Talk of the Town by Sherrill Bodine Read Free Book Online Page A

cheeks. “How did you find out? Damn, I hope the news isn’t all over town! If the
Courier
gets hold of this first, there’ll be hell to pay. David’s people are planning a big splashy announcement on Friday.”
    “Remember when you
paid me
to know everything, Tim. Obviously the deal is done, since he’s calling all the shots. Isn’t he?”
    Tim took a stab at looking stern. “Yes. Yes, he is. And brilliantly. Reader response was favorable to your Sunday recipe column. You will be happy to know he has authorized judicious use of your gossip notes.”
    Blood rushed to her head, making her feel giddy.
I can’t let him see what this means to me.
As always, she tried to heed what her granny always said about people only knowing what she was feeling if she let them.
    Rebecca shrugged as if this meant nothing instead of everything. “
Of course
he liked the column. We knew he would.” She glanced at Kate, hoping she’d play along, and she returned the look with absolute serenity.
    “Yes, I thought he would be pleased,” Kate said briskly. “This morning, advertising informed me Rebecca’s column is already generating new income for the Home and Food section. One of the paper’s bigger clients, LuLu’s at the Belle Kay, ordered all its ads to be enlarged and placed directly under Rebecca’s recipe column on Wednesdays and Sundays. The revenue from that account has now doubled.”
    Tim winked. “I told you David Sumner’s a brilliant businessman. But don’t push it, Rebecca. Judicious use of those gossip notes,” he warned again before strolling away.
    “You were fabulous!” Rebecca gushed, in awe of how well Kate had played along. She should have known any woman who kept her bottle of Prozac next to her Pulitzer had to be unflappable.
    Kate leaned forward across the desk and grinned up at her. For the first time Rebecca noticed a mischievous glint in her brown eyes. “You look shocked. No one here knows, but I’m a killer poker player. I plan to tell people we’re revolutionizing the Home and Food section, as well.”
    Embarrassed, Rebecca groaned. “You know about the stories I was spinning all along Oak Street. But I was serious about taking you shopping.”
    The mischief faded from Kate’s eyes. “I think not at my present weight. It’s time to get back down to business. I do agree a conventional recipe for Wednesday would be best. Keep them wanting more.”
    A thousand delicious ideas were dancing through Rebecca’s head. There was one
fabulous
gossipy note she was dying to use while the fire of rebellion against David Sumner was still blazing hot. For Kate’s sake, she’d rein in some of her giddy enthusiasm.
    “I promise. But to celebrate, I buy us lunch tomorrow and then we stop at LuLu’s to thank Laurie for those huge ads. You’ll love the store. The decor is wonderful. You should do a story on it for
our
revolutionized Home and Food section.”
    Her poker face on once again, Kate nodded. “All right, but no shopping.”
    Barely containing her glee, Rebecca slipped around the ridiculously shoddy partition of the cubicle and slid onto her incredibly uncomfortable swivel chair.
    The wisp of sadness about weight had been impossible to miss in Kate’s voice and in her eyes. Rebecca had read that mood-altering medication could cause weight gain. It was time for Rebecca to call a temporary cease-fire in her war with David Sumner and keep her vow to help Kate with fashion choices. She picked up the phone to tell Laurie they were coming for a makeover. Tomorrow there
would
be shopping for Kate. She deserved some fun.
    The next day Kate followed Rebecca into LuLu’s at the Belle Kay, advertised in the
Daily Mail
as Chicago’s most extraordinary store of vintage clothing and accoutrements.
    They fought their way through the door, past customers leaving, arms full of fabulous finds. Women stood three deep at the register to purchase one-of-a-kind vintage treasures.
    Kate pushed her glasses high