Aunt Penelope's Harem Read Free

companies that had done extremely well, but ten
million dollars? Good Lord.
    Gretchen winced as if she’d been struck. “She gave away that
much?”
    “Yes.”
    “Well, shit, they’d better appreciate it.”
    “I’m sure they will. Ms. Carlson, you have been left the
after-taxes sum of exactly one million dollars.”
    Gretchen snorted. “Good to know that her own daughter is
one-tenth as important to her as those charities.”
    Melanie wanted to slap her upside of the head and scream
“What the hell are you complaining about…you’re a freakin’ millionaire!” but
figured that would be inappropriate.
    “Ms. Clover, you have been left the after-taxes sum of
exactly one hundred thousand dollars.”
    Melanie’s legs went weak. She could take a real vacation.
She could move into an apartment with adequate soundproofing.
    “In addition, my client has left you her home and all of her
material possessions, and has set up a trust fund that will cover all expenses
involved in maintaining this property.”
    “ What ?” Gretchen demanded. “She gets the house? The
house is worth more than I got!”
    “You’re absolutely correct,” said Mr. Campbell, nodding.
“What a pity.”
    “This is bullshit. I’m her daughter.”
    “The terms of the will are very clear.”
    “Yeah, well, this isn’t over. I’m gonna hire a lawyer.”
    “That’s a fine idea,” said Mr. Campbell. “With the million
dollars you’ve received you should be able to hire an excellent one.”
    Gretchen stood up and stormed out of the office.
    Mr. Campbell smiled at Melanie. “Your aunt was right, her
niece is a lovely woman.”
    Melanie felt herself blush. “Thanks. I mean, I know you’re
just saying that, but thanks.”
    “Did you ever get a chance to visit your aunt’s home?”
    Melanie shook her head. “I knew that she moved into a new
place about a year ago, but I’ve never seen it. Whenever I saw her, she always
came to me. She liked to travel.”
    “She certainly did,” said Mr. Campbell. “She was my favorite
client…one of my best friends. I’m really going to miss her.”
    He stared at his desk for a long moment, but then wiped at
his eyes and smiled. “Obviously, there’s a tremendous amount of tedious,
lawyer-style paperwork to go through, and you won’t be able to actually take
possession of the house for several business days.”
    “Oh, that’s fine,” said Melanie. “Actually, my plane back to
Wyoming leaves in about three hours, so I can’t stay anyway.”
    “That’s too bad. But I’d be more than happy to give you a
ride to the airport, if you’re interested in driving past your new home.”
    * * * * *
    “No way!” said Melanie, gazing in awe at the immense white
mansion. “This can’t be it.”
    “It is indeed. And that’s just the shed…wait until you see
the actual house.”
    Melanie laughed. “This is amazing.”
    “Yes, it is,” Mr. Campbell said. Then he frowned. “You do
realize that I was only kidding, right? This isn’t the shed. It’s the actual
house.”
    “I got that.”
    “Good.”
    The place was absolutely incredible. It was bigger than the
Wal-Mart back at home. There was a huge fountain in the front yard, and even
some topiary animals, including a bear, an elephant, and a flamingo. Melanie
simply couldn’t believe that Aunt Penelope had lived in such a nice place…and
that she’d inherited it.
    Unreal. Completely unreal.
    * * * * *
    Melanie had done a lot of difficult things in her life, but
giving her two weeks notice at work was not one of them. Although after Harold
proceeded to vomit into his wastebasket upon receiving her written resignation,
she’d agreed to stay on an extra week.
    She knew that she’d have to sell Aunt Penelope’s mansion
sooner or later. Probably sooner. But the idea of living in that place, even if
only for a short time, was too exciting to pass up. She’d live like a queen for
a while, and then head back to reality.
    “What reality?”