Shakeup (Stone Barrington #55) - Stuart Woods Page 0,25
came into the room. “Anything else, Mr. Barrington?”
“Yes, Fred. Please drive Lieutenant Jacoby uptown to the Lowell Hotel, then you’re done until seven o’clock.”
Jacoby offered his hand. “Thanks for your help with the hotel.”
“You’ll impress the hotel staff by arriving in a chauffeured car,” Stone said. “All you have to do after that is tip well.” He walked Jacoby to the door. “Are you going to go to your office every day?”
“No, I’ll just call in for my messages.”
“Watch your ass,” Stone said.
“I’ll do that.” Jacoby took his leave.
Stone spent a few minutes dealing with correspondence and messages, then took the elevator upstairs. He walked into the master bedroom to find Lara unpacked and undressed, sitting up in bed with a book from Stone’s bookcase in her lap. She closed it and tossed it aside.
“Now,” she said, patting the bed beside her.
Stone undressed and slid into bed. “I’m right here.”
* * *
—
Patroon was packed, and more people waved at Stone, since the inaugural festivities. Lara saw somebody she knew and stopped for a moment, and Stone sat down in the booth with Dino. “Where’s Viv?”
“Her flight was delayed. She’s coming straight from the airport.”
He nodded toward Lara. “New?”
“Yes, from L.A. Her name is Lara Parks. Peter has cast her in his new film.”
“How are you going to square this with Holly?”
“Holly suggested a while back that we be loyal in our affections only when we’re in the same city.”
“Didn’t I read that she was in L.A. yesterday?”
“Yes, and she stayed overnight. Their paths did not cross.”
“You think that’s really going to work?”
“It’s working so far. We both dislike celibacy.”
“So she’s sleeping with somebody else?”
“I don’t know, and that’s the way she wants it. So don’t bring it up, and I don’t want to hear about it from Viv. Perhaps you could have a word with her about that.”
“I will, but I can’t make any promises about how she’ll take it.”
Lara came to the table, sat down, and was introduced to Dino.
A moment later, Viv entered the room and walked toward their table, her eyes fixed on Lara. She sat down and was introduced.
“So good to meet you, Lara,” she said. “How did you and Stone meet?”
Lara trimmed the pool scene off the beginning of their story. “I’ve been cast in Peter’s next film, and he invited my leading man and me to dinner at his house. Stone was there, too, and when he heard that I wanted to come to New York, he very kindly offered me a lift.”
“Stone is such a generous guy,” Viv said, smiling icily.
“We were chaperoned by Bill Eggers,” Stone said. “We were in L.A. on business.”
Dino whispered something in Viv’s ear. “What would you like to drink, my dear?”
Stone had never heard Dino call her that.
“My usual martini,” she replied. “Dearest.”
Stone winced, but Lara did not seem to have twigged to what was going on.
The maître d’ arrived with menus, and Stone breathed more easily while they studied them.
They ordered, then Lara spoke up. “When Stone and I met, I recognized him immediately from the People photograph of him waltzing with the president.”
“That’s happening all too often these days,” Stone said. “I might have been better off if I hadn’t known how to waltz.”
“Stone,” Viv said, “when did you learn to waltz?”
“My mother sent me to a dancing class when I was twelve. She thought it might make me less awkward with girls.”
“Well,” Viv said, “that certainly worked, didn’t it?”
Everybody had a good laugh, and things went more smoothly after that. Viv and Lara actually got on very well, Stone observed.
22
The following morning, after Stone and Lara had had breakfast and each other, and while Lara was showering, Dino called.
“I’m amazed,” Dino said.
“At what?”
“Viv actually liked Lara. And when I told her about yours and Holly’s arrangement, she thought it was a sensible idea.”
“I’m so glad that we—Lara, Holly, and I—have won Viv’s approval.”
“You damned well ought to be,” Dino said. “Otherwise, Viv would make life hell for both of us.”
“If it helps, you can tell her that, if I have to choose between her approval and the company of women, the choice would be very easy.”
“I am certainly not going to tell her that,” Dino said. “Just try and be happy that Viv is on board with your lifestyle.”
“For how long?”
“For as long as she is, and not a minute later.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Listen, Art Jacoby has checked into the Lowell, and he doesn’t want anyone to know.”
“Yeah, Art and I had