Francie stepped into the kitchen at that moment, her smile melting into concern when she spotted her younger sister. “I thought I heard voices. What on earth are you doing here, Lisa? Is it Mom? Is she okay?”
“Why does everyone always think there’s something wrong with Mom? That woman is going to outlive us all.” Lisa sighed. “Mom’s fine. I’m the one with the problem.”
Francie looked meaningfully at her husband, who was wise enough to take the hint. “I’ve got work to do,” he said, “so I’ll say good-night.” Mark kissed his wife’s cheek, flashing her a smile full of promise. “Don’t be too long, okay?”
After her brother-in-law departed, Lisa stuck her finger down her throat and made gagging sounds. “You two are going to make me throw up, if you’re not careful. Are you always like this?” She shook her head, a bemused smile lighting her face.
“Like what?”
“Sickeningly sweet, lovey-dovey, moony-eyed and horny as rabbits? I feel like I’m developing diabetes just being in the same room with you two sweethearts.”
Used to her sister’s outrageous remarks, Francie merely grinned. “We’re newlyweds. What do you expect? I’m sure you and Alex behave in exactly the same way. I’d bet money on it, in fact.”
Not anymore, Lisa thought. “You’d lose. Alex and I have split. We’re kaput, done, finito.”
“What?” Francie dropped into the chair across from her sister, a stunned look on her face. “What happened? I thought you two were madly in love with each other.”
“Love wasn’t the problem, and neither was sex, which was fabulous, I might add. It was his parents. Alex changed once we got to Florida and began living with them.” Lisa detailed her treatment at Miriam and Rupert Mackenzie’s hands. “When he refused to stand up for me, I got fed up and left.”
“But to leave without telling anyone, Lisa. They must be frantic with worry.”
Lisa laughed, though there was no humor in it. “I haven’t heard a peep from anyone, including Alex.” And that hurt; it hurt a lot. After all, she had a cell phone. Of course, the battery was dead, and it had only been a couple of days, but still…
“I guess he must realize, as I do, that our marriage was a huge mistake. I’m sure he’s relieved as hell that I left. It saved him the trouble of kicking me out.”
Francie reached out to clasp her sister’s hand. “I’m sure that’s not true, Lisa. And you shouldn’t think such things. Alex loves you. I’m positive of that.”
“How do you know? You only met him that one time, right before we moved to Florida.”
“Because I saw the way he looked at you. You can’t pretend love. It was there in his eyes, for all the world to see.”
“Oh, pleeze! You are going to make me throw up. I doubt there’s any such thing as love. Okay, maybe you and Mark have the genuine thing. I’m not sure what Alex and I experienced, probably lust. After all, the sex was fabulous—but you can’t expect sex to make up for all that was lacking in our relationship.”
Francie arched a skeptical eyebrow. “Such as?”
“We have nothing in common. Alex comes from money, oodles of it. He’s never experienced hard knocks, rejection or parental disapproval. He works for his father’s company; they think he walks on water.”
“So what’s wrong with that? Lots of children work for their parents.”
“The Mackenzies’ blood isn’t blue, France, it’s positively green, as in greenbacks. They’re into all sorts of social activities, like the country club and yachting. Hell, I can’t even swim. I nearly drowned in the kiddy pool at the club. Miriam was not pleased.”
“But you knew about the differences between you and Alex before you married him. You knew he was a mortgage banker and a great deal more conservative than you could ever hope to be. In fact, I worried at your decision to elope. Alex was definitely different from the other men you’d dated.”
Lisa was thoughtful for a moment as she sipped her beer. “I guess I wanted to impress Mom and Dad, be the kind of daughter they wanted. You were getting married to Mark, and I wanted to share in some of the adoration and attention. Pathetic, huh?”
Francie sighed, concern for her sister etched on her face. “Oh, Lisa…”
“Or maybe I thought I had fallen in love and wasn’t paying attention to the differences in our personalities and upbringing. I don’t really know. I just know I screwed up. Big-time.”
“What do you intend to do?”
“Well, originally I was going to ask you for a place to stay until I could get things worked out financially, but then Leo pointed out that might not be a very good idea, so I’ve been staying at his apartment all weekend, trying to come up with a plan.”
Eyes widening, Francie said, “You and Leo? Now there’s an odd couple if there ever was one.”
Offended, Lisa stiffened. “What do you mean?”
“Leo is a compulsive neat freak. Your messy ways will drive him nuts.”
“Oh that.” She waved away her sister’s objection with a flick of her wrist. “He’s already made a few comments about water rings on the table and toothpaste caps being left off. Jeez! Leo’s worse than Mom.”
“How long are you going to live there?”
“Leo’s offer is only good for the weekend, but I’m hoping he’ll give me a permanent place to stay after he sees how well we get on. I’m trying to impress him.”
“With what? You don’t clean. You don’t know a thing about wine. And I don’t need to point out that you’re the wrong sex.”
Lisa made a face. “Like Leo, I like to party and have a good time. And we share a love of toffee peanuts, not to mention that I’m a big Cher fan.”
“Yes, you and Leo are well suited in that way.” Francie shook her head. “I’m not sure, however, that peanuts and parties will be enough to lure him to your way of thinking, Lisa. It takes him a while to warm up to people.”
“Maybe you can help. Put in a good word for me.”
“I’ll see what I can do, but don’t expect me to work miracles. Leo knows you better than you think.”
Lisa brightened instantly. “That should go in my favor then, right?”
Clearing her throat, Francie hesitated, then nodded. “Uh, yeah, right.”
ALEX DROPPED his black leather carry-on bag in the front hallway of Bill Connor’s Philadelphia apartment, where he’d arranged to stay temporarily.
Bill was his former college roommate, and they’d always gotten along well, sharing similar views on politics, movies and music. The one thing they differed on was women—Alex admired them; Bill consumed them.
“I really appreciate your putting me up, Bill. It’s been a long time since Harvard.”
“What are old roommates for?” the lawyer said, nodding toward the kitchen. “Come on in, your room’s all ready. I admit I was surprised when you called out of the blue last night. It’s been what, three years since our last college reunion?”
“Four, actually. Time flies when you’re having fun,” Alex said, sarcasm edging his words.
Lisa had only been gone three days, and he missed her like crazy. He’d fought the urge to phone, to beg her to come back…fearing what her answer would be. He’d come to Philadelphia so he could reason with her, show her how much he loved and wanted her back.
Grabbing two Bud Lights from the refrigerator, Bill handed Alex one and they headed into the living room, which reeked of Pottery Barn