Once in a Blue Moon by Eileen Goudge Read Free Book Online Page B

group with virtually bottomless pockets?
    “So have you changed your mind about accepting their offer?”
    She shot him an indignant glance. Didn’t he know her better than that? “I’m not that scared.” The latest offer from the Heywood Group was more money than she’d see in a lifetime. Certainly more than her property would fetch on the open market. But what price could be placed on the joy of waking up each morning to the view out her window, or being lulled to sleep at night by the sound of the surf? On a more practical level, where would she go if she were to sell out? The house she’d inherited from her adoptive parents, set on twenty acres of oceanfront property, was the only real home she had ever known.
    No; if those pirates seized control, it would be over her dead body.
    “Well, I’m sure Dwight knows what he’s doing. He’ll shut it down.” Grant put an arm around her shoulders as she began to shiver. “Cold? Do you want me to get your sweater?”
    She shook her head, resolutely swallowing against the bitter pill that refused to go down. No sense boring her boyfriend to tears with her problems. Today was supposed to be a respite from all that. “No, I’m fine. It’s nice out here.” With the setting of the sun had come the cool air of evening, but she didn’t feel like budging. How often did she get to just sit and relax?
    “Shall I call the restaurant and tell them we’ll be late?” he asked.
    “No.” She forced a smile. “Let’s go eat.” She wasn’t hungry, but she supposed she would have an appetite once they got to the restaurant—they were dining at the Landing, her favorite waterfront eatery. “By the way, do you mind if I bring Miss Honi to the party tomorrow?” Grant was having some people over for dinner, a few of his clients and their spouses, and she thought her resident fairy godmother, as she’d dubbed Miss Honi, would enjoy an evening out. At an age when many of her contemporaries were content to stay home, the old woman never missed an opportunity to step out in a fancy dress and high heels.
    Grant’s expression remained neutral, but he hesitated a beat too long before replying, “Of course. The more the merrier.”
    For some reason, he and Miss Honi had never clicked. They were always polite to each other, but it was obvious to Lindsay that neither saw the other’s appeal. Grant, despite his urban polish and Ivy League education, retained at his core many of the old-fashioned values instilled in him by his small-town upbringing—about as far from the freewheeling nightlife of Reno, Nevada, as the Promised Land was from Sodom and Gomorrah. Although he’d never said so to her face, Lindsay knew he was mystified by her decision to have someone who wasn’t, strictly speaking, a family member move in with her. He didn’t understand that for Lindsay, those ties ran deeper than blood.
    She ducked into the bathroom, where she showered while Grant made some calls. He was still on the phone when she emerged, wrapped in a towel. From the garment bag she’d brought from home, she pulled her trusty black dress. She kept a toothbrush, a pair of pajamas, and a change of clothing at her boyfriend’s, but other than that, she had yet to establish her presence in any real sense. Not that Grant spent much time here, either, which was why his condo, a short drive up the coast from her place, still seemed a bit sterile, almost like a model home, even though he’d lived there nearly a year. Now, standing before the closet door, zipping up her dress, she could see his reflected image in the mirror as he sat on the bed, the phone to his ear. He was looking her way but not seeing her, he was so deep in conversation. She couldn’t help feeling the tiniest bit ignored. There was a time when her boyfriend couldn’t keep his hands off her, when the sight of her naked would have been an open invitation and the bed an excuse to postpone their dinner reservation. Not that she was in