relaxing and getting to know each other better. Your mom came too. She made a fabulous rack of lamb and spent most of the dinner talking about you, about how great you are.”
Jo didn’t comment, but inside her stomach was clenching. Her mother always made rack of lamb when she wanted to impress someone—or butter them up to do something she wanted.
“The next morning, your dad invited me out to the garage. In it was a brand-new Jaguar XJ8, indigo blue exterior with a champagne interior. I was in love.”
Jo felt bile rising in her stomach, remembering all the times she had ridden in that car with Bradford. Was she really ready to hear this?
“I thought it was his new car, but then he said, ‘I bought this for you, Bradford, and there’s a lot more where that came from. I’ve got a proposition for you, and if you’re interested, you’ll never want for anything again.’”
Jo’s heart was pounding, and she felt sure that everyone who passed them by could see her emotions flashing clearly across her face. She was scared, angry, frustrated, and most of all anxious to hear what else he had to say. So far, knowing her parents as she did, everything Bradford was saying rang strangely true. Her father had pulled the same thing on her once with a red Porsche when she was fresh out of college and he was trying to get her to forget all about being a household hints expert and come to work for him at Bosworth Industries instead. Jo had been secretly flattered by his gesture, but the world of big business held no appeal for her at all. She had turned down the Porsche and the big salary, saying she was quite happy living with her grandparents in Mulberry Glen, thank you, and learning everything she needed to know to take over the “Tips from Tulip” newspaper column from her grandmother. Jo had never regretted that decision, especially when one after the other of her sweet grandparents died and she was left to carry on the legacy alone.
“Oh, man, I forgot it was rush hour,” Bradford said. “It’s so crowded here.”
The station grew even more crowded as they neared the boarding area. Jo realized he would have to finish talking once they were on the train and couldn’t be overheard quite so easily. She allowed Bradford to keep his arm around her anyway, partly because she didn’t want to lose him in the shuffle, partly because she needed the support for all this walking in her cast, and partly because she was starting to feel downright scared. Next to her, she could feel that Bradford’s body was tense and on alert, his eyes darting constantly around the corridor. Jo found herself doing the same, though she wasn’t sure what she expected to see. Finally, she couldn’t keep quiet any longer.
“Bradford, what are we watching for? Who is it that you think wants me ‘eliminated’? Is it someone I know? Someone in the company? Someone in my family?”
“Jo, all I know is that your life is in danger,” he whispered in return, “and that it has to do with something big that’s going on at Bosworth Industries. Otherwise, I’m as clueless as you are.”
Jo swallowed hard. If by some wild chance Bradford really was telling her the truth, then her life could be in serious jeopardy right now.
“But why? ” Jo demanded. “I have nothing at all to do with Bosworth Industries. I don’t work there, and I don’t have any dealings with them. I own a couple of measly shares of stock, certainly not enough to be killed over. I don’t participate in any of the votes. When the stockholder’s report comes in the mail, I usually toss it in the trash. I’m telling you, before today I hadn’t even set foot in the Bosworth building in several years.”
“Look, all I know is that something’s cooking at Bosworth, and for some reason you present a problem. I’ve tried everything I can to get more information, but once I started sniffing around with some of my old contacts and former fellow employees, it’s like
Jo didn’t comment, but inside her stomach was clenching. Her mother always made rack of lamb when she wanted to impress someone—or butter them up to do something she wanted.
“The next morning, your dad invited me out to the garage. In it was a brand-new Jaguar XJ8, indigo blue exterior with a champagne interior. I was in love.”
Jo felt bile rising in her stomach, remembering all the times she had ridden in that car with Bradford. Was she really ready to hear this?
“I thought it was his new car, but then he said, ‘I bought this for you, Bradford, and there’s a lot more where that came from. I’ve got a proposition for you, and if you’re interested, you’ll never want for anything again.’”
Jo’s heart was pounding, and she felt sure that everyone who passed them by could see her emotions flashing clearly across her face. She was scared, angry, frustrated, and most of all anxious to hear what else he had to say. So far, knowing her parents as she did, everything Bradford was saying rang strangely true. Her father had pulled the same thing on her once with a red Porsche when she was fresh out of college and he was trying to get her to forget all about being a household hints expert and come to work for him at Bosworth Industries instead. Jo had been secretly flattered by his gesture, but the world of big business held no appeal for her at all. She had turned down the Porsche and the big salary, saying she was quite happy living with her grandparents in Mulberry Glen, thank you, and learning everything she needed to know to take over the “Tips from Tulip” newspaper column from her grandmother. Jo had never regretted that decision, especially when one after the other of her sweet grandparents died and she was left to carry on the legacy alone.
“Oh, man, I forgot it was rush hour,” Bradford said. “It’s so crowded here.”
The station grew even more crowded as they neared the boarding area. Jo realized he would have to finish talking once they were on the train and couldn’t be overheard quite so easily. She allowed Bradford to keep his arm around her anyway, partly because she didn’t want to lose him in the shuffle, partly because she needed the support for all this walking in her cast, and partly because she was starting to feel downright scared. Next to her, she could feel that Bradford’s body was tense and on alert, his eyes darting constantly around the corridor. Jo found herself doing the same, though she wasn’t sure what she expected to see. Finally, she couldn’t keep quiet any longer.
“Bradford, what are we watching for? Who is it that you think wants me ‘eliminated’? Is it someone I know? Someone in the company? Someone in my family?”
“Jo, all I know is that your life is in danger,” he whispered in return, “and that it has to do with something big that’s going on at Bosworth Industries. Otherwise, I’m as clueless as you are.”
Jo swallowed hard. If by some wild chance Bradford really was telling her the truth, then her life could be in serious jeopardy right now.
“But why? ” Jo demanded. “I have nothing at all to do with Bosworth Industries. I don’t work there, and I don’t have any dealings with them. I own a couple of measly shares of stock, certainly not enough to be killed over. I don’t participate in any of the votes. When the stockholder’s report comes in the mail, I usually toss it in the trash. I’m telling you, before today I hadn’t even set foot in the Bosworth building in several years.”
“Look, all I know is that something’s cooking at Bosworth, and for some reason you present a problem. I’ve tried everything I can to get more information, but once I started sniffing around with some of my old contacts and former fellow employees, it’s like
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