“Sweetheart, put me wherever you want, as long as I have a line of sight to you.”
He rolls his eyes, which makes me feel better. “I’ll leave the door to my office open so you can see me, but nobody’s getting past Kyle today.”
“Bet,” Calla declares. “You should have heard him when he came in this morning. If anyonetriesto get in here, he’ll take them down with a number 2 pencil and leave no witnesses.”
Phil laughs. “I’m so glad we hired him.”
“Me too. Okay, so let’s show Griff where he can work, and then you and I will have a quick meeting to go over changes to this week’s plans… and I’ll play with Vivi, who neither of you rude bastards have introduced me to yet.”
We rectify that tragedy, and then they walk me through to the connecting room between their offices where we had our first meeting, explain where everything is, and retreat to Phil’s office, leaving the door ajar. That’s probably going to become a nuisance if both of us need to make calls, but I’m standing firm.
Speaking of calls, though…. I check the time and decide it’s late enough. My boss is a workaholic anyway.
“Griff?” He answers on the first ring. “How’s Phil?”
“Okay,” I assure him. I texted Saturday night to thank him again for his help getting Spears to come to us and to let him know I wouldn’t be in the office today, but we haven’t spoken since then. “We’re at the Phallacy showroom. The detective is coming to interview him and the rest of the staff this morning.”
“It’s good that the cops are taking this seriously. Is there anything Kane or I can do?”
“You’re doing it. I’m grateful that I can be here.” I pace across the room, then lean against the window and look through the gap in the doorway. From here, I can see Phil’s bright head beside Calla’s as they bend over something on his desk.
“Don’t even think about it,” Damian insists. “If you need to take actual time off, we’ll handle it. It’s more important for you to be there with Phil.” He hesitates. “Would it be okay if Kane texted him? He’s worried.”
I grunt automatically, thinking about it. “Why don’t I tell Phil that Kane sends his love? If he’s up to a call or text, he’ll initiate it.”
“That would be great. Okay, so, do you have any meetings this week that you can’t reschedule? I can ask at the team meeting this morning who has the time to take them over for you.”
I shake my head even though he can’t see it. “No, there’s nothing. Since I was wrapping up for the holidays anyway, I didn’t schedule anything. I planned to finish up some detailsand do the last of my gift shopping.” Which is now going to be an online situation that I’ll need to get done today if I want everything delivered on time. “I can probably call in for the team meeting, though, unless the cops want to talk to me right then.”
“If you can, great, but if not, I’ll get Amina to send you anything relevant. Is there anything I need to know that we haven’t already covered?”
“No, I—fuck.”
He snorts. “That doesn’t sound good. Hit me with it.”
I check again that Phil’s not paying attention, and lower my voice anyway. “There was a note with the… gift the stalker sent, and it mentioned the commission Phil’s working on for Margaret. Detective Spears asked me about it. I think he might want to talk to her.”
Damian says nothing for a long moment, then sighs. “There’s no way around that. Spears is used to working with celebrities, so I’m sure he’ll handle it professionally. Ask if you can reach out to her first. He’ll probably say no, but it’s worth a shot.”
“Yeah.” I can hear the doubt in my tone. “I’ll ask. Though if he says yes, that’s going to be one of the worst calls of my career.”
“This isn’t your fault—or Phil’s. You said Margaret was happy about you two hooking up, didn’t you?”
“She was—happy for me and excited to meet Phil. She’s a nice person, so I don’t think she’ll hold this against me.” It’s just not at all professional.
“Let me know if you want me to step in, but I’m confident it’s going to be fine. Not ideal, but fine. Anything else before I let you go?”
“Actually, yeah. Were you planning to bring a new stylist on board anytime soon?”
“I’ve been thinking about it,” Damian admits. “Everyone has a full roster now, and we’re turning some people away that I’d rather have on the books. Why? Do you know someone?”
“Maybe. He’s never worked in fashion, but he’s an interior designer with an established high-end clientele, and his personal style is flawless.”
“Oh? How do you know him?”
“He’s a friend of Phil’s.”
He makes a thoughtful sound. “Phil knows you’re talking to me?”
