This Tangled Thing Called Love: A Contemporary Romance Novel by Marie Astor Page B

no idea…”
    “Yes, it’s fucked up, I know, but I figured I might as well tell you now – would not want you hearing from dear old Mom or David about poor, delicate Stephanie.”
    “Thanks, I appreciate that. You know, if you’re interested in modeling, I can ask my friend, Amber. She’s a publicist, and she’s represented fashion models before.”
    “Thanks, Claire – that’d be swell.” Stephanie grinned. “I have a feeling we’re going to be great friends. I’ll see you at lunch.”

Chapter 12
     
     
    Back in his room, David loosened his shirt collar and plunked himself on the bed. He would have to get up in a minute, but for now he just wanted a few moments of uninterrupted peace. The weekend had only begun, and already he was exhausted. The old man was getting crankier by the minute, and David was fed up with dancing to his every whim. And his mother – his mother was being his mother, which meant that she was no help either. Well, at least Claire had met both of his parents’ approval, which meant that he could proceed with his plan. After all, he had brought her here for a reason. It was time to seal his future as the heir of the Lawson Enterprises, and in order to do that, David had to convince his father of his reliability. And what better way to demonstrate his ability to commit than to make an example of his personal life? Yes, marriage was the answer. David had put it off for as long as possible, but he knew that there was no way around it, and Claire was as good a choice as any. In fact, she was a very good choice, David was convinced. She did not ask too many questions or put excessive demands on his time. Claire would make the perfect Mrs. Lawson. And just because they got engaged did not mean that they would have to get married right away. There would be at least a year-long engagement to allow the necessary time for the wedding preparations, with which David was certain his mother would make herself useful. And who knew what could happen in a year? The old man seemed unusually frail today. As of late, he had made himself scarce at the office, and David had assumed that it was just another one of his father’s tests to see how David would cope with the business on his own. Yet after seeing his father’s frail appearance today, David was not so sure. Come to think of it, the old man was getting up in years. He would turn seventy-five next year. For an instant, David almost felt a pang of remorse, but only for an instant. The old man hardly inspired pity.
    For all his insistence on David’s leading a respectable lifestyle, Allan Lawson had hardly followed his advice in his own youth. Renowned as one of the most notorious bachelors of his time, Allan Lawson had dated an endless string of socialites and actresses in his twenties and thirties, many of whom had aided him in furthering the success of Lawson Enterprises, his only true love. It was not until he turned forty that Allan Lawson thought of procreation and married Sylvia Lipnick , a then thirty-year-old socialite and model, an orphan and an heiress to a sizeable fortune that her father had amassed through an extremely profitable, if not particularly glamorous, textile business before he conveniently met his end in a plane crash. Mrs. Lipnick had passed away shortly after her husband from complications during plastic surgery, and at the age of twenty-one, Sylvia Lipnick had been left to her own devices, aided by a sizeable inheritance that insured that she would never have to worry about making a living. Yet, despite her good looks and ease of means, the higher echelons of society were closed to her because of her humble origins. Rather than marrying second best, Sylvia parlayed her stunning looks into modeling, and for almost ten years graced the covers of all the major fashion magazines. When she turned thirty, the calls from her agent dwindled, as did her invitations to the gatherings and galas that she had grown so accustomed to