Where the Heart Chooses by Tinnean Read Free Book Online Page A

and kissed my cheek. “I was able to get a flight out early
last evening.”
    “I imagine someone was very disappointed,” I
murmured.
    He grinned and shrugged. “‘Someone’ was
extremely grateful for the time we had together. Unfortunately,
‘someone’ had to leave last night also.”
    “Hmm.”
    Bryan looked from Jefferson to me, and then
studied Jefferson more closely. He smiled. “Strained a muscle,
Jeff? I know a good masseuse.”
    Bryan was the quiet one of the brothers,
speaking only after he’d weighed all the factors, taken everything
into consideration, examined it from every angle. His position as
analyst in the CIA suited him down to the ground.
    “Thanks, Bry. I might just take you up on
that.” Jefferson’s grin was rakish.
    “Your love life will have to take a back
seat, Jefferson,” Father interrupted. “We need to bring Portia up
to speed on this project. Mary?” He addressed Mother.
    “You have about an hour and a half before
dinner, Anthony.” Which would be at eight, as usual. “I’ll have a
tray of hors d’oeuvres brought in to your study.” Beyond the
entertaining required by Father’s position, Mother chose not to be
involved in his work.
    “Thank you, my dear. All right, children.
Let’s retire to my study.” Once the door was closed, he poured us
each a glass of sherry. “Has Anthony told you about the Venona
Project?”
    “He touched on it briefly. I’d help decipher
the Russian codes?”
    “Yes. You’ll be staying with him, rather
than driving back and forth. I’ve convinced your mother that’s the
safest thing.”
    There was a tap on the door, and Plum, the
young man who was in training to replace his father as our butler,
entered. “The hors d’oeuvres, sir.”
    “Thank you, Plum.”
    I took a piece of cheese and popped it in my
mouth. “I don’t get my own apartment?” I asked after Plum left.
    “You stay with me, Portia.”
    “But Tony, suppose you want to entertain a
lady friend?” I opened my eyes wide, unable to resist teasing him.
“Overnight?”
    “I take my dates to dinner and a show. I do
not do overnight entertaining in my apartment.”
    “Well, suppose I — ”
    “I don’t want to hear about my baby sister
entertaining a man overnight.” He scowled at the other three, who
were laughing. “Don’t encourage her! You aren’t the ones who’ll be
there worrying!”
    “Ah, you’re such a good brother, Tony.” I
put my arms around his waist and rested my head against his chest.
“I’ll behave. Aren’t I a Sebring?”
    “But not for long, I’m sure,” Father mused.
“Some man is going to take one look at you, decide you’ll be his
perfect hostess, and snap you up.”
    Jefferson opened his mouth, and I wondered
if “someone” had told him about the time I had spent with Folana,
and if he was going to say anything about it, but then the corner
of his mouth crooked in a grin, and he reached for his glass.
    “Here’s to them all, the men and women
who’ll love us, in spite of what we do.”
    We finished our sherry and went back to
discussing the Venona Project.
    * * * *
    True to his word, Tony never brought a date
home. I ran into him a time or two when I was on the town myself,
and I’d met some of the women he squired around the D.C. area. I
wondered if he realized how much alike they were. Whether blonde,
brunette or redhead, they were all cool and emotionally
distant.
    I came home from a date one Saturday night
to find him sprawled on the sofa. His eyes were closed, and he had
a glass of scotch in one hand while the other was folded behind his
head. Vivaldi’s Four Seasons was on the stereo.
    “You’re home early.”
    “And I’m in a miserable mood,” I snapped and
threw my little clutch bag on the coffee table, where it bounced
before it skidded off onto the carpet. I shoved his legs off the
end of the couch, dropped down, and took his glass from him.
    “Hey!” he protested as I took a healthy
swig.
    I glowered at