I brushed my lips against his. Our kiss started off slow and sweet, but then it turned into so much more. Just as heslid his hand under my shirt, the doorbell rang. “The food,” he grumbled against my mouth.
“As much as I love your kisses, I do need food.” He nodded and then left me there to get the food. A minute later he came back with our meal. It smelled so good, and I let my troubles with my father go to the back of my mind just long enough to eat.
“So now that I’m unemployed, what am I going to do?”
“I could think of a couple of things,” he chuckled.
“Other than that, because you’ll be working.”
“You have your novel to finish,” he responds.
“And then I’m sure I’ll start another one, and whatever else goes into the whole process. How are you going to handle Henry?”
“I thought about killing him, but that’s pretty frowned upon. I could have him arrested for several charges that he’s accumulated over the years. I’ll have to finally call my lawyer and have them sent in. It’s about damn time. Maybe someone else will find more charges for the prick. He’s made enemies wherever he goes. Hell, that’s the reason we hired you.”
“Oh, really? Do tell.”
“I called the usual guy and was told to fuck off and to look elsewhere because Henry screwed his girlfriend. Elizabeth recommended you, and of course I thought she was talking out of her ass. Like ‘I have a pretty friend’ kind of thing.”
“I know what you’re talking about. We all have pretty friends, but not everyone is model material. Honestly, I’m not model material. Claude is seriously really good at his job. I’m not tall enough or even the right size, but he captured all the right angles. He took five hundred shots and managed to only select twenty-five.”
“Well, that’s all he had time for. The man was going on a vacation with his wife. He said you were a natural, which he said was rare for a newbie.”
“So the agency got lucky.”
“So did I.”
“We all did.”
His cell rang as we set the dishes in the sink. “It’s my father.” He took the call. “What do you mean, did I have him arrested?” He raised his brow and ran his hands through his hair. “No, I didn’t. You have got to be fucking kidding me. That’s news to me, and he fucking deserves it. I was almost willing to let his other bullshit slide, but this is beyond unforgivable. I hope he rots, and I can’t wait to hear what the police and the district attorney have to say when I meet with them.”
He ended the call and then started pacing the floor.
“What’s going on?” I reached out and touched his shoulder. He turned and apologized.
“I’m so sorry, my sweet. The issue I had Saturday that forced me to leave was a security breach. I knew it was a former employee, but what I didn’t realize was that it was also my brother. My father called because Henry was picked up by the police on suspicion of grand larceny and attempted burglary at Keaton Security with co-conspirator John Joyce, my former employee.”
“Why does he hate you so much?”
“He blames the world for his bad choices. I’ve been constantly bailing him out, and he hates that my father comes to me for the next bail out. Every bad decision led to the next one to address the previous one. If I tried to help, I was a know-it-all who needed to mind my own business unless it was to bail him out. My father always took Henry’s side even after he slept withmy girlfriends. It was my fault for bringing them around. They liked him better, and maybe I needed to build confidence.”
“God, that’s awful. I’m not sure why you stuck around for so long.”
“I’m not sure either. Now I’m glad I did, but it’s done with. I’m cutting ties, and Henry burned his last bridge. My father can waste his last dollar bailing him out.”
“Good.” I kissed him like he needed.
“How about we go to bed and we can talk about this tomorrow?”
“I’d like that.” He scooped me up and carried me up the flights of stairs.
“You keep this up and your back is going to hurt.”
“Never. I’m only going to get stronger.” He kissed me as we reached the bedroom door and then set me on my feet. We went inside and prepared for sleep. I didn’t bring anything with me, so I borrowed his things. “I guess we know what we’re doing tomorrow.”
“What?”
“Packing.”
