Free Mrs. Perfect by Jane Porter

day!” Monica squeals, catching a glimpse of Suze’s calendar. “Hair, hair, facial, wax, wax, pedicure, manicure, massage? You’re kidding, right?”
    Suze’s lips curve wryly. “It is a long day, but Jefferson loves it, especially the after-the-wax results.”
    “How much do you wax?” Raine asks curiously.
    Suze’s slim, straight shoulders lift and fall, her long hair a perfect streak of pale gold. “All of it. Jefferson likes me bare and baby smooth.”
    “And how often do you get it done?”
    “Every four to six weeks.”
    Raine points to Suze’s crown. “What about that hair?”
    “Every four weeks on the dot.”
    “Pedicure and manicure?”
    “Every two weeks.” Suze, seeing the wide eyes, laughs. “I wouldn’t do it, or be able to afford it, if it didn’t mean so much to Jefferson. He loves me to be groomed.”
    “Groomed, yes,” Ellen answers with a faint frown, “but that’s . . . that’s . . . some serious time at the salon and spa.”
    Suze glances around. “But don’t you all get your hair colored and blown out every three or four weeks?”
    Most of us murmur agreement.
    “And nails? Come on, I know we all get regular pedicures. I’ve seen your toes all summer!”
    Patti sighs. “I’d do more massages if I could. Facials do nothing for me, but massages . . . Ah. Heaven.”
    “God, I’d pay for a happy ending, too,” Ellen whispers with a wicked quirk of her lips. “I don’t know if it’s being in my mid-thirties, but I’m revved up all the time. Unfortunately, Mark’s not interested. I suppose having just me in his bed for the past eighteen years has dulled his appetite considerably.”
    “It’s the stress of the job,” Jen says with a shake of her head even as she puts her hand on Ellen’s forearm. “Anthony is so tense all the time. The only time he wants sex is when we’re on vacation.”
    Heads nod. “Vacations make sex new,” Kate agrees.
    “Hotel rooms make it new.” Suze giggles. “This summer when we were at the house in Canon Beach—” She breaks off abruptly, her gaze fixed to Lucy’s face.
    We all turn and look at Lucy. Her lips are slightly parted. Her expression is stricken. She looks as though she’s being skinned alive.
    Swiftly I go over the conversation. What could have upset her? And then I realize: sex, husbands, and hotel rooms.
    Just then my attention’s caught by Nathan’s shadow in the hall. He’s directing the girls up the stairs to their rooms.
    “We’ll meet Thursday, then,” Ellen says quickly. “Jen, it’s your turn to host, right? And Raine, your book pick. Have you selected a title, or will you let us know by e-mail?”
    “I’m still trying to decide,” Raine says, clicking her pen. “I’ll send out an e-mail and let you know sometime this weekend.”
    “Great!” Patti answers with a little more enthusiasm than necessary. She closes her minicalendar and slides it back into her purse. “I look forward to the next meeting, and now I better get home. I promised Don I’d help tuck the kids into bed.”
    Everyone’s on her feet, quickly gathering purses and books before giving hugs and kisses, and then in one big group they’re out the door and heading for their cars.
    As the front door closes, Nathan comes back down the stairs. “How did it go?” he asks.
    My shoulders lift. “Good. I guess.” I glance toward the door and picture Lucy’s silent agony. “I think Lucy’s having a hard time, though. I should call her. Make sure she’s all right.”
    “You should.”
    I’m about to turn away when I suddenly remember the Welcome Coffee and my conversation with Amelia. “I met someone last week, Nathan, at the Welcome Coffee. She said her husband works with you. Christopher. He’s apparently a vice president at McKee, too.”
    Nathan’s expression is blank. “What’s his last name?”
    “I don’t know. They moved from L.A. I guess they’ve been up here a while, but until recently they lived on the