Never Tell. Karen Young

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СКАЧАТЬ can hardly serve as an ambassador from my office downtown.” He was gleeful as he picked up the newspaper again. “I’ve got a short list of posts I’d prefer. How does Costa Rica sound?”

      “Hot and humid,” she murmured.

      “So? Houston is hot and humid, too.” And with that, Morton dismissed her reaction. “Think of it this way. You won’t have the bother of shopping for new clothes. You already have the right wardrobe.” He snapped the newspaper open before adding, “It won’t necessarily be Costa Rica. I just mentioned that country as a possibility. I could be placed in any of half a dozen other locations.”

      “What about the company?” He couldn’t be serious. Nothing took Morton away from CentrexO for any length of time.

      “Not a problem. I’ve been grooming Alex Winfield to take over, just in case. The experience will open other doors for me, as well, Lillian. There could be something in Washington. There would definitely be something in Washington,” he added, idly paging through the paper. “I’d make some valuable contacts, and after getting back to the States with the ambassadorship under my belt, I’d be able to write my own ticket.”

      Lillian put a hand to her throat. He was serious, and it sounded as if the decision was final. She was to have no say in it.

      Still heedless of her reaction, he said, “I admit I didn’t expect to hear so soon, but it’s good to know that, for all practical purposes, the deal is done.”

      “I knew nothing about this, Morton,” she said, dismayed. “I don’t want to leave Houston.”

      He lowered the newspaper just enough to peer over it. “Why, for God’s sake? There’s nothing you’re involved in here that you can’t find elsewhere. If we wind up in Washington, there are museums and charity causes to fill up your time, plenty of hospitals where you can volunteer.” He disappeared again behind the paper, adding, “As for the other, after a few weeks in a new country as wife of the American ambassador, you’ll adjust. Give it a chance before going negative. You might even enjoy yourself.”

      She gazed down at her spoon. Not if it meant leaving Houston and her work in the arts. As the wife of a powerful and visible CEO, she was in a unique position to assist the arts community. But even without her commitment to the arts, there was Hunter. As she thought of her son, her gaze strayed to the window and the center of the immaculate lawn, where a cherub poured water from a jug into a tiny pond. It was painful to remember how close they’d once been. He tolerated a rare lunch date with her now only out of a sense of duty. She sighed, able to pinpoint the moment when their relationship had begun to deteriorate. But then, so much of the downward spiral of her life was marked by that moment. She set her spoon and yogurt aside, untouched. Between the demands of Hunter’s business and his preference for spending his free time at the ranch, she rarely saw him. If she went out of the country for any protracted length of time, she could lose touch with him altogether. As for Jocelyn, she had so little contact with her daughter that it probably wouldn’t matter if they were posted to China.

      For a long moment, she watched the sparrows fluttering in the water. She was drawn to the ranch herself, but it was awkward explaining to Morton why she wanted to spend time there. He found the place dusty and hot. Totally urbanized, he didn’t ride and was repulsed by the dust, the torturous Texas heat and the smell of horses. So, they didn’t go.

      With another sigh, she chose another envelope from the stack of mail and slit it open. Perhaps she’d survive a brief tour in a foreign country if she could look forward to returning to Houston and the life she’d built for herself, but if Morton had his eye on something in Washington, it was unlikely they would ever live in Texas again. She didn’t think she could bear that.

      “Anything in there from Jocelyn?”

      She quickly scanned the rest of the envelopes but saw nothing. No surprise there. Jocelyn wasn’t much of a correspondent. The best she could manage was a phone call to her parents once a month. “I don’t see anything,” Lillian said. “The last time we talked, she was so excited about this new job. That’s probably why we haven’t heard from her. She’s very determined to make a career for herself, Morton.”

      “By reporting for some sleazy tabloid in Key West?” He folded and set aside a section of the newspaper before picking up another. “I don’t think so. Not unless we see a big change. She doesn’t stick with anything any longer than she sticks to her husbands. Twenty-five years old and two divorces, for God’s sake.”

      “One divorce and one annulment. And good reasons for both,” Lillian argued. “The first was a silly, rebellious prank, and that awful Leo person was addicted to cocaine. Would you have wanted her to stay with either one of them?”

      “No, but I also didn’t want her marrying either of those bozos…not that she consulted me. She’s spoiled rotten, Lillian. And it’s unlikely to change as long as you keep stepping in when she screws up. What she needs to do is grow up.”

      They’d had this discussion before. Jocelyn did have a string of broken relationships behind her. In an act of open rebellion, she’d eloped on the night of her eighteenth birthday with the golf pro at the country club. Morton had been livid but had managed to avoid a major scandal by paying off the bridegroom and arranging an annulment. To the dismay of her parents, however, that first debacle established a pattern and it had been one disaster after another since, including a hasty marriage to a druggie. She seemed addicted to destructive behavior, and after so many years, Lillian wondered if her daughter would ever settle down and be happy.

      “I can’t just ignore her when she needs me, Morton.”

      “Give her a chance to feel the consequences of her screwups and she’ll soon straighten out,” Morton said grimly. “If she’d consulted me when the time was right, she would be set up fine and dandy on a decent career path at CentrexO, and not down in Key West consorting with who the hell knows what kind of riffraff.” He snapped out another section and scanned it through his bifocals. “But what’s the use closing the barn door after the horse is out. I’m more concerned about the present. I want you to call her and get it through her head that she’d better be on her best behavior for the next few months. I don’t want her mixed up in a scandal that would cause the president to kill my appointment.”

      He was right, of course, not that she’d admit it to Morton. Their daughter was spoiled, indulged to a fault and constantly setting herself up for failure. And, unfortunately, the time was long past when she would consider consulting them about anything in her life. Morton might rant on and on about Jocelyn’s tendency to make mistake after mistake, but the blame wasn’t hers, it was theirs.

      She looked up when Morton made a choking sound, sputtering into his coffee. “Did you see this?” He shoved a section of the newspaper across the table. “They do a feature article on those hokey shops in the Village and they choose hers to put front and center? This just proves my theory that they’re desperate to find anything newsworthy today.”

      Lillian set an invitation to a charity function aside, then looked at the article, bracing for what she would see and the quick, sharp stab of conscience she would surely feel. Artist Erica Stewart had been photographed in her shop, intent on arranging the display in the front window. Her face was in profile, but Lillian needed no reminder to know exactly what Erica looked like. She recalled everything about her with cruel clarity, her storm-gray eyes and dark, curly hair that stubbornly refused to be tamed. Her face, with its strong features, was not quite beautiful; still, it was an arresting face, young and vibrant. As always, Lillian was unable to bear looking. She glanced quickly away and said without any emotion in her voice, “I СКАЧАТЬ