Principles And Pleasures. Margaret Allison

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      Meredith turned. Carly stood under the ornamental lights in the corner of the room. And she was not alone.

      Josh looked every bit as entranced by Carly as she was by him.

      “Oh,” she said with a forced laugh. “That man? The one dancing with Carly? He’s our former ski instructor. We grew up with him. He’s practically like a brother to us.”

      “I never danced with my sister that way,” Wayne said.

      “Ha-ha,” Meredith laughed stiffly, trying to fight the panic building inside. “Josh lives in Europe.”

      “Well, he’s certainly here now, isn’t he?” Wayne snapped.

      “He certainly is,” Meredith said. “If you’ll excuse me, I absolutely must go say hello.”

      How could Carly do to this to her? Do this to herself? If Mark heard about the way she was cavorting with a known womanizer…

      She forced herself to take a breath. They were dancing. And that was all….

      Carly leaned over and kissed Josh’s neck.

      Meredith did a half jog the rest of the way. “Carly!” said Meredith, practically jumping in between them. “My goodness! Here you are. Your future-in-laws are looking for you.”

      Meredith focused her attention solely on her sister. She did not acknowledge Josh. She could not look at him, for fear a mere look would give her away. Ignore him, she reminded herself.

      “I’m busy,” Carly said. Her words were slurred just enough for Meredith to recognize that her sister had been enjoying the champagne. This was trouble. Plain and simple.

      “Hello, Meredith.”

      At the sound of Josh’s voice, Meredith felt a tickle at the base of her spine. She shook it off. She reminded herself she no longer felt anything for the man to whom she had lost her virginity. It was a childhood crush, that’s all. She was long over him.

      “Hello, Josh,” Meredith managed to say, glancing at him as casually as she could. Suddenly she felt like giggling for no reason whatsoever except that Josh Adams was standing beside her. She was back in high school. She was the nerd talking to the most popular boy in town.

      Meredith glanced toward the balcony. The Durans were watching them. Cassie Duran leaned over and whispered in her husband’s ear while shaking her head in disapproval. Meredith snapped out of her reverie.

      “Carly,” she said. “I need to speak with you.”

      “I’m busy,” Carly said.

      “I’m afraid I have to insist,” Meredith said, taking her sister’s arm. She attempted to give Josh a casual smile. “Nice to see you again, Josh.”

      “Meet me in the gazebo in ten minutes,” Carly said to Josh. She turned back toward Meredith and yanked her arm away. “What is so important that it couldn’t wait?”

      Meredith said, “Upstairs.”

      Viera met them at the landing and whisked them into the second-floor library.

      Viera slammed the door behind them. “What are you doing?” Viera asked Carly. Her voice was shrill and accusatory. “The other day when you were talking about Josh, I didn’t honestly think you were serious. I didn’t think you would contact him and arrange to meet him while your fiancé was out of town.”

      “Calm down, Mother. I wasn’t.”

      “What do you mean?” Meredith asked.

      “I mean, Josh just showed up. Out of the blue. Isn’t that weird?” Carly leaned back in the chair, smiling contentedly.

      “Have you been drinking?” Meredith asked, knowing her sister rarely drank.

      “A little champagne,” Carly said, pinching her fingers together.

      “Carly,” said her mother. “Think of Mark. What’s he going to say when his parents tell him about you cavorting with another man?”

      “It’s not just any man. It’s Josh.” She focused her innocent eyes on Meredith. “Meredith, tell her. Tell her how special Josh is.”

      “Me?” Meredith swallowed. “What makes you think I…well…”

      “It doesn’t make any difference anyway,” Carly said, sounding like a spoiled child. “It’s nobody’s business but mine.”

      “That’s where you’re wrong,” Viera said calmly. “If you don’t marry Mark…”

      “We’ll lose the precious Durasnow contract,” Carly said. “Well, I am marrying him. But I have one more wild oat to sow first.”

      “Carly!” Viera gasped.

      Meredith and her mother exchanged a glance. Meredith held her breath. This was terrible. Awful. Her sister was going to fool around with Josh? The man to whom she had lost her virginity? The only man she had ever slept with?

      She needed to admit the truth to her sister right now. To confess her history with Josh. It’s just that…well, what did it matter anyway? It was a long time ago. One night. She doubted Josh even remembered.

      “It’s none of your business if I—” Carly stood. “If I—” She held her hand to her mouth and swallowed.

      “Carly?” Meredith asked. “Are you all right?”

      “I—excuse me…” With one hand over her mouth and one on her stomach, Carly ran into the bathroom.

      “This is terrible,” Viera said. “Her whole future. Ruined. It’s the curse. The curse of the Cartwright women.”

      Meredith knew what her mother was referring to. The Cartwright women were known for their poor choices in husbands. Meredith and Carly often joked about the infamous men in their family. Their great-grandfather had died in the arms of another woman, as had their grandfather. Viera’s first husband, Meredith’s father, was also a notorious playboy. He died of a heart attack just like his father and grandfather, while making love to a woman who was not his wife. Viera’s second husband, Carly’s father, was not a playboy but a thief. After bilking millions of dollars out of his wife’s company, he killed himself shortly after the board discovered his crime.

      “She loves Mark. She’ll marry him,” Meredith said. She could not bear the thought of her sister losing Mark. Carly had chosen a man unlike her father or her grandfather. Mark Duran was sweet, earnest and madly in love with her.

      “Careful,” her mother said, “you sound like a romantic. Practical Meredith…at least I’ll never have to worry about you.”

      “Why not?” Meredith said.

      “Because you’re not like your sister, giving your heart away to this man or that man.”

      “You’re saying you don’t have to worry about me because I don’t have a boyfriend?”

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