"George Alec Effinger - Slow, Slow Burn" - читать интересную книгу автора (Effinger George Alec)

white wine. They're dressed very nice, expensive but not flashy,
they pay attention to details, they accessorize, know what I mean?
One's older, see, she's the mother, though you don't see the age
difference. They could be sisters. Both blondes. The older one's got
kind of a suit on, she's the dynamic woman on the go. The daughter
sort of mirrors that, a subtle thing, nice blouse that says she's
shopping the right stores, and she's never more than fifteen minutes
out of style. This is like ‘Beauty Hints of the Idle Rich’ or something.
"So the girl is toying with her radicchio, see, and she puts her
fork down and goes, ‘Mother, may I ask you a personal question?'
"Mom says, ‘Of course, darling.'"


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 Slow, Slow Burn
by George Alec Effinger



Daughter looks down at her plate, she's just a little bit
embarrassed. That's good, makes her human. Audience will relate to
that. She looks back up and goes, ‘Mother, have you and Dad ever
used'—pause for effect—'modular marital aids?'
"Big smile. Maybe she, you know, reaches out and pats the kid's
hand. Like: There, there. She says, ‘Let me tell you a secret, dear.’
She laughs. The daughter laughs. Then Mom reaches into her bag,
see, and what do you think she takes out? Take a guess."

****
Two account executives have flown all the way from America to

talk with Honey Pílar, who, everyone agrees, is the most desirable

woman in the world. Even account executives want her, though their

motives are mixed, and that's why these two anxious men have

come from New York to Honey's walled estate in the south of France.

She is sitting at a long table made of polished limba, an exotic

hardwood from the Congo basin that not even the architectural

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 Slow, Slow Burn
by George Alec Effinger



magazines know about yet. Beside her is her husband, Kit, who likes