church, although he did
not want to go. He needed to go to the office and bury himself
in paperwork. The Vitasoft people kept calling, asking questions,
offering vague, unsettling comments. He needed to give them
answers. Needed to focus.
But every time he closed his eyes he saw that bottle sitting
on the counter. Why had he left it there?
Andie's groans brought him back to reality. One more reason
he didn't want to go to church today-she looked ridiculous.
In some ways, he welcomed the changes this week had
brought in her. Some issue with one of her charities had given her the drive to get up and going again. That fact alone improved
life at home. Not perfect, but at least he wasn't coming in from
the office to find her still in sweats, with candy wrappers and
ice cream bowls sitting all around her.
But this deal with Mattilda Plendor overshadowed many of
the changes for the better.
Andie had always dressed in classics, and he liked that. Even
when some of her friends started moving toward high-end fashion, she resisted. She never looked gaudy or tacky, always elegant
and ladylike. Until now.
Today she wore a dark green dress that looked as though a
freshman failing remedial Home Ec had sewn it. The hemline
was shredded, hanging in stringy long panels of every length
and width. The material would have been less out of place
marching in a military parade. Perhaps the designer of this
particular number had taken out her frustration on some armysurplus fabric and decided to make a little money off the result.
She was probably perched right now in a penthouse on Park
Avenue, laughing at the fool who would pay for such a scrap
as high fashion.
Andie spun around and took one last look in the mirror. She
scrunched up the right side of her face. "I hate this dress."
Blair breathed a sigh of relief. She'd go change, and at least
one of his problems would be solved. He stepped aside to clear
the way to her closet. She didn't move.
He'd been married long enough to know that the wrong words
in a situation like this could land him in husband detention for
weeks to come. Think. Choose your words with prudence. No
need to create more problems than you have already.
He made a point of looking at his watch. Taking care to speak
in his most oblivious husband tone so she wouldn't see how he
strained at the truth, he yawned. "Really? Well, we've got a few
minutes. Just enough time to don a new outfit."
Andie turned and looked over her shoulder into the mirror. She patted her rear end with both hands. "Talk about
unflattering."
He couldn't have agreed more. "You need to get moving if
you're going to change. We need to leave soon."
Andie pivoted away from the mirror and grabbed her purse.
"I can't." She rushed through the bedroom and out into the
hallway.
Blair groaned. By the time he made it through the door, she
was halfway down the stairs. He knew that to say any more would
move dangerously close to explosive grounds, but the ugliness
of the ensemble caused him to take the risk. "Why not?"
"Why not what?" By this time she had reached the bottom
of the stairs and turned to look up at him.
"Why can't you change?"
She shrugged. "Hattie would be upset." She turned and
started walking toward the garage.
Blair jumped over the last three stairs and rushed up beside
her. "Hattie?"
She kept moving.
"What about you?"
When she didn't seem to hear him, he put a hand on her
until she turned. "You've said you don't like the dress. You just
said it's unflattering. Why would you let that woman bully you
into wearing something that you will only feel self-conscious
about?"
Andie's eyes cut toward him, a flash of anger showing. "The
same reason I let everyone around here bully me into doing
things I don't want to do-and not doing the things I do want
to do." She flung open the door to the garage. "Funny how no
one complains until someone else is doing the bullying." She
shoved through the
not want to go. He needed to go to the office and bury himself
in paperwork. The Vitasoft people kept calling, asking questions,
offering vague, unsettling comments. He needed to give them
answers. Needed to focus.
But every time he closed his eyes he saw that bottle sitting
on the counter. Why had he left it there?
Andie's groans brought him back to reality. One more reason
he didn't want to go to church today-she looked ridiculous.
In some ways, he welcomed the changes this week had
brought in her. Some issue with one of her charities had given her the drive to get up and going again. That fact alone improved
life at home. Not perfect, but at least he wasn't coming in from
the office to find her still in sweats, with candy wrappers and
ice cream bowls sitting all around her.
But this deal with Mattilda Plendor overshadowed many of
the changes for the better.
Andie had always dressed in classics, and he liked that. Even
when some of her friends started moving toward high-end fashion, she resisted. She never looked gaudy or tacky, always elegant
and ladylike. Until now.
Today she wore a dark green dress that looked as though a
freshman failing remedial Home Ec had sewn it. The hemline
was shredded, hanging in stringy long panels of every length
and width. The material would have been less out of place
marching in a military parade. Perhaps the designer of this
particular number had taken out her frustration on some armysurplus fabric and decided to make a little money off the result.
She was probably perched right now in a penthouse on Park
Avenue, laughing at the fool who would pay for such a scrap
as high fashion.
Andie spun around and took one last look in the mirror. She
scrunched up the right side of her face. "I hate this dress."
Blair breathed a sigh of relief. She'd go change, and at least
one of his problems would be solved. He stepped aside to clear
the way to her closet. She didn't move.
He'd been married long enough to know that the wrong words
in a situation like this could land him in husband detention for
weeks to come. Think. Choose your words with prudence. No
need to create more problems than you have already.
He made a point of looking at his watch. Taking care to speak
in his most oblivious husband tone so she wouldn't see how he
strained at the truth, he yawned. "Really? Well, we've got a few
minutes. Just enough time to don a new outfit."
Andie turned and looked over her shoulder into the mirror. She patted her rear end with both hands. "Talk about
unflattering."
He couldn't have agreed more. "You need to get moving if
you're going to change. We need to leave soon."
Andie pivoted away from the mirror and grabbed her purse.
"I can't." She rushed through the bedroom and out into the
hallway.
Blair groaned. By the time he made it through the door, she
was halfway down the stairs. He knew that to say any more would
move dangerously close to explosive grounds, but the ugliness
of the ensemble caused him to take the risk. "Why not?"
"Why not what?" By this time she had reached the bottom
of the stairs and turned to look up at him.
"Why can't you change?"
She shrugged. "Hattie would be upset." She turned and
started walking toward the garage.
Blair jumped over the last three stairs and rushed up beside
her. "Hattie?"
She kept moving.
"What about you?"
When she didn't seem to hear him, he put a hand on her
until she turned. "You've said you don't like the dress. You just
said it's unflattering. Why would you let that woman bully you
into wearing something that you will only feel self-conscious
about?"
Andie's eyes cut toward him, a flash of anger showing. "The
same reason I let everyone around here bully me into doing
things I don't want to do-and not doing the things I do want
to do." She flung open the door to the garage. "Funny how no
one complains until someone else is doing the bullying." She
shoved through the
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