Page 15 of A Christmas Negotiation

Jeremy kneaded his forehead. His meeting with his neighborhood veterinarian was still fresh in his mind. “For now? I’m fostering her. We had such a late summer that I guess there’s a big surplus of cats and the shelters are full. The vet said the kittens should be ready for adoption by Valentine’s Day.” Jeremy could hardly believe the words out of his own mouth. Like he needed another complication in his life.

“Well, I can’t wait to meet her. I love cats. We always had them when I was a kid. My mom was obsessed with them.”

“You haven’t had one since?”

Isabel’s face reflected something Jeremy hadn’t seen before—sadness. “No. Not one of my own.”

“Well, good. Maybe you’re the answer to my prayers. I’m a bit out of my depth.” He glanced over at her, wondering why he was allowing himself to get further entwined with Isabel. He knew he shouldn’t be, especially not now. He should be creating distance. That was how you won. “With the cat. Not the case.”

SIX

Isabel arranged to meet Mindy at her grandmother’s penthouse apartment on Central Park West on Sunday morning. It was only eleven days until Christmas and the clock was ticking on Mr. Summers’s timeline. The results of the promissory note authentication were due back tomorrow. Then Isabel would have to get back into it with Jeremy. She wasn’t quite sure what to make of the invitation to meet at his house, but she knew from experience that there was no substitute for sitting down at the negotiating table and hammering out details. So she would risk having to endure the temptation of Jeremy, being alone and sequestered with him, just so she could move forward with her life—finish up the Eden’s case and start the new year with a whole new direction.

“Hey there.” Mindy answered the door, dressed in the sort of outfit Isabel had never seen her wear—jeans and a sweater. No designer dress or sky-high heels. It was nice to see her dressed down and relaxed. “Come on in.”

“Thanks.” Isabel stepped into a bright and elegant foyer with white marble floors and a crystal-and-chrome fixture overhead. She took off her coat, glad she’d also gone for pants and a sweater. Even hot-running Isabel found it too cold outside for a dress.

“Thank you for suggesting we do this. It was a really good idea. Sophie is convinced that this whole Summers case is bogus. But I’m not so sure, especially after your forensic accountants found the money yesterday. And discovered that it went into my grandmother’s personal account, not the business.”

“It’s starting to make sense now, isn’t it? No wonder we couldn’t find any evidence of it in the Eden’s books. It never touched Eden’s. Or at least not directly.” Isabel was struggling just like Mindy, wondering how this all went together. “But we still don’t know for certain that the money came from Summers and we also don’t know where it eventually went.”

“Only that it existed.”

“Right.”

Mindy waved Isabel across the foyer. “Come on. Let me show you the place.”

They progressed down a skinny hallway and then the apartment opened up, with an entire wall of windows overlooking Central Park. The vista ahead was frosted with snow, a lovely match for the mostly white furnishings.

“My grandmother was all about punches of color.” Mindy picked up a magenta throw pillow from one of several plush sofas. Behind it was a sunny yellow cashmere throw. The walls were dotted with an eclectic mix of art, wildly varied stylistically, from impressionist to modern, featuring nearly every shade of the rainbow. It all looked to be original. The space as a whole spoke of a very chic woman with impossibly expensive taste. Of course Victoria Eden had lived in such a grand and unbelievable space.

“I’ve seen that same thing at Eden’s, especially in her old office.”

Mindy nodded. “Emma’s been afraid to change a thing. Too much tradition. The specter of my grandmother always looms large.”

Tradition. Another reason Isabel could not let Eden’s fall apart on her watch.

“I can’t believe you never moved in here,” Isabel said. “It’s incredible. Completely gorgeous.” She wandered over to a set of French doors that led out to a stone balcony, admiring the wintry scene. Mother Nature had already gone big this December.

“I knew that no matter what I did, Sophie would criticize my choices unless I left everything exactly as it was. And I do not want to live in a museum.”

“That’s not really fair to you, is it? So you just leave this sitting here because of your sister?”

Mindy shrugged. “I have no business complaining. Emma never knew our grandmother very well, so she enjoys coming up here and poking around, looking at old photos. Sophie likes it for the same reason, and I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t enjoy it, too. It’s comforting to be here. I can feel our grandmother’s presence when I’m here and we all miss it. I can’t fault anyone for wanting to put the world on pause.”

Isabel nodded, appreciating the whole sad story. She knew very well what it was like to miss someone so desperately. She still felt that same way about her parents, especially her mom. “If only we could do that. It would be nice every now and then.”

Mindy gathered her glorious red tresses in her hands and draped them over one shoulder. “It’s only been a year since Gram died, and so much has happened. Just when we thought we were getting the store back on a more profitable path, this happens. I’m honestly wondering if we’re not better off just selling, paying off Mr. Summers and moving on. I know Sophie and Emma want to keep Eden’s alive at any cost, but sometimes, things just don’t work out.”

Isabel carefully considered Mindy’s words. She loved that her future sister-in-law was both savvy and sweet. She could make shrewd business moves and still take everyone’s feelings into account. “Have I told you how happy I am that my brother found a woman who is not only smart, but also incredibly thoughtful?”

Mindy smiled. “That’s not what you thought of me the first time we met.”

“I know. And I fully admit that you changed my mind.”

Mindy reached out and rubbed Isabel’s arm. “I’m excited to have you for a sister-in-law. Although, honestly, I have a feeling that I should probably just call you my sister. You and I are a lot more alike than Sophie or Emma and I.”

Isabel felt like her heart was growing to twice its normal size. She and Sam were impossibly close, but that was such a small circle of family. Here was Mindy, forging a connection of her own with Isabel. She was so thankful for it. “That sounds amazing. I’ve always wanted a sister.”