Free The Main Attraction by Jayne Ann Krentz Page B

didn’t have any plans, and he didn’t give me a dime for the information.“
    „Probably because he didn’t believe you,“ Trent said.
    „Probably,“ she agreed, remembering the depth of Brady’s conviction on the subject. She smiled faintly. „That’s his problem.“
    „Yes,“ he agreed blandly, „it is.“
    Shari spoke up. „That reminds me,“ she said quickly, „you may have some problems of your own, Trent. There was a call for you from Portland an hour ago. You’re to contact a Mr. Reece as soon as possible.“
    Trent’s good humor vanished. „Reece called?“
    Shari nodded. „The front desk took the call and gave the message to me. They figured one of the family would see you first. Bad news?“
    „No, not really.“ Trent finished his iced tea. „Reece is my assistant. He had instructions not to bother me here unless it was important. I guess something’s come up. Excuse me while I return that call.“
    Amery got to his feet. „I’d better get back to the office. I’ve still got a lot of work ahead of me this afternoon.“
    Meg nodded and put down her half-finished iced tea. „And I’ve got to have a chat with the chef. I’ll see you all at dinner.“
    „I’ll come with you, Mom,“ Shari said. „I want to talk to Henry about my wedding cake. He’s got to understand that I want a decent tasting frosting, not one that’s just designed to hold pretty shapes.“
    When Filomena looked around a moment later, she had the patio to herself. With a relieved sigh, she flopped down in one of the lounge chairs and poured herself the last of the iced tea. Life could be stressful at times.
    It WASN’T until he finished the terse call with Hal Reece that Trent finally realized the potential of the opportunity that had just been dangled in front of him.
    He was a man who knew how to grab opportunities when they appeared. He couldn’t afford to ignore this one, especially now that Filomena was showing signs of needing a firmer hand.
    He sat on the edge of his bed, elbows resting on his thighs, his big hands clasped loosely between his knees as he stared thoughtfully into space. Mentally he looked at this golden opportunity from every angle, searching for flaws, dangers and possible explosive points. It was risky, but it just might work. If it did work, he would have solved the problem of finding both time and opportunity to forge a way through Filomena’s slick facade.
    He sat very quietly for another ten minutes, planning for as many unknowns as he could. Then he got to his feet and went in search of Filomena.
    Filomena was still enjoying her solitude on the patio after everyone else’s departure when she heard her parents’
    private phone ring through the open sliding glass doors behind her.
    Reluctantly she put down the copy of Vogue she had been scanning and went inside to answer the summons. It would probably be a friend of her mother’s, inquiring about shower-gift ideas for Shari. That was all right, Filomena thought. She was equipped to answer any question in that line. She had lots of gift ideas in mind for Shari.
    „Cromwell residence,“ she said cheerfully as she snatched the receiver out of its cradle.
    „You think you’re so damn smart, don’t you?“ a woman’s voice snapped. Whoever it was sounded wretched with fury. There was a choking sob before she continued. „You think you can just come back after all this time and take him away from me, but you’re wrong. You’re nothing but a little tramp, and I’m going to make sure everyone knows it. You think it’s a lot of fun to make a spectacle of yourself? Are you getting a kick out of racing around in that expensive car and showing off your fancy clothes while you dangle yourself in front of every man in town?“
    „Gloria?“ Filomena was stunned by the venom in the woman’s voice. „Hold on a second. You’ve got no reason to yell at me. Just calm down – “
    „Calm down!“ Gloria’s voice rose to an agonized