Forever Young: Blessing or Curse (Always Young Trilogy) by Morgan Mandel Page B

her shoulder. “Not to worry. You’ll live a very long life
and never die from old age. I’ve set your supply aside in a secure fireproof
and earthquake proof vault, with the formula and instructions to allow your
access in the event of my demise. That should carry you through and insure your
forever youth.”
    “Thank
you. You are so kind to me, Roman. The thought of living for so long is still
hard to comprehend.”
    She
gave a short laugh. “I have no idea how I’ll fill up the time.”
    “Not
to worry your pretty head, my dear. Enjoy your good fortune, health and good
looks. You do know how lovely you are, don’t you?”
    Her
face reddened. “Thanks, I guess, though it’s you who deserves the compliment. I
didn’t invent the pills. Without you, I’d be a senior widow aging like the
dickens.”
    He
released her and feigned an interest in the Disney characters greeting the
happy children. His assistant got to him like no other woman had, urging him to
protect her and defile her at the same time. For fear he might let something
slip, he could never allow her to get too close to him. She already made it
difficult to focus on the campaign. He dare not fail in his mission. A king’s
ransom rode on his performance.

 
     
    CHAPTER TEN
     
    Dorrie
groggily stretched and glanced at the alarm clock. Already ten in the morning.
Wow, she never slept this late on a Saturday. Funny, she still didn’t feel rested.
 Perhaps she’d stayed in bed too long.
    At
any rate, she better get up and get her housework done. The Institute had kept
her so busy she hadn’t dusted in ages, nor vacuumed, much less cleaned the
kitchen floor. She supposed with all her new money she could hire a
housekeeper, but she’d already relinquished too much of her privacy, and didn’t
care to have a stranger touching her personal items.
    The
world tilted as she swung her legs over the side of the bed, reminding her of
the sensation she’d felt almost two weeks ago when she’d stepped off the roller
coaster at Disney World. Hopefully, she wasn’t coming down with something the
pill couldn’t prevent. With the Forever Young campaign in full swing, Roman
depended on her, not to mention she depended on her salary. She’d made great
headway in clearing her debt, but it had been so tremendous, she had a ways to
go before getting into the black.
    After
a few bites of eggs and bacon, her stomach turned. Grease could do that. Or a
number of stomach ailments.
    The
phone by her kitchen desk rang. She picked up the hands free receiver.
    “Doug’s
on duty all weekend and there’s a chick flick at the Condor. What do you
think?”
    Kelly
only lived a few miles away, making it easy for them to get together on
weekends while her husband worked.
    With
Jeanne so far away, Dorrie enjoyed having a work friend carry over to everyday
life. Sure, Kelly was younger in actual age than she, but with the reversion,
their interests were similar. Once the pill caught on, she imagined others
would experience a change in attitude as well.
    “I’d
love to go, but my stomach’s acting strange. If I feel better later, can I call
you back?”
    By
mid afternoon Dorrie’s insides had settled down enough for her to feel more
confident. Maybe the disturbance had been something she’d eaten. Whatever the
cause, it had passed. “I’ll pick you up at five,” she told her friend.
    Dorrie
had a great time laughing with Kelly over the onscreen scrapes of two lovebirds
who were finally united. To top off the evening, the two of them headed across
the street to the ice cream shop. The cool, creamy treat tasted delicious.
Dorrie felt tempted to buy another, but resisted. Her youthful metabolism could
only handle so much. She’d already gained a few pounds, probably from overindulging.
  
    “Is
there something you’re not telling me?”  Kelly asked with a pointed look
and a laugh.
    “What
do you mean?”
    “Oh,
you know, first you had a bad stomach this morning. Now