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have been all over that, parting her lips, brushing her bangs,
flirting provocatively, letting her sexual confidence do the
work of ensnaring him. But that instinct had been beaten out
of her. With a stick.
 I ll call you, she said.  Or not.
She didn t bother watching his reaction. She ran to the
Federal at a fast clip. It was only half a mile, and she made it
in under five minutes.
She could hear the shouting from the driveway.
Bursting through the front door, Peg followed the voices to
the living room. Gloria sat on the couch, crying. Her father,
Trevor Martin, billionaire, world-renowned for his savage
business practices, was seated on the couch across from his
fragile, weeping only child. He was wearing, by Peg s guess, the
in-need-of-a-trim wig, along with a navy suit and wingtips. He
had to be roasting in all those clothes, but his forehead was dry,
the kind of man who d never let anyone see him sweat.
Behind Trevor, Luke stood rigidly with his arms crossed
284 Valerie Frankel
against his chest. He was wearing a navy suit like Trevor s, and
dark glasses. He looked like a G-man. Linus, standing behind Glo-
ria, looked like a hippie freak in comparison. He seemed ruffled,
too, unprepared for the verbal violence of the pharmacy titan.
 I m going to take you apart, Bester, piece by piece, until
there s nothing left but spare atoms, said Trevor.  Sending
my daughter to backwater bars to pick up some country ma-
niac who probably fucks his sheep? You call this therapy?
 I did not send your daughter to bars to pick up men, de-
fended Linus.
Luke said,  I stand by my report, sir. Linus Bester has
trained your daughter to make suggestive comments to men
in bars. He s an overeducated pimp, sir.
 Luke, you bastard scum-sucking traitor! said Tracy, enter-
ing the room with Ben on her heels.  I can t believe we kissed,
and that I liked it! I spit on you. And she spit. On the carpet.
Linus said,  I ll thank you to spit outdoors, Tracy.
Peg, not yet noticed by the others, went over to Gloria on
the couch. She put her arms around the weepy blonde.
 Who the hell is this now? Get your hands off my daugh-
ter! shouted Trevor.
Peg ignored him.  Gloria, stop crying. You re not a little
girl.
Gloria said,  I can t help it!
 Take a deep breath, said Peg.  Contemplate your navel.
Do you see yourself as someone who crumbles under pres-
sure?
Weakly, Gloria said,  Strongly agree.
Luke said,  For the record, sir, I only kissed that spitting
woman as part of my deep cover.
 Was your hard-on phony, too? asked Tracy.
Luke said,  This man  he pointed at Ray, who was sitting
on the bottom step of the staircase  as I wrote in my report,
has been pushing marijuana on your daughter. He s seduced
her several times. I have one of their trysts on videotape, sir.
The Girlfriend Curse 285
 I need a pill, whimpered Gloria.
Peg said,  Did Luke report that he got so drunk he passed
out on the kitchen floor?
Luke said,  That incident was also part of my deep cover.
Trevor said to him,  You ve done an exemplary job, Kar-
dash. Wait for me in the limo.
Like a trained dog, Luke jumped at his master s command.
He picked up his suitcase already packed and headed for
the front door.
Tracy said,  Come on, Ben. Let s help Luke with his bag.
Ben said,  Yes, let s.
They wrenched Luke s suitcase from his hands, and chased
him outside, slamming the door behind them.
Trevor said,  Bester, you will hear from my lawyers. Con-
sider your life over. Gloria, we re leaving. He stood up. Man,
he was short, thought Peg. Gloria must have gotten her height
from her mother, the Swedish ex-supermodel. And what an
enormous head Trevor had. Peg was amazed that such a puny
neck could support that bulbous cranium.
From outside, Peg heard Luke yell,  Get away. Leave me
alone! followed by a crash.
Peg whispered to Gloria,  Say something.
 What?
 What one word comes foremost to your mind?
Gloria turned to Peg. Her silken hair was tangled, her
cheeks wet. Her eyes locked on Peg s, Gloria said,  No.
 Tell him, said Peg.
Gloria turned toward her father. She repeated,  No. I m not
leaving. No, you re not going to do anything to Linus Bester.
That s when the loud thwomp-thwomp of helicopters cut
rudely into Gloria s triumphant moment.
Tracy ran back inside. She said,  This is incredible. There
are three news helicopters circling the house.
From the open front door, Peg heard Luke scream,  Help!
Someone help me!
286 Valerie Frankel
Tracy said,  I think Ben needs me, and ran back outside.
 How the hell did those jackals find me? ranted Trevor.
 Only one thing moves quickly in Vermont, said Linus,
smiling.  Gossip.
Gloria, seizing rare opportunity, said,  Unless you do ex-
actly what I say, I m going to run outside. Naked.
Trevor fumed,  You do not threaten me!
Gloria stood up, and took off her top.
Trevor said,  Stop right there!
She slipped off her shorts.
 I m warning you, barked Daddy Dearest.
Gloria hooked a thumb under her bra strap.
 Okay, relented Trevor.  What do you want? I ve given
you everything a girl could desire. Clothes, jewelry, well-
screened boyfriends, trips around the world, the best educa-
tion money can buy. And still you re not happy.
 There s one thing you ve never offered me, Daddy, said
Gloria, sitting again, in her bra and panties.
Trevor sat down, too, clearly exasperated.  I d love to know
what that is.
She took a deep breath, and said,  I want a job.
 A job.
 A good job.
 Like what? he asked.
 The cosmetics buyer for Martin Pharmacies, she said.
 What about the person who does that now?
Gloria answered,  He can work for me. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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