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“I’ve never seen her before. Maybe she’s a guest of someone else from the firm.” I tried to sound nonchalant. “Well, have fun. I’m going to mingle a bit.”
As I made my way over to Leo and the mystery woman, I was stopped several times by people thanking me and telling me what a wonderful party it was, but Leo and the blonde were still talking when I finally reached them. It took a minute before they seemed to register my presence, and he turned and looked at me.
“Joanna, this is Piper Reynard from the recovery center, the one who tried valiantly to persuade me not to give up on meditation.” They both laughed.
“To no avail,” Piper said, giving Leo a conspiratorial look, suddenly making me feel as though I’d intruded on a private joke.
Leo went on. “She’s new in town, so I thought this would be a good way for her to meet some folks.”
I was surprised and a little stung that he hadn’t mentioned inviting her to me. She was gorgeous, with chiseled cheekbones, luminous blue eyes, and a fine straight nose. She had a face to rival any actress’s. Why had I insisted he go to that damn class? I smiled at her, hoping she couldn’t sense how dumpy I felt next to her, and reached out a hand. “Welcome. So nice to meet you. I’ve been meaning to check out the Phoenix Recovery Center.”
“You should come by. I’d love to offer you a complimentary class.”
“Thanks. That sounds great,” I said, trying to sound sincere,but I wasn’t a fan of yoga. And her ease around Leo—not to mention her striking looks—was making me uncomfortable. “How long have you been in Westport?”
“I moved here in January, but I’ve been so busy with the business, I haven’t had time to make many friends.”
“Oh, where did you move here from?”
She hesitated for a second. “The West Coast. But I’ve moved around a lot. It’s been hard for me to put down roots. It’s so beautiful here that I’m hoping I finally can. Have you always lived in the area?”
“Yes, I was born in Connecticut. Pretty unadventurous, huh?” I said.
“Adventure can take many forms. You can take a journey without traveling a mile.”
“That is so true,” Leo said, looking at her as though she’d just solved the riddle of the Sphinx. He was normally so pragmatic.
I forced a smile again. “Well, nice to meet you. There’s plenty of food and drink, so I hope you’ll dig in,” I said, even though it looked like she didn’t eat at all. She had to be a size two or zero in those little tan shorts, her long legs shapely, without an ounce of cellulite, and arms as buff as they could be. I turned deliberately to Leo.
“Leo, I think Stelli wanted you to see his lion face. He just had it painted.” I looked at Piper. “Stelli loves his daddy so much—they’re like two peas in a pod.”
“Well, I’d better go check on my boy. Enjoy yourself,” Leo said as he walked away.
As he moved through the guests, Piper’s eyes never left him. I wasn’t surprised. Women had always been attracted to Leo, some even making it clear they didn’t mind that he was married. There was one thing I knew about Leo, though, and that was that he hadintegrity. He’d always been a loyal and faithful husband. Still . . . there was something about this woman that made my antennae go up.
The rest of the party went by in a blur. I was continually on the lookout for her and watching Leo, trying to see whether they spoke again, but she didn’t seem to have a hard time meeting others. Before she left, she walked up to Leo and put a hand on his arm. They talked for a moment, then he gave her a hug. By the time the last guest drove off, it was after nine. The kids were exhausted, so I put them to bed and then joined Leo in the den.
He sat in the red armchair texting, and when he saw me enter the room, he quickly put his phone away. I bit my tongue and didn’t ask who he’d been texting. Leo didn’t like to be questioned.“Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, don’t you think?”
“I do. It was another great party. You did a good job.”
“Thank you. I hope you’re glad we went ahead with it.”
He smiled.“I am. You were right.”
I cleared my throat.“Piper seemed nice.”
“She’s very nice. Smart, too.”
I felt the heat start at my neck and spread to my face. I had to be careful. If I said anything negative about her, it would only make him come to her defense.“She came alone, so I assume she’s not married.”
“She’s a widow, actually. Her husband died last year.” He answered so quickly and with such assurance that I immediately knew that they’d talked about it.
I dropped it, but as soon as Leo went up to bed, I googled “Piper Reynard” on my laptop, but the only hit that came up was the Phoenix Recovery Center, whose main page featured loads of pictures of the space and the programs and none of her. I clicked on the About Us tab on her website, then her name.
Piper Reynard specializes in grief and recovery work. She is the owner of Phoenix Recovery Center, an oasis for all who seek to find mental clarity, spiritual awareness, and emotional healing.
Not much of a bio, and there was no photo of her on that page, which seemed odd. I put her name back into the Google search bar and scanned all the entries. As I scrolled down, I did a double take: Reynard the Trickster.I pulled up a reference page that gave me the background on a medieval character named Reynard the Fox: