Read Online The Juliet Club by Suzanne Harper - Free Book Online Page B

tattoo and closed his eyes in pain.
    â€œThe invitation said formal,” she said, innocently. Her face darkened as she remembered that she had a grievance of her own. “ I wanted to buy a new dress for this party, but you said it would cost too much! You said that the babies needed new high chairs! You said that our family now had different financial priorities! And this is the only formal dress I have, remember?”
    â€œYes, and I also remember that there used to be a bit more of it!” her father hissed.
    Silvia glanced down complacently. “I know,” she said. “I altered it myself. It’s an original design.”
    â€œOriginal.” Her father glared at her. “You’ll be lucky not to be charged with indecent exposure. And if you are”—he gave her a warning look—“don’t expect any favors just because you’re the mayor’s daughter!”
    Silvia ignored this comment with the disdain it deserved.
    First, she never told anyone she was the mayor’s daughter.
    Second, her father was not, by any stretch of the imagination, an authority on fashion. She curled her lip at his tuxedo (which was vintage, but not in a good way), his high-heeled shoes (which kept making him lose his balance), and that scarlet sash (which made him look like an extra in a second-rate opera company).
    â€œFine,” she said loftily. “If the police arrest me, I will plead guilty to having a unique and inventive fashion sense.”
    He remembered what his wife had said about keeping his temper and forced himself to smile. “At least try to behave yourself tonight,” he said with a passable attempt at sounding conciliatory. “That’s all I ask.”
    She lifted one eyebrow and waited. When her father said that something was “all he asked,” more demands invariably followed.
    Her father did not disappoint her. “And please, get to the seminar on time every day,” he went on, “not twenty minutes late! And pay strict attention to Signora Marchese, and do all your homework, and don’t dispute every single word she says, the way you do with me!”
    â€œI don’t dispute every single word you say,” Silvia snapped. “And if you’re so worried about how I will do in this stupid seminar, I don’t know why you went to so much trouble to get me in!”
    â€œShh!” His eyes darted around the room to see if anyone had overheard. “That is between us, Silvia, please, I told you that!”
    He pulled a red silk handkerchief from his pocket and mopped his forehead. Silvia winced at the handkerchief but smiled with satisfaction at the sign of guilt. “You wouldn’t be suffering from nerves right now if you hadn’t decided to do something illegal,” she said primly.
    â€œ Illegal? I pulled a few strings, that’s all!” he hissed. “When that girl from Germany had to drop out at the last minute, I saw an opportunity for you to better yourself—”
    â€œAnd for you to get closer to Francesca Marchese,“ she said in an insinuating tone.
    â€œYes! Yes! I admit it!” He was practically dancing on his toes with outrage. “And so? What of it? I am the mayor! She is one of Verona’s most prominent residents and internationally famous, to boot! And you, you —”
    â€œPeople are staring, papà,” Silvia said. Her face was pure innocence, but her eyes sparkled with delight.
    He opened his mouth to yell, then remembered what his cardiologist had said about high blood pressure and took a few deep breaths instead. He carefully tucked his handkerchief in his pocket, arranging it with great deliberation until it was again a perfect scarlet triangle. When he was more composed, he finished in a strangled whisper, “And you are a young girl who should be grateful !” He glanced at his watch. “I must go. It’s almost time for my speech.