The Sugar Queen

  “No!” she said immediately, mortified that she’d hurt his feelings. “No, of course not.”

  “Let’s get together tonight. I’ll tell you then.”

  “Why won’t you tell me now?”

  “Because I’d like to think I can also be a friend to you, someone to commiserate with, not just a source of information about your cheating boyfriend.”

  That made sense. At least she thought it did. “We can’t go to Jiggery’s. Jake might be there.”

  “My favorite weekday haunt is Nite Lite. Meet me there around nine tonight.”

  Julian hung up before she could say no.

  It took a moment before she was sure she could stand, a few minutes more before she could walk. Of course she would go to see Julian tonight to find out. But that’s not to say she wanted to go to Nite Lite alone. She knew it was a rough place.

  Chloe chewed on her lip for a minute, then she went to her purse. She dug out the card with Josey’s number written on it and dialed.

  She heard the phone pick up on the other end, then she heard Josey say, “Yes, I know it’s my phone, but I’ve never heard it ring before. And do you really think blocking my way is going to keep me from getting to my candy? What do you mean I’ve already answered? Oh.” She heard Josey put her cell phone to her ear and say, “Hello?”

  “Josey?”

  “Yes?”

  “It’s Chloe. Am I interrupting something?”

  “No, no,” Josey said, laughing, but it sounded forced. “I rarely use this cell phone. I was actually trying to remember how to answer it.”

  “I was wondering if you would do me a favor.”

  “Of course I will. What is it?”

  She liked that Josey said yes without even knowing what the favor was. That made Chloe feel good. She’d called Josey first for this very reason. “I know this is a lot to ask, but would you go to a bar with me tonight?”

  “A bar,” Josey repeated.

  “It’s a place I’ve never been to before and I’d feel better if someone went with me.”

  There was a long pause. “I’ve never actually been to a bar before,” Josey said.

  “Then now’s the perfect time to experience one firsthand! I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important. Someone there has some information for me that could really help me with my situation with Jake.”

  “What kind of information?”

  Chloe pinched the bridge of her nose. She didn’t want to tell Josey. It made her sound trite and desperate. “He knows who Jake slept with,” she finally said.

  “Chloe,” Josey said gently, “is this something you really want to know?”

  “It’s something I have to know. Please come with me.”

  Josey took a deep breath. “Okay. I’ll go.”

  Nite Lite was located on the winding road leading up to the ski resort. It was set back into the trees, with a large gravel parking lot in front. The sign by the road read: HAMBURGERS! KARAOKE! COLD BEER! Josey figured it had probably been designed to attract the college kids who were on their way up the mountain to ski, but from the looks of things when Josey and Chloe entered, it ended up being a hangout for bearded men in flannel shirts and a couple of rough younger people who wanted to play pool in the back room.

  At least there wasn’t much of a risk of anyone recognizing her and telling her mother.

  They stopped at the door, letting their eyes adjust to the dimness. “I don’t see him here yet. Let’s get something to drink,” Chloe said, going to the bar.

  Josey followed, feeling out of sorts and conspicuous. Chloe had given Josey her address, the Firehouse Apartments downtown, and Josey had picked her up after Margaret had gone to bed. Della Lee had made happy squealing noises when she found out Josey was going out with Chloe, but Josey was still so angry about the things she’d said about her father that she’d left without taking any of Della Lee’s unsolicited wardrobe advice. It was something she’d regretted when Chloe had opened her apartment door, taken one look at Josey in the same black dress and coat she’d worn earlier that day, and grabbed a bold yellow and red rugby-striped scarf off the coat stand. She’d looped it around Josey’s neck and said, “Now, you have color. Perfect!”

  Once at the bar, Chloe ordered a lemon drop, so Josey did too. When the drinks arrived, Josey pretended to sip hers. She tried to make conversation, but Chloe was distracted, constantly looking around the bar and saying every ten minutes, “He said he’d be here.”

  Two hours later, Chloe was flat drunk and Josey was trying to figure out a way to get her to leave. Chloe had refused every attempt. Josey couldn’t even stop Chloe from calling Jake and leaving him a slurred message, telling him she was at Nite Lite and having loads of fun without him. But it was far from the truth. Chloe was more miserable than Josey had ever seen her. Despite everything, Josey wished to God she could call Della Lee. She would know what to do. Chloe was in the process of ordering another martini and Josey squeezed her eyes shut. She had a headache and she had to go to the bathroom, but she was too afraid to go alone and Chloe apparently had a bladder the size of Montana.

  What would Della Lee do?

  Della Lee would take charge. She wouldn’t care about being nice.

  Just as the bartender was turning away, Josey said, “Cancel that. We’re leaving.”

  “No, Josey, we have to stay,” Chloe said. “Just a few more minutes. Pleeease?”

  “He’s not coming, Chloe.”

  “He said he would. He said to meet him here and he would tell me who Jake slept with.”

  “Then he lied. Give her a cup of coffee,” she told the bartender. Then she said to Chloe, “I’m going to the restroom. When I get back, we’re leaving.”

  She slid off the bar stool and went to the ladies’ room. Ha! Easy as pie. Strawberry pie. Strawberry rhubarb pie with fresh vanilla ice cream.

  She decided she would get a pie on the way home and eat it all.

  After today, she deserved it.

  She walked back out into the dim neon-lit bar a few minutes later, but she only took a few steps before she stopped short.

  She turned away quickly, her eyes wide and darting back and forth, trying to get her mind around this. She’d channeled Della Lee and look what happened.

  Julian appeared.

  She turned back around. Yes, it was definitely him. But what in the hell was he doing here? Julian was sitting with Chloe, surrounding them both in a cloud of rosy-black smoke that only the women in the bar could see. They were leaning in toward each other, smiling, laughing. Chloe was stuck in his smoke, entranced by him. She couldn’t get out alone.

  Josey rubbed her aching forehead. What would Della Lee do?

  When it came to Julian, Della Lee would run.

  Run. Okay, Josey could do that.

  She just had to get Chloe first.

  The bar was dark enough that there was a chance Julian wouldn’t recognize her as the woman who’d been in his house. She walked over to them sideways, like she was doing a line-dancing step to the music from the jukebox. Keeping her back to Julian, she angled her way between them. She grabbed Chloe’s purse and coat from the bar. “Come on, Chloe. We’re leaving.”

  “No, we don’t have to go now,” Chloe said jubilantly. “Look, Julian finally made it! Julian, this is Josey.”

  Josey gaped at Chloe. She’d come here to meet Julian?

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Julian said, leaning to the right, trying to see Josey’s face. “You look familiar. I thought that the moment I came in and saw you with Chloe. Turn around, pretty. Look at me.”

  He touched her arm and she stepped away quickly, facing him now.

  “She’s Josey Cirrini. Cirrini. Shh, she’s rich,” Chloe said.

  Josey tried to coax Chloe off the stool. “Come on. Let’s go.”

  Chloe held on to the bar rail with both hands, refusing to budge. “I can’t go. I haven’t found out her name yet.”

  “Come on, stand up.”

&n
bsp; “Leave the kid here,” Julian said. “I’ll take her home.”

  “I don’t think so.” Josey kept tugging at Chloe, but Chloe had suctioned herself to the bar and the harder Josey pulled, the harder Chloe hung on.

  “I know I’ve seen you somewhere before,” Julian said.

  Suddenly, from behind them, Josey heard, “Chloe? Josey? Are you two all right?”

  Josey let go of Chloe, which had the immediate effect of Chloe letting go of the bar. They both turned.

  “Adam!” Chloe said. “What are you doing here?”

  Adam’s brows lowered. He did not look pleased. Still, Josey didn’t think she’d ever been so happy to see someone. He was wearing a soft brown leather jacket over a turtleneck and a blue scarf the exact color of his eyes. He looked wonderful. “You called me, Clo. You left a message on my answering machine.”

  “I called you?”

  “Obviously you intended the message for Jake.”

  “Oops!” She took Adam’s hand and brought him toward her. Josey had to step back to get out of his way. “Adam, I want you to meet Julian.”

  Adam didn’t even acknowledge him. “Let’s go, Clo,” Adam said, trying to get her off the stool. Chloe immediately grabbed the bar rail again. Josey almost said, Good luck with that. She’s a barnacle.

  “Hold on,” Julian suddenly said, and Josey thought he was protesting Adam’s trying to take Chloe away from him. But when Josey looked at him, he was looking right back at her. It caused a shock, a painful little tingle, at the base of her neck. “You,” he said, pointing a finger at her. “I know who you are. You broke into my house! You took my wallet!”

  “Come on, Josey,” Adam said. “Help me with Chloe.”

  “You owe me money, you fat bitch!”

  It happened so fast, it was almost a blur. Julian was in the process of standing when Adam turned and punched him across the jaw with absolutely no warning. Julian fell backward and people around them stopped talking and turned to stare.

  “Up, Chloe.” Adam literally lifted her off the stool and tore her away from the bar. “Josey—with me, now.”

  Josey stood motionless while Adam half carried, half dragged Chloe away.

  “Josey, damn it, with this bum leg I can’t handle you both. Come on!”

  She forced her feet to move. She ran to the door and held it open as Adam hauled Chloe out.

  Chloe was calling, “Julian! Julian! I’m so sorry! Let go of me!”

  The night outside was a shocking contrast to being inside Nite Lite. It was cold and quiet and Josey immediately felt like she had cotton in her ears. “Who drove?” Adam demanded as Chloe struggled in his arms.

  Josey opened her mouth to try to pop her ears.

  “Who drove!”

  “I…I did.”

  “Where is your car?”

  “Over there.”

  Adam crunched across the gravel lot toward the car, saying, “Unlock it.” She hurried after him and electronically unlocked the doors. He opened the back door and together they got the squirming mass of red hair and glitter into the back seat. “Sit back there with her and give me the keys.”

  She hesitated and he started to say something. “Okay, okay,” she said, handing him the keys and sliding in beside Chloe.

  He slammed the door, then trotted around the car and got behind the wheel.

  He sped out of the lot, taking the corner easily.

  Except for Chloe’s progressively vague protests as Josey got her into her coat, the car was uncomfortably quiet. Josey put her arm around Chloe, and soon her head fell on Josey’s shoulder.

  Adam didn’t say anything the entire drive to Chloe’s place. He didn’t even speak as they carried Chloe up the long interior steps that cut the old firehouse into four apartments. Josey got the keys out of Chloe’s purse and opened the door.

  She followed his lead to the bedroom. A large bed with a heavy black headboard dominated the redbrick room. This place had a distinctly masculine feel to it. It was hard to believe Chloe lived here. She hadn’t put her stamp anywhere. There weren’t even bookshelves. How could someone like Chloe live without bookshelves?

  As soon as they had Chloe on the bed, Adam rounded on her. “How could you let her get so hammered?” he demanded. “Are you drunk?”

  She’d never seen him angry, let alone angry with her. So few people she knew actually got angry. There was indignation, there were snubs, there were insults disguised as compliments, but rarely outright anger. “I didn’t have anything to drink,” she said. “And I kept trying to get her to leave. I had no idea she was going there to meet Julian.”

  “You know that guy? You didn’t really break into his house and steal his wallet, did you?”

  She hesitated for a moment, then said, “It wasn’t his house and it wasn’t his wallet.”

  “You stole someone else’s wallet?” he asked incredulously.

  “I didn’t steal anything. I got a friend’s wallet back.”

  Adam’s jaw worked back and forth. “What’s gotten into you lately? Does your mother know you’re doing this?”

  That did it. “I’m twenty-seven years old! What does my mother have to do with this? But that’s how everyone sees me, isn’t it? Poor Josey. Fat, unsocial, under her mother’s thumb, not living up to her father’s name. I’m so tired of worrying about what people think of me, of what they thought of me as a child. And I’m tired of that look,” she said, pointing at his face.

  “What look?”

  “That look of pity!”

  He actually took a step back, like she’d scared him. If she weren’t so mad, if she hadn’t had such a lousy day, she would have laughed. “Look,” he said, “all I’m saying is that Chloe’s vulnerable right now. You should be nudging her back in Jake’s direction instead of going with her to dives.”

  “You know what I think? I think you have no idea what’s good for her,” Josey groused, and it felt good. She wanted to argue, to fight, to stop this constant feeling of having no control over anything except what went in her mouth. “You just want her to take the path of least resistance because that’s safer.”

  “Damn straight it’s safer.”

  “I’ve got news for you, Adam. Safe is just another word for scared. And I’m not going to nudge her in any direction. This is her call. Whether or not she and Jake get back together has nothing to do with me, or you, for that matter.”

  “Jake is living with me right now, I’d say that qualifies as having something to do with me,” he said.

  “No, it doesn’t.”

  He waved his hand dismissively. “You don’t know anything about this.”

  “I know enough to stay out of it. Like I know you’ve got a secret. But have I ever asked you about it? No.”

  She’d surprised him. A couple of seconds ticked by before he said, “What?”

  “You’re hiding something. You’re hiding from something. I’ve known it since the moment I first saw you.”

  He met her eyes, his head tilting slightly. “You’ve known a lot since the moment you first saw me.”

  The room suddenly fell quiet. He had just said he knew. He knew she loved him. Embarrassment felt a lot like eating chili peppers. It burned in the back of your throat and there was nothing you could do to make it go away. You just had to take it, suffer from it, until it eased off. When he spoke again, his tone was softer. “I’ll let you get her undressed.”

  Oh, yeah, like that was better. He was feeling sorry for her again.

  As soon as he left the room, Josey sighed and reached down to take off Chloe’s boots. She managed to get Chloe out of her coat and sweater, leaving her in the T-shirt she wore underneath. She then took off her watch and earrings. She tucked the blankets around her, then looked around for something else to do. She wasted some time by folding Chloe’s coat and sweater and putting them at the bottom of the bed. Then she placed her boots by the closet.

  When she knew she couldn’t stay any longer, she finally wal
ked to the bedroom door.

  She took one last look back and saw that there were three books stacked on the bedside table, near the edge, like they were watching Chloe. Josey hadn’t noticed them there before.

  She took a deep breath and opened the door. Adam was sitting on the couch, waiting for her.

  “Give me my keys,” she said, walking up to him. “I’ll drive you back to the bar to get your car.”

  “I’m not letting you go back there.” He jiggled her keys in his hand absently as he looked up at her. “I’ll get Jake to take me in the morning.”

  “Then give me my keys and I’ll take you home.”

  He suddenly stood and brushed by her. “I’ll drive,” he said, walking to the door.

  “I told you, I didn’t drink anything.”

  “I’ll drive.” He opened the door and waited for her.

  This night was never going to end. She walked to the door and out into the hallway. She headed for the staircase, hearing him close the apartment door, then the fall of his footsteps as he followed her. They’d left the car unlocked in the small lot beside the old firehouse building, so Josey got in the passenger side and stared straight ahead as he took his time getting behind the wheel.

  “This is a…nice car,” he said when he started the engine.

  “What?” she turned to him and said defensively, because he said it the way people remarked on tacky furniture. When you drove a car that would make Liberace proud, it usually helped to have a sense of humor, but tonight she couldn’t take it, not from him.

  “It’s a Cadillac,” he said as he pulled out of the lot.

  “So?”

  “Did your mother pick it out?”

  “My mother doesn’t drive. This is my car. I bought it.”

  “You didn’t answer my question.”

  “Yes, she picked it out. She had it specially ordered.” She could have sworn she saw him smile. “Stop looking so smug.”

  “Smug?”

  “Yes, like everything you thought of me has fallen back into that nice safe place you had it before.”

  He seemed to ponder that for the rest of the drive. Soon, he pulled to the curb and stopped behind another parked car.