Portrait of Love by Debby Mayne

Author:Debby Mayne
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2013-10-09T04:00:00+00:00

ten

Tony didn’t waste a minute. As soon as he got the infor-mation, he called the Atlanta office. Uncle Ed’s executive assistant, Tony’s cousin Sharon, answered on the first ring.

“It’s great to hear from you, Tony,” she said. “Dad—”

“Is Mandy there yet?” he said.

“That’s what I was trying to say. She’s in with Dad.” Her voice softened. “Why didn’t you tell me how pretty she is?”

Tony cleared his throat. “I need to talk to her now.”

“What’s wrong, Tony?”

“Her mother had a heart attack. She’ll need to come back right away.”

“Hold on. Let me go get her.”

“Wait. Sharon, why don’t you get her and show her to the conference room—the one with the sofas? Then you can call me right back and put her on the phone.”

“Good idea. I’ll go do that now.”

❧

Mr. Rossi had sent a stretch limo to the airport to pick Mandy up. And here she was, sitting in his office, listening to the details of a job better than she ever imagined.

Someone knocked on the door, and Mr. Rossi cleared his throat. “Yes?”

Sharon, the woman from the front desk, walked in and offered Mandy a sweet smile. “I need to see Mandy for a moment, if you don’t mind.”

“But we were—”

Sharon interrupted him. “It’s important.”

Mandy glanced over at the head of the company, who looked as perplexed as she felt. “Okay, if it’s that important, go ahead. I’ll be right here when you’re done with her.”

“Follow me,” Sharon said. When they reached a room at the end of the long hall, she opened the door, switched on the light, and gestured inside. “Have a seat on the sofa over by the phone. I’ll be right back, okay?”

“Um, sure,” Mandy said, doing as she was told.

A moment later, Sharon was back. “Tony needs to talk to you, so let me get him on the phone.” Without another word, she reached over, punched in the number, and handed the phone to Mandy. “I’ll be out front when you’re done.”

“Tony?” Mandy said as soon as he answered. “What was so important to pull me out of my meeting?”

“Are you sitting down?” His voice was gravelly, unlike she’d ever heard it.

“Yes.” Her heart suddenly started hammering in her chest. “What’s going on?”

“Christina called. Your mother’s in the hospital. She had a heart attack about an hour ago.”

Mandy gasped. “I have to come home.”

“I know. Sharon’s booking your flight as we speak. I’ll talk to my uncle and reschedule your meeting for later.”

Within seconds after she hung up, Sharon was at the door of the conference room with her coat and handbag. “The driver is out front waiting. I’ll ride with you to the airport.”

“That’s okay,” Mandy said. “I’ll be fine.”

“I’m going with you,” she insisted. “My dad’s giving me the rest of the day off, so I can make sure everything’s all set with the airline.”

As Sharon coordinated the return trip, Mandy pulled out her cell phone, turned it on, and called her sister. “She’s doing a little better,” Christina said. “It was scary at first, though.

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