had always wanted to tell her that. He wanted her to be with him now and he would take her anywhere she wanted to go.
Now, he lost his chance. He wondered if there would ever be another opportunity. Michael knew he could find out her phone number if he wanted, but he thought he would wait until he ran into her again when she was alone somewhere. For now, her dance card looked filled.
When the couple arrived at the party there was a long line of limos dropping off their expensive cargo. Without hesitation, William’s driver sped past the others and pulled right up to a roped-off area to let them out. The museum was all decked out for the occasion and there were some very impressive evening gowns in attendance. Kristen looked over to where a crowd was standing. She could see a few of the princesses who hailed from different countries. They all looked very lovely.
In between dances, Kristen stood shyly in the corner and smiled as William schmoozed with a bevy of socialites. A woman dressed in mint green chiffon came billowing up to her. “So, how did William find you? Yellow Pages?” Kristen shrunk backward. The aggressor continued “I used to date William long before he ever met Liz. We almost got engaged. But he has always cared more about his company, and it is not good business to be involved in a messy divorce. It scares the shareholders!”
Kristen just looked at her blankly and did not comment. The woman started to speak more when William walked up and took Kristen’s hand. He looked unhappy and said “I see you have met Mitzi, the Welcoming Committee.” He gave Mitzi a cold peck on the cheek. William said “I can only imagine what you two are discussing. Let’s go back to our table Kristen.” He ushered her away.
As soon as they reached a safe distance from Mitzi, William let go of Kristen’s hand and without a word, he walked off to speak to a group of his business associates. Kristen felt abandoned again as she made her way back to another part of the room to position herself next to the orchestra. This was not the type of setting that one should be left so obviously alone. Kristen felt very uncomfortable that William seemed to be keeping her away from these friends. Maybe, he really was worried about not being there with his wife, or God forbid, Liz! It was more obvious to Kristen now that she was just a prop when he wanted her. Tonight, it seemed he was trying to look more available to the other women. She felt unwanted and contemplated hiding out in the Women’s Lounge for the rest of the evening.
A waiter came walking towards her carrying a tray of champagne and Kristen stood ready to receive him. She leaned down to lay her silver clutch on the table and when she turned back, her flute was being handed to her by a tall stranger.
“What is an exquisite beauty doing here standing alone?” She was drawn in by the deep voice and looked up at him. His steel blue eyes met hers and she stepped back as she felt overpowered and seduced by a strange coldness. An elegant creature was before her and Kristen felt very small and insignificant in his presence.
She softly thanked him and his hand wrapped around hers as she took the glass. Instead of the anticipated fire, she was surprised when she felt her fingers ice up. She gave a small shudder and the man reached out and gently pulled her evening wrap tighter around her.
He moved in closer on Kristen and slowly isolated her further into a corner. “To whom do I have the pleasure of speaking with?” Kristen was charmed by his English accent and answered “My name is Kristen Stratford.”
He tilted his head to one side and said “I am Karl. Are you the daughter of Arthur Stratford? We were club members at the Whitestone together in Palm Beach. I attended his funeral. I am sorry for your loss. He was such a great man. He always said that he wanted me to meet you. He said that you were special.” Kristen sadly smiled.
They conversed for a short while and then Karl took her glass and walked her over to the orchestra leader. He put his hand on the man’s shoulder and made a request. The music quickly changed from an upbeat tempo to a slow and romantic pace.
Karl led Kristen straight into the middle of the floor and held her at arm’s length as they lightly waltzed. He didn’t say a word as he looked down at her. Kristen had a curious look planted on her face and his remained indifferent, but his eyes never left hers.
William was across from them dancing with someone’s wife as he worriedly viewed Kristen. He turned his partner so that he faced towards them. He impatiently continued dancing, and as the song ended, William quickly headed the couple off as they walked. Karl stiffened and gave a curt smile as William reached to take possession of Kristen. He extended his hand in a firm shake. “Hello William. How are you this evening? I was just keeping your lovely granddaughter company; I hope you don’t mind.”
William emitted a short laugh at the insult and quipped “I thought you liked them even younger and much more obedient Karl. This one is too much of a handful for your likes. So, Karl what brings you all the way here from the UK? Or did you just have an easy flight from your other place in New York?”
Karl answered “Just in for the night to fork over my money like you. William, you must tell me. Where did you find Miss Stratford?” Kristen was enjoying being the center of attention and reached for her glass of champagne. She sipped it demurely as she watched them.
The men continued to politely banter, but neither one cared for the other, nor were they interested in what was being said. Kristen took notice that Karl seemed to command the conversation. William was the first to back off and he made his way to the head table to seek out his allies.
He firmly held Kristen’s arm, keeping her close behind him. He whispered in her ear “There is something off with that guy. I have never liked him.” Kristen was intrigued and she dragged her heels and felt herself pulling back to stay with Karl. Without turning to look, she could feel Karl’s eyes follow her.
For the rest of the evening, Kristen thought about Karl and wondered if he came by himself. She had been so distracted by his glacial charm that she hadn’t even looked at his hand to notice if he was married or not. William stayed steadfast by her side and did not let her out of his sight. As she half-heartedly danced the rest of the night with him, she strained to watch the back of Karl’s head in the distance and see who he was with. He had a never-ending stream of beautiful partners.
There was an abundance of bubbly flowing that evening and poor William never got his dance with a princess, or even a countess. They were too busy being whirled about by the celebrities that showed up. The event was a success and a lot of money was made that night.
Kristen was very tired after the gala and William had an early flight in the morning to Houston. Her car was still parked at his restaurant. The limousine dropped her off in front and the Cabaret valet retrieved her vehicle as soon as he saw them pulling up.
Kristen considered going back inside to find Michael, but quickly decided that he was probably long gone. She would have loved to catch up on things with him. She went home thinking about how wonderful being with William was tonight, at least the party was. She hoped she would be going to all the best affairs with him this year. She especially hoped she would see Karl again!
In the weeks to come, William worked harder at being the perfect boyfriend, but the magic from their first meeting was quickly fading. Kristen knew it had something to do with Karl. It probably just brought out the competitive spirit in him and nothing else. He called her faithfully every day and they spent all his available moments together enjoying each other at either his place or a five-star hotel. But soon that momentum fizzled out just like she knew it would.
Kristen now felt very comfortable at Cabaret. At least all of the staff members thought she had a strong relationship going with William and they always gave her top service. They were mostly glad that there was a possibility that Liz was about to be replaced by this new girlfriend. They told Kristen that Liz was usually pretty nasty to them, even before she met Bensinger. She was very demanding and a complete terror!
William must have been fighting somet
hing fierce with his mistress lately, because he was even bold enough to sit with Kristen and make out with her in plain sight. Kristen felt very uncomfortable with this and tried to subtly pull away from him. She could always feel Lizard’s eyes boring holes into her whether Liz was there or not.
Cabaret was usually filled with celebrities and plenty of men to meet. Kristen was ready to move on. As long as William did not commit to her, she had no guilt checking them out. Who knows what other girlfriends he had? Kristen always enjoyed having free drinks and food with her friends on his tab. But on the downside, William was too busy with his business dealings to pay any attention to her, even when she was standing right next to him.
One late Cabaret evening, Kristen was surrounded by a group of men all dressed in similar suits. About the only people who dressed like that would be the Secret Service. The alleged employees said they were part of the President's advance team. He was going to be in town in a few days and was dining with William. The agents were all probably married, but were very charming, and Kristen was having a great time.
One of the agents was particularly interested in her and was trying to convince her to go to a hotel with him. The others were