VINA IN VENICE (THE 5 SISTERS) Read Online Free PDF Page A

quickly retracted his opinion that Mr. Davis was any less competent than the elder members of the firm.  It was an impressive display of the man’s accomplishments, and if Travis had any lingering doubts as to how sharp Sheldon’s mind was, they were dispelled a moment later. 
    Sheldon looked up and made eye contact, immediately picking up on Travis’ reluctance to follow through with the terms of the Will .  Half a dozen legitimate excuses ran through his mind, including the one where Vina herself w as likely to veto the whole idea.  But b efore he was able to voice a single objection , Sheldon launched into a persuasive argument.
    Travis listened in silence while Sheldon reminded him it was what Victor and Lucinda wanted, and that he’d made a promise to them to fulfill their last wishes.  Guilt was not a factor, he was assured, because their daughter’s happiness was more important to them than anything in the world.  Money wasn’t an issue, either.  The trip and accommodations were already paid for, including an allotment for clothes and incidentals that would be needed for the trip. 
    Traveler’s checks, a moderate amount of cash, and a charge card that apparently had the sky as a limit, would be handed over to him the day prior to their flight.  Vina would be armed with the same financial freedom.  Travis had no choice. 
    Victor and Lucinda had thought of everything, with the possible exception of Vina’s refusal to participate.  Although, he imagined they’d coached their young attorney well.  No matter what excuse the Moore sisters offer ed, Mr. Sheldon Davis w ould e ffortlessly counter it.   The phone call Travis had just received was proof of that.  In two weeks, Vina and her sisters would travel to different parts of the world with the escorts chosen by their parents.
    Travis pulled his cell phone from his pocket and hit the speed dial.  If this was going to work, he couldn’t jet off to Venice and simply hope for the best.  He needed to be proactive , and that meant using the next two weeks to remove the friendship barrier that kept Vina from seeing him as a man she could love.
    “ Hey, I was just thinking about you,” Vina answered on the first ring.
    “Hmmmm, let me guess.  You ’re working up a devious plot to kidnap me and take me to some foreign country so you can have your wicked way with me.”
    “I’ve always known you were a man of many talents,” she said with a laugh, “but I never realized you were a mind reader too.”
    Travis smiled into the phone.  “Do you trust yourself to be alone with me for an entire month?  I do have a reputation with the ladies for being irresistible, you know.”
    “At the risk of shattering your fragile ego, those women haven’t nursed you through a hangover or got ten a whiff of you after a game of racket ball.”
    “Now that hurts,” he affected a wounded tone.  “And here I was, calling to offer my services out of the goodness of my heart.”
    “Uh, huh.  Just what type of services d o you have in mind?”
    “ Well, it just so happens that we will be arriving in Venice a few days before the annual Venice Carnival.  We’re talking operas, plays, parties, masquerade balls…exclusive events where you’ll be hobnobbing with some of the wealthiest and most respected names in Italy. ”
    “Hobnobbing?” Vina teased.
    “ Hush, woman, you’re derailing my train of thought.  What I’m getting at, is that these people will have attended events like this most of their lives .  They’ll know all the steps to the dances of that period, like the minuet and rondo .  So it occurred to me that if Prince Charming asks you to dance, you would have to turn him down …or chance embarrassing yourself when you tromped all over his feet . ”
    “Are you saying you know both those dance s , and that you’re willing to teach me?”
    “ Why do you sound so suspicious?  You know I’ve traveled to Italy several times.”
    “I