Notorious in Nice by Jianne Carlo Read Free Book Online Page A

him what he had planned, but bashfulness made her swallow her words.
    “And tomorrow morning, you head my way.” His voice hoarsened, the Irish brogue becoming more pronounced.
    Her lungs couldn’t find a regular rhythm, and she held the receiver away from her mouth for a second, searching for a change of subject. All at once, she knew who the photo in the newspaper had reminded her of, and she blurted, “Are you a local celebrity?”
    “What a strange question, darlin’.”
    “I thought I saw a picture of you in the paper.”
    “What newspaper?”
    Su-Lin looked at the phone, a bit taken aback by the whipped query.
    “The Matin . The concierge gave me a copy.”
    “I have an incoming call. I’ll talk to you later.”
    So much for romance and charm; Terry sounded peeved. Glancing at the pale blue sky, she noticed the sun had ridden high above the horizon. Hurrying back to the hotel, she bumped into her relatives as they stepped out of the elevator.
    “There you are,” Uncle James said. “We’re running late, Su-Lin. Run up to the room, grab your pocketbook, and meet us in the hotel’s driveway.”
    The day flew by after that, and they never returned to the hotel until well after midnight. Su-Lin hadn’t realized part of the itinerary included a cocktail party at the Cannes Ritz-Carlton. Her uncle presented her to what seemed like scores of portly gray-haired or balding men armed with Chanel-dressed wives wearing diamonds and pearls. After the first twenty-or-so introductions, her brain stopped processing individual names and faces, and every couple blurred into a series of unfocused eyes, noses, and ears.
    Terry didn’t call. Tired but restless, Su-Lin tossed and turned, sleeping with the phone under her pillow. Her alarm clock never went off, and she woke to find bright sunlight streaming through her window.
    “Jennifer, we’re ready. We’re due to be at the docks before noon.”
    Su-Lin cringed. Even after repeated requests, her aunt had never called her anything but Jennifer. “I’m almost ready. I’ll be out in five minutes.”
    Another knock on the door.
    “We’ll meet you outside the lobby. Uncle James and I will bring the car around.”
    No time for a bra and panties, not that she needed the former. When Aunt Emma used that tone, it made her shudder. She threw on one of her new outfits, a floral-patterned white, green, and red silk blouse and skirt, and strapped on low-heeled sandals. The ride to the elevator took forever. She walk-jogged through the lobby and arrived at the hotel’s entrance just as her relatives pulled up, her uncle behind the wheel of a navy Range Rover.
    “I lost track of you last night, Su-Lin,” Uncle James said as she closed the door to the backseat. “Got so caught up with my old schoolmates, I almost forgot my two women.”
    He flashed an over the shoulder grin at her, and she counted the number of times his chins jiggled, one…two…three. Squaring her shoulders, Su-Lin snapped the seat belt into place.
    “I had a nice time.”
    “Lots of lords and ladies present, eh?” Uncle James boomed. “Perhaps we can marry you off to one?”
    “Don’t be daft, Jimmy. The son of a peer would never consider someone of mixed blood.” Her aunt flicked an imaginary piece of fluff off her knit dress. “The best Jennifer can hope for is someone like that coarse Irishman, O’Connor. He certainly seemed interested.”
    Humiliation and embarrassment had Su-Lin flinching into the soft leather seat as if it could swallow her whole. Face flaming, she blurted, “I’m sure you’re mistaken, Aunt Emma.”
    “The way that man ogled you? Not a chance. Not that you didn’t invite his attentions with that scandalous dress. Thank goodness, I supervised the new clothes we purchased over the last couple of days.”
    Every instinct screamed her suspicions. Had her aunt destroyed her mother’s dress? Was that why the sheath was missing? Anger curled her toes and fingers, and she