Society Wives (22 page)

“Oh leave her be. She'll be just fine,” Nadalia said. “I went away to prep school. It looks good for college.”

Apparently no one was in the mood for a large meal, so they ordered several appetizers. Ryan being the only sober one noticed that they drank a lot more than they ate.

“How's the benefit coming along?” Ryan asked Pearson and picked around the salad she ordered.

“Oh great.” Pearson brightened up a little. “You are all coming, right?”

“Of course,” Vonnie responded first.

“Sage has been working extra hard lately, but he wouldn't miss an opportunity to hang out with his buddies.” Nadalia put her hand to her mouth and looked at Pearson. “Oh. It's not that the foundation doesn't matter. It's a great cause. It's just that I'm sure he's missing his friends. It's been a while since they've gotten together. Don't worry. We will be making a hefty donation like we do every year.”

“It seems like everyone has been so busy,” Ryan added.

“What have you been up to Ryan? Everything groovy on the home front?” Nadalia asked.

Ryan resented the question yet almost wished she could tell the truth. However, she couldn't reveal anything, no matter how trapped she felt inside of her disappointing reality. “Anderson finally comes home tomorrow. He's been gone so long. I can't wait to finally see him.” Immediately she stuffed her mouth with a forkful of salad.

Ryan noticed that Pearson had changed from martinis to scotch. She was way ahead of the rest in terms of drinks. As much as she looked forward to this dinner tonight, it wasn't turning out like she had expected. Pearson was unusually quiet and her conversation was void of her sarcastic quick wit. In addition, her and Nadalia's insulting, but entertaining dance was missing and the atmosphere felt weighted.

The chatter at the table subsided a bit against the backdrop of the noisy restaurant.

“I don't know about you ladies, but I needed this outing,” Nadalia said.

“Me too,” Vonnie chimed in.

“Yeah,” Ryan said.

Pearson remained quiet.

Ryan noticed Nadalia looking her way and cast her eyes down, avoiding contact. She wished she would stop looking at her. It made Ryan feel like she was under a microscope.

“Ryan,” Nadalia called her.

She looked up and thought she read pity in Nadalia's eyes. “What's up?” she said, hoping to mask her concern. She felt her composure unraveling.
Could Nadalia tell that something was wrong? Did she hear something?

“Oh, hell! I'm just going to come out with it.”

Everyone looked up.

“Come out with what?” Pearson slurred.

“All right. I was in the supermarket and saw this magazine that had Anderson on the front with another woman and a bunch of pictures on the inside of them holding hands at the beach,” Nadalia said.

“Nadalia!” Vonnie scolded.

“Here we go,” Pearson slurred again.

“It's in a public magazine. If she hadn't seen it by now, she's bound to see it. They're everywhere.”

At first Ryan didn't know what to say, but quickly recovered. “Oh that. I know about it. In fact, Anderson and I were talking today about how they turn things around for a story. That's actually Andy's co-star and those photos were taken on the set of their movie.” The lie slid right off of Ryan's lips with ease.

Nadalia looked at her crossways for several moments. “If you say so.”

“I can't stand those tabloids. They don't give a damn about what they print. That stuff can ruin people's lives,” Vonnie said.

Vonnie had come to her aid and Ryan smiled at her. Her lie seemed to work.

Pearson ordered another drink.

“Wow, girl. You're really putting them back tonight,” Nadalia said.

“What? You're jealous?” Pearson teased.

Ryan snickered.

“Hardly! Keep drinking and you're going to need a designated driver. Don't look at me.” Nadalia laughed.

“I won't need anyone to take me…” Pearson stopped talking and her eyes stretched wide.

The other women sat up wondering what was wrong. Pearson held up her hand, indicating that she was okay, but then gagged and quickly covered her mouth. Without an ounce of grace, she tried to get up from her seat and stammered. Pearson's body lurched, her eyes stretched wider, and before she could get away from the table, she vomited. The girls scattered.

Vonnie grabbed an empty bowl from one of the appetizers, held it under Pearson's mouth and rushed her to the bathroom. Nadalia turned away completely. Other patrons watched like it was for their entertainment.

Ryan felt her stomach stir and churn. Shooting up from the table, she ran toward the bathroom herself, almost slipping in Pearson's vomit on the floor.

When Ryan got to the bathroom, Vonnie was holding Pearson's necklace and patting her back as she released the rest of the contents in her stomach into the sink. Between the smell and the sound of Pearson's gurgling and heaves, Ryan's weak stomach couldn't take anymore. She rushed to the closest sink, lowered her head and threw up right beside them.

“Oh, Lord. Help me!” Vonnie said and moved between both women.

Ryan was the first to recover, running water and washing out her mouth.

“Are you okay now?” Vonnie asked rubbing Ryan's back.

“Yeah. I guess I just have a weak stomach.”

“Okay.” Vonnie turned her attention back to Pearson, whose head was still in the sink. “Come on, honey. Let's get you cleaned up.”

Pearson grabbed the sides of the sink. Ryan stood on one side and Vonnie on the other with a handful of paper towels, helping her stand. Pearson's face was filled with blotches and she looked like as though the heaving had worn her out.

“Are you okay, Pearson?” Ryan asked.

Instead of responding, tears spilled down Pearson's face. Ryan was shocked, but Vonnie reacted right away.

“Oh, honey.” Vonnie pulled Pearson into her arms and rocked her.

Ryan stood by not knowing what to do. Eventually, she patted Pearson's back as she cried into Vonnie's shoulder. Ryan assumed the toxic mixture of wine, vodka and scotch was the root of her strange behavior. She was used to seeing Pearson tipsy, but never to the point where she was right now, and definitely not emotional.

“Get Niles on the phone and let him know we are bringing her home,” Vonnie instructed.

Ryan ran to the table to get Pearson's phone and Nadalia was standing, waiting as the bus boys cleaned up the mess.

“What's going on in there?” Nadalia asked.

“Pearson's sick.”

“She's not sick. She's drunk. There's a difference.” Nadalia flipped her hand.

Ryan waved Nadalia off. “Vonnie is going to make sure she gets home. I need to call Niles to let him know she's on her way.”

“I guess that means dinner is over.” Nadalia pulled out her credit card. “This one is on me. Go ahead and get Ms. Tipsy Pants situated. I'll call Niles.”

Ryan was almost afraid of what Nadalia would say, but headed to the bathroom anyway to bring Pearson's stuff.

Vonnie was on her way out with Pearson crying and mumbling in her arms. Together, they helped Pearson into her coat and carried her to Vonnie's car. Nadalia met them outside. She leaned beside the passenger seat to get a good look at Pearson slumped over.

“Stick to the wine next time, girlfriend.” Then she did something that surprised all of them. It would have surprised Pearson had she been more coherent. Nadalia kissed her on the cheek. “Get our girl home safe, Vonnie. Until next time!” she said over her back as she trotted to her car.

Vonnie waved at Ryan as she pulled off. They were all in a rush to get home while Ryan stood there wishing she had somewhere else to go. She didn't know exactly what time Anderson would be getting in, but she did know that she didn't want to be there when he did.

Despite the biting cold, Ryan took her time getting into her car. She started it and sat for a long while contemplating whether or not to go home. She didn't have many options and she would have to deal with Anderson one way or the other. She wondered how upset would Anderson be if he came home and she wasn't there.

Knowing that would really irk him, she put the car into drive and headed to her mother's house. Using her key and being careful not to disturb her mother's sleep, she tipped to the guest room, slipped under the covers and fell asleep.

Chapter 34

Nadalia

Nadalia pretended to be in a deep sleep when Sage slipped in late the night before and pretended again when he left early in the morning. The routine morning kiss that he placed on her cheek every day, even while she slept, made her at least feel hopeful, yet it didn't stop her stomach from churning as she thought about what she would possibly find out by the end of the day. Once she heard his car pull out, she pulled back the covers and jumped out of bed.

Nadalia had a little more than an hour to get dressed and meet Angela at the airport. Anxiety tormented her gut, bubbling along with her stomach acids and left no room for food. A cup of tea would have to hold her until she and Angela stopped for breakfast.

Nadalia dressed quickly and was mindful enough to make sure she looked fabulous. If she did run into Sage with another woman, she'd needed to be able to send her a message with just her presence, while reminding Sage of what he had.

Nadalia picked the jeans that accentuated her hourglass shape the best. She added a cashmere sweater that wrapped perfectly around her cinched waist and threw on her most expensive pair of stiletto boots. While she dressed, she soaked her five-karat princess cut diamond and matching antique band in cleaner so that it would gleam in the light. Despite the cold, Nadalia grabbed one of her personally designed mink ponchos instead of a coat and her newest designer handbag.

Nadalia applied a light coat of makeup. When she looked in the mirror, she was pleased, but as pulled-together as she was on the outside, she was equally disheveled on the inside. Her stomach groaned and rolled. The air whirling in her chest made her feel like her lungs would explode and her heart felt like it would fail if she found her suspicions to be true.

Quietly, she prayed that she and Angela wouldn't find anything incriminating. She hoped to find two hard working men making deals that would make their wives proud. Yet the feeling deep in her gut prevented her from believing they were innocent.

Coffey was the one doing all the traveling. Maybe Sage was just covering up for him, she hoped. At this point in their careers, Coffey was the popular one. He played in the league much longer than Sage and went on to live his life in front of the camera. Sage, as handsome as he was, spent his recent life behind the scenes and out of the spotlight.

Nadalia looked around before walking out of the house, feeling like she needed to see it as it was one last time. Depending on what happened after her and Angela's ‘sting' operation, there was no telling how her home would change.

Taking a deep breath, Nadalia pulled the door open and exhaled. “Here we go,” she said aloud.

Riding in silence with the looming presence of her apprehension, Nadalia made it to the airport in record time. She pulled up to the passenger pick up area for Angela's airline at JFK and hoped security wouldn't nag her about sitting there until Angela came out. With her nerves so frazzled this morning, she couldn't take any additional friction. Lying back on the head rest, Nadalia closed her eyes and tried to calm down. She jumped at the light tapping on the passenger side window, huffed and prepared herself to deal with the pushy airport security. When she looked over, she saw Angela motioning to her.

“You made it.” Nadalia tried to muster as much excitement as possible, but her words still came out lacking enthusiasm.

“Yes, I made it.” Angela's tone matched Nadalia's. A brief nod between them expressed their understanding.

“Should I open the trunk?” Nadalia asked as she unlocked the doors.

“That won't be necessary. All I have is this overnight bag.” Angela held it up for Nadalia to see before putting it in the back seat.

Angela climbed into the car and gave Nadalia a hug. The embrace bonded them in their despair. When they pulled away, there were tears in both of their eyes.

“Hungry?” Nadalia asked, wiping her tears away as she drove the winding road to exit the airport.

“Yes and no.”

“I know what you mean. We'll head straight to the city and find a Starbucks for some tea before we embark on our,” Nadalia raised her brows when she said, “adventure.”

“It took so much for me to get on that plane this morning.” Angela shook her head and looked out the window.

“If I didn't have to pick you up, I wouldn't have left my house.”

“I can't believe I'm in New York to spy on my husband.”

“I know.”

After an unplanned moment of silence, Nadalia reached over and took Angela's hand in hers, which was just as clammy. A huff unified their sentiments. They continued to drive in silence until they reached Angela's hotel in midtown. Once Angela was checked in, they went to her room to review their plans.

“I have a copy of his schedule,” Angela said. She placed her bag down on the chair near the desk and paced the floor rubbing her hands together.

“Yeah?” Nadalia didn't know what else to say other than expressing her strong desire to abort this mission. However, she was here now. She took a seat at the end of the bed. Standing seemed strange, pacing made her crazy, and sitting helped to keep her still.

“You still want to go through with this?”

Nadalia closed her eyes and sighed. Either Angela had penetrated her mind or she was also having second thoughts. “We're here now.”

“You're right.” Angela paced to the window and looked out over the Manhattan skyline.