Reluctant Deception - Cambria Smyth Page 0,10

can meet with him sometime today. 'The sooner, the better' were his exact words."

Libby's heart lurched and then sank. Maybe he's changed his mind about the fundraiser, she thought. Or worse, he knew who she really was. Had her dream been a premonition?

"Did he say what he wanted to discuss?" she asked shakily, coming more awake with each second that passed by.

"No, he didn't. Just flew out of his office, all in a huff, demanding I call you immediately to set up a meeting. The phones were fixed late yesterday and he's been returning calls all morning. Gets in at seven you know. A real workaholic, Mr. D. is."

Now fully awake, Libby quickly recalled her agenda for the day. A shower, long and hot, was definitely in order and she had to review some work with her assistant in about an hour.

"I could be there around one this afternoon, Mrs. McElroy, if that suits his schedule," Libby replied.

She heard the shuffling of what sounded like an appointment book in the background.

"Yes, he's free at one, Miss Reed. No need to ring the bell, just come on in. We'll see you then."

Libby hung up the phone, pondering the meeting to come. What could he possibly want, she wondered? What could have upset him so much that he had to see her? A phone call? There was only one likely reason, Libby surmised, and it was no doubt the one she feared the most.

Hearing noises in the bedroom, Libby's two cats, Muffin and Crunch, came bounding into the room and up onto the bed. Libby stroked them both before shoving them off the bed with a friendly swat. Grabbing a robe, she followed them downstairs where they waited to be fed. She was glad for their companionship in an otherwise empty and lonely house.

Coffee, she thought. What she really needed was a strong cup of coffee. Libby walked through a small hallway to the kitchen. Ignoring the decaf she usually drank, she plucked the can of regular she kept on hand for her guests out of the refrigerator and set up the coffeemaker.

Libby looked around with fondness at the room she had spent so much time in as a child.

She had nothing but warm memories of the house, which had once been her grandparents' and was now hers. She'd spent so many of her childhood days there, with Pop-Pop and Grandma Reed. She wasn't surprised when they willed it to her, not only because she was the sole grandchild but because they knew she would never tear it down or remodel it beyond recognition. Married when she inherited it, Libby rented it for a few years to a nice elderly couple. When her divorce became imminent, and her tenants thankfully decided to move to a warmer climate, Libby moved the thirty some miles from Philadelphia and took over the home for her own.

She could still remember the smell of Grandma Reed's pies left to cool on the kitchen's deep window sills. The room was bright and airy, with a large bay window overlooking the backyard. In a concession to modern conveniences, Libby installed new cabinets and appliances when she moved in two years ago. She left the rest of the house untouched and it looked remarkably the same today as it did when built in 1917.

With four bedrooms, it was certainly much larger than Libby needed, but she adored its turn-of-the-twentieth-century warmth and character. Designed in the bungalow style, it had a steeply-pitched slate roof that swept down to create a charming, columned porch on the front of the house. The porch was enclosed with multi-paned doors which could be opened in fair weather, bathing the room in fresh air. She didn't have riverfront property like Harte's Desire, but was close enough to the water to enjoy its cooling effects. There were three other porches, one of them used for sleeping as was popular back then.

The house was built of sturdy red brick, made locally, while its projecting dormers and bay windows were covered with cedar shakes stained red to match the house.

The Craftsman-style interior was formal, yet rustic, with paneled wainscot, polished hardwood floors, and open ceiling beams in the living room. Built-in bookcases flanked its red brick fireplace and French doors opened to the front porch beyond. The dining room had built-in, glass-fronted china cabinets and a bay window with a window seat. A small family room next to the kitchen was dominated by a corner fireplace, also done in