“What kind of business?" I found myself asking as a stalling tactic.
"I'm hoping to meet up with a few friends I haven't seen in a while." Callie's gaze was enigmatic. "Actually, I've been meaning to hire someone like you."
I stiffened. The umbrella man had wanted to hire me to.
"There's a lot of that going around," I said after a moment.
"Then I came to the right place.”
Since she was being so helpful in answering my questions, I decided to try and see if I could learn anything important. "What were you hoping I could do for you?"
"A little bit of this and that."
"That's not vague or anything."
The corner of her lips lifted, the expression not quite reaching her eye. "Do you always require so much information?"
"I've found knowing the full view of a situation is generally a good policy. Cuts down on misunderstandings." Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Connor listening as if he was mentally taking notes.
A snake slid over Callie's shoulder to stare at me. "I'm hoping to recover an item that has been lost to me. I thought you could help."
I stiffened. "And why is that?"
Her lips curved. "You have a reputation for finding lost things, do you not?"
Not that I was aware of.
"I'm sure you're just the person for the job," she continued when I didn't answer.
"The last guy who wanted to hire me tried to kidnap me," I said, abandoning subtlety. "If I say no, will you do the same?"
For a beat she lost control of her mask, her gaze calculating as she leaned forward. "Accept my offer and we'll never have to find out."
Liam went still at my side. All of Callie's snakes lifted their heads as they sensed a threat. As one they focused on Liam.
"People who back me into corners, quickly find their situations spiraling out of control. I have a tendency to do the opposite of what they want," I warned in a friendly tone.
Callie's gaze was wide and unblinking. "Funny, I used to know someone with the same trait. I can’t help but think you two would have a lot in common."
"Then you know in a situation like that, things rarely work out in your favor," I said, ignoring my impulse to ask who that might be.
Callie swirled her wine in its glass. "I'll consider myself warned."
Why did I get the feeling she wasn't going to heed the warning? They only worked when you listened to them.
"A friend told me you would likely be more amenable to my request if I visited during business hours," Callie said.
I was right, then. She and Don, the umbrella man, were working together.
"Funny thing, though," Callie said, staring into her wine glass. "I checked and you have no business hours posted. Not even a website. Nor do you have an office."
"That is funny," I said in a noncommittal voice.
Nathan's eyes danced. He, better than anyone, knew I didn't have office hours. It was what I told prospective clients when I didn't want to deal with them. Most clients could take no for an answer, but there were times when the client was too powerful or dangerous to be refused.
As Nathan had learned when he tried to take advantage of my business to hire me to do his laundry. Not that I was opposed to doing laundry if it brought a buck in. His was a different story. If I'd taken that job, he would have made it his mission to find the most interesting ways to disgustify his clothes.
It took him two days and a lot of laughter on my part to figure out what I'd done.
