Laughing at himself, he leaned over and stared down at the screen, expecting to see his sister’s name, or maybe Nico’s. It was neither, but he still smiled when he recognized the number.
“Good morning, Amelia,” he answered.
“Good morning, Mr. Stone.” Her voice was pleasant but with an obvious edge. “How was your weekend?”
Cameron rolled his eyes. She only ever referred to him as “Mr. Stone” in front of clients or when she was annoyed with him. He doubted she’d have called him if she was with a client, so he had to assume he’d done something to piss her off.
“What did I do?”
“Nothing. I don’t know what you mean.”
“You’re annoyed.”
“Well,” she said, drawing the word out on an exasperated sigh. “Pushing my way through reporters and screening dozens of phone calls about your romantic life isn’t what I’d consider a good time.”
Cameron echoed her sigh. “I’m sorry about all of that. Really, I am.”
Amelia Maxwell had been with him almost since the beginning, and she was the only reason he wasn’t losing his mind at being away from the office. She was smart and organized, and he had every confidence that she’d keep the business running like a well-oiled machine in his absence.
“How can I make it up to you?”
“Vacation time in the spring. One week.”
Cameron nearly choked at the idea of managing without her for an entire week, but he accepted at once. “Done.”
“Paidvacation.”
“Naturally.” In fact, he could do even better than that. “One-week paid vacation charged to the company account. How’s that sound?”
Instantly, her tone changed, and the smile came through clearly in her voice. “Wonderful. Now, how are you holding up, Cameron?”
“I’m fine.” He wasn’t, but complaining wouldn’t change anything. “What’s happening at the office? I’m going to try to make it in later this week, but is there anything I should be aware of before then?”
“Burgundy is not your color.”
Cameron pulled the phone away, stared at it for a moment, then brought it back to his ear. “Excuse me?”
“I just thought you should know.”
She was a fucking riot. “Thanks,” he drawled. “I’ll take it into consideration. Anything I should know aboutwork?”
“I’ve had a few calls from clients concerned about recent news coverage. I made a list of the ones I think you should contact personally.”
He’d been afraid of that, but it wasn’t exactly unexpected since his name had been cropping up almostas often as Asher’s. “Okay, thanks. Go ahead and email me the list.”
“Already done.”
“Perfect. Anything else?”
“Only that I’m still waiting to hear back from Braxton and Nash. I was planning to follow up this afternoon unless you want me to wait.”
He’d been hesitant to work with the attorneys at first, in large part because the case they’d brought to his desk had reminded him too much of the Mitchell Faraday trial. In fact, he’d initially refused to take the job. Eventually, however, he’d realized that Blaine Braxton and Ethan Nash weren’t trying to get some sleazy crook off on a technicality. They truly believed in their client’s innocence, and they wanted Cameron’s help to prove it.
He’d worked with law firms before, and he knew better than to appear overly eager. So, he’d held his composure, even dismissing them with a clichéd, “I’ll be in touch,” but he’d known he would take the job before they had left his office.
Of course, he didn’tneedthe contract with Braxton and Nash, and he certainly didn’t need the money. Having his company associated with one of the top law firms in the state, however, could potentially elevate Stone Digital Solutions to a level of prestige he had only dreamed about. It meant he could expand into a bigger office space, higher more analysts, and take on more clients.
After three days of weighing the pros and cons, he’d called Ethan Nash on Thursday morning to express his interest in working with the firm. In return, Ethan had requested the standard proposal, which Amelia had sent to his office the same day. While the entire legal system was notorious for being exceedingly unhurried, they should have at least received confirmation of receipt by now.
