Sweet Talk by Julie Garwood Read Free Book Online Page A

had been her uncle Daniel’s protégé. He was the son of close personal friends of her aunt and uncle, and when he had graduated from college, he had gone to work for Daniel. Olivia was away at school at that time, but she remembered seeing Jeff at a couple of gatherings. She’d heard her aunt and uncle speak of him many times. From what they said, he was a courteous and easygoing young man who often expressed his gratitude for the opportunity her uncle had given him and the kindnesses shown to him by her aunt. Shortly after her uncle died, she’d heard that Jeff had taken a position with a charitable organization.
    “He knew there were risks,” she heard her father say.
    “You set him up,” Emma cried. Olivia had never heard her aunt so upset. “You lied to him. He would never have invested the charity’s funds if he had any inkling that they weren’t safe. I know Jeff. He’s honest and decent. He has a wife and a new baby now. He wouldn’t risk that. Have you no conscience?”
    “I only did what he asked,” her father answered. “It’s not my fault if his board of directors thought he misappropriated the funds. I offered him several investment strategies, and he made the final decision.”
    “Decisions based on the lies you told him,” Emma countered.
    “Wilcox isn’t such an upstanding citizen,” he snapped. “Greed was his downfall. He demanded a fee from me for investing the charity’s funds, and I’ve got the signed papers to prove it.”
    “Lies, all lies,” she cried out. “Jeff would never—”
    “It’s his word against mine,” her father snapped. “And when the authorities investigate, they’ll see that the evidence is on my side. The documents clearly show that there were risks with the investments and no guarantees. Documents that he signed, I might add.”
    Olivia had heard enough. She took a deep breath, opened the door, and walked inside. Neither Emma nor her father noticed her. They stood with their backs to the door. The window was on her father’s right and she could see his reflection. His eyes were cold and his jaw was clinched.
    “How much did Jeff Wilcox give you?” Olivia asked.
    Robert MacKenzie turned to her, the contemptuous scowl gone, replaced by a dazzling smile. She’d been told that women adored him and that, if he hadn’t decided to go into the Wall Street world, he could have made millions as a movie star. Tall and fit, with thick silver-tipped hair and eyes as blue as hers, he was considered devastatingly handsome, but it was his charm that captured his clients. Men believed they were in his inner circle, and women thought he wanted them in his bed. He had never cheated on his wife, though, for to do so would diminish his carefully constructed persona. He had learned to use all of his attributes to captivate and to hypnotize. Besides, money was far more important and arousing than sex. Very few people knew the real Robert MacKenzie, the devil hiding beneath the angel’s wings.
    “Hello, darling. How long have you been standing there?” he asked.
    “Not long,” she lied. “I just heard you talking about Jeff Wilcox. What have you done to him?”
    “Nothing. Your aunt was misinformed,” he said, shaking his head and never letting the smile fade. “As usual,” he added. He walked over to her, put his hands on her shoulders, and leaned down to kiss her on her cheek. “How are you feeling? Are you taking your medicine every day?”
    It always came back to her health. She believed it was her father’s way of reminding her that she was flawed in his eyes. He knew how to manipulate her and make her feel inferior. When she was younger, it had worked, but no longer.
    Olivia looked at Emma to gauge her reaction. Her aunt’s gaze was locked on Robert, and her face was flushed with anger.
    Olivia stepped back, then walked over to stand next to her aunt in a show of loyalty. “Father, I haven’t had to take medicine for years. You know that.” Turning