Lethal Seduction by Jackie Collins Read Free Book Online

anything to me,” Madison said calmly. “She was merely around when he was ready for something different.”
    â€œBut you’re still pretty pissed, huh?” Jefferson said, nodding his bald head like he understood perfectly.
    She laughed, slightly embarrassed because it was true, and she didn’t want to be pissed, she wanted to forget all about David once and for all. “Oh God, I feel like I’m sitting in a shrink’s office,” she groaned.
    â€œMaybe that’s what you should do,” Mortimer suggested. “It certainly helped me.”
    â€œNo way. I hate shrinks—all they do is sit there on their smug asses, nodding their heads, telling you what you want to hear. Either that or they don’t say anything at all. Screw that!”
    Jefferson nodded knowingly. “Get yourself to a shrink, girl,” he said succinctly. “You need help.”
    Before she could summon up a suitable reply, the car stopped outside her building. She invited them up for a drink, but they declined, which was okay with her because she was tired and edgy and ready to crawl into bed.
    Her dog, Slammer, a large black Labrador, greeted her at the door. Well, it wasn’t really her dog, she’d reluctantly agreedto look after the animal for a friend who’d gone to Australia for a week. The friend had gotten engaged, and the week had turned into three months.
    In spite of herself, Madison had grown quite fond of the big dog.
    Slammer didn’t need walking because she’d given the doorman a key to her apartment and he’d already taken him out. Which was good news, because she wasn’t into late-night strolls with a pooper-scooper for company.
    Wandering into her small kitchen, she checked her answering machine. No messages, so she picked up the phone and called her father.
    Michael sounded half asleep, but she didn’t care.
    â€œWhy you calling so late, sweetheart?” he mumbled. “Everything okay?”
    â€œAre you sleeping?”
    A very audible yawn. “I was.”
    â€œSorry,” she said, not sorry at all.
    â€œWhat’s goin’ on? You sound down.”
    â€œNo, no . . . It’s simply that I do not appreciate hearing from Anton Couch that you guys are getting an apartment in New York.”
    â€œHey, sweetie, I really am asleep.” A pause. “Can we talk about this tomorrow?”
    â€œSure,” she said, slamming down the phone.
    She couldn’t stand it when her father didn’t give her his full attention. Michael had always been there for her—unlike her mother, who was more of a distant figure in her life. It had always been that way. As far back as she could remember, her mother, Stella, was this exotic-smelling, glamorous creature she hardly ever saw. As a child she’d been raised by a nanny, then sent to boarding school at eleven, vacations at summer camp and, finally, college.
    The day she graduated, Michael had handed her the keys to her own small apartment. It was quite obvious there was no going home, and that was fine with her. She loved her parents, although there were times she felt she hardly knew her mother, butthat was okay too. Michael more than compensated. He was a dynamic, interesting man, and she was glad he was her father.
    She undressed, got into bed and attempted to read. After a few minutes she found her mind wandering and knew it was impossible to concentrate.
    Slammer jumped on the bed, snuggling up beside her. She didn’t push him off. It was comforting that somebody cared—even if that somebody was only a dog.
    She thought about Anton’s dinner and how she’d hated every minute of it. It hadn’t been up to his usual standard. Joel Blaine hitting on her. Ugh! And Peter Nova, drunk. Double ugh!
    Tomorrow she’d fix an appointment with Victor’s private eye to sort out Jamie’s problems. Oh well, that’s what friends are for.
    She