Double Take Chapter 3

He exchanged air kisses with a few familiar faces as he ran the gauntlet of network suits in the lobby. Most of the guests were already there, crowded around a buffet table and an open bar in one of the club's larger meeting rooms. Sandy was waiting his turn at the bar when Darla Palmer came up to him.

"Ashley, I'm so glad you came," Darla said as she pressed her cheek against Sandy's. "Did you come alone?" she asked nervously, looking around the room.

"Yes."

"Oh good. I love Sandy, but it's best for the two of you not to be seen together, for obvious reasons."

"What makes you think I'd want to bring him?" Sandy asked, unable to resist the opportunity to mess with her mind.

"Come on, Ashley, I've got eyes." They worked their way up to the bar, and Ashley ordered a glass of white wine. Darla was drinking straight vodka.

"I like him, but not in the way you think."

"What do you mean?"

"We're just good friends, almost like sisters."

"Sisters?"

"Exactly. I mean, how could I get turned on by a guy who wears lipstick and nylons?"

"Are you telling me he dresses like a girl when he's off the set?"

"Didn't you know? How do you think the poor boy gets through the weekends?"

Darla was shaking her head when Sandy excused himself and walked out of the room, down a narrow hall lined with photographs of long-gone entertainment legends playing golf at Lakeside. Abbot and Costello…Martin and Lewis…Laurel and Hardy…where were Vaughn and Lane? He found himself at the entrance to the deserted billiards room. What a perfect place to kill some time! He racked up and was taking aim at the cue ball when he heard a man's voice. "Mind if I join you?"

Sandy looked over his shoulder to see a paunchy network suit with a bad comb-over. It was Ben Prik. "Why not," Sandy said, as he dropped a ball into one of the side pockets after a clean break. Sandy was a good pool player, and he held nothing back, maneuvering deftly around the table despite the confinement of his long skirt and the nuisance of the gold pendant around his neck. He sank four in a row before he missed a tricky bank shot.