her meaningful and close relationships made locally since her arrival here, was grateful for the good things in her life and helped other people. Overall Rose was very pleased with her life and believed in the theory of a full glass. Eventually Rose was able to focus on the events that lay ahead for the day; she was invited to attend a game of Rubber Bridge hosted at the Belle Hotel on George and the prospect of it was thrilling. She was pretty sure that it’d be fun.
The hostess tonight was Madeline Piper. She was about ten years older than Rose and very rich. A former model with a flair for the dramatic Madeline, was tall and skinny and always very elegant and in great shape. Her makeup was perfect and she was always wearing high heels. She knew how to make the best of her appearance. It didn’t look easy to keep in such fine form but somehow Madeline was doing a good job at it. Rose was suspecting a lot of sheer determination, a mind-set on fashion and a bit of silent suffering. When I’m with her I probably look vintage, thought Rose with a giggle as she found that idea for some reason amusing. Not a very competitive girl, Rose however enjoyed dressing up to some extent. She had her limits, though. For example she found thongs, both as footwear and underwear, unacceptable and there was no way to convince her otherwise. So yes, sometimes she was a bit stubborn not that it had ever crossed her mind.
That being said, Rose was excited and totally approved of Madeline’s location choice for the bridge game tonight. This was a superb place that Rose happened to know from the time of her arrival in the city, about six months ago. The Belle hotel was a popular Brisvegas destination: an extravagant, ultra-modern, sleek piece of architecture, made of glass and steel, located in the heart of the central business district and allowing stunning views of the turquoise Pacific Ocean.
The invitation that Rose received, via an e-mail a few days ago, mentioned the Heritage Room. This was a 63 square meter and 3 meter height room that can easily accommodate 20 people at 5 tables and a buffet with the usual food and drinks. No cigarettes or cigars smoking inside, thank god, otherwise Rose might be tempted to pick it up again. Everyone is now aware of its aging effect on the skin on top of everything else.
The invitation stated that it was a black tie event. Men were expected to wear a tuxedo with white shirt and black bow tie. Women have a choice between an evening gown and a cocktail dress but always with evening shoes. A bit formal, Rose thought, and that usually meant high heels. Ohhhhh! She liked the way she looked with a decent heel but dreaded the discomfort and pain associated with wearing them. So she generally tried to avoid them when she had to spend a lot of time on her feet. Not that you would ever get the chance to catch Rose with flat heals except the time she was in her garden. Rose had nothing against glamour; she was totally in favor of it. And she thought she can pull it off. And she gave her grandma the credit for it.
‘I want to see elegance, sparkle, … magic!’Letitia used to tell the girls when they shopped for clothes. They never bought a dress just because it was new and fit them well or because it was on sale. The dress had to make them look better. ‘It’s MAGIC that you want to achieve. Perfection. Illusion!’ Letitia would say. ’ Think about a beautiful sunny day, a magnificent sunset or a spectacular sky at night. They are all illusions created by the nature for us’ she would trail on. Her words stayed with Rose although she realized that she still hadn’t got the meaning of them all.
Letitia, a free spirited tough old bird, liked lace and linen, and in winter, wool. Washing manually all their clothes was a bothersome chore but Letitia knew how to make even patching a hole in a garment fun so mending a seam and fixing a hem was some of the things girls learned very soon after moving to stay with her. There was not much money available and girls liked dressing up so they had to learn how to make clothes last a little longer. And then there was the need to learn the art of housekeeping, like any other young woman who aspired to get married one day and be in charge of her own house. And then the jewels were not a trifling matter either!
According to Rose, Letitia, a person with a gift for happiness, believes strongly in the power of sparkle, either from a clean body, clean clothes or jewels. Preferably a combination of the above! She strongly believed that no woman should leave the house without at least one ring, one necklace, one or two bangles and earrings. Letitia says that at home the bangle is not absolutely necessary but the others are a must.
As a child Rose did not share Letitia’s fashionable beliefs in the power of sparkle as she was more a tom boy but the idea was embraced by her in the last few years. Especially when Rose started to notice the effect that the glitter had on her popularity. Sometimes, Rose recalled with a shudder some very bad personal experiences during those early times when dressing up was still a chore for her. ‘Timing was against you’ grandma used to say to cheer her up each time.
Tonight Rose was determined to have the timing on her side. She was planning to achieve a fresh and demure look by wearing a cocktail dress of sleeveless taffeta that had a waistline just below the bust, an empire style with rhinestone evening shoes from some famous collection. Of course she bought it on e-bay. Rose could not imagine anything more enjoyable. She was yet to decide about the jewels!
….
But time flies and a few hours later, prim and proper, Rose was mingling with the other guests when Madeline approached her with a handsome, tall and well built, unforgettable man looking to be in his thirties, by her side. ‘Rose, I hope you are in a great shape like always? ’ she said with a wink and Rose wondered if she was thinking about the game. ‘Dear Rose this is James Ommaney. James is an experienced player. He knows most of us from previous games but there are still a few people around whom he has not met yet’ she continued making the introductions.
‘Rose Cooper is from Transylvania. Be aware, she plays a decent game’ Madeline warned him. He produced a tight-lipped smile while nodding and looking straight into Rose’s eyes. His eyes were very dark and serious, Rose thought, before Madeline took him away. He murmured something that sounded ‘Good shape’ then he was gone and Rose felt with annoyance that her heart skipped a bit. Or maybe it was just her imagination.
He seemed to be an interesting man but probably already taken, she thought and was annoyed that she caught herself having an interest in him. Better be careful. The safest route was to play innocent and uninterested. Love life is complicated, she reminded herself and she already had a project to work on.
Looking around Rose noticed that the room chosen for tonight’s game was stunning, exceptionally beautiful and surprisingly functional. The exposure to such an environment would have cured even someone in deep blue funk, thought Rose. Her grandma would have approved the glamour and she could not wait to share with her tonight’s experience. Just like old times when Rose would call Letitia from the university and tell her about her daily’s adventures.
Rose was admiring the room, floor to ceiling windows draped in luxurious fabric and high ceiling adorned by ultra modern and expensive looking crystal chandeliers, when she recognized a familiar face entering the room. Initially she struggled to find a name that matched those inquisitive eyes and elegant style when her nearby friend Matilda whispered it into her ears.
It was a local politician that Rose had never met before face to face but has seen numerous times on TV or in the newspapers. She grew more intrigued when she noticed that he had three other men with him, probably bodyguards. Is he here for a speech, she asked herself? That would be really boring she thought and hoped that it wasn’t the case. She had never heard before anyone talking about politics at the bridge game. And to her surprise there was no speech and all four men just played bridge. That was odd she thought but she kept the thought to herself. No need to make a big fuss out of it. The time was flying off and Rose wanted to enjoy the atmosphere. The view of the room and the view of the ocean was breath taking even for a girl like her with a solid, strong relationship with nature. She thought that it was awesome and maybe was worth the effort to dress up.
/> The tables were six, round and draped in white and red fabric. Each had 4 chairs around and cards with names were placed on each table. On one side of the room there was food and drinks: entrées such as natural oysters, spanner crab, sea scallops, some bay bug, and grilled calamari were waiting to be sampled.
Various cheeses and drinks from sake, Rose, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon were expertly arranged in an attractive display that would have lured even a teetotaler. Rose smiled at the thought and tried to find a pink grapefruit, her favorite drink while at a function. The flower arrangements were original too. To Rose’s surprise they were all natural. She caught herself murmuring ‘Beautiful food and beautiful people’.
The game started as always at 07. 00pm sharp and to Rose’s surprise she discovered that her allocated partner for the night was no one else but Madeline. Now Rose had confidence and pride in her skills and she believed that she was not bad at bridge but she had come to realize, over the previous weeks, that Madeline was one of the best at the club and also very competitive. She liked to win a lot. More than that, Madeline