Portrait of a Marriage

The morning after their first night ""together,"" Stacey is up before Ned waiting for him to arise, anxious to make sure they ""communicate"" even if their marriage is a sham. But Ned doesn't see the need for it. He informs Stacey that he's having a cocktail party for some clients the next night and will need her to perform her role as his loving spouse. At work, Eric is admiring Ned's huge new office, but is scared when Les MacDowell, the guy beat out for the promotion, drops by. Ned and Les do a little verbal sparring, with Les agreeing to come to Ned's party the next night. Stacey comes home happy after selling an article, but is dismayed to find Ned has thrown out all the redecorating work she did. The party is to begin shortly, as Stacey is reducing to asking the serving staff if they've seen her husband--he didn't come home last night. Ned casually strolls in and hands Stacey a synopsis of their supposed history together, teling her to bone up on it right away. Stacey says it's ""the