Part Two- Look Higher by Lyn Cote<\/p>\n
\u201cEllie Smith? We\u2019re from the Mack and Middy Show–On the Road! You\u2019ve been selected as this afternoon\u2019s beauty makeover!\u201d *** From their perch on the top of the hotel, two angels smiled down at the couple. \u201cYou did it, Magdelana.\u201d Madge, really Magdelana, smiled. \u201cHugh deserved someone special. He\u2019s been through so much.\u201d So what do you think? Did I surprise you at the end? Do you look higher?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cWhat?\u201d
\u201cMadge sent us a letter, submitting your name. Are you ready?\u201d
Too stunned to speak, Ellie gawked, open mouthed.
\u201cTurn off your computer! Let\u2019s go!\u201d
The next hours flew by. Ellie was shampooed, styled, manicured, made up and dressed.
Finally, center stage, she heard her name announced to a cheering audience. Mack and Middy showed the video taken at her office, then skillfully drew out facts about her. \u201cNow,\u201d Middy, a perky redhead, asked, \u201cDo you have a special man in your life? What\u2019ll he say when he sees the new you?\u201d
Ellie moistened her lips and smiled shyly. \u201cI doubt Ned\u2019ll notice. He\u2019s the absent-minded genius-type.\u201d
\u201cOh, I think he\u2019ll notice,\u201d Mack chortled. The show swirled to its close.
Ellie thanked Mack and Middy. Then she was back in a white limo which dropped her off at the front of the plant once more.
When she stepped into the office, it was empty except for Madge who was waiting for her. \u201cYou look wonderful\u2014\u201c
\u201cWhy did you send in my name, Madge?\u201d
\u201cI wanted you to feel as beautiful outside as you are inside.\u201d
\u201cI\u2019m numb, like a tornado has just blown me over.\u201d
Madge did a little jig. \u201cYou\u2019ll certainly make a splash at the party tonight!\u201d
Bemused, Ellie didn’t know what to think about the party.
After Madge left, Ellie retrieved her purse from her locked file cabinet. The warehouse door opened. Ellie stepped out into the aisle and nearly ran into Ned, a tall and thin engineer.
Ned\u2019s eyes behind slightly cocked glasses opened wide. \u201cEllie?\u201d
\u201cWhat do you think?\u201d Smiling, beginning to believe maybe she really looked a little beautiful, she twirled once like a little girl in a new dress.
\u201cI\u2026I\u2026I\u2026.\u201d Ned\u2019s eyes glazed over, his mouth hung open. He looked like a dead mackerel. \u201cYou\u2019re beautiful.\u201d He sounded dumbfounded.
A thrill of pleasure zipped through her. \u201cThank you, Ned. It couldn\u2019t come at a better time with the company party tonight. What do you think this new dress?\u201d Ellie held out her flared black skirt.
Ned cleared his throat. \u201cI\u2019m not going with you tonight.\u201d
\u201cNot going? Why not?\u201d
\u201cI can\u2019t go with you looking like that!\u201d
Ellie frowned. \u201cLike what?\u201d
\u201cLike a movie star!\u201d \u201cA what?\u201d \u201cEveryone will want to talk to you, not me. I really need to network tonight. I want that senior engineer position too much.\u201d
\u201cNed, I can\u2019t believe–\u201d
Ned edged away. \u201cThis has thrown me off completely. I had everything planned.\u201d He hurried to the door. It shut behind him with a swoosh.
He\u2019s standing me up<\/span>! Anger flared in her. Ellie stomped out and sped off in her car. She reached the hotel where the affair was being held and marched in.
Just inside the door of the banquet room, her anger deserted her. She couldn\u2019t take another step. What if everyone thought her makeover ridiculous? She could already feel the humiliation.
\u201cEllie, you\u2019re here.\u201d Beaming down at her, Hugh took both her hands in his. \u201cMr. Hensley was just talking about that brilliant, money-saving proposal you sent him.\u201d Smoothly, Hugh guided her to a knot of people she had worked with for years.
She received warm compliments on her appearance and her luck at winning a makeover. Ned came late, but amid all the people Hugh drew around her, Ned was easy to ignore.
Later when Hugh and she stood next to her car in the moonlight, she let her gaze linger on his kind face. \u201cI don\u2019t know when I\u2019ve had a better time.\u201d
\u201cI enjoyed being with you. You look especially lovely tonight.\u201d Her chin dipped. She thought of Madge\u2019s words. Just because of Hugh\u2019s handsome exterior, she had thought he couldn\u2019t be interested in her and Hugh had asked her out even before her makeover.
\u201cEllie, I\u2019ve always thought you were a diamond in the rough, but tonight you really shine.\u201d Leaning down, he brushed her lips with his.<\/p>\n
\u201cEllie\u2019s perfect for him.\u201d The other angel shook her head. \u201cWhat did she ever see in Ned? What a lowlife.\u201d
“That was the problem all right.” Madge grinned beatifically. \u201cEllie wasn’t looking high enough.\u201d<\/p>\n