drawn to men like him, and was destined for a life of loneliness and frustration as a result. And in recent years, she had given up, and decided it was too late. At forty-four, she no longer expected to find the love of her life, and when she bothered, she settled for brief affairs. They were good enough.
The girls were waiting for her at the airport when she arrived. The three of them checked in, and were in high spirits, and then Sophie noticed her mother’s long legs. They were three beautiful women standing at the check-in counter, and were drawing appreciative stares from men.
“Mom, where did you get those shorts?” Sophie asked her with a look of suspicion.
“From your closet. I forgot to leave out something to wear on the flight. I can give them back to you on the boat.” She looked apologetic, and Sophie grinned. Carole was on her cell phone with a friend and paying no attention to them.
“I left them there because they’re too short. You look pretty sexy, Mom,” Sophie said with a mild look of disapproval. They were in fact very short to be wearing them in a public place.
“Believe me, at my age no one looks,” Liz reassured her daughter. Her hair was dry by then, and fell in gentle waves and curls, framing her face.
“That’s what you think. About ten guys just checked you out.”
“No worries. I’ll cover myself with a blanket on the plane.” Sophie had worn a short white linen dress, and Carole was wearing a flowered miniskirt with a white T-shirt and sexy gladiator sandals. As usual, she looked incredible, she was a gorgeous girl, like both her parents. Sophie was beautiful too, she looked like Liz, but with dark hair.
They boarded the plane in first class. Olivia had sent the others in first class too. She wanted their trip to start out right—comfortable, fun, and easy for them. It was a small gift to give to them, and Liz and the girls were thrilled as they settled into their seats on the plane. The girls wanted to watch a movie, and Liz said she wanted to sleep. And instead she took the manuscript out of her bag after takeoff, and started editing it again. She had been doing that for weeks. The girls didn’t even notice what she was reading. They were sitting together and chattering excitedly about the trip. They both loved their grandmother and always had fun with her. She was far more attentive to her grandchildren than she had been with her own children. Now she had more time, and they were more interested in her and what she’d done, and the business that was her world.
After takeoff, a stewardess offered them champagne. Both girls helped themselves to a glass and Liz asked for a Bloody Mary. She sipped it slowly, as she quietly worked on her book, and then set it down next to her and forgot about it, until they hit some turbulence half an hour later, and the glass toppled into her lap. The stewardess was quick to bring damp towels and help her clean up the mess. Liz managed to save her manuscript from the accident, but Sophie’s shorts and her own white shirt were a mess, and she had nothing else to change into. She looked at the girls, laughed, and shrugged. It didn’t really matter, she could change her clothes when she got to the boat.
By the time the plane headed out over the ocean two hours later, all three of them had turned their seats into beds with pillows and comforters, and they were sound asleep. In spite of Liz’s usual trepidation about spending time with her family, they all knew it was going to be a fabulous two weeks. And other than the minor mishap with the Bloody Mary, they were off to a great start.
Chapter 5
When Olivia reached the port in Monaco, the day before her children were scheduled to arrive, it took her breath away to see the yacht she had chartered for them. It was three hundred feet of pure luxury, and an exquisite sight. All twenty-four crew members were lined up on deck in uniform, waiting for her to arrive. The captain stood on the dock, ready to escort her on board and introduce her to the crew. It was evenly divided between women and men, and impossible to remember all of their names. There was an enormous outdoor bar, with a