Executive Sweet (A Sample)

"Constance Westerley, pleased to meet you."

"I already got in trouble tonight for asking too many personal questions, but I'm going to chance it again. I hope you don't mind. What do you do?"

"I'm a lawyer. Public defender for the city's poor and downtrodden."

"Very impressive. Do you ever have to go up against your own family?"

"I can't take cases that involve my own family, and yes, it does come up. You can bet I get a lot of grief at work for my last name." Constance eyed Kay. "So what do you do, while we're doing background checks on each other?"

"I'm a negotiator. I work with Dan Avery. He invited me tonight."

"Dan! Nice guy. He's done quite well for himself. I keep trying to get him to be a little more charitable with his big executive salary."

"And is he?"

"Not too bad. His heart is in the right place, but he favors different charities than I do. At least he's not a cheapskate like most of these people." She looked around and scowled.

"You're the first person I've met here who doesn't have bad things to say about Dan. It's refreshing. I'm guessing you never went out with him."

"Date Dan? We're cousins! Besides, he's not my type. I need someone a bit more intellectual who takes life more seriously. Dan's not stupid, but he's too much of a playboy for me."

"Forgive me for being blunt, but how did you get to be so serious? Everyone else here seems to be much more . . ." She grasped for the right word, but couldn't find one that wasn't insulting.

"Frivolous?" She had a twinkle in her eye. "I don't know why, but I became obsessed with the problems of the world and decided to help others. It's hard work though and I can see why public defenders burn out and go for private-sector jobs." She stopped and listened to the music. "Oh! My favorite song. The singer in this band actually does it with a Scottish accent, just like the original. Want to dance some more?"

"No thanks, I'm going to take a walk outside. But it was very nice to meet you, Constance."

"You too, Kay. See you later!" Constance floated back to the dance floor.

How nice. Someone at this party who wasn't shallow, clueless, or greedy. Kay stepped outside and inhaled deeply-the night air was refreshing, and Kay bathed in it. This church wasn't such a bad place, but some of Dan's friends were less than appealing.