"She's plastered!" Sally whispered to Ray, shocked. He grinned at her.

"Darling, she's usually plastered, from what I hear."

What a shame, Sally thought, such a beautiful woman and so well kept up. She has to be past forty, but her figure is still great… is it being married to that horrible man that makes her drink? When she finally ran out of words, Lauralee sat down abruptly-not in her own chair, but on her husband's lap. She flung her arms around him and kissed him in a passionate way that drew whistles from the onlookers and made Sally feel uncomfortable. Later Lauralee was circulating among the tables, kissing all the men and the women too and promising to write to everyone from Florida. When it was Ray's turn she rumpled his black hair and kissed him full on the lips in a provocative way that Sally excused only because of Lauralee's obvious condition. But when Ray asked her to dance… it was the last number… she found her own condition was not much better and was grateful to lean against her husband's tall form and let him pilot her over the dance floor.

Suddenly she heard a well-remembered husky voice and found that Ray was disentangling her arms from his neck. John Blodgett had cut in on them!

All the liquor she had consumed was racing through her blood, and Sally could not for the life of her remember… ah, yes, he wanted to ask her something. She let herself be pressed against his bulky frame, her stomach rubbing his, breasts mashed against his hard rib cage. His fingers played at the slit in the back of her dress where it was open nearly to the waist. He did not seem so repulsive now, he was quiet and not saying those awful things which had upset her before. His big hands were almost gentle… she must keep her wits, this was very important … very important to Ray. Darling Ray was so happy tonight, she must help him get the store so that they could go on living here and he would always be happy just as he was now!