That New York Minute by Abby Gaines Read Free Book Online Page A

sister.”
    “There is that.” LeeAnne smiled.
    Threads of ideas began to float in Rachel’s mind. She knew better than to try pinning them down when they were this ephemeral. If she let them float a while, they might coalesce into something solid.
    Solid. That’s how Tony had described her work. She needed better than solid.
    “Takes four years to get a degree,” Burton warned LeeAnne.
    “I know.”
    “I guess we have a few years to come into some money,” Burton joked.
    Oh, boy. Rachel hoped her sister had more of a plan than that. Maybe Rachel could start a college fund for her nieces.
    They talked for a while longer. Then LeeAnne glanced at her combined watch and pedometer, which sported the name of a well-known cereal company, one of Rachel’s clients. “I’d better go, I’m trying to get the girls into more of a daily routine before they start nursery school. It’s time for their nap.”
    Rachel walked her sister out to her rusting Toyota. They each held one of the twins by the hand.
    “So this routine thing is new,” Rachel said as she buckled Dannii into her car seat.
    “Yeah, I sound almost like you.” LeeAnne flashed her a grin and clipped Kylie in.
    “Don’t knock it—it works.” Rachel kissed Dannii, then closed the door, stuffing a twenty into the door pocket as she did so. “So they start nursery school in September?”
    “Yep.” LeeAnne climbed into the driver’s seat and lowered the passenger window so they could continue talking. “There’s a great school right near us. I hope we’re still in the neighborhood.”
    Had her sister ever expressed a desire to remain in one place before?
    Rachel leaned in through the window and said casually, “You could stay. If Mom and Dad move, I mean.”
    “You know I need to be near them. I couldn’t raise the girls without their moral support, not to mention Mom’s babysitting.” LeeAnne looked in her rearview mirror, back at the trailer.
    “Dad’s work is steady, right?” Rachel asked. “There’s no reason to move.”
    “Only if something too good to miss comes up somewhere else.” LeeAnne let out a breath that was almost a sigh.
    “Maybe if you refused to go with them, Mom and Dad would stay put,” Rachel suggested. LeeAnne had grumbled a bit when they were kids, but she’d never been upset by their constant moves as Rachel had. Maybe, at last, she was developing an interest in stability.
    Her sister looked skeptical. “I’m not sure that’s what I want. Moving can be exciting. Though maybe not as often as we do it,” she admitted.
    “You should think about staying. For the twins’ sake.” Rachel figured she’d better not push her luck. She stepped back and patted the side of the car. “Off you go, sis.”
    She watched until the Toyota turned out onto the road. As she headed back inside, a couple of images that might work for Brightwater Group flashed in her mind. Rachel picked up the pace and ran to make notes. If she was going to be number one with the client on Monday, there could be No Idea Left Behind.

CHAPTER FIVE
    R ACHEL TOOK A TRAIN to Princeton, New Jersey, where Brightwater had its headquarters, presumably so some of the luster associated with Princeton University might reflect on its private colleges. Smart strategy.
    She arrived in plenty of time for the meeting. Before her colleagues. If punctuality was a deciding factor for the KBC partnership, she would ace the promotion.
    Since the morning was sunny but not too hot, she stood outside to wait. Tony and Clive were next to arrive. They’d caught the same train and shared a cab from the station. Coincidence, or clever planning by Clive? She didn’t think of him as a schemer—six foot four, slow-moving and good-natured, he was the epitome of a gentle giant.
    There was no sign of Garrett. Dared she hope that he’d thrown in the towel?
    “Good weekend?” Rachel asked Clive, trying to gauge how much time he’d spent reading up about private