Attraction by Linn Young Read Free Book Online

were looking to marry rich men. And they are a scary lot,
believe me. I mean, the stories I was telling to your family about some of them were all true. And
that wasn’t even half of it. So, when your sister came along…Well, she’s like a breath of fresh
air, compared to the heiresses and nobilities that we’ve run into; unpretentious, sweet, smart,
real, and, most important of all, not a calculating social climber or a money grubber. My parents
can’t wait to meet you and your parents. And I think they will enjoy you guys just as Heron and I
do.”
“Does Heron take after your father?”
“No, actually not. My father can be autocratic, at times, but mostly, he’s pretty even keel
and amenable. You’re asking why Heron’s the way he is, aren’t you? He’s a lot like my
grandfather. He’s the one who grew the family’s modest banking fortune to an obscene
proportion by turning our banking business to a financial conglomerate. He ruled his company,
and his family, with an iron fist. Did you know that Grandfather arranged the marriages of all his
four children? All daughters. He was like a king, arranging all these alliances with various
provinces.”
“He arranged your parents’?”
“No. My mother made him think he did. She was the clever one out of the whole bunch.
She fell in love with my dad when he was a junior executive at the bank. My mother worked on
my grandfather until he came to believe that my dad had the potential to succeed him as head of
the company, and that making an alliance with this junior executive through marriage was sound
judgment.”
“What’s your mother like?”
Tanner thought for a moment, carefully going over the various choices of words and
expressions. Then he said with some satisfaction and with some relish, “A mother. No, really.
That’s the only word that describes mother most accurately,” he added when Riley would laugh.
“For all her wealth and privileged upbringing, my mother turned out to be the quintessential
mother figure; loving, devoted, fiercely protective of her children, and yet wielding her family
with a firm hand, brooking little nonsense, and determinedly shaping her children to become
decent and productive citizens. That’s saying a lot for rich family, when mostly, we are so easily
allowed by all of society to live off the fat of the fruits of our forefathers, and foremothers, go
through life in meaningless idleness, and know little of life except our own self interests and
circumscribed life. My mother was the disciplinarian, and my father was the more easy-going
parent. He tends to be peacemaker. Similar to Roberta.”
Riley smiled at him through the dark. “Not unlike yourself?”
Silence fell between them.
Then, Riley said softly, “I just want her to be happy.”
“I know. Just give Heron a chance, and I think he will make her happy.”
Riley nodded. They fell into silence again, each smoking fresh cigarettes.
Then Tanner turned his head and gave Riley a mischievous grin. “So, tell me about this
club that you own.”
Riley laughed, completely comfortable and at ease, as she began to describe her club.
CHAPTER THREE
In the following two months, Roberta was immersed inches above her head in wedding
preparation. Her every movement and decision was dictated by the wedding planner, Hildegard,
who reminded Roberta of a female guard in a Nazi concentration camp. She was deathly afraid
of her, because the planner was so forceful in her opinions and was ruthless in casting aside any
ideas that Roberta might contribute. In self-defense, she dragged her mother along in the
excursions. They were ushered everywhere in a long black limousine that Heron lent them for
that very purpose, with at least three assistants who were perpetually at Hildegard’s heels, always
writing things down on their clipboards to her constant snapping orders. While riding with
Hildegard, both mother and daughter sat silently, shivering in their seats while the planner