Page 14 of Heart of a Hero

“Crap…,” Conrad said as he pulled open the door.

“What?” Forrest asked, looking around. It took him a second to see Lester up at one of the kiosks with his back to them, placing his order. “Don’t worry. I got this. Go get your food.” He stepped back and went over to Lester and then cleared his throat. “It’s Lester, isn’t it?” Forrest asked from the side. “I think we met the other night.” He smiled.

“Oh, yeah,” he said without breaking a smile. Then he turned back to the kiosk and hit the “To Go” button. Forrest could see he was making the guy nervous, but he didn’t back off. Instead, he stayed close to him. In the meantime, Conrad had placed his order and headed to a table with a number. “You were with Conrad, if I remember.” Lester looked like he was about to look around the restaurant.

“And you were rude to him,” Forrest said roughly, pulling Lester’s attention back to him. “You need to be less of a dick, especially to the people you work with. After all, you may need them someday and they aren’t going to be there for you.” Lester stepped aside, and Conrad placed his order, watching Lester until he got his food and practically charged out of the building like the hounds of hell were after him… which was exactly his intention. Keep Lester off balance enough that he forgot to look around to see if Conrad was there. Make getting away from him more important. Forrest took a seat across from Conrad with a smile. “All set.”

“What did you say to him?”

“That he needed to be nicer to people. We rehashed the last time we met, and Lester couldn’t get out of here fast enough.” He chuckled, and Conrad relaxed back in his seat.

“I really hate him. He’s such a jerk.”

“That will get him into trouble. No one likes working with a jerk, including those he works for, because they would have to deal with him every day.” He patted Conrad’s hand. “Just keep doing what you are. You do good work and bring in new clients who stay for the long term, rather than clients who find out what he’s like to work with and leave again.”

“How did you know what’s what Lester does?”

“I know the type. I worked with a number of people at various jobs before I got my teaching certificate and landed this job. I’ve dealt with a few Lesters in my time, and eventually people figure out who they are and that they don’t want to work with someone like that.”

“What did you do before you taught?” Conrad asked.

“Last year I worked at a warehouse outside of town. My boss was a Lester. He was always concerned with how things looked rather than just getting the work done and doing the right thing. I had a lot of coworkers over the year or so that I was there. No one wanted to work for him, and eventually he was let go and they brought in someone from one of the other facilities. Things got a lot better after that.” He leaned over the table. “Don’t let a jerk like that make your decisions for you.”

“Yeah, I get that. And I know I let him get under my skin.” Conrad met his gaze with warm, worried eyes. “I’m sorry. I should have thought things through more clearly and not overreacted. But if he could hurt me, he’d certainly do the same to you without thinking twice about it. I wish there was a way to make him keep his nose to himself.”

Forrest thought for a few seconds. “Maybe there is.”

Chapter 7

GOD, HE had been such a fool to even think of letting Forrest go. There was a light inside him that drew Conrad, and he wanted to bask in that light for as long as possible. As they ate their dinner, Conrad watched him, his gaze drawn to his lips and his throat. His strength and sharp mind were as attractive as his muscles and the intensity in his eyes. Conrad set down his burger and just stared at the man, wondering how in the hell he could have come so close to just walking away… out of fear.

“Conrad,” Forrest said softly.

“Daddy… are you sick?” Lizzie asked, putting her hand to his forehead the way he did to her.

“I’m fine.” He pulled his mind out of his musings. “I was just thinking.” He pulled Lizzie to him and tickled her lightly, making her laugh.

“About what?” Forrest asked with a quirk of his lips.

“Oh, about you and maybe what you meant.”

Forrest shrugged. “It’s pretty simple. Everyone has secrets and things they don’t want others to find out. Maybe we can figure out one of Lester’s. I’m not saying to blackmail him or anything. But let him know that he has things he doesn’t want made public, so he should respect others.”

Conrad rolled his eyes. “That sounds like blackmail to me. And I don’t want to go around digging into the lives of the people I work with. That would be creepy.”

“Maybe, but people who live in glass houses…,” Forrest mused. “So we look into Lester and find out what kind of house he lives in. I’m willing to bet he throws his stones to make sure that others don’t get their hands on any. I’m not saying we get him to pay anything, just stop his stone throwing.”

Conrad liked that idea. He was really getting tired of Lester being a pain in the ass. He always seemed to be there when anything was happening, stirring the pot and filling the otherwise quiet office with useless drama. “Okay. Maybe we can see if there is anything, but I’m not sure about this.”

Forrest took his hand. “I’m not either. But we can see what we can do to get this guy off your back. Sometimes nosy people needed to get their noses tweaked a little. That’s all I’m saying, and I’m only suggesting that we find something embarrassing about him. I’m not saying that we’re looking to dig up anything criminal. If that were to happen, we’d take whatever we had to the police right away.”

“Okay. We can see what there might be.” He liked the idea of getting the upper hand with him. At least then Lester wouldn’t go through the office looking like a smug ass all the time and spending parts of his days spreading rumors and telling stories. Give him a taste of his own medicine. “But how do you do that sort of thing?”

“Do what?” Lizzie asked.

“Nothing,” Conrad told her. “Finish your dinner, okay?”

“Yes, Daddy. I am.” She ate slowly at the best of times, but tonight she seemed to be moving in slow motion. Still, she finished most of the nuggets and fries. She also ate all her apples, so Conrad counted it as a win. “Help me?” She pressed the packet with the toy into his hand, and Conrad put it together for her.