The Vineyard by Barbara Delinsky Read Free Book Online Page B

so
big,”
Olivia said. “And those grandkids may be on their own, but summer’s when they come back to visit. Asquonset is an incredible summer vacation place.”
    â€œHow do you know that, Olivia?”
    â€œI just know.” Her gut told her so. Granted, her gut had been wrong in the past, particularly where men were concerned. But this was different.
    â€œMaybe you’re tired of Cambridge.”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œYou’ve been here longer than you’ve been anywhere else.”
    â€œBecause my job here was so good,” Olivia argued. “But my boss is retiring. Pulling the rug right out from under me.”
    â€œSo you’re dumping him first, that it?”
    She shot him a quelling look.
    â€œWhat about Ted?” he asked.
    â€œTed is not in this picture.”
    â€œHave you told him that?”
    â€œNo. I don’t exactly have the job yet.”
    â€œBut you want it.”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œFor the money.”
    â€œFor Tess.”
    â€œWhat if the money’s no good?”
    Olivia wasn’t worried. A “handsome stipend” had to be at least good, and even if it wasn’t, room and board counted for something, not to mention nearness to the ocean and the use of a tennis court. The change of scenery alone was worth something.
    Otis pushed a pad of paper and a pen her way. “Write down what you want.”
    â€œWhat I think she’s paying?”
    â€œWhat you want. What’ll make the effort worthwhile.”
    Olivia couldn’t do that. Anything she put down would be too much. She would be embarrassed.
    â€œOkay.” Otis pulled back the pad. “I’ll do it.” He wrote down a sum that was roughly twice what he would have paid her for the summer if he hadn’t been retiring. While she stared at the figure, slightly stunned but already thinking of what that much money would buy, he picked up the phone, drew Natalie’s letterhead close, and punched in her number.
    â€œWhat are you
doing?”
Olivia cried in alarm. She had the sudden vision of his ruining the whole thing with an ill-placed word.
    â€œSaving a little breath. Let’s see if we’re in the same ballpark.”
    Olivia nearly stopped him. She didn’t want to know—if knowing meant the end of the dream.
    But the call went through before she could react, and Otis was suddenly greeting Natalie like the old friend she apparently was. There was a minute of warm conversation—talk about the pictures that were done, the ones newly arrived, the upcoming wedding. Again, Olivia mentally tried to pair Natalie up with a suitable groom, but Cary Grant was the only face she saw, and he was long dead.
    Otis asked Natalie for details about the assistant she wanted.
    Hugging her middle, Olivia watched that pad of paper as he wrote down the answers to his questions.
Typing and editing skills. Writing from notes. Mornings with Natalie, afternoons alone Monday through Friday; weekends free. Living accommodations in a separate wing of the house. Food included. Pets? No. Children? Yes. Stipend?
    Olivia held her breath long after Otis had written the answer. Natalie was offering twice what Otis had guessed. It was a windfall for someone like her—an incredible amount by
any
measure. She pressed her fingertips to her mouth to keep glee in check.
    Otis seemed likewise stunned. He asked Natalie to repeat the figure, and tapped the paper with his pen to confirm that the amount he had written was correct.
    Olivia heard bits of the remaining conversation, things like “very generous … yes … history lesson … clear the air,” but thewords sailed past her. Excited beyond belief, she had let her thoughts loose in a new direction. Up to that point, she had been thinking about money for a tutor. What Natalie was offering opened a whole other door.
    By the time Otis hung up the phone, Olivia had pulled out the bottom drawer of