Goldie
OMG. Are you serious? I can’t believe that! Daniel has been blackmailing Lola? All this time?! I’m…I don’t even know what to say. Of course we want to meet her. Do you have time for brunch on Saturday?
Dylan
What in the fucking hell? Will Daniel be there Saturday night? I’d love to give him a piece of my mind with my fist.
The last time I talked to him about it, he was unsure if he’d make it, so I don’t know. I hope for Lola’s sake he’s not, and yet, I really want to shake him up. It’ll be hard not to punch him, but I’ll get some satisfaction in making him squirm. We can’t let him suspect that we’re onto him, but I think just seeing Lola there will have him on edge.
Dad
What a piece of work! Yeah, I wouldn’t mind punching him myself! I can’t believe we believed he was looking out for you. He was after money the whole time! I can’t wait for him to get what’s coming to him.
Deep breaths, Dad. I don’t want your blood pressure going up.
Dad
Don’t you worry about me. That man will pay for this. But yes, on a calmer note, I am so happy that you got some resolution, son. I’ve wanted to meet Lola for a long time. We’ll watch out for her on Saturday night, but it’d be nice to break the ice beforehand. Should we do something at the house?
I’d love that.
Camden
Unbelievable. I’ve never liked the guy but appreciated that he seemed driven to get you the best possible deals—no fucking wonder! We’ve got your back, man. And Lola’s. Just name the time.
Noah
Just tell us what you need from us, and we’re there.
Thanks, guys. Let’s do brunch at eleven.
I pick up Lola from MSP Airport late Friday night. We’ve talked on the phone some this week, but both of us have been busy, so it’s not been as much as I would’ve liked.
She seems shy when she sees me. We hug, but I don’t miss the way she looks around carefully when she steps back. Since our conversation about Daniel, she’s changed all her passwords, set up two-factor authentication, gotten a new phone, and has been staying with her friend Briar. Once I found out more details about the times Daniel had stepped in and turned her life upside down, I made the call to Wade, and he agreed to be her security detail. He’s the one who told us where to start taking action for her protection. It’s only the beginning.
“The guy’s found some way to track her,” he said. “Or he’s got cameras on her. Maybe a little bit of both, but since you see him often, I’m thinking it’s the latter. If he suddenly loses access to her, it’ll shake him up, and eventually, he’ll make a mistake.”
The whole thing makes me fucking ragey, but I’m tryingto stay focused. One thing at a time. We’re going to find a way to nail this motherfucker.
“How was your flight?” I smile down at Lola.
“Not bad at all.” She grins. “The stache is a vibe.”
“You think?”
She giggles. “Yeah.”
I take her suitcase, and we walk toward the door. “Wade is picking us up and then coming right back to catch his flight to New York.”
“I’m excited to meet him,” she says.
We’ve had a three-way FaceTime call already, so this meeting is mostly just to put Lola at ease once she’s back in New York with him.
Wade steps out of the car and offers his hand to Lola. They shake, and I make the introductions. Wade opens the car door for her, and once she’s inside, he smooths down his mustache and walks around to the driver’s side.
“Is he doing Movember too? In person, he looks like Pedro Pascal as Mister Fantastic,” she whispers, looking at me in the back seat.
I chuckle. “He likes being told that, even if he pretends not to. He prefers Pascal to Tom Selleck. And it’s his full-time look.”
