“Look who’s here!” whispered to me Elly, holding her breath soon as we sat down.
“Where?”
“There! Two tables to the right!”
“There are tons of people. Who are you talking about?”
“The cutest one, obviously!”
“The dark-haired guy with a Hollywood smile?”
“Yes.”
“Well, he is cute. Handsome. Stands out. And who would he be?”
“Darn it, Eva. Do you ever watch news or read magazines?”
“Everything you just said is so last year…”
“I see,” Elly rolled her eyes a little too theatrically. “This is Andrei B. I’m not telling you his last name… A name that loud, you will fall off your chair. And stop acting so restlessly!”
“I am not acting restlessly. The dress is way too short, I’m trying to get comfortable. So, who is he?”
It was quite annoying the way Elly chose to speak riddles to get me to ask more questions. It allowed her to dispense information slowly with a smart, professor-like face.
“This is one of the richest guys in the country…maybe world!”
“Huh! I am shocked. He… and every other man here.”
“You know what your problem is? You manage to always miss the most interesting because you think you know everything better than anyone else.”
“Go screw yourself.”
“Not only is he incredibly rich, Eva, he’s also one of the most generous and refined man on the planet…”
“And you know this how?”
“I have my own sources,” Elly said looking important, “…my nails lady told me. You know, that one Sasha goes to.”
“What Sasha? My driver?” Eva laughed.
“Ha. Ha. Ha. – she took a little pause – Well, you don’t really know her. Anyway. She’s the owner of a beauty salon, and an art connoisseur. In other words, wife of a rich old fart.”
“And you share the same nails lady with her????”
“You think I should change her?”
“Just think. If she gossips about that Sasha, what kind of things about you she tells others?”
“Darn. I didn’t think of that. There are certainly things about me….”
“Are you serious?” Eva cut her friend short.
“You know, nails lady is sorta shrink. Don’t you ever talk about yourself with yours?”
“No!”
“Wow. What a strength! O.K., I’ll think about it tomorrow,” frowned my Scarlett O’Hara wannabe friend. “So, Sasha said she had met Andrei at one of the private parties she used to go to before she met her old fart. She and the other girls there were from a modeling agency specifically invited to that event. So, he kinda liked her, they hung out for a couple of days and then he asked…”
“I thought you were gonna say dumped…” interrupted Eva.
“He did, eventually. Why the hell would he need her for anything serious?”
“So, what are you getting so excited about then?”
“He ASKED her what she dreamed of? Sasha said she wanted to have her own condo in the heart of Moscow. And you know what happened?”
“Let me guess. He bought her a condo!”
“Exactly! Inside the condo was a porsche panamera, too. But that’s not the point —” Elly was barely whispering now, “-Sasha says, with a man like him, she would…. have fun… without all these extra perks… you know what I mean?”
“You mean… because he’s handsome and generous?” I was confused.
“Girl, I feel sorry for you sometimes! It’s time you get rid of your innocence. You sound like a child, honestly,” Elly hummed with betrayal. “He is very good in bed. I hope you don’t need any extra explanations on this one!”
“Fuck. You.”
“Oh come on! It was a joke. Where’s your sense of humor? – she smiled. – well anyways… returning to the subject! You know, such a high opinion coming from a whore… it must mean something.”
“Elly, no offence, but I am not gonna listen to this dirty shit. It literally makes me physically sick.”
“What dirt are you talking about. Just look at him. He’s a high-breed. Wealthy and generous. And hot. It’s a rare combination even in movies…” Elly sighed romantically. “Look at his gaze, so deep. Imagine how much he could tell… or show…”
“Listen to you… you’ve found a modern days Pygmalion.”
“Right on point!”
“I was just kidding…” I started to say, but Elly didn’t let me finish.
“Look at who just came to to sit at the table next to him! Alan’s dad and his friends. Tonight, an oligarch at every table.”
“I couldn’t care less. Stop looking around like a savage villager. I hope you’re done with your nails lady’s stories, right? Seriously, I’ve heard enough!” I really did start to get frustrated. What I do want to know is where is Vlad?”
“Oh, don’t remind me of him. I hope his tires will get flat or something… Hope he’ll be late. Wish he wouldn’t show up at all!”
“How can you say this?!”
“Well, he’s got us a table here, payed for it. The rest is irrelevant. He doesn’t have to be here,” Elly was looking right through me with a dreamy smile on her face. “Yes!!! Yes!!! He looked!!! He just looked over! Ever so discreetly but I saw it!” she was whispering full of excitement.
“Who?”
“Who I was just telling you about?”
“So, what?”
“Well, if he comes say Hi, I won’t mind…”
“Oh Elly,” I sighed and decided to massage Vlad to see what the holdup was. While I was sending the message, a hostess approached our table. Bella and two girl friends of hers were following. The hostess gave us what seemed like a condescending look and went away.
“What the hell is that?” Elly hissed through her teeth.
“No idea…” I wasn’t any less surprised.
“Hi there, girls” Bella greeted us with her usual mannerism is the voice. Her two friends smiled nicely.
“Hi there,” I tried to sound friendly in contrast to Elly whose face was green with anger, matching her emerald dress.
The message came through:
“Training ran late. David and his friend might beat me.”
“With three friends,” I said quietly to myself, having read the message.
“What?