charm and seductive powers won me over. Today—I don't know how I feel about it. A little embarrassed, perhaps? I want to think that I'm not the kind of girl who sleeps around. Believe me, I get plenty of propositions. The guys at the gym take care of that department just fine. Shoot, I've been approached by total strangers on the street, men who ask me for my name and phone number. I've become used to it, the way men look at me. All girls feel the same way, don't they? You can tell when a man is looking at you with
those
thoughts in his head. And that's practically
any
time a man looks at you, ha ha! Corky at the gym told a joke once: God gave man two brains, one in his head and one in his you-know-what—but God made it so man could only use one brain at a time!

At any rate, I don't want to be an S-L-U-T, but it doesn't mean you're one if you really like the guy, right?

Yesterday was Saturday and I got the day off. I was prepared to take the subway and meet Leo at Yankee Stadium, but he picked me up at the gym in a town car. It was kind of like riding in a limousine, only smaller. He said he hired it for the day. It must be very expensive.

Leo had told me to dress casually, but it was surprisingly cool out, so I wore a sweatshirt and a pair of Levis. The temperature was in the fifties, but it was sunny. Leo wore a short-sleeve shirt, black trousers, and a baseball cap. Since I didn't have one, he bought me a Yankees cap at the stadium; I wore it during the game.

Once I was seated and my crutches were stored under the bench, it was so much fun. I like baseball more than football or basketball. There's something about the sense of community that exists in the stands. Everybody is there to have a good time. I love how the vendors walk around shouting, “Hot dogs! Cold beer! Coca-Cola!” It's so exciting when the organ plays and the enthusiastic crowd yells in unison.

The Yankees played against the Kansas City Athletics, and it was a tight, tense game. The Yankees won 5–3. Everyone was talking about who was better, Mickey Mantle or Roger Maris. If you ask me, I thought Roger Maris stole the show.

After the game, the driver took us back to Manhattan in the town car. Leo asked if I wanted to have dinner at his hotel, the Carlyle. I thought we might not be dressed properly, but he said it wouldn't matter in the Café Carlyle that early in the evening. So I agreed. The hotel is on the Upper East Side on Madison Avenue. A bunch of Cuban protesters with placards had gathered outside the main entrance. The signs said things like, “6,000,000 Cubans ask to be liberated!” and “Give us weapons to fight the Reds!” and “Do something, Mr. President!”