Read Online My Man Pendleton by Elizabeth Bevarly - Free Book Online

dream he had tumbled into. Unfortunately, with the passage of every second, it became crystal clear that what he had been hoping was nothing more than the surreal, was, in reality … well, reality.
    "Um, sir?" he finally managed to say.
    "Yes , Pendleton."
    He forced his eyes open, willed his hand back down to the table, and somehow managed to meet his employer's gaze. "This, um… That is, sir … What I mean to say is…"
    "Spit it out, Pendleton."
    He pressed his tongue to the back of his teeth for a moment, searching for the right words. "It's just that … well, going after your daughter isn't exactly in my job description, sir."
    "Yes, it is."
    "Sir?"
    "Have you read your job description all the way through yet, Pendleton?"
    He hedged. "Well, it is a bit longer than the average job description, and getting settled in my office has taken a lot more time than I thought it would, and—"
    "Read it," McClellan, Sr. interrupted him.
    "Yes, sir."
    "And pay special attention to page four, paragraph six, subheading … subheading…"
    "Subheading A, sir," each of the executives offered as one.
    "Subheading A," McClellan, Sr. continued without missing a beat. "It's perfectly self-explanatory. Anything else?"
    Actually, there were quite a few anything elses on Pendleton's mind, but for the life of him, he couldn't find it in himself to utter even one.
    So McClellan, Sr. gave his executives the final once-over, rose from his chair, and announced, "I think that's everything. Now get out."
    Then, as was his habit, he disappeared through the door to his office, his son following in his wake. And no sooner had the door clicked shut behind them did the rest of the executives leap up from their chairs, descend upon Pendleton like a plague of pinstripes, and begin to speak in a single, solitary roar.
    "Forget about packing sunscreen," Martin began. "You go after that girl, you better be packing a piece. The sun down there in the Caribbean isn't the only thing that's merciless."
    "And forget about watching the beaches," Ramirez told him. "You watch your back, man."
    * * *
    Not more than an hour later, someone thrust a legal pad toward him with what appeared to be the names of several travel agencies.
    "These are the agencies Miss McClellan has used in the past," he heard Novak say. "Though you probably won't have any luck there. She never uses the same one twice."
    "And she always travels under an assumed name,"
Washington
added, "but it'll be one you can probably identify if you try hard enough. Like Gertrude Stein, for instance."
    "Or Betty Crocker," Carmichael said.
    "Ida Lupino," Rutledge added.
    "Dr. Denton," Ramirez continued.
    "Che Guevera," Bahadoori offered.
    Pendleton studied each of his colleagues in turn. "I'm sorry, but I don't see a pattern here."
    "Exactly," Novak said, as the others nodded sagely.
    He waited for a more complete explanation, but wasn't quite surprised when none was forthcoming. So, with a sigh of resignation, he asked, "Then you think I should contact one of these travel agencies?"
    "No!" the entire group chorused.
    "You should absolutely not contact any of them," Rutledge stated adamantly. "Miss McClellan's reputation definitely precedes her. "
    Hadn't Pendleton heard that already from someone? Oh, right, he immediately recalled. He'd heard about Kit's reputation from Kit herself. Hmmm … "So I should try a new one then?" he wondered aloud.
    "Preferably in another city," Bahadoori told him.
    "Another state," Carmichael added.
    "Another country,"
Washington
threw in. "They might not of heard about her in Abu Dhabi ."
    This was ridiculous, Pendleton thought. No human being could possibly wreak the single-handed havoc that everyone ascribed to Kit McClellan. Certainly she came across as a handful, sharp-edged, sharp-witted, sharp-tongued.
    Sharp-shooter?
    Stop it, he ordered himself. No way would he believe she was anywhere near as destructive as these people made her out to be. "She can't be as bad as all