Nicholas Sparks - Two by Two

“Let me know when you round up the team of wild horses you’ll need to drag him in there. I want to get a photo.” She winked before glancing at the front door, her way of flirting. “Would you mind bringing in the rest of it?” she asked. “I want to visit with London.”

“Of course,” I said.

She kissed me again and I felt the flicker of her tongue against my lips. Definitely flirting. “There are some more bags in the backseat, too.”

“No worries.”

I began reaching for the bags of groceries as she walked away. Absently glancing toward the backseat, I expected to see more of the same.

But it wasn’t groceries. Instead, the backseat was stacked with bags from various high-end department stores and I felt my stomach lurch. No wonder my wife was in such a good mood.

Trying my best to ignore the sensation in my gut, it took me three trips to unload the SUV. I set the department store bags on the dining room table and I was just about finished putting away the groceries when Vivian wandered into the kitchen. Opening the cupboard, she pulled out a couple of glasses and retrieved a bottle from the wine refrigerator below the cabinet.

“I assume you need a glass even more than I do,” she said while pouring. “London told me you played Barbies with her.”

“She played. I was in charge of wardrobes.”

“I feel your pain. I was there yesterday.” She handed me a glass and took a sip from her own. “How are Marge and Liz?”

Though the shift in tone was subtle, I nonetheless detected a lack of interest in her question. Vivian’s feelings for Marge mirrored Marge’s for Vivian, which was one of the reasons why Vivian tended to get along better with Liz. That being said, although Vivian and Liz were civil and polite to one another, they weren’t exactly close either.

“They’re fine. London really enjoys spending time with them.”

“I know she does.”

I nodded toward the dining room table. “I see you went shopping.”

“London needed some summer dresses.”

My daughter, like my wife, would leave the house dressed as though she’d strolled out of a catalog. “I thought you already bought her summer clothes.”

She sighed. “Please don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

“Fuss at me about shopping again. I’m so tired of hearing it.”

“I haven’t fussed at you.”

“Are you kidding?” she asked, a hint of frustration surfacing. “That’s all you ever do, even when I take advantage of a sale. And besides, I also had to buy a couple of new suits for my interviews this week.”

For a second I wasn’t sure I’d heard her right. “You have interviews this week?”

“Why do you think I’ve been running around like crazy all day?” She shook her head, seemingly amazed I hadn’t figured it out. “And that reminds me-you’ll be able to watch London, right? On Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning? For maybe three hours each day or so? I’m supposed to interview with a slew of different executives at the company.”

“Um… yeah, I guess,” I said, still trying to wrap my head around the word “interviews.” “When did this happen?”

“I found out today.”

“On a Sunday ? On a holiday weekend ?”

“Believe me, I was as surprised as you are. They weren’t even in the office on Friday. I was on my way to my hair appointment when they let me know.”

“Why didn’t you call me?”

“Because after that, I was rushing from here to there and I could barely believe it myself. Isn’t it incredible? I think we should celebrate tonight, but first how about I show you what I bought?”

Without waiting for an answer, she led the way to the dining room and pulled out both suits-one gray and one black-draping them over the chairs. “What do you think?”

“They’re very stylish,” I said. I tried to avoid the sight of the price tags but I couldn’t help it. My stomach did another flip-flop, then flopped again. Dollar signs danced in my head.

“The fabric is fabulous and I love the cut,” she said. “And I got these, as well, to go with them.” Reaching for another bag, she pulled out four blouses, setting them first against one suit, then the other. “The blouses match both suits-I was trying to save as much money as I could.”

I wasn’t sure what to say to that. Instead: “I’m still a little confused as to how the interviews came about. Last I heard, you were just putting out feelers.”

“I got lucky,” she said.

“What does that mean?”

“I called Rob a couple of weeks back and told him I was thinking about getting back into the PR game and he promised he’d let me know if he heard of anything. After that, I called my old boss from New York. Remember him?”

I nodded, wondering why she even needed to ask. We saw the guy practically every night before turning off the television.

“Anyway, he said he’d see what he could do. I didn’t expect much, but I guess he talked to his manager, and his manager ended up calling me back. And, it just so happens that he knew a guy who knew a guy, and I guess my name got passed along to the right people because last Monday, I was talking to one of the vice presidents about a job and she asked me to put in a résumé and three letters of recommendation.”

“You’ve been working on this since Monday? And never mentioned it?”

“I didn’t think it would amount to anything.”

“It sounds to me like you had to have some idea this might be coming.”

“Oh, please. Like I could have predicted any of this.” She began laying the blouses over one of the chairs. “And anyway, I had to scramble for a third recommendation. I wanted someone locally prominent, but I wasn’t sure he’d agree. But sure enough, he came through and I got my paperwork in by Wednesday.”

“And you said the job is in PR?”

“I’d be working directly for the CEO, not so much the company. I guess he does a lot of press conferences and interviews. A lot of his developments are on the coast, and environmentalists are always up in arms. Plus, he’s got a super PAC now, and he’s getting more involved in politics and wants to make sure he’s always on message.”

“Who’s the CEO?”

She paused, running her fingers along one of the suits. “Before I tell you, just keep in mind that I haven’t even been offered the job yet. And I don’t know whether I’d take it, even if they do offer me a position. I don’t have all the details yet.”

“Why won’t you tell me?”

“Because I don’t want you to get upset.”

“Why would I be upset?”

She began slipping the bags back over the suits. “Because you know him. Actually, you’ve worked on some of the advertising campaigns for his company.”

I connected the dots almost immediately. “It’s not Walter Spannerman, is it?”

She seemed almost sheepish. “Actually, it is.”

I remembered how miserable he’d made me; I also remembered his penchant for hiring beautiful women, so the fact that he was interested in Vivian didn’t shock me in the slightest. “You know he’s awful, right? And so is his company.”

“That’s why he wants an in-house PR person.”

“And you’d be okay working with a guy like that?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t met him yet. I just hope I can impress him.”

With the way you look, I’m sure he’ll be impressed, I thought. “How many hours a week are they thinking?”

“Well, that’s the thing,” she answered. “It’s a full-time position. And there’s probably going to be some travel, too.”

“Overnight?”

“That’s what travel usually means, doesn’t it?”

“What about London?”

“I don’t know anything yet, okay? Let’s cross that bridge when we get there. If we get there. For now, can we just plan to celebrate? Can you do that for me?”