Milly Houston Pt. 02a

They walked slowly to the restaurant, not having showered, and both having run low on energy.

"Gosh when you're two of a kind isn't fucking great?" she said, leaning on his arm heavily.

"What kind are we?"

"We both love fucking," she grinned and although they were crossing the street he stopped to kiss her. They received a couple of encouraging toots and crossed unharmed.

Well fed, they returned home and went to bed and slept.

Carlson was kissed awake just after 5:00. He though it was a nudge to a new round of action but was told, "I want you to go to a deli and get a big scoop of three types of olives and a pack of cocktail biscuits."

"Okay, what else?"

"Nothing. I take it you have the wine or mixes you parents like."

"Yes, but what about food?"

"We shall be eating out. Why would we want to cram up with food here?"

"We don't, I suppose. But guys like to eat any time."

"Well you'll have three types of olives. Instead of cocktail biscuits get a pack of plain crackers and a freshly made dip you know you mother would like."

"What about me and you and my father?"

"You heard me."

Carlson couldn't believe it took Milly ninety minutes to have a bath and get ready. He groaned, "This is much too much. We are going to an Italian family restaurant. They serve people who arrive in split jeans, a ripped shirt or top and barefoot. My mother won't be going to this amount of trouble."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Go off and tidy up Carlson if you've nothing better to do that to hound me. I want this place looking spotless."

"It's good enough. Mom won't notice."

"Oh yeah?"

Carlson had the brains to go off and tidy better than his standard of tidiness.

"Ohmigod," he said when Milly came out dress in he knew was urban chic. "You look magnificent. Oh how I could fuck you."

"Oooh," Milly laughed but screamed not to touch her when he advanced.

"Pity mom won't notice. She'll be looking for dust." He then saw the panic and lied, "No she won't, her eyes are bad."

Milly connected up her laptop and arranged things in the office and spent the final twenty minutes until the doorbell rang acting like her pants were on fire. Be when the bell rang Carlson saw an amazing transformation. She seemed to grow half an inch taller, her shoulders went back and her entire face smiled. He thought he was looking at a warrior queen.

"Answer the door please love."

Love? From a warrior queen?

"Hi mom, hi dad. Christ mom, we're not going to the opera."

* * *

Joanne swept in dressed suitably for early winter in long black jersey with probably thick black stockings underneath, a three-quarter coat and beneath that a red waistcoat and beads drooped down to just above her breasts but Milly could recognize diamonds.

"Good evening Mrs Conway-Booth. How lovely to meet you at last. May I take your coat?"

"Yes dear. Those men are in the entrance talking about Charles' new car. God you are beautiful and so tall."

"Yes Carlson and I are the same height barefoot. I guess you know I see him bared."

"Yes dear and how skillfully put. I approved before sighting you and now you have my endorsement. Please call me Joanne."

"Come with me," Milly said, holding out a hand that Joanne took and squeezed just a little.

"Come into my fabulous home office that I'm told you had prepared for me. It is just so lovely. I'd like Carlson to paint you in what you are wearing this evening, but red shoes instead of the blacks you are wearing tonight and your head combed back, with a matching red comb. You have an olive complexion. You would look so memorable."

"Has Carlson told you he's about to paint me for my birthday."

"No."

"Has he told you he's never painted me?"

"No, for goodness sake why not?"

"He told me he's never paint me until he felt he was good enough and he believes that time has come. It is uncanny you have just said what you did. As I was dressing this evening I thought perhaps I might sit in this dress. The changes you suggested make me almost certain that's how I shall pose."

"You don't want him to paint you unclothed?"

Joanne shrieked in laughter."

As they entered the room Milly returned to the door and called out, "Carlson dear, the unveiling."

She returned to Joanne's side and said Carlson began to paint her long before she left the ranch and had since finished it. "He gave it to me this morning but upon hearing you and his father were coming I thought I would intensify my excitement and expectation by waiting to unwrap it when you were here. He's unwrapped it but sat it on this easel with a cloth over it. I want him to perform the unveiling. He's told me he's very, very pleased with it."

"He said very, very pleased?"

"Yes, those were his exact words. Why?"

"I've never heard him express himself so fulsomely over one of his paintings."

"Well he's had time to excel himself out in the wilds hasn't he? He's been snow-bound several times for several days."

"Ah, the unveiling. Mom and dad this work shows...oh dad, this is Milly. Milly, my father Charles."

"Hi Milly. Call me Charles. We'll catch up later," said the graying slim man.

"As you know, the neck is a difficult thing to do and the first requirement is to have a good neck to paint. Milly has a great neck. She also has the darkest green eyes I've ever seen and at the ranch her hair was usually in a mess. I chose her to pose with her body facing slightly to her left and her face turned to look slightly over her right shoulder to allow the optimum visualization of breast, neck and eyes. I painted the hair wild to give the impression of a mountain woman, perhaps a gypsy...certainly of an untamed woman. Just as you guys arrived tonight I saw Milly rise to her full height and her eyes flashed and the title for this painting that that hovered just beyond me grasp came to me...Warrior Queen. Here goes, hope you like it, especially you Milly."

It was a reasonably sized oil painting, the canvas 48 inches deep and 34 inches wide set within a plain antique deep gold metallic frame finished with modest twin-rounded gold borers. Glorious mountains partly under cloud comprised the backdrop.

Although the woman looked untamed, it was so Milly.

Charles was the first to react. Just one word, "Jesus".

Milly burst into tears. Joanne hugged her and cried, "It's great Carlson. Your best to date. You must get it insured."

"It is insured mom for $43,000."

"Ohmigod," Joanne said and began sobbing.

The men look at each other awkwardly. Charles said, "Stay with the women son. I'll fetch drinks. What a momentous occasion. You mother knows art as well you know. It's clear she has the opinion, prejudiced of course, that you have arrived."

Carlson hugged the two women and Milly began kissing him all over his face, murmuring I love it; I love it. Try to sell it to a gallery rather than a private buyer and we can go there and see it."

"The painting is yours Milly. Painted with love."

"No, heavens now. You can't do that. I scarcely know you."

"Enough of this byplay," Joanne said. I'll write you a check for $43,000 darling and I'll place the painting with Milly on loan to hang in this room."

"No, no. You can't do that. Not all that money. You don't even know me Joanne."

"Ah, but I like what I see and not only in the painting Milly. Here's Charles with the drinks. Just kiss me and tell me what a lovely woman I am and then let's get you calmed down. You're almost out of your skin."

"But it's me, that painting is so me and it is so brilliantly executed. I do know a little about art. I want you to start painting your mother tomorrow Carlson."

"Okay, but I best paint her in a bra otherwise I'll be run out of town for painting them hanging so low."

"Milly suggested to me you paint me in what I'm wearing this evening."

Carlson pulled away and stood back, being handed his beer. "Not a bad idea; in fact it would produce the rendition of Joanne Conway-Booth you'd really like. I'd want your hair pulled back severely and want you in red shoes to match that jacket...and buy a Spanish style comb in matching red."

Joanne gaped. "Carlson, tell me that you and Milly had a discussion about painting me in this dress and agreed on accessories."

"No, how can I? What opportunity did we have?" Carlson smiled and said Milly was forever reading women's fashion magazine and had good dress sense. "She's only seeing what any person with an ounce of artistic flair would see with you...your darkish skin and long black hair."

"It's part knowledge and part instinct Joanne," Milly said. "Now are you telling me with your dress sense and wishing to look better than best in the painting, you would not have changed to red shoes?"

"I guess so," Joanne said lamely.

* * *

The book launch was simply a small speech amid a cocktail party. Gran was then invited to speak and she did very well and invited Milly to stand beside her for the photographs. As other people resume sipping cocktails Gran and Milly were interviewed by reporters.

And that was it. Gran was tired so Jennifer and Larry took her back to their hotel where Milly joined them for breakfast next morning and she went out to the airport to wave them off. She was so disappointed. In the different environment of the city the family acted a little like strangers. Everyone was kind and pleasant to one another but it was not the same and Milly doubted whether it would have been much different had Katherine been there. When dressing to fly out Katherine had been called back to the hospital for an emergency. Milly knew what it was: the thing that had brought them together was over. The biography was now on sale, the job was done and Milly and the family had disconnected.

The one really bright spot occurred at the airport when Gran kissed her and said, "The time you spent with me was so enjoyable; you brought me back to life. I'm now feeling rather old again but each night when I look up to the painting for the book cover, a mix of you and me, I think of you and wonder what you are doing and hope you are having adventures. Goodbye my dear friend."

At the start of the cab ride back to the city Milly dabbed her eyes knowing she had no wish to return to those times in Colorado. She had moved forward and was now engrossed in a much more difficult but possibly far more successful biography in terms of book sales. Susan had become catty with her and Milly had created the working title 'Bitch on Skis." God if the publishers let that through, a book with that title would really sell!

* * *

The time had come to put Susan in her proper place. Milly took Elaine to lunch and told her the truth.

"Susan has turned into a disagreeable bitch and is interfering with my work grossly, demanding change after change. I'm now making every change she wants. What was working up into a very agreeable story, in my opinion, is now becoming a personalized sop as if written by Susan's boot-licking public relations officer."

"Oh dear. I am aware this does happen. I seem to recall a biographer shooing his employer but can't remember if the shot was fatal."

"It's not that bad. I have the first five chapters with me. I want you to have them edited ruthlessly with plenty of margin notations."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes. I'll then slap the returned work down in front of Susan and say she is ruining my work with her stupid demands and pettiness. At the outset she'd promised to deliver warts and all and this is not what has occurred. She must stop her interference and read to only change inaccuracies or else I'll abandon my involvement and come to a financial settlement with her parents."

"Susan is known for her fieriness. She'll attack you."

"Oh, I hope she tries. She's becoming a slob, running to fat whereas I go to the gym most mornings and swim distance three times a week. I'll knock the crap out of her providing someone saw her hit me first."

"Darling, break this contract and no one will want to touch you, including our company. Money is involved and none of us like seeing money and high expectations going down the toilet."

"Don't worry. Susan will throw a paddy. Her mom will intervene and Debrecini will tell Susan she has to stop her interference and allow me to finish my task my way."

"Are you sure that will happen?"

"Yes, providing your editor states such things as 'I'm afraid this makes Susan sound far too nice, with no blemishes'... 'Where are the heartbreaks in Susan's life?'... 'Has Susan never been dropped by a guy?'... 'The sex is far too sanitized'.

"Okay Milly, I now see your thinking on this. Give me a couple of minutes while I write down those examples of editing comments you gave me."

"Thanks, but these chapters make such a sop that your editor won't have to struggle to be highly critical."

* * *

Milly met Susan and Debrecini for coffee.

"Bad news I'm afraid from the publishers. They appear ready to pull the plug on this project," Milly said.

Mother and daughter looked shocked.

"I warned you repeatedly Susan the changes and deletions you were demanding were sucking the guts out of the story. Thank god we are only five chapters into it plus the sixth I've just finished. Here, pull your chairs closer and read it together. It's the comments in the margin you must read and at the end of the chapters. All the other markings on the script are normal editing markings. The death knell is sounded in the margins."

"Death knell," Debrecini whispered but Milly eyes remained fixed on the street scene outside, leaving Debrecini to deal with her emotions alone. Milly was relying on Debrecini, knowing she alone had the grunt to save this project.

More to Come