Going For Broke Read Online Free Page A

me, Victoria thought.  I really don’t have time for this.  “Jeanine, I’m dying to hear your news, but Trip is waiting for me right now and if I don’t scoot, he’ll have my head.”  The one thing all the wives respected was the ire of the captains of industry that they were all married to.  “How about lunch next week?”
                  She hung up the phone and unplugged it.  
                  After instructing Lumi to neither answer the phone or the door for the rest of the day, Victoria realized that she was still in her bathrobe.  She went back into her bedroom to get dressed and came upon the outfit she had laid upon the bed less than an hour ago.  It wasn’t even six and she felt like she had been through the ringer today.
                  She picked up the hangers and surveyed her earlier choice.  Clearly, the aforementioned outfit would no longer do.  If she was going to spend her day trying to figure out what the hell was going on with Trip, she might as well look bloody well fantastic doing it.
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                  Jack finally returned her call, and he was great.  He told her that there was nothing to worry about, that the FBI was completely unauthorized to come into her home.  Did they have a warrant?  Of course not.  He had spoken with Trip just yesterday, and had no reason to believe that this was anything except just a big misunderstanding.  Victoria berated herself for letting those men get the best of her.  Of course Trip wasn’t up to anything illegal.  Immoral, maybe, but that wasn’t the jurisdiction of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Unless it was a crime to cheat at golf or overestimate the value of a charitable contribution.   She’d deal with the FBI nonsense later.  She glanced at the sterling Tiffany clock on her bedside table.  4:15.  Too late for Phillipe (and she really did need to see him sooner than later),  she’d go to the Carlisle to meet Trip and his client at 6:00 as originally planned. 
                  As she stepped out of the sleek black car at the Carlisle, Victoria felt in that she was back in complete control.  This afternoon had really thrown her - she was surprised at how much.  Things didn’t throw Victoria Vernon.  She walked into the hotel and the doorman gave her a nod of recognition.  When she entered the dimly lit bar, everyone looked up a bit to see who had come in.  When they saw it was Victoria Vernon, the looks lingered just a little longer than usual.  Even people who didn’t know who she was, knew she was someone.
                  She greeted the bartender by name and walked to the corner table that she knew would be reserved for her.  Trip loved taking clients to Bemelman’s Bar at the Carlisle.  It was hushed yet vibrant at the same time.  Besides, they had the best bar nibbles in the city.  The waiter greeted her by name and she ordered a Ketel One on the rocks, with a twist.  She would have loved a beer, truth be told, she had long ago decided that vodka on the rocks was classy, understated and had minimal calories.  She could nurse one all night if necessary, but tonight was not going to be one of those nights.
                  Looking around the room, Victoria recognized a few people.  There was the anchor from that financial network that screamed all the time.  He even looked frantic just sitting at a table with his drink.  Perhaps it was the twenty-something beauty that was with him that had him so worked up.  It always amused Victoria that in New York, a man could look and act like a troll, yet as long as he had money, power or fame, he could get any most any woman he wanted. 
                  The waiter returned when she finished her drink.  It went down more quickly than