Then Greer Payne arrived. As was always the case, when Greer walked into a room, all eyes — at least the eyes of all the males — turned to her. No matter how many times she saw it, Margo felt all the air go out of her tires when it happened.
It’s not that Margo didn’t respect her colleague’s skills. She did. The way she felt about Greer was more personal. There was Greer’s laugh that was so completely, flawlessly ladylike; the sound of a crystal bell, really. Then there was the perfectly coiffed blonde hair, the carefully manicured nails, the stylish clothes that always looked impeccable. Greer could make Margo feel rumpled and grubby simply by walking into the room.
As she did tonight. She wore a black linen, V-necked, sleeveless sheath, emphasizing every curve in her well-toned body, with not one wrinkle in it. Didn’t the woman ever sit? A fine gold chain dangled a tastefully sized but-still-large-enough-to-make-you-look diamond just above her cleavage, which could be described exactly the same way.
“Margo, there you are.” Greer had worked her way across the room, fending off drink offers and dinner invitations. “I heard good things about your presentation today. Jeff will be happy he picked you to sub for him, won’t he?”
“Thanks, Greer. I hope he will, yes.”
Greer raked Tony from head to toe with her big, green, artfully made-up eyes, like a cat eyeing a tuna steak. She put her hand out. “Hello, I’m Greer Payne.”
Margo finished the introduction.
“Oh, you were Margo’s partner today, weren’t you? No wonder she did such a good job. She must have wanted to impress you, too.”
“She did that a long time ago,” Tony said. “When we were kids she learned to ride a bike before I did. Impressed the hell out of me.” He grinned at Margo who smiled at the memory.
“You’ve known each other that long? Isn’t she lucky?” Greer had yet to release Tony’s hand. Without breaking eye contact with him, she said, “Are you ready for dinner, Margo? They’re asking us to move to our tables. Please join us, Tony.”
“Thanks, but I’m committed. And Margo, can we finish what we were talking about before you go?”
Margo waited until her colleague had left then said, “What were we talking about?”
“Nothing. But I wanted to ask you to have a nightcap with me at your hotel when this is all over.”
“I’d love to. I’ll even buy to thank you for waiting until Greer was gone to ask. Otherwise I’d be buying for her, too.”
“Is she that close a friend that she’d expect to be included?”
“Oh, yeah. She’s a big fan.” She paused for a beat. “Of good-looking men. I bet she could describe what you’re wearing down to your socks and underwear, but wouldn’t have any idea what I have on.”
Tony cocked his head and furrowed his brow. “I’ve never heard you talk about another woman like that.”
“When I’m around her I feel like changing everything about me and putting her in some kind of plastic bag.”
“Don’t do either. I like you the way you are and if you got caught stuffing her into a body bag I’d have to come see you in prison. I don’t like visiting people in prison.”
She smiled. “I’ll keep that in mind.”