Worth the Weight

by Eileen Palma

  “This is the money shot. Grapevine, The 411, Dirty Laundry and Inside Scoop all had it on their sites before Alex even made it back to the apartment.”

  Kate picked up Sarah Jessica Barker and headed to her room. The poor dog was so sore she didn’t move an inch in Kate’s arms.

  “Why does it look like a ninety-nine dollar David’s Bridal sale in my room?” Kate yelled down the hall. There were rolling racks on each side of Kate’s bed lined with white, cream and ivory chiffon and satin creations. Her heavy iron curtain rods were lined with more dresses, while the remaining few lay across her bed covered in garment bags.

  “Kate Spade, Vera Wang, Badgley Mischka, Cynthia Rowley, Diane von Furstenberg, Marchesa, Oscar De la Renta.” Dana appeared in her room and spread her arms wide, announcing each name as if she were hosting the Oscar’s. “The designers have been sending them over all day.”

  “Holy shit!” Kate knew she should appreciate the tens of thousands of dollars worth of original designer dresses draped across her bed, but all she wanted to do was push them to the floor so she could hide under the covers.

  “I’ve been waiting for you to get home. We have got to try some of these on.” Dana pulled a Kate Spade garment bag off the bed. “I’ve been eying this one all day.”

  Dana grabbed a crisp white spaghetti strap dress that had a full skirt covered in swirls of taffeta flowers.

  “Go ahead. Try it on.” Kate didn’t have to say it twice. Dana slipped out of her sweater dress and stepped into the layers of white.

  “Zip me up.” Dana held the bodice over her tiny sternum and waited while Kate pulled the zipper up the back.

  “Put some of those silver clamps down the back so we can see what it would look like if it fit.” Even the sample size was too big for Dana. She pointed to a clear plastic bag of clamps sent over with the dresses from one of the designers.

  Kate pulled piles of fabric back until the front of the dress hugged Dana’s boyish frame. She cinched the back and when Kate looked up she was surprised to see the layers of material gave the illusion that Dana actually had some curves.

  “Wow. You look amazing!” Kate let herself get caught up in the moment as she admired her friend.

  “Your turn. Try on the silk sheath from Cynthia Rowley.”

  “I’m going to be trying on enough dresses at the photo shoot tomorrow.” This was the first photo shoot in Kate’s career that she was actually dreading.

  “Fine. I guess I’ll have all the fun.”

  Dana looked like a little girl playing dress up in her mom’s clothes while she plopped on Kate’s bed, her tiny body swathed in a swirl of satin and chiffon. She threw herself against the pillows and pulled her feet up to her chest and grabbed her ever present iPad off Kate’s night table.

  “Okay, we have requests coming in from all the reality shows. Say Yes to the Dress, A Wedding Story, For Better or For Worse, Whose Wedding is it Anyway?, Bridezilla, and My Big Fat Fabulous Wedding.”

  Kate just stared at Dana.

  “Okay, if you don’t want to go that route, I’ve got just the show for you. Project Runway!”

  “Project Runway?”

  “The contestants would compete to see who could design you a dream wedding dress and a tux for Alex that would go with it. How cool is that?”

  “Oh yeah—real cool. I make these poor kids work hard designing outfits for a wedding that’s never going to happen!”

  “Oh please. Have you ever seen that show? It’s full of a bunch of cutthroat designers who couldn’t give two shits about you or your wedding. All they care about it is getting to the big finale at New York Fashion Week.”

  “You never told me a reality show would be part of this deal.”

  “I had no idea! What about Top Chef? Same deal except everyone would be trying to come up with the best wedding menu. Or Cake Boss for your wedding cake?”

  “Do I need to keep reminding you that there isn’t going to be a wedding?”

  “But you need to act like there is. That way when Alex dumps you, everyone will be sympathetic.”

  “It’s really hard to sit here and have this discussion when you’re dressed like you belong on the top of a three tiered cake.”

  “It’s probably my only chance in life to wear a thirty thousand dollar wedding dress. Come sit, I bet one of these shows is on now.” Dana shoved aside a chiffon mermaid style dress and patted the bed.

  Kate climbed on the bed, knowing there was no getting rid of Dana till she at least watched one of the shows and pretended to consider it. She could always tell her no in the morning.

  Dana grabbed the remote and flicked the TV on. “How do I get your channel guide?” She flicked past a cooking show, an old Friends episode and the only living daytime soap left on the airwaves.

  “Wait! That’s Jack.” Kate couldn’t believe it. There he was on Straight Talk.

  “He’s with some military guy. Is that his brother-in-law?”

  “I don’t know.” Kate grabbed the remote from Dana and turned the volume up. “Shhh.”

  “Considerable Carriages CEO Jack Moskowitz made the news last month when all the gossip sites linked him to KidFit’s Kate Richards. We all know now that those rumors were false since Kate Richards and her fiancé Alex Lombardi were here just last week talking about their wedding plans. But Jack’s here to talk to us about something that really is near and dear to his heart, strollers for kids who can really use them. He’s here today with Marine Sergeant Martin Sanchez and his son Eduardo.” Lucy Barrows had her bob scooped back into a tight French twist and she was wearing a gigantic strand of creamy white pearls.

  The camera zoomed in on Jack. His hair had gotten longer and his curls were smoothed down with gel which Kate knew wouldn’t last for long. His silvery blue shirt brought out the gray whirls in his eyes and made them almost hypnotic.

  “You know I have to start off by saying something about those rumors. Have you taken a good look at Kate Richards? I have to say I’m really flattered that people would even think I’m in the same league as her.” The audience fell into light laughter.

  “So you’re saying nothing was going on with the two of you before Kate got engaged to Alex?” Lucy Barrows leaned forward, her hands clasped in her lap.

  “Do you really think Kate would take a second look at me when she was dating a guy in his twenties with an eight-pack? Kate and I got to know each other because my niece Lauren is doing a segment on KidFit. By the way, one day you’ll see Lauren in the Olympics taking home the gold in gymnastics.”

  “Now that we have that straightened out. Let’s find out who your friends are.” Lucy cut in with a bright smile.

  “This is American hero Sergeant Martin Sanchez. He’s served one tour in Iraq and two in Afghanistan. He brought his son Eduardo with him today.”

  The camera panned around the live audience who were standing on their feet and applauding. Then it zoomed in on Martin’s son Eduardo who was staring straight ahead, his jaw slack and his eyes blank.

  “How does it feel to get a greeting like that?” Lucy asked over the roar of the audience.

  “It feels great. Especially because I have a lot of buddies back in the Marine hospital watching today while they heal up.” Martin sat ramrod straight in his chair, his head perfectly aligned with his spine.

  “Isn’t that where you and Jack met?” asked Lucy.

  “My brother-in-law David was in the hospital recovering from a helicopter crash,” started Jack.

  “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  “We were pretty lucky. For a while there we didn’t know if he was going to lose his eyesight permanently. But he’s going to be okay and he’s coming home soon.”

  “That’s great news,” said Lucy. “Now tell me how you and Sergeant Sanchez met.”

  “I was in one of the waiting rooms working on my stroller designs when Martin came in pushing Eduardo in this totally souped-up strolle
r. I was so impressed with the modifications Martin made on Eduardo’s stroller that I had to talk to him about it.”

  “What kind of changes did you make?” Lucy rose from her chair and headed over to the stroller.

  “I put shock absorbent tires on so Eddie won’t feel all the bumps, special padding on the arm rests and a bigger foot rest to support his legs better.” Martin walked around the stroller pointing out the features while the camera zoomed in on them.

  “Of course I had to wonder why I never thought of any of those things!” Jack smacked his forehead and the audience broke into laughter again.

  “Does this mean Considerable Carriages is going to start making strollers for kids with special needs?” Lucy asked as soon as the audience died down.

  “Yes, but I need a little help with that. I hired Martin as my personal consultant, but he explained to me that every kid with special needs requires different accommodations.”

  Martin cut in. “Some kids could use softer seats with extra cushion, while others need firmer, more structured ones. Some kids need textured arm rests to help with OT issues while others need smooth ones like Eddie has.”

  “So we’re asking everyone out there who could use one of these new strollers to log on to considerablecarriages.com to let us know what kind of modifications your own kid might need, so I can make sure to include it in my designs.” The camera zoomed in on Jack as he spoke.

  “Are we talking about special order, custom made strollers?” asked Lucy.

  “Yes. I want every parent out there who has a kid with special needs to be able to personally design the stroller that would work best for them,” answered Jack.

  “That sounds like it would cost a fortune.” Lucy Barrows’ collarbones jutted from her black dress as she grimaced.

  “That’s why I have one of my execs working with the insurance companies to see what we can get covered. We’re making so much off the new CC-XL Deluxe that it will offset selling these strollers on a sliding scale.”

  “Thanks for coming in today to tell us about this, Jack. For all of you at home, log on to the Straight Talk website where we have a link to the Considerable Carriages webpage.” Lucy stood to signal the interview was over. The audience cheered as the theme music played and Lucy leaned in to talk to the little boy.

  “Why couldn’t he have thought of this when the two of you were together?” asked Dana.

  “There’s a bottled water shortage across Manhattan as warnings of an out of season hurricane that will rival Superstorm Sandy came from The National Weather Service. Evan Marks, manager of the 53rd Street D’Agostino said the last four cases of bottled water flew off the shelves hours ago. Poland Spring has scheduled extra deliveries to Manhattan. Let’s hope they can get their trucks over the bridges before the storm shuts them down.”

  New York Minute

  Chapter Forty-Three

  “That book report’s not gonna to write itself.” Jack looked up from his computer, which was propped on the picnic table. The sky was clear without a cloud in sight despite all the hysteria about the soon to come hurricane. He wasn’t taking any chances after they had no power or heat for twelve days and ran out of bottled water and food during Hurricane Sandy. The generator was ready to go, and they were fully stocked with bottled water and whatever packaged food Lauren loaded the cart with at Whole Foods. Now they just needed to wait for the storm.

  “Homecoming’s totally impossible to summarize in one page.” Lauren flipped through the book without reading a single page.

  “Nobody told you to pick a four hundred page book to review. I would’ve done one of those Ramona books.”

  “Those are for like second graders.” Lauren rolled her eyes and snapped the book shut.

  “Well you better figure out how to write a review on this book or get cracking on another one. I told your mom you would have this shit done by the time she gets back from the rehab place with your dad.”

  “I can’t believe Dad’s coming home in two days!”

  “That’s why you need to finish. So you don’t have to waste your time doing this crap when he gets home.”

  “Ugh, school sucks!” Lauren groaned, but she flipped open her own laptop and started typing.

  “Why the long face, Small Fry?” Even though the reporters had long since abandoned Jack’s front stoop, Matt had gotten into the habit of scaling the fence rather than simply walking through the front door.

  “One word—school.”

  “Keep it up. You need to get educated so you can work for us one day. We don’t hire stupid people.”

  “Except Matt. He’s our one exception.” Jack ducked as soon as he said it, and narrowly missed one of Matt’s lethal kidney punches.

  “Keep it up and you’ll be peeing blood.”

  “You two are so immature.” Lauren rolled her eyes.

  “I’m not the one who got left back.” Jack took a step back with both arms blocking his kidneys.

  “I wasn’t left back. I have a late birthday, dickhead.”

  “Seriously, man. What’re you doing here? I thought you were visiting your sister in Westchester.” Jack saved the spreadsheet he was working on and closed his computer.

  “Didn’t want to get stuck with her and her douchebag husband when the big storm hits. You got any bottled water? They were all sold out at D’Agostino and Food Emporium.”

  “I have an extra case under the kitchen counter. It’s all yours. You don’t want to run out of water with a pregnant woman in the house.”

  “Yeah, if Uncle Jack and I run out of water we can always drink soda.”

  “I bet you’d love that.” Matt slapped a folder down on the weather beaten table.

  “Oh no. Please tell me these aren’t more changes to the damned steelworkers’ contract.” Jack reached for the manila folder.

  “Forty-five hundred square feet, center hall colonial, six bedrooms, five and a half baths, finished basement, subzero fridge, fenced in yard.”

  “I’m confused.”

  “Ball to the walls!” Matt let out a loud warrior cry that Jack hadn’t heard since their days playing cowboys and Indians back when it wasn’t politically incorrect to call it that.

  “Are you drunk?”

  “No man! It’s called being high on life.”

  “You’re really freaking me out.” Jack opened the folder and pulled out a glossy picture of a traditional looking white house with black shutters and a shiny red door with a brass doorknocker. The bright green front yard had crisscrossing lawn mower tracks and a white walkway lined with groomed antique rose bushes.

  “You’re looking at a real, honest to God homeowner!” Matt pulled out an official looking paper and pointed to his signature across a dotted line.

  “They don’t have houses like that in the Lower West Side. Where the fuck are you moving?”

  “Scarsdale.”

  Lauren pulled the paper from Jack’s hands. “OMG! This is like a mansion!”

  “Aren’t you the one who always says Westchester’s for douchebags?”

  “Well, than I’m one happy motherfuckin douchebag because I have a fifteen year fixed APR mortgage for 529 Red Robin Lane.”

  Jack grabbed the paper back from Lauren. “This doesn’t look like a house you’d be caught dead in.”

  “But it’s a house I could live in with Anne and the baby.” Matt smiled serenely.

  “How do you know she’ll go with you?”

  “Because this is my big Kris Kringle moment here.”

  “This is the weirdest conversation I’ve had with you since we did shrooms that time at the Thanksgiving Day parade.”

  “What’re shrooms?” asked Lauren.

  “Don’t you remember Miracle on 34th Street? The real black and white one, not the shitty remake.” Matt cut Lauren off and shook his head at Jack.

  “Yeah. We watched it with my mom when she was going through chemo.”
>
  “Hello? I still don’t know what shrooms are.” Lauren waved her hands wildly at them.

  “Pipe down, Small Fry. That was the last time I saw it too. To be honest, it made me kind of sad to watch that movie because it’s always reminded me of your mom. But Anne really wanted to watch it the other day, you know with Thanksgiving coming up. Anyway, all the little girl really wants is a perfect house, with a perfect yard in the suburbs. She cuts out a picture of just the right house and shows it to Kris Kringle and says if he’s really Santa Claus, he’ll find a way to get the house for her.”

  “And in the end she gets her dream house and she knows Kris Kringle made it happen because he left his cane by the fireplace!” Lauren piped in. “What? You think you two are the only people in the world who’ve seen that movie?”

  “Well, Anne had never seen it, which is insane. Anyway, we watched it together and she was crying by the end.” Matt smiled sheepishly and Jack knew he must’ve been crying too.

  “Dude, of course she was crying. It’s a sappy movie and she’s pregnant.”

  “I know. But I’m telling you she was crying because that’s what she wants. The house in the burbs and the perfect family.”

  “You just spent millions on a hunch? What if she doesn’t come with you?”

  “She’ll come.” Matt looked just as determined as when he secured their bank loan for the business.

  “You should totally drive up there with her. Pretend you’re going to Westchester to see one of your friends’ new houses. Walk around with her and wait until she keeps admiring how nice it is and then tell her you got it for her.” Lauren waved her arms around as she talked and her voice got louder with each sentence.

  “Good thinking, Small Fry! Clearly, you don’t take after your uncle in the brains department.”

  Lauren grabbed Matt’s arm. “OMG! Wait, I have a better idea! Instead of telling Anne you got the house for her—you need to leave something of yours by the fireplace!”

  “Holy shit! You’re a fucking genius!!” Matt put both hands on the top of his head and shook it back and forth with an ear-to-ear grin.