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I smile and wipe away a tear, happy having her back in my life. “Thank you. Youalwaysdeserve your family’s support.”
Simone hangs her head in her hands. “What am I going to do for work? I can’t go back to the bank or any branch of it—Cynthia and Trent will be able to reach me if I do. I could work for a competitor, but I’m sick of the traveling, and with my skills, that’s what they’d want me to do.”
An idea tugs at the back of my brain, but I’m not sure it’s agoodidea. I’ve already got my dad working for me—I’m not sure if adding more family to the mix would be wise.
I look at my sister and see her distress covering her like a shroud.
Ah, damn my bleeding heart.
If my idea backfires, I’ll deal with the consequences. Simone needs a job and freedom from her old life.
“What would you say about keeping books for my company?”
Simone lifts her head from her hands and gasps. “You want me to be your accountant?”
“Why are you looking at me all weird? It solves your work problem. You get to do what your best at and stay in one place—no more traveling. I get to finally take a breather from my expense reports and cutting the checks—I can finally focus solely on design and managing my crews.” The more I talk, the more I’m convincing myself that I need my sister to take this job.
My sister gives me a small smile. “I’d love to work for you, Jo, but—and I mean no offense—you can’t afford me.”
“Says the woman with no job.”
We’re interrupted by a knock on the door. “Come in.”
Maceo pokes his head into the room. “Sorry for bothering you, ladies, but Chase and I had a question about where to set all of Simone’s stuff in the suite. I don’t want to assume anything.”
“Perfect timing,” I sing. “Get in here and help me convince my sister to do my books.”
Maceo arches his eyebrows and smiles. He waves for Chase to follow. They both take a seat in the wingbacks. “Sounds like a great plan. When are you starting?”
Simone shakes her head at me. “I was telling my sister she can’t afford me. She dinged me withbeggars can’t be choosers.”
“What if you do the books for both our companies? If it’s a matter of money, taking on my company will make up the difference.” Maceo juts his chin at his brother. “Currently, Chase does the books, and I cut the checks. It was never supposed to be a permanent job for either of us. Chase is busy enough as our intel specialist, and I need to focus my attention on working with clients and strategizing for missions. We’ve already been talking about hiring an accountant for a couple of weeks now.”
Maceo opens his hands wide. “What do you say,sister? You want in?”
Simone looks wide-eyed at Maceo, then me, then Chase. Chase holds her stare. My sister gulps and quickly turns her head back to Maceo. “Um, I mean, I guess I could try it out and see—”
Maceo claps his hands together, cutting Simone off, and ultimately preventing her from turning the offer down. “Wonderful! We’ll let you settle in and start fresh next week. Chase can show you the books and walk you through the bills and paychecks. Josephine is probably a lot more organized than our system because, you know, it’s Jo—it won’t take much to learn her books.”
Maceo stands from the armchair. He gives Simone a pointed look, like something dawned on him. “Oh, and you and I are going to have words, little sister.”
“Me?” Simone points to herself, confused. “What did I do?”
“After watching you two wrestle out in the front yard, I’ve determined you’re the reason why Josephine can’t watch porn without gagging when she sees a woman spit on a dude’s junk. Not cool.”
Simone nearly chokes—she’s not use to a man being this direct.
I suppress an eye roll. Maceo can be completely crude at times. “Was that really necessary to share?”
“I. Can’t. Watch. Porn. With. You. Calling your sister out for fucking it up for me is fair,” Maceo says before looking back at my sister. “Now show us where you want your stuff.”
There will be plenty of time for Simone to unpack. Right now, she needs medical questions answered. “Not now, Maceo. Set the stuff in the sitting area of the room.” I look at my sister. “Simone and I have an errand to run.”
Simone gives me a grateful smile, knowing we’re going to my doctor.
Maceo’s black eyes narrow. “What errand?”
Nosy as usual.I wave him away. “It’s nothing, but we do need to leave soon.”
