Read Her Own Rules for Free Online Page B

on the door, and as Paul called,
    “Come in!” it opened.
    The receptionist looked in and said, “Mr. and Mrs.
    Morrison have arrived.”
    Paul nodded. “Show them in, Doris, please.”
    Several seconds later Paul was introducing Elizabeth and Philip Morrison to Meredith. Once the handshakes were over, they all sat down in the chairs near the fire.
    Meredith said, “Can I offer you something? Coffee, tea, a soda, perhaps?”
    “No, thank you,” Mrs. Morrison said.
    Her husband shook his head and murmured something about just having had breakfast. Then he began to speak to Paul about the weather, the snow on the roads, and the drive over from Lakeville, where they owned a weekend home.
    Mrs. Morrison looked across at Meredith and said,
    “I love the way you’ve decorated Hilltops…it’s so charming and intimate. It reminds me of an English country house.”
    “Thank you,” Meredith said, smiling at the other woman. “I like decorating, creating a look, an ambiance. And lots of comfort for the guests, of 50 / Barbara Taylor Bradford
    course. I think an inn should be a haven, that’s why I called my company Havens Incorporated.”
    Elizabeth Morrison nodded. “Very apt, very apt indeed. And I think all of your little touches are wonderful. The hot water bottles in silk cases, the special reading lights by the bed, the afghans on the chaises, little luxuries like that make all the difference.”
    “That’s what I believe,” Meredith murmured, “and that’s my policy in all of the inns we own.”
    “We’ve always wanted to run an inn like this,” Mrs.
    Morrison confided. “And now’s the time to do it, when we’re both still young. Also, we want to get out of the city, bring up our three children in the country. The city’s become so violent, hard to take in general.”
    “I understand. I raised two children in Connecticut, and I’ve always felt lucky that I was able to do so. As you know, since you’ve been residents up here for a few years, there are plenty of good schools. Yes, it’s a great spot for a family.”
    Elizabeth Morrison was about to say something else, when she caught her husband’s warning look; she simply cleared her throat and sat back in her chair, having suddenly become a mere spectator at this meeting.
    Meredith, who missed nothing, noticed this infinitesimal exchange. She understood immediately that Philip Morrison did not want his wife saying any more. Nor did he wish her to sound too enthusiastic about the inn. He wanted her to play it cool.
    Her Own Rules / 51
    As he had been doing all along. He was obviously ready to deal.
    Not giving him an opportunity to start the ball rolling, Meredith jumped in with both feet.
    Staring directly at him, fixing him with an appraising eye, she said, “I know you’ve been back to look at Hilltops many times now, and that you both like it.
    The question is, do you really want to buy it?”
    “Yes,” Philip Morrison said. “At the right price. For us, that is.”
    “The price is four million dollars, Mr. Morrison. I think my real estate lawyer in the city has already told you that.”
    “He did. But as I told Mr. Melinger, it’s a bit steep for me.”
    “Actually, the inn is worth four million dollars, even more if the truth be known,” Meredith pointed out.
    “As a matter of fact, it’s true value is four and a half million dollars. You can check that with the real estate people both here and in the city. It just so happens that I’m willing to take less because I’m expanding my company. Otherwise, I’d hold out for the proper price, I can assure you.”
    “I’ll give you three million,” Philip Morrison said, glanced at his wife, and added, “That’s all we can pay, isn’t it, Liz?”
    Momentarily startled to suddenly be drawn into this exchange, she looked nonplussed. Then she said quickly, emphatically, “We’re selling our Manhattan co-op and hoping to get a mortgage on the Lakeville 52 / Barbara Taylor