Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 107710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
She paused at the bottom of the porch steps leading to the main house. Old-world charm oozed from every inch of her childhood home. Greenery spilled over flower boxes beneath every window, rocking chairs urged people to sit and relax, and the trickle of the pool’s water fixture could be heard from the front of the house, even though it was located behind it. A gorgeous manor that never failed to make winery visitors swoon. The place was incredible. But she had more affection for the guest house than the manor where she’d lived from birth to college. And right now, all it represented was the obstacle ahead.
A moment later, she knocked on the door and heard the sound of footsteps approaching on the other side. The peephole darkened, the lock turned—and then she was looking at Corinne.
“Seriously?” Natalie sighed, giving her stately mother a once-over, taking in the smoothed black-gray hair and perfect posture. Even her wrinkles were artful, allowed onto her face by invitation only. “You’re fully dressed at five o’clock in the morning?”
“I could say the same about you,” Corinne replied without missing a beat.
“True,” Natalie said, sliding into the house without an invitation. “But I don’t live here. Do you even own a bathrobe?”
“Did you come here to discuss sleepwear?”
“Nope. Humor me.”
Corinne closed the door firmly, then locked it. “Of course I own a robe. Normally, I would be wearing it until at least seven, but I have virtual meetings this morning.” In an uncharacteristic move, her mother let a smile peek through before it was quickly quelled. “Your brother has negotiated a deal making us the official wine of several wedding venues down the California coast. He is really helping turn things around for us.”
“Yeah, he is.” Natalie couldn’t help but feel a spark of pride in her brother. After all, he’d overcome his own baggage pertaining to this place and landed on the other side much better off. At the same time, however, Natalie couldn’t ignore the wistfulness drifting through her breast. God, just once, she’d love someone to talk about her like Corinne spoke about Julian. Like she was vital. Valued. Wanted and needed. “It’s hard to tell him no when he’s speaking in his stern professor voice. Takes people right back to seventh grade.”
“Whatever he’s doing, it’s working.” Corinne squared her shoulders and moved farther into the foyer, gesturing for Natalie to precede her into the living space and to the right, overlooking the rambling vineyard and the mountains beyond. They took seats on opposite ends of the hard couch that had been there since Natalie’s childhood and was almost never used. Voses didn’t gather.
They kept moving.
So in the interest of family tradition, Natalie turned toward Corinne and folded her hands on one knee. “Mother.” If she’d learned anything from phase one in the finance industry, it was to look a person in the eye when asking for money, and she did so now. “I know you will agree—it’s time for me to go back to New York. I’ve been in contact with Claudia, one of my previous analysts, and she’s agreed to come on board with my new company. We’re going to be small, more of a boutique firm, but both of us have enough connections to facilitate steady growth. With a couple of smart plays—”
“Wow.” Corinne framed her jaw with a thumb and index finger. “You’ve been making important phone calls in between wine binges. I had no idea.”
Clang. A ding in the armor.
Okay.
She’d expected that and was prepared for it. Just keep going.
Natalie kept her features composed in an attempt to disguise how fast her heart was now beating. Why was it that she could make million-dollar trades without her pulse skipping, but one barb from Corinne and she might as well be dangling from the side of a skyscraper by a pinkie, cold sweat breaking out beneath her dress?
Parents. Man, they truly messed up their kids.
“Yes, I have been making calls,” Natalie replied calmly. She didn’t deny the wine binges, because, yeah. She’d definitely done that. “Claudia is working on lining up an investor right now, but before anyone in their right mind gives us money, we’ll need to register a new business name. We need an office and some skin in the investment game, however light.” She tried not to be obvious about taking a bracing breath. “Bottom line, I need capital.”
Not even the slightest reaction from her mother. She’d seen this coming and it burned, even though they’d both been aware this talk was on the horizon.
“Surely you’ve saved some money,” Corinne said smoothly, a gray-black eyebrow lifting gracefully toward her hairline. “You were a partner in a very lucrative investment fund.”
“Yes. I was. Unfortunately, there is a certain lifestyle that has to be maintained for people to trust financiers with their money.”