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That night was an example of why I had them. Gabe had taken the day off to bring Cynthia to a physical therapy appointment, and Peter had a client who wanted him to meet him at his house rather than at the office. That meant I’d spent most of the day alone. It wasn’t so bad earlier in the day, but as the evening crept up and I realized it was going to be one of those days when I worked late into the night, the quiet started getting to me.
A lot of people who grew up in a household with multiple siblings talked about craving quiet and solitude when they got older. They dreamed of having their own houses where they could live alone and have silence whenever they wanted it. That seemed perfect.
That wasn’t the way it worked out for me. I was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Whether it was because I had both older and younger brothers so there was never a time when I was alone, or because when I wasn’t at home, I was at the track, or just because I liked being in the middle of things, I never wanted to be away from the noise and excitement.
Even as an adult, I didn’t like it when things got too quiet. It felt eerie and disconnected. The only exception was when I was with Bryn. Another revelation that came from having her in my life, when it was just the two of us, I found myself calm and at ease even in the silence.
But she wasn’t there at the office with me that evening, so I wasn’t enjoying the quiet. Turning on the television brought some much-needed sound and life into the empty building. It was keeping me company as I ran reports and did research for clients. I was half-listening to a game show and spouting out a series of predominantly wrong answers when the door at the front of the office opened.
Most of the time that door was locked after regular business hours. But I had gotten wrapped up in my work and hadn’t gotten around to locking it yet. It wasn’t a big deal. If someone wanted to come in and start talking about their financial future, it didn’t really matter if it was past the posted time. I was there. We might as well make the most of the opportunity.
Of course, the average investment client wasn’t usually the kind to wander into an investment office without an appointment several hours after closing. Curious about what I might encounter, I walked out of my office and into the lobby.
The man standing just inside didn’t look familiar. He looked around like he was taking in the entire space, evaluating it.
“Hello,” I said.
I walked toward him, ready to possibly bag a new client, but stopped in my tracks when he turned to look at me. The sneer on the man’s face put me on immediate high alert. There was something wrong with that look. I didn’t feel like I was in danger, but it definitely wasn’t the kind of expression I was accustomed to seeing on the face of someone looking forward to a bright financial future. Something told me he wasn’t just at my office because he happened by and saw the lights on.
“Evening,” the man said.
I took a step closer and held out my hand. “Nick Freeman. How can I help you?”
“Well, hopefully, you can help me a lot, Nick Freeman,” he said, clutching my hand in his and shaking it firmly. “I’m Justin Michaels.”
In that second, I wished I had surveillance cameras in my office. Chances were extremely high one of us was going to do something stupid, and it would have been useful to have a record of it.
My hand fell away from his, and my eyes narrowed at Justin. I couldn’t believe this man had the balls to walk into my office and talk to me. “What do you think you’re doing here?” I asked.
He gave another sneer, and the urge to punch him got stronger. My hands tingled so much I had to tighten my fists into balls at my sides to stop myself from giving in to the compulsion.
“I’ve had some recent misfortune surrounding investing. My last attempts didn’t go far, and I was very unhappy with the results, so I’m looking for a new investor. A little birdie told me you’re the best in the city and that we share a mutual acquaintance. You’ve been helping Bryn get herself back on track. I’m looking for someone to help me build up my bank account and keep the income coming in.”
He laughed like he thought it was a hilarious joke, but I didn’t even crack a smile. The thought of the asshole even being in my office disgusted me. The idea that he really thought I was going to play his game and help him with anything brought me right to the edge of murderous. I couldn’t believe he would show his face here, much less ask me to help him with his investments.
