Diva 03 _ Diva Paints the Town, The by Krista Davis Page B

“I hate these things.”
    “They won’t work down here. Something about the steel and the way the convention hall is constructed.”
    She laughed. “Just yesterday I was saying how pleasant it was that people weren’t gabbing on their phones. No wonder. Listen, have you seen my husband?”
    “Sorry.”
    “If you do, tell him I’ve withdrawn his booth from consideration for the prizes. Iris Ledbetter is having a hissy fit about people voting for Nolan’s booth just because I’m president of the Design Guild. It’s all so ridiculous. Nolan couldn’t decorate a hatbox. The only thing he could ever win would be the prize for most expensive furnishings.”
    I hoped I didn’t show my surprise at her acknowledgment that his furniture carried outrageous prices. I must not have concealed it, because she said, “Oh, give me some credit, I’m not blind. I wouldn’t shop at his store. That place has been nothing but a money pit since the day it opened.” She switched gears without missing a beat. “Everything ready for tonight?”
    “I think so. I was just on my way to discuss the switch-over to tables for the banquet.”
    “Great. Be sure they understand that the lights are to go down so they can put spots on the winning booths as they’re announced.”
    Camille bustled off, and I headed for the center of the convention hall. Since the awards for the best booths were being given at the banquet, the Guild had chosen to group the gorgeous garden landscapes in a cluster around a park-like area. During Rooms and Blooms, visitors could rest, relax, and enjoy a cup of coffee among the flowers. When the doors closed behind the last visitor, the hotel staff would move the park benches out of the way and bring in round tables and chairs for the banquet. The man in charge of making the switch waited for me in front of Ted’s backyard cottage. He assured me all systems were go.
    At five o’clock, the last of the visitors were shooed out. Like magic, hotel staff appeared and began to transform the park. I watched them for one hour to be sure they had the right idea. When it seemed they had everything under control, I hustled home to change clothes for the banquet.
    I’d planned to wear spring colors in keeping with the spirit of Rooms and Blooms, but now that I knew Wolf would be there with a woman a hundred pounds thinner than me and much younger, I felt a pressing need to try to look sophisticated. I couldn’t erase the years or the pounds, but I could try to appear pulled together.
    Recalling Natasha’s words about my ponytail and lack of makeup, I lined my eyes with a smudgy pencil, used mascara, dusted powder on my face, and curled my hair. I slid into a simple black sheath that always made me feel confident and added rhinestone earrings that I usually reserved for only the dressiest occasions. When I looked at myself in a full-length mirror, I wanted to scrub my face, but the image of that slender, raccoon-eyed cop kept popping into my brain. I couldn’t compete with her and didn’t want to. If Wolf wanted a younger woman, then maybe it was time to forget about him.
    I took a few deep breaths to clear my head and emotions, slipped into higher heels than I would normally wear at a function where I might have to walk a lot, and stepped carefully down the stairs. Mochie was curled up in his favorite chair by the kitchen fireplace. I added a little food to his dish, which probably infused me with the delicious scent of eau de stinky tuna, and headed back to the hotel.
    When I arrived, the tables and chairs were in place, and were being set with the Valentine red tablecloths and stark white china selected by Camille. Right on schedule, the florist delivered potted azaleas that would be given to the winners along with the Design Guild’s crystal Award of Excellence. Lined up across the foot of the podium, the masses of red and white flowers on the azaleas added a festive punch of color. In a nod to living green, Camille