Desperate Measures Read Online Free PDF Page A

eyes betrayed her. They were the most unique color. Blue-gray until she became angry then they turned light aqua.
    An immediate transformation of eye color took place; blue-gray turned into clear aqua. If the sun were still out, eyes and the Caribbean Sea would be indistinguishable. She began the saga with a calm voice. “After my grandmother’s funeral, my father told me…”
     

Chapter Five
     
     
    Jack Spencer entered the living room and saw her on the couch reading. He listened for sounds of movement, heard nothing but a quiet house and assumed the twins were surfing. Where else would they be? Ranch house in Deal, New Jersey, with the beach a block away, the waves lured them like a magnet. The seventeen-year-old boys were one hundred percent beach bums.
    Jack shook his head. He had to do this. He’d just buried his mother yesterday and took the day off to talk to Caitlin. He only hoped she’d understand. Constance, his wife, would be home from work soon. It had to be done now. Caitlin would be going back to Florida in a few days. He looked at his twenty-six year old daughter, dreading the moment before him. She hadn’t heard him enter the room. Of course she hadn’t. She was engrossed in the new bestselling suspense novel. When she finished, he’d get to read it and looked forward to the adventure. Jack somberly sat in his favorite chair.
    “Caitlin, put your book down, we need to talk,“Jack said in a quiet voice.
    “Dad, I know we need to talk. I’m not going back. My mind’s made up.”
    Jack became puzzled and couldn’t figure out what the hell she was talking about. He forged ahead and asked, “You know? Where aren’t you going back to? Your job and career? You just got a promotion.”
    “I quit graduate school and I don’t want to get my Ph.D. Isn’t that what you’re talking about?”
    Relief and annoyance swept over him. He sighed. Jack didn’t have time to placate his daughter but being a dutiful father, realized the need to deliver a pep talk.
    Quick and to the point he stated, “Caitlin, I’m aware that you don’t want to go back to graduate school. Why would you? Look at where you are since you took a break from academia. You’re doing great in your job.”
    “I quit, Dad. I never quit anything.”
    “You didn’t quit, you took a break and restructured your career path. You accepted a job as a chemist and how long did that last?”
    “Three weeks then I got promoted to laboratory manager.”
    “And now?”
    “Now I am the laboratory director, being groomed to take over as president in a few years. It’s even documented in the succession procedure in the corporate company’s strategic plan.”
    Jack Spencer looked at his only daughter, bewildered yet proud. What the hell kind of conversation had he gotten into? Most parents of a twenty-six year old found themselves in a role reversal. Not Jack. He had a daughter who was her own worst enemy. Striving for more, reaching higher and higher. He knew damn well she would become president of the laboratories. He also knew damn well she still wouldn’t be satisfied when it happened. The next goal would be set, if it hadn’t already been drafted.
    “Caitlin, this isn’t about graduate school. It’s about our family. There’s something you don’t know. I was adopted,” Jack blurted out.
    The book fell from Caitlin’s hands and landed on the living room floor with a thud. She didn’t say anything. After several long moments, a slew of questions broke the silence. “What do you mean adopted? Grandma and Grandpa aren’t my grandparents? Lindsey’s not my cousin? We’re like sisters.”
    “Slow down, Caitlin. Grandma was my mother. She got pregnant before she met Grandpa. After they got married he adopted me.”
    “Well, who is your real father and what about Aunt Virginia, Uncle Gary, and Aunt Carol? Are they adopted too?” Caitlin asked in a scathing tone.
    Jack flinched at Caitlin’s accusatory tone. He’d expected this