Everything to Gain and a Secret Affair by Barbara Taylor Bradford Read Free Book Online Page B

understand.”
    â€œI can’t come by myself, Mal. I’ll feel like a spare wheel.”
    â€œThat’s ridiculous! You’ll be with me, your very, very best friend, and Andrew, who loves you like a sister. And your godchildren, who adore you. And Diana, who thinks you’re the greatest thing since Typhoo tea.”
    â€œFlattery will get you everywhere, but then, you know that,” she said, and I heard the laughter surfacing in her voice. “However, I think I’ll stay in Manhattan and lick my wounds.”
    â€œYou can’t do that!” I protested, my voice rising. “You’ll only pig out on ice cream and all those fattening things you love to eat when you’re upset. And just think of the hard work you’ve put in, losing ten pounds. Besides, it’s going to be hotter than hell in Manhattan. Nora told me they predict a hundred and twenty degrees in the shade.”
    â€œI’m afraid J take Miss Nora’s weather forecasts with a grain of salt, Mal.”
    â€œHonestly, it is going to be hot in the city. I heard it on television myself. Last night. Just think how much cooler it will be out here in Sharon. And then there’s the swimming pool, some shady corners in the garden. You know how much you love it here. This is your second home, for heaven’s sake.”
    â€œNevertheless, at the moment I think I prefer the blistering sidewalks of Manhattan, the lonely confines of my stifling apartment. At least I can wallow unashamedly in my memories of Tommy,” she intoned dramatically. “My lost love, my greatest love.”
    Her theatricality, such an integral part of her personality, was coming through all of a sudden, and I was relieved. It told me she wasn’t quite so heartsick as she had first made herself out to be at the outset of our conversation. I began to chuckle.
    â€œDon’t you dare laugh at me, Mallory Christina Jordan Keswick. Stop laughing, I tell you!” she cried indignantly. “I’m heartbroken. Heartbroken. ”
    Still laughing, I whooped, “That’s a load of cod’s wallop! “This was one of Andrew’s favorite expressions, and I had made it my own over the years. “You’re no more heartbroken about him than I am. Your pride’s injured, that’s all it is. I’ll tell you something else, I bet if the truth be known, that . . . that . . . that little creep was always intending to go off to the West Coast for the July Fourth weekend. To see his family. You’ve always said he doteson his mother and adores his sisters and constantly complains about their recent move to California.”
    â€œOh.” She said nothing more for a moment, then she murmured thoughtfully, “I must admit, I hadn’t thought of that.” There was another brief pause. I could visualize her digesting my point. “But we did have a terrible row, Mal.”
    â€œNo doubt one he manufactured,” I replied sharply. I had never liked Thomas Preston III. An Eastern seaboard uptight WASP, he was tight with a buck as well as his emotions, high on snobbery and low on brains. He was employed by a famous private merchant bank as a vice president only because the bank bore his family name and was run by his uncle. My beautiful, generous, talented, loving Sarah deserved much better; she deserved the best. Personally, I thought Tommy Preston was the worst, a poor excuse for a man. He wasn’t even all that good-looking; at least I could’ve understood it if she’d fallen for a pretty face.
    I took a deep breath. “So, when are you coming out to Connecticut? Tonight or tomorrow?”
    â€œI’ve just arranged to take one of my buyers to dinner tonight. I’ll come sometime tomorrow, is that okay?”
    â€œIt sure is, Sashy darling. July Fourth wouldn’t be quite the same without you.”

C HAPTER F IVE
    A fter Nora had left for the day, I toured