Page 14 of Pity Pact

“Has she landed anything big?”

“Holden Jenkins,” I grumble.

She arches one eyebrow. “I know abouthim. I was wondering if she’d gotten any big acting roles.”

“She doesn’t need to.” I angrily add, “She’s got the spotlight on her—which is the only reason she wanted to be an actress—and she has access to millions of dollars. Why in the world would she work?”

Paige considers my question before answering, “I can’t imagine not working. I love my job.”

“Even if some mega-rich guy offered you a life of leisure and unlimited Rodeo Drive shopping sprees?”

“What kind of life is that?” She sounds horrified. “I like being useful, and being a teacher allows me to make a difference in kids’ lives.”

“Yes,” I tell her. “But you’re a lovely human being. Eva is not.”

“Then why did you marry her?” She sounds confused.

“I didn’t realize what a gold digger she was. She used to work hard which made it seem like she was interested in more than my money.”

“Did she work after you were married?”

I shake my head. “Not outside of the home.”

Paige shrugs. “Was she a decent housekeeper? A great cook?” She’s trying hard to see what I saw in Eva.

“Ah, no. She hired a housekeeper, gardener, and dog walker. She claimed it was her profession to make sure everyone else was doing their jobs.”

Paige looks appalled. “What about meals?”

“We ate most of them at the country club. Or rather, I ate most of my meals there. Eva wasn’t big on eating.”

That information seems to fuel Paige’s need for a dinner rollwith extra butter. After taking a giant bite—which she appears to enjoy enormously—she swallows it and says, “I can’t understand women like that to save my life. It’s one of the reasons I decided to go onMidwestern Matchmaker.”

“Because they support eating?”

“Because they don’t encourage you to change anything about yourself to be on the show. Last season there was a woman with a giant unibrow. I kid you not. It just went from the end of her left eye to the end of her right with no break in between. It was like a huge, fuzzy handlebar mustache above her glasses.”

“That had to be quite a look.”

“She asked Trina if she should wax it and Trina told her only if she wanted to. She never advises her guests to make changes to appeal to a prospective mate. She says that being authentically yourself is the only way to make a lasting match.”

I slowly nod my head. “I don’t think Eva was pretending she was something other than what she was after we got married.”

“Maybe not but she had to have been beforehand. You know, to make you fall in love with her.”

The very thought sends a chill up my spine. No one wants to think they’ve fallen prey to a schemer. Changing the subject back to the dating show, I ask, “What happened to the woman with the eyebrow? Did she wax it?”

Paige shakes her head. “She left it.”

“Did she find love?” I want to know.

“Nope.”

“Maybe she should have waxed and then slowly let it regrow,” I suggest.

“That’s what I thought,” Paige agrees. “I mean, we all try to make a good first impression but if it appears like we’re not even trying …”

Before she can finish her thought, I interrupt. “The next thing you know, your date will be beading their armpit hair at the dinner table.”

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