Me? she thought. Roy had said a lot of flattering things to her but never that he was proud.

“This is my companion. She’s called Corky.”

Corky was beautiful but very young—early twenties. Her blond hair was silky, her boobs full and perky, her lips red, and she smacked her gum. “Nice to meetcha,” she said.

“Ivan is one of our biggest clients, Jo. I invited him to stay at the lake for a couple of weeks.”

“You what?” she asked.

“I invited him to use the lake house for a couple of weeks. He was saying he really needed to escape the business of money and finance and get away, get back to nature, relax. He didn’t want to be in a resort or hotel. I suggested the lake. I told him I was going for a few days and that you and Lou would make him feel welcome.”

“Oh, Roy, I don’t—”

“Ivan, come and meet my beautiful sister-in-law, Lou Hempstead.” He pulled Ivan to the porch where Lou stood, curious, waiting to find out what was going on. “Lou, this is a business associate of mine, Ivan.”

“Indeed a great pleasure, miss,” he said, taking her hand.

Jo had dressed up for Roy but Lou was wearing shorts and a halter top; her feet were bare, her hair pulled into a ponytail. Carl couldn’t make it for the weekend so she didn’t fuss about her appearance, but with her long legs, she made those shorts look fantastic. She wore no makeup but her cheeks were rosy from the sun, and on her face her expression was thoroughly nonplussed.

“But how long have you been here? Already tan as a beach beauty!” Ivan looked around. “I envy you this little hidden paradise! It’s perfect! You are so kind to have us. It’s my intention that you never even know I’m around unless I’m doing something to help you.”

“Mr....?”

“Just Ivan, my dear girl. You’d never remember the last name. I’ve brought some provisions to add to your kitchen. I’ll get them in a moment. Will you show me around your little paradise?”

“I...suppose...” Lou said.

Lou was clearly gobsmacked. This was unprecedented. They never had guests at the lake. That Roy would do this without even asking must have stunned Lou to the depth of her being. Jo leaned into Roy and whispered, “What are you thinking? They can’t stay here!”

“Why not? There’s tons of room. We can give him the boathouse. He’s an important client, Jo, and this is exactly what he said he was looking for. You wait, you’re going to love him! The women all love him!”

“We haven’t even seen each other in weeks!”

He nuzzled her neck. “Believe me, we’re going to spend plenty of time together. Where are the girls?” He wandered away from her, yelling, “Girls!”

They came flying from all corners of the house—two from up in the loft, two from down by the dock, two from the second bedroom, all of them running to throw themselves on their daddy or uncle. Within moments the house was teeming with people—Lou and Ivan had completed their short tour and now were laughing in the kitchen, working together to pull out snacks and drinks. Ivan made his “companion” a drink and she settled at the table with it. Jo noticed she was quiet but smiling all the time. She was so well put together, her long, red nails and matching toes, glossy lips. She didn’t say a word for the longest time until she pulled a pack of cigarettes out of her small purse. “Mind if I smoke?”

“I saw an ashtray beside the lawn chair on the grass, Corky,” Ivan said. Then he leaned over and whispered something to Lou and she giggled.

* * *

Lou and Jo sat with their teacups holding a splash of Jack Daniel’s on ice and tried to remember how this suave and handsome stranger with the young, blonde appendage had insinuated himself into their sacred summer retreat. It started with drinks and snacks that lasted until after the children had gone to bed. Ivan had them laughing at his exploits, told them crazy stories of all his travels and the odd people he’d met along the way.

“He was an expert flirt,” Lou said. “He always found an excuse to whisper in my ear or touch my knee, and when I got a little nervous he whispered, ‘Don’t worry, I’m not going to put you in an awkward situation.’ I asked about Corky, who seemed to only come in the house to freshen her drink and then was gone again. And he said something like he was clever with money but he seemed to make mistakes with women. He said they weren’t a couple. He said, ‘You’ll see.’ Then he asked if there was a bed somewhere in the house she might use. He was bound for the boathouse. Clever—he let me know right off they weren’t sleeping together. And that he wanted a private place of his own...”

“I should go,” Jo said. “I have a long bus home. I’ll come back tomorrow. We’ll find some way to negotiate a truce. I hope.”

“You started this,” Lou said. “You brought it up. I think I was the one who wanted him to stay.”

“I think so, too,” Jo said, looking into her teacup. She took a sip.

“It was the dumbest thing I’ve ever done, to take that lying bastard seriously.”

“I’ve had a lot of experience in that if you’d like some pointers,” Jo said.

“I was having fun. I hadn’t had fun in so long. He made me laugh until I couldn’t sit up and then he’d ask me all these questions about myself, my education, my life, about motherhood. He’d wanted children, he said, but he’d never met anyone he thought could be his companion for a lifetime. He could see how my husband was so lucky. And he wasn’t just fun in the evenings with his charming stories—the first morning they were there I got up to find him in the kitchen getting breakfast together. ‘What do the children like?’ he asked. And in the afternoon I’d see him sitting alone on the dock and find him reading some sophisticated book in a foreign language. He couldn’t stay away from the Wall Street news. He had that damn phone—that cell phone the size of a brick. He needed to be in touch with his investment adviser and broker. And he said, ‘My dear,’ in that fancy accent. ‘My dear, I’m afraid I may have to leave suddenly. There’s a hotel in Cabo I’ve been watching...a great investment opportunity...’” She shook her head. “He’d leave from time to time, alone, come back with something—steaks, liquor, wine, fresh vegetables, sweets...”

“My Jesus, wasn’t he slick,” Jo said. “What was that accent? British but with a little Russian affect?”

“Who the hell knows? It was all fake.”

“He knew what he was doing, that’s for sure.”

“Magnetic,” Lou said. “If you ever tell anyone this I will find a way to punish you forever. I’m more embarrassed by being suckered by him than what I really did to him.”

Jo was shaking her head. “You shouldn’t be. He was a professional. A con man. A gambler. How long was it before he started talking to you about property?”

“It wasn’t too long, a little while,” Lou said. “I was pretty worried when Roy left, but there didn’t seem to be any reason—Ivan was a perfect gentleman. Aside from being charming and helpful and wildly sexy, he didn’t make any demands at all. I think he’d been there a week.” She laughed suddenly.

“I haven’t heard you laugh in years,” Jo said.

“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Lou said. “I don’t want to talk about this. I want to shut it down. Bury it.”

“We tried that,” Jo said. “Listen, neither of us is happy. Before that summer, despite all our issues and problems, we counted on each other and we were happy. Not giggling fools, maybe. But we managed. We’ve got to get back to our families. My daughters need me and yours need you, too. Megan is not well, Lou. You don’t want her to slip away without mending things, without letting her know how much you love her. And Charley...”

“Charley hates me,” Lou said. “I failed her.”

“You were a grieving mother when Charley needed you and you just didn’t have the energy to focus on her accidental pregnancy. You should have. I should have. We did the best we could. But she’s found her daughter and has a relationship with her and her children. Charley is a grandmother! And there’s Eric, your grandson. We have to pull it together. We should’ve pulled it together years ago.”

“I thought you hated me,” Lou said.

“Well...I did,” Jo admitted. “But I also loved you. And I was so hurt that you turned your back on me. So I turned away, too.” She smiled a lopsided smile. “Sisters. Best friends and enemies.”

* * *

The first week Ivan was at the lake he stirred curiosity about his experience and travels and wealth so they asked him many questions. He explained that he’d started small and sold property at a profit, doubled his investments and sold at a greater profit, doubling again and again. It was pretty simple math. And he bought in places almost guaranteed to bring an excellent return.

After a week Ivan started asking Louise about her and Carl’s investment strategy. He offered to put her in touch with some successful financial advisers. Had she considered investing in property? Vacation and recreational property. He’d done business with the company Roy was working for since long before Roy had been hired. Roy was a new kid, Ivan said, but he liked him and thought he’d go far. The resale value on his condos, hotels, apartments and houses was amazing. He didn’t buy hotels alone—he was part of many limited partnerships. They were safe investments, he said. He always chose resort communities—Hawaii, the Bahamas, Mexico. Romantic getaways.

“I’d be willing to meet you in any of those places to tour the properties. Your children are nearly grown. Maybe you should start dabbling in these opportunities.”

“Meet me?” She laughed. “I’m sure Carl would like that idea!”

“Bring your sister along and we’ll have Roy meet us. It’s very doable.”