A Family Circle 1 - A Very Convenient Marriage Read Online Free PDF Page A

is it six? If I'm lucky, she'll marry another count or earl or something and stay in Europe for the next year. If I'm really lucky, I can be divorced before she even knows I'm married. Let's face it, my mother is a ditz, my grandmother was a ditz. Ergo, according to my grandfather, I must be a ditz. He figured he was protecting me by forcing me to get married because everyone knows men are better at managing money." There was more resignation than anger in her voice.
    "Yeah, right. Bill couldn't balance a checkbook if his life depended on it. And look at your brother. He ran through the money your grandfather left him in a couple of years. Why didn't Alan have to get married to inherit his half of the money? I know, I know." Liz waved one hand, forestalling Nikki's response. "We've had this discussion before. Alan's a man and the last of the Beauvisage name. Therefore, he gets his inheritance up front instead of being forced into marrying some total stranger."
    "I don't have to get married," Nikki said as she poured fresh hot water into both of their cups. "I could just let the money go to Alan, which it will do if I'm not married by the time I'm twenty-seven. I do have a trust fund that's mine whether I marry or not. It's not like I'D starve without it."
    "No, but you couldn't afford to keep your house."
    "It's too big for one person anyway." Nikki tried to sound as if the thought of losing the house she'd grown up in didn't bother her. But in reality she loved the big old house and hated the thought of letting it go.
    "And you couldn't afford to keep the Rainbow Place going," Liz finished, playing the trump card.
    Nikki was silent for a moment, thinking about the daycare center she funded in a low-income area. She'd started it four years ago when she'd graduated from college and realized that a degree in American history didn't do much to prepare her for a job in the real world. Not that she'd needed a job, but she had needed something to occupy her time, something to make her feel as if she were making some contribution to the world.
    She not only provided the operating capital, she also worked there three days a week. It had become a vital part of her life and it would leave a real hole if she had to give it up. But far more important was the impact it would have on the mothers and children who'd come to depend on Rainbow Place. Without safe day care available, many of the women would have to quit their jobs to stay home with their children. Many of them would end up on welfare.
    No, she couldn't let the center close. With the money she'd inherit when she got married, she could afford to keep it open. Without that money, the center's future was in serious jeopardy. She sighed.
    "How'd you like to come to a wedding?"
    "You and the guy with the dents in his face?" Liz's hazel eyes sparkled with laughter.
    "Me and Sam Walker," Nikki confirmed. She picked up her cup and cradled it between her hands, staring down into the amber-colored tea. "Of course, we still have to get Uncle Jason's approval," she added, not sure whether she hoped to get it or prayed that they didn't.

Chapter 3

    N ikki adjusted the cuff of her kelly-green suit jacket, using the motion as a cover for a discreet glance at her watch. It was almost one-thirty and, the message she'd given Max had been for Sam Walker to be here at one o'clock.
    He was late and she was going to kill him with her bare hands.
    He knew how important this meeting was, knew they had to have her uncle's approval in order for her to get her inheritance. But he couldn't even bother to show up on time. This was probably some macho attempt to show her that he didn't have to take orders from her. Not that she'd given him any orders. She'd simply left a message with Max stating the time and place of the meeting she'd arranged.
    Perhaps she had been a bit peremptory, but Max would have softened that when he passed the message on to Sam. Which meant that there was no excuse for him being late