One Month with the Magnate Read Online Free PDF

haven’t had a chance to catch up.” He propped himself against the counter, as though he was settling in for a friendly chat. “What have you been up to the past fifteen years? Besides defrauding the better part of Texas high society.”
    She bit the inside of her cheek.
    â€œYou know what I find ironic? I’ll bet if your parents had to guess who they thought was more likely to go to federal prison, you or me, they would have chosen the son of Cuban immigrants over their precious daughter.”
    Apparently his idea of catching up would consist of thinly veiled insults and jabs at her character. Swell.
    â€œNo opinion?” he asked, clearly hoping she would retaliate, but she refused to be baited. Others had said much worse and she’d managed to ignore them, too. Reporters and law officials, although the worst of it had come from people who had supposedly been her friends. But she wouldn’t begrudge a single one of them their very strong opinions. Even if the only thing she was truly guilty of was stupidity.
    â€œIt’s just as well,” Emilio said. “I have work to catch up on.”
    Struggling to keep her face devoid of emotion so he wouldn’t see how relieved she was, she grabbed the list and walked to her quarters, ultra-aware of his gaze boring into her back. Once inside she closed the door and leaned against it. She hadn’t been lying, she was truly exhausted. She couldn’t recall the last time she’d had a decent night’s sleep.
    She gazed longingly at the bed, but it was still early, and she had to at least make an effort to familiarize herself with her duties before she succumbed to exhaustion.
    She hung her sweater on the back of the folding chair and sat down, setting the list in front of her on the desk.
    According to the housekeeper’s schedule, Emilio’s car picked him up at seven-thirty sharp, so Isabelle had to be up no later than six-thirty to fix his coffee and make his breakfast. If she was in bed by ten, she would get a solid eight and a half hours’ sleep. About double what she’d been getting at the motel if she counted all the times she was jolted awake by strange noises. The idea of feeling safe and secure while she slept was an enticing one, as was the anticipation of eating something other than ramen noodles for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
    If she could manage to avoid Emilio, staying here might not be so bad after all.
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    Usually Emilio slept like a baby, but knowing he wasn’t alone in the house had him tossing and turning most of the night.
    It had been odd, after so many years apart, to see Isabelle standing on his front porch waiting for him. After she married Betts, Emilio had intended never to cross paths with her again. He’d declined invitations to functions that he knew she would be attending and chose his friends and acquaintances with the utmost care.
    He had done everything in his power to avoid her, yet here she was, sleeping in his servants’ quarters. Maybe the pool house would have been a better alternative.
    He stared through the dark at the ceiling, recalling their exchange of words earlier. Isabelle had changed. She used to be so subdued and timid. She would have recoiled from his angry words and cowered in the face of his resentment, and she never would have dished out any caustic comments of her own. A life of crime must have hardened her.
    But what had Alejandro said? She was guilty on paper, but there had been new developments. Could she be innocent?
    That didn’t change what she had done to him, and what her father had done to Emilio’s family. She could have implored him to keep his mother on as an employee, or to at least give her a positive recommendation. She hadn’t even tried.
    In a way, he wished he had never met her. But according to her, it was destiny. She used to say she knew from the first moment she laid eyes on him that they were meant to be with one