meaning anyone who has lost their job, anyone who has lost their house, lost their life.
“There are foreclosures happening all over town,” Edie said yesterday. Now semiretired, she is still keeping a close eye on what is going on. “We’re all being asked to go to conferences on short sales and foreclosures. Nothing whatsoever is moving, and everybody is waiting to see what’s going to happen.”
Like vultures, the people in Highfield are waiting for someone in their circle to have their life circumstances changed, someone to feel sorry for, at the same time as having immense gratitude that they themselves are safe.
Nothing like a hint of schadenfreude to make an insecure wealthy housewife feel better about herself.
“Come on.” Charlie smoothes her hair back in the mirror. “They’ll be wondering where we’ve got to.”
“Charlie”—Kit lays a hand on her arm to stop her just as they’re about to walk over to the table—“I want you to know that whatever happens, I’m here to support you.”
“Thanks, Kit. I know. The only thing I’d ask is that you don’t say anything to anyone. As it is we’re having dinner with Tracy tonight because she’s got some business opportunity she wants to talk to us about.”
“Business opportunity? She didn’t say anything to me.”
“That’s because she’s looking for investors and she wants us to invest.”
“Oh well, I guess that’s why she didn’t come to me.” Kit laughs awkwardly.
“Yeah. I wouldn’t take offense. Alice and Harry, from the Greenhouse, are coming too.”
“As investors? ”
“Yeah. Apparently, Alice’s ex is some super-big big shot on Wall Street and she got a big settlement in the divorce.”
“Really? Wow. That surprises me. I guess just because they seem so down-to-earth.”
Charlie nudges her. “And I’m not? ”
“Yes, you are. Very down to earth in your black Range Rover with your—how many karats are those diamond studs in your ears? ” Kit laughs.
“As I’ve told you many times before, the Range Rover is practical for the flower deliveries, and I only wear the diamond studs because they’re pretty. Three.”
“Three what? ”
“Three karats each. Bigger than Melanie Colgan’s. That’s all I care about.”
They grin at each other, for Melanie Colgan is the girl who strives to be chair of all the charity galas, strives to be bigger and better, to have more than everyone else. Both Kit and Charlie try to stay as far away from her as possible.
When Melanie Colgan is in the front row of the yoga class, Kit and Charlie are in the back. When she is holding court on one side of the smoothie bar, Kit and Charlie are on the other.
As Charlie says, “She’s not a bad girl, she’s just trying so goddamned hard.”
They go back to the table and pull out their chairs.
“Why is it,” Adam wonders, “that when women go to the bathroom together they take four times as long as men? ”
“Because we have to powder our noses to look pretty for our men,” Charlie says in a Southern accent. “Don’t flatter yourself thinking it’s because we like to gossip about you, or anything like that.”
“Just checking.” Adam winks at Kit, and they signal for the bill.
“Has Charlie said anything to you about money? ” Adam asks, as they reach their cars.
“Not much. Why? ”
“It’s just that Keith said things aren’t looking good, and he’s worried.”
“Charlie said they were hoping things would be okay. He still has his job, right? ”
“Right, but they’re doing another round of layoffs in the next couple of weeks and Keith is pretty sure he’s going to be among them.”
“She just said their stock was doing badly.”
Adam shakes his head. “Tell me about it. He seems to think that Charlie doesn’t understand how serious it is. Apparently, she bought herself a necklace at Rakers the other day, and that was just after Keith told her they had to rein it in.”
Kit grimaces. She’s seen the necklace. It is beautiful. A Temple St. Clair crystal globe encircled by a vine of tiny diamonds. It looks like it must have cost a fortune.
“I couldn’t help it,” Charlie said to her. “I’ve had my eye on it for months and I was feeling a bit low. It’s just retail therapy, I know, but once I got over the guilt, I did start feeling better. I told Keith it could be an early anniversary gift.”
“That’s some anniversary gift,” Kit said and laughed.
“Anyway, Rakers has never been so packed. All the news is doom and gloom, with people losing their jobs and their houses, but