Flirting With Forever Read Online Free

the mortgages and hoped Marsha wouldn’t ask any questions.
    “I stopped at the little wine shop you like and was buying a case of prosecco for a brunch you didn’t RSVP to. At first I thought it was because you were busy —with the book and that was why I haven’t heard from you. But then it hit me, Jim hasn’t returned Mike’s calls, he’s missed the tee time he and Mike have had for forever. He’s gone, isn’t he?”
    She cried with me as I tried to explain what had happened.
    “Oh, honey, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”
    “I will be. The beach house is on the market, I put this house on the market yesterday. Sold my romance series for a lot of money, more than I ever dreamed. I won’t be getting a check from my publisher for a couple of months, but I know I’ll be able to meet my financial obligations soon and have some to set aside.”
    “Tara, I’m not worried about the money, I’m worried about you.”
    “God, Marsha, this is so embarrassing, but I’d really appreciate it if you would liquidate just enough assets to take care of my expenses the next two months.”
    “Tara, I’m so sorry, but I can’t. Jim closed out your accounts.”
    “Our investments? All of them?”
    “I was out of town at a ten-day conference when Mike got a call from Jim saying he wanted to liquidate everything. He didn’t say why; it’s not our business to ask. Mike said he emailed Jim the forms and he sent them back a few minutes later signed and executed along with a bank account number.
    “Mike wired the funds and didn’t mention it to me until I got home last night. I let him have it, and I’m still furious with him. He swore he’d called and left messages for you to find out what was going on, but he never heard back from you.”
    Oh, God, I’d deleted Mike’s messages because I thought he was trying to invite us to something, and I didn’t want to explain to him there was no us.
    “How could he do that without my signature?”
    “It’s a joint account, honey. Unless the owners of the account specify differently, it’s legal for one party close it without the other party’s signature. When Mike didn’t hear back from you, Jim called and wanted to know what the hold up was.”
    “No. This can’t be. I have two huge mortgages and Lilly.” I ran to the computer in my office and pulled up our bank accounts. Everything was gone. “You have to get it back, Marsha. Now.”
    She put her hands on my shoulders. “I can’t, sweetie, I’m so sorry. But you’re doing the right thing, trying to get a buyer for the albatross at the beach and the house here too. Your book is selling like crazy; you’re going to be okay.”
    I knew I’d have money coming in, lots of it. But temporarily I was screwed; Jim had taken everything but had left me with one credit card and $347 in my business account that he didn’t have access to.
    “Honey, if Jim’s been gone this long, I doubt he’s coming back, and if he did would you want him?”
    From the get-go, Jim and I never fought. If we did it was usually over something silly like choosing paint colors, so we didn’t have a lot of making up experience. Did I want to make up? Was that even possible? I’d spent so much time pining for my husband, I hadn’t even thought about what it might be like for him to come home. Would he be penitent? Would he expect me to be? Would he still be angry?
    “Tara, stop thinking about Jim, and think about yourself for a change, look at this as a new beginning. A license to thrive. Maybe it’ll take your mind off of what the bastard did to you. In the meantime, I already floated you a couple months expenses to get you by.”
    “No, Marsha. That’s too much money. I can’t.”
    “Honey, you don’t have a choice. You can’t get a home equity loan without Jim to co-sign, and I know you don’t have a big fat trust fund out there or I would have already invested it for you.”
    “What will Mike say about the loan?”
    Mike and