Suzanne liked Jean, but she regarded Jean’s attitude toward her husband’s cheating as pathetic. If Brad ever stepped out on her, she wouldn’t do like Jean did and carry on as usual. No way. She’d pack up and leave in a heartbeat. And she certainly wouldn’t move in with her mother. No, she’d go to the nicest hotel in town, and she’d charge her stay to him.
No way would she ever put up with infidelity.
Chapter 5
By nine fifteen people were arriving every two or three minutes. The band had set up in a corner of the patio and was playing a mixture of jazz and dance music.
Her mother, sister, and brothers were all here. Both Derrick and Matthew had brought dates, but Kenya was alone. Her sullen and scowling expression made Suzanne consider that perhaps she’d been telling the truth about not feeling well when she begged off from helping Paula with prep work. Then again, maybe it was heartburn of the emotional kind, for Suzanne saw no sign of Gregory Hickman. She knew from her mother that Kenya and Gregory had had some type of spat, but that had been weeks ago. She’d fully expected Gregory to accompany Kenya tonight. If the two of them were still on the outs, that suggested a serious rift between them. That could well be the reason behind Kenya’s sour mood.
Suzanne spotted Lisa and Brad when they arrived, accompanied by two couples who were friends of theirs. She had grudgingly complied with Brad’s request to add them to the guest list, but now she enjoyed the impressed looks on their faces as they looked around at her showplace of a home, no doubt trying to figure out what had happened to the wall between the end of the house and the start of the patio area. Suzanne smiled triumphantly. As far as she was concerned, Kim Gillespie and Stacy Prince could talk about her all they wanted. It all stemmed from jealousy, because the looks of wonder on their faces told Suzanne that both women would gladly trade places with her if they could.
The guests smoothly flowed between the two large areas of the family room and patio, mostly sitting in the former and standing in the latter. By now Paula’s staff had set up the buffet table, and at least two people circulated through the party area with trays, offering hors d’oeuvres to the guests. Suzanne was delighted to see how easily the house handled the larger than usual number of guests. The list had swelled to nearly a hundred people, nearly twice as many people as the number they usually hosted, because of the special occasion. Suzanne had recruited the teenagers on the block to serve as valets, and also invited all of the adults in the households on both sides of the street. She then obtained permission to use their driveways to park the excess vehicles.
She kept glancing toward the door as she greeted her guests, eagerly anticipating the Trents’ arrival. She wanted to see Micheline’s reaction when she entered the house. Micheline would leave here tonight convinced that Suzanne and Brad had a relationship that was unbreakable.
She smiled as she heard snippets of conversations about the valet parking plus having to show an admission ticket. She’d read somewhere that the upper crust required this practice to keep uninvited guests or sneaky members of the press from gaining access. With so many people invited, including some she barely knew, Suzanne wanted to make sure some type of crowd control methods were in place, but she also liked the exclusivity factor.
She managed to greet her guests and simultaneously keep an eye on Brad as he greeted Lisa and Darrell. She seethed as he kissed Lisa’s cheek and she placed a hand on his upper arm as she leaned toward him. Lisa looked wonderful, wearing a classic yellow sundress that flattered both her complexion and her still-trim figure. Her short curly ’do was combed away from her face for a dressier look. For a woman in her upper forties, she looked pretty damn good.
Suzanne tried to control the jealousy that never failed to flare whenever Brad’s first wife appeared. After all, Darrell was standing right there and seemed fine with it. He gave Brad an affectionate hug as they shook hands.
Brad then said something to Lisa, who turned to look toward the door. Suzanne’s gaze went in that direction as well. Both Paige and her stepsister and best friend, Devon Canfield, had arrived, each accompanied by a handsome young man, but Suzanne gasped when she recognized Gregory Hickman, Kenya’s estranged boyfriend, as the man whose arm was linked through Paige’s. They were together!
Cold fury filled her as she watched Paige rush up to her father and embrace him. Then Brad shook hands with Gregory and smilingly greeted him. He didn’t seem at all surprised to see Gregory accompanying his daughter, which made Suzanne wonder if he’d known about it. And he hadn’t mentioned a word about it to her. How dare Paige invite Gregory to escort her, here, of all places. How would that make Kenya feel?
Suzanne finally forced herself to look away as Brad moved on to Devon and her date. It wasn’t fair. Gregory had chosen Kenya over both Paige and Devon when they were in high school. How could he reverse his decision now?
This was going to break Kenya’s heart. She had always been crazy about Gregory, who, in addition to being a very nice young man, had been blessed with the best features of his not particularly attractive parents.
Suzanne hated to see her little sister unhappy, even if she did feel that Kenya could do better than Gregory. Gregory had majored in chemical engineering and would likely do just fine—he already had a job lined up with a leading manufacturer in town, due to begin work in mid-June—but Kenya was pretty enough to land someone from a better family, in terms of both money and finesse. All she had to do was put herself into the right circumstances. Kenya’s problem was that she didn’t seem willing to take any steps to improve herself. She wasn’t likely to meet a bright college student or pro athlete while cashiering at Winn-Dixie. Suzanne privately didn’t harbor much hope for longevity in her sister’s relationship with Gregory, which had always been on and off more than the kitchen lights.
Suzanne promptly put thoughts of Kenya aside when she spotted Errol and Micheline Trent at the front door. She studied Micheline’s expression but was disappointed to see that Micheline showed none of the open admiration demonstrated by Lisa’s friends, but at least their arrival got Brad away from Lisa and Paige. He shook Errol’s hand, and when Suzanne watched him bend to kiss Micheline’s cheek, she hastily excused herself and rushed over. It was time to stand by her man.
Crossing a patio full of people she knew took longer than she expected. Suzanne stopped every few seconds to accept compliments on the ambience she’d created. She smiled at a black-vested waiter who offered guests hors d’oeuvres from a silver tray. Another waiter passed a tray with frothy piña coladas, one of several blended rum-based drinks that would be mixed and served over the course of the evening. An assistant bartender deftly worked at the sink of the outdoor kitchen. Suzanne had wanted all drinks to be served in real glasses, but Paula convinced her that wasn’t practical for such a large guest list. Instead she provided high-quality plastic pilsners, wineglasses, and highball glasses, and Suzanne had to admit they worked just as well.
She deliberately took the long way around so she wouldn’t have to stop to speak to the Canfields or Paige. When she finally reached Brad, he was still conversing with the Trents. She possessively linked her arm through his. “Micheline, Errol. Welcome to our home. I’m so happy you could join us tonight,” she said warmly. She might not be able to name the current secretary of defense or even the chief justice of the Supreme Court, but she’d match her hostess skills against anyone’s.
Errol took her free hand and raised it to his lips. “Thank you, Suzanne. You’re looking lovely tonight.”
“Thank you, Errol.”
“You have a beautiful home,” Micheline said politely.
Suzanne wanted to slap her. Not because she’d said anything inappropriate, but because of how fabulous she looked. That white dress with its low neckline in front and daringly low dip at the backside was certain to garner plenty of attention from the men present. Micheline was probably the youngest woman at the party, not counting the barely twenty-one