“Sure, on the surface. Maybe our conclusions are correct. But you don’t have to rush into anything. Let’s take our time with this, okay? Let me do a little more digging, and then I can present to you all of my findings.”
She hesitated and then fully sat up in her chair. “Okay. If you believe that’s best.”
“I do,” I insisted.
She agreed, and I felt relieved. I let her know I’d reach out to her in a few weeks with any new developments before we parted ways.
The niggling in my gut told me I’d made the right decision. I always made sure to do as thorough a job as possible, and that was what I would do for Marjorie.
“How was lunch?”Hallease asked as soon as I walked back into the office.
“It was fine.” I placed the soup and salad meal I’d picked up for her on her desk.
“Broccoli and cheddar?”
I grinned at her excitement. “You know it.”
“My stomach has been rumbling for the past half an hour.”
I placed my hands on my hips and cocked my head sideways. “Why didn’t you stop to take a break to eat?”
“Because you always bring me something good back whenever you meet a client for lunch. Whatever it was, I knew it would beat the peanut butter and jelly sandwich I brought from home.”
“Good point. What were you working on?” I peered over her desk, looking at the computer screen.
“Looking into this Randy Carson investigation.”
“Find anything good?” I asked, taking a seat on the edge of Hallease’s desk.
“Everything came back clear on Carson and Parker both. Though it was hard to find pictures of them together before the last year or so.”
“Hm,” I said, “Maybe they’re not into taking photos. Or maybe something’s up with that. Keep looking. I’m going out later this week to watch Parker. He’s out of town right now for work.”
She nodded. “Got it. How did Marjorie take the news?”
“As well as can be expected, I guess. She took it better when I asked her to give me some more time to work on it.”
Hallease gave me a look, grinning. “More time?”
“Yeah. What’s strange about that?” My voice came across slightly more defensive than I intended for it to be.
She peeled open the soup container I’d just given. “Nothing, I guess. Early on, in this case, you were so sure that Kelvin was a cheater. You could’ve practically sold it before you snapped the first picture.”
I weighed Hallease’s words in my mind. Sure, early on, I had been adamant that Kelvin was cheating. I mean, the facts didn’t lie. Rich, good-looking, and famous athletes were notorious for cheating on their wives or girlfriends. Hell, men without money and looks were just as infamous when it came to lack of faithfulness.
Don’s words about trust floated to the top of my memory.
“I want to get more photos and possibly some conversation recorded to have more intel. What’s your point?”
She swallowed a spoonful of soup. “You could’ve sold that case with a lot less. He did lie to Marjorie about where he was and with whom. The fact that he met up with a woman, a pretty one at that, says a lot too.”
“Right. All circumstantial, as they say in a court of law or whatever. I’m not an attorney, but it never hurts to have even more evidence at our disposal in case the client starts thinking I forced them into believing their husband or boyfriend is cheating.”
“Okay.” She said the one word with a high pitch.
I stared at my assistant, trying to pick apart her comments as she happily proceeded with her lunch. It wasn’t like anything had changed. I was as detailed as possible at my job. There wasn’t a need to rush to any conclusions. All the while, as I went back to my office, I thought about Marjorie’s face as she’d looked at those images.
Again, Don’s words about trust and the weekend we’d just spent together stuck with me as I walked back to my office.
