“Now you’ve got my attention.”
Carly flicked a glance at the bedroom doorway, wondering if Linc would mind her going in for a while this morning. “I don’t suppose you’d have any time today? We could talk things over. If you’re still interested, we could spend a couple of hours getting you acquainted with the way we’ve been doing things, maybe throw some ideas around about changes you might want to make.”
“Sure, I could do that. Say half an hour?”
“That’d be great. I’ll see you there.” She hung up the phone.
“I gather Row accepted the job.” Linc stood in the open doorway. Six-foot-five inches of glorious male that could grace the cover of any muscle jock magazine.
She forced her eyes to his face. “I have to tell Row about El Jefe. It wouldn’t be fair to keep her in the dark about something that could be seriously dangerous.”
“You sure you can trust her?”
“We’ve known each other since I was ten years old. I’m absolutely sure.”
“All right. You know you’re risking your friendship if the job doesn’t work out.”
“It’s a risk I’m willing to take.” If it worked the way she hoped, Carly would have an ally in the company and also someone she believed would do a very competent job.
“I know it’s Sunday,” she said, “but Row’s agreed to meet me at the office for a couple of hours. It won’t be busy today and I need to get this settled. I hope you don’t mind. I can be back by noon or a little after.”
“It’s cooler today. I thought we might go for a ride on my Harley. If we went out the back road, no one would know we were gone. But I realize hiring someone is a problem you need to solve.”
“Rats. I’d really like to go. Maybe we could go riding this afternoon.”
Linc started nodding. “All right, I can make that work. We’ll go after you’re finished. Frank’s off today. I’ll drive you in, take some work with me. I’ve always got plenty to do.”
“Are you sure you need to go? It’s daylight. I should be safe enough.”
He cast her a look more eloquent than words.
“Okay, I get it.” She thought of El Jefe and figured Linc was right. She wondered about the text the drug lord was planning to send her. She wondered what she would do when it came. “I’ll finish getting ready and be right with you.”
They arrived at the yard a few minutes before the scheduled meeting, but Rowena’s older-model red Chevy Camaro was already parked in the yard and Rowena was sitting inside it. Sunlight gleamed on her dark red curls as she got out of the car and walked over to join them in the hip-swaying gait that hadn’t changed since high school.
“So you brought the big man with you,” Rowe said as she approached, flashing Linc a grin.
“He’s playing bodyguard,” Carly said. “Long story and one I’m about to tell you.”
Rowena’s russet eyebrows went up.
“Let’s go inside,” Linc said.
Carly unlocked the door and they went into the main office. The employee lounge was next door, with a separate entrance so the drivers could use it whenever they came in from a run.
A couple of trucks were parked in the yard. They’d be pulling out soon, off to pick up and deliver their loads.
As soon as the door closed, Rowena turned to Linc. “So I guess you heard the news—I’m about to become a Drake Trucking employee.”
He smiled. “Better than that—office manager. Congratulations.”
“Thanks. I’ll do my very best to fill Donna’s more than capable shoes.”
Carly shared a glance with Linc.
“Why’d she quit, anyway?” Row asked. “She worked for Joe for years.”
“Maybe now that he’s gone, she was ready for a change,” Carly said, sticking to the story they’d agreed on. After all the woman’s years of loyalty, Carly believed Joe would have wanted Donna to have the benefit of the doubt. Besides, Townsend had verified that a total of twenty thousand had gone in and out of Donna’s personal account, given to Miguel, she had to assume. The rest had apparently gone to El Jefe as Donna had said.
