Read Online Sail Away by Lisa Jackson - Free Book Online Page B

sick about her.
    “Problems?” Kate asked, smoothing his lapel with her long fingers and offering him an encouraging smile. Kate was a good woman, he thought, trying to get a handle on his emotions. At least she had enough sense to do what she was told!
    “Marnie.”
    Kate raised an interested eyebrow and sighed. “She’s almost twenty-five.”
    “And therefore can do anything she damned well pleases, is that it?”
    “She’s not a baby, Vic. You can’t tie her down forever.”
    “I can try, damn it!” He shoved a hand through his hair and wondered when he’d lost Marnie. And why? Hadn’t he given her everything money could buy? Hadn’t he put her through the best schools, hired the best nannies, spent as much time with her as he possibly could have? If only Vanessa were still alive. Maybe then…
    “Senator Mann’s waiting for you,” Kate reminded him gently. She refilled his glass and handed him the fresh drink.
    “I know, I know, probably hoping for a campaign contribution,” Victor grumbled.
    Kate chuckled deep in her throat. “Probably.”
    Still worried about Marnie, Victor took a swallow of the whiskey and waited for the fiery warmth to settle in his stomach. Maybe then he’d calm down. He thought about confiding in Kate but didn’t. He’d never confided in a woman except his wife. Even Marnie hadn’t heard his worries or dreams, not really. God, he missed Vanessa. She’d been gone so long…
    Pulling himself back to the present, he touched Kate affectionately on the shoulder. “Tell the senator I’ll be down in a minute and send in Kent, will you?”
    “Of course.” With another smile, she swept out of the room in a billow of familiar perfume and white silk. A beautiful woman, he thought. A gracious woman. A woman he could live with. If it weren’t for the memory of Vanessa.
    Adjusting his cuffs, he glanced in the mirror and frowned at his reflection. He was getting old. Not that fifty-seven was near the end of the line, but more than a few crow’s-feet were carved near his eyes and his hair was thinner and whiter than it once had been. His weight was starting to become a problem, and sometimes, damn it, he just felt tired.
    As he grew older, he wanted more from life than a string of hotels, not that the business wasn’t important. It was. But he wanted, needed, a daughter who worked with him, a daughter who was happily married, a daughter who would become the mother of the grandchildren he intended to spoil rotten.
    A quick rap on the door and Kent, not one hair out of place, strode into the suite. Shutting the door behind him, he turned back to Victor. “Kate said you wanted to see me.” He flashed his easygoing smile.
    Victor liked Kent. The boy was so eager. He reminded Victor of himself twenty-five years before. Waving the younger man into a chair, he said, “It’s about Marnie.”
    The all-American smile faded as Kent sat down. “I thought she left.”
    “She did. And apparently she took the Marnie Lee with her.”
    “What!” Kent blanched and leaped back to his feet. Then he sank back into his chair. “But she couldn’t have,” he said, one hand rubbing the opposite forearm.
    “I just got a call from the Coast Guard—”
    “Oh, my God, there’s been an accident!”
    “Marnie’s fine,” Victor assured the younger man, though Kent didn’t seem relieved. In fact he appeared more agitated than ever. Well, he’d just had a helluva shock. Hadn’t they all? Victor poured Kent a stiff shot and handed him the glass. The drink shook in the boy’s hands.
    “What happened?” Kent asked, tossing back most of the bourbon.
    “As I said, Marnie took off in the Marnie Lee. She thinks she owns half of it, you know. And really she does. I did give it to the both of you as an engagement present.”
    “So that gives her the right to take off and leave me stranded?” Kent asked, dumbfounded. “God, what’s gotten into her?”
    “She wants to be independent.”
    “But