EntangledTrio by Cat Grant Read Free Book Online

angel.”
    “But what about your obligations with the Orchestre de Paris ?”
    “There are only seven performances of Carmen , spread out over three weeks. It shouldn’t be that difficult to integrate them into my schedule.”
    “Not difficult? You already work so hard I’m amazed you haven’t landed in the hospital.”
    He reached for her hand, clasping it tightly. “Is this your way of telling me you’d rather I didn’t accept the engagement?”
    Was it? She and Aleks hadn’t worked together in almost five years. They had no rule against it, but it was difficult enough getting them in the same city, never mind the same concert hall or opera house. But now it appeared that a dream project had fallen into their laps. A role she’d been longing to sing her entire career. An entire month of seeing Aleks every day at rehearsal, plus another three weeks of performances. Dear God, she’d be insane to turn that down!
    “Of course I want you to accept, but…” Despite Colette’s success, inside her lurked this tiny, nagging voice telling her it was only a matter of time before the rest of the world discovered she was really a no-talent fraud. It was ridiculous, but she still couldn’t shake it. “I’m afraid of disappointing you.”
    “Impossible. You’ll be magnificent. The finest Carmen since Berganza.”
    “Oh, wonderful. No pressure there at all.”
    “You worry too much,” he said, rising and pulling her along with him, right into his arms. “Fortunately, I know a remedy for that.” Then he led her back upstairs, eased her down on the bed and proceeded to fuck her into oblivion.
     
    * * * * *
     
     
    The savory aromas of garlic, rosemary and sage tickled David’s nostrils the moment he walked through his parents’ front door. Smelled like his mother’s famous holiday rib roast. He dropped his bag in the foyer, pulled off his coat and hung it in the nearby closet, then strode down the hallway to the kitchen. Same scene he remembered from every Christmas they’d had here while he was growing up, with his mom bustling about trying to get everything on the table before the rest of the family expired from hunger.
    “Hey,” he said, waving to her from the doorway.
    She swung around, then set down a pan of dinner rolls and came over to give him a hug. “We’d given you up for lost. Thought you were coming in yesterday.”
    “My flight got cancelled. Spent the night sleeping in a chair at JFK waiting for another one.” Every muscle in his body still ached from it—and from the bruises Colette had given him a few days ago—but nevertheless he managed a punch-drunk grin. “But here I am. I made it.”
    “And you couldn’t have called to let us know you’d be late?”
    “Hey, give me a break. I didn’t even know I was on a flight ‘til twenty minutes before it took off. I had to run from one end of the concourse to the other. And when I finally got on the plane, they made me turn off my phone—”
    “Okay, okay. You’re off the hook—this time,” she said with a wink. He couldn’t help noticing how much older she looked than the last time he’d seen her—more gray now than brunette, more tired, with deeply etched lines tugging at her eyes and the corners of her mouth. Only fifty, but she could’ve easily passed for a decade older. David knew things had been rough for her and Dad these past couple of years since the recession hit, but until now he hadn’t realized just how rough. “Go on in the living room and say hi to everyone. We should be ready to eat in a few minutes.”
    David took a step in that direction, then hesitated. “How’s he doing tonight?”
    She shrugged. “How do you think? The garage’s business is down another twenty percent from last year. Every week he braces himself to get a pink slip along with his paycheck. Good thing I decided to stay on at the market. No matter how broke people get, they still have to eat.” She waved him off. “Go say hello to him