The fact they hadn’t lost any staff, despite Devlin’s best efforts, while they’d actually hired one of his old team members, helped as well.Zeus had left the firm before Devlin had been kicked out, but the point was still made.They’d kept all their staff and most of their clients, plus added one of his old team members.
Which was why not everyone trusted Zeus.
“I think jealousy of you,” Mason said.Shifted his gaze to meet Lincoln’s.“Not just professionally, but personally.That’s why he went after Janet first.”They’d confirmed that Devlin had been the one to approach Lincoln’s now ex.Of course, it was still her own decision to cheat on Lincoln, but Devlin had initiated it.“I think he’s also jealous of your and Harris’ relationship.Because Harris took some of your attention.”
“So, what, he’s in love with Lincoln?”Jensen looked confused.
“No, obsession and possessiveness don’t necessarily equate to romantic love or sexual attraction,” Mason replied, glancing at Baby.He still looked confused.“You can be obsessed with someone without wanting them romantically or sexually.But I do think that Lincoln is Devlin’s focus.I think he initially stole from the company because it was like taking something of Lincoln’s when he couldn’t have all of Lincoln’s focus.Deep down, he knew he couldn’t have all of Lincoln’s attention, not when he and Harris were so close.”
“He did try to pit you two against each other several times,” Claudia chimed in, directing her statement at Lincoln.“It never worked, but… he tried.”
“Yes, I know.”Lincoln rubbed his hand over his face, appearing tired.“I always thought it was regular misunderstandings.I didn’t think it was deliberate.”
“It might not have been,” Mason said.“His subconscious desires and fears could be driving his actions without him really realizing what he was doing.He might have told himself that he was doing the right thing, for some unknown-to-us reason.Or he might have even convinced himself that what he was saying was true.”
“So, he seduced Lincoln’s wife because he wants to be Lincoln?Like, replacing him in Janet’s bed and pretending he’s Lincoln?”Drew looked utterly disgusted and horrified.Not surprising.While David was in a serious relationship now, Drew was the only other married member of the team.
“In effect, yes.”
“That’s sick, man,” Jensen said, getting a round of nods from everyone at the table, including one from Zeus, who had been mostly silent and motionless for the meeting.His expression was stoic as usual, but Mason thought he appeared disturbed under that stony exterior.
Unfortunately, picking apart what was going on with Devlin didn’t offer them much in the way of action.They discussed some options for shoring up their reputation and agreed that silence would continue to be the best answer.MacLeod’s opponent, Senator Marlin, had used them as additional security for one of her events, and she wanted to use them again in the future.Just being an Indian-American woman running for governor had increased the threats being sent to her, far more than she had gotten as a senator.
While Devlin had done his best to badmouth them among their own community, any kind of retaliation might have some blowback on them at a time when they needed to be discreet and completely circumspect.
Which meant they had to sit back and do nothing about it.
Not the most satisfying conclusion to a staff meeting, and both Claudia and Jensen were grumbling by the end of it.Normally, Drew would be, too, but he seemed to be inward focusing.As usual.Mason eyed Sporty.He looked like he’d lost some fat and increased his muscle mass, which meant he’d probably been working out a lot more.
When David had been shot, Drew had blamed himself.There had been no way to know that Cassidy’s ex had found her, but he’d been the sober one at the bar when Don had shown up and dragged Cassidy into the back alley.Mason was pretty sure that Drew felt like he should have realized Cassidy was missing sooner, that he should have acted sooner, then David wouldn’t have been shot.
Not that Drew would talk about it with Mason, so this was all theoretical, but he was pretty sure he was right.
Mason caught up to him and clapped him on the shoulder as they walked down the hall.
“Hey, we should have lunch together.Soon.”
“Sure, sure.”Drew avoided his gaze, reaching up to adjust his dreadlocks, the movement forcing Mason to move his hand off Drew’s shoulder.It could be coincidental, or it could be exactly what Drew meant to do.Mason would be willing to bet money on intentional.Drew didn’t do many things by accident.“Soon.”
“Eventually, I’m going to have to force the issue if you don’t decide to come chat with me on your own,” Mason said.
Drew’s jaw tightened, but he nodded.He was still avoiding Mason’s gaze, though, and he couldn’t tell if Drew was nodding agreement or just to get Mason off his back.They rounded the corner to the lobby.Mason’s stomach was already grumbling, and he was ready to go grab some lunch, so there was no point in going back to his office first.He ground to a halt as soon as he saw who was standing at the front desk, talking with Jennifer.
“Hey, Audrey,” Drew said as he moved past her.He didn’t slow, much less stop, unlike Mason.He was too flummoxed by seeing her there, so unexpectedly, as if his thoughts in the meeting had manifested her presence.
“Hi, Drew!”She smiled brightly as Drew headed out the doors to the elevators before shifting her gaze.“Good morning, Mason.”
Was it his imagination, or were her cheeks a little pinker than usual?Maybe she was just cold from being outside.She was wearing an olive green peacoat, and her hair was pulled up in a high ponytail with a black-and-white polka-dot scarf tied in it.The day wasn’t freezing outside, but it was definitely cold enough to have put some pink in her cheeks on the walk over.Maybe she’d just arrived.
“Hey, are you here to see David?”he asked, looking between her and Jennifer.Jennifer was seated in her usual position behind the desk, smiling genially.
“That and drop off some fliers,” Audrey said, reaching out to tap a small stack.“Grand opening is Saturday, so I wanted to put some fliers out at the local businesses.And also to tell everyone here that the soft opening is Friday, and you’re all invited.”
“What’s a soft opening?”Jensen asked from behind Mason.He shifted over to let the other man into the conversational grouping.
“It’s like a practice run,” Audrey explained.“I’ve hired two staff members, and this will be our first time actually doing all the things for real customers, so a soft opening lets me limit the number of people coming in.That way, we can do everything for people who will be forgiving if there are any screw ups.”She grinned widely, her excitement obvious.As she spoke, she was practically bouncing.
“Awesome, I’ll definitely be there.”Jensen leaned his arm on the counter of Jennifer’s desk, cocking his head to the side as he looked down at her.“Hey, Jennifer, want to go with me to Audrey’s soft opening?”
