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I have to kick myself and remember that she's a grown woman and can take care of herself.
“Did you get a chance to talk to anyone about Mr. Wall Street?” I ask when my Gramps is in the kitchen getting our dessert ready.
“As a matter of fact, I did. I was assured that Mr. O'Connor has a clean sheet, although his family was busy during prohibition making money off illegal shipments of booze and now is involved with a number of rather questionable people in the organized crime network. I’m assured that everything is on the up and up with Harrison’s business. He runs with a fast crowd of high rollers, though. Lots of money. Probably too much if you know what I mean.”
“No, I don’t,” I say. “What do you mean?”
Gramps shrugs. “Lots of money, booze, drugs, women… His business is def legit, but I hear he’s a real partier. Escorts, gambling, some coke, no doubt.”
I frowned, not liking it. Not at all.
“Coke? Cocaine? If he’s doing drugs, that’s not legit.”
“All these high rollers do a bit or so I’m told. You ever see the Wolf of Wall Street?”
I nod. “Yes, unfortunately, I have. You’re scaring me.”
“Like I say, he has a clean sheet. No arrests. No drugs. But still, his family is mobbed up. You better tell Sherri to be careful around him and his gang. They’re not all as clean as Mr. O'Connor. Even if she doesn’t do anything herself, she doesn’t want to get caught up with that group. They may be rich, but they aren’t above the law. If they get arrested for possession and she’s with them, they’ll arrest the whole bunch.”
I sigh heavily. “I’ll make sure and tell her.”
I leave the next day, determined to figure out how I can convince Sherri to stop chasing Mr. Wall Street.
He’s bad news — I’m sure of it.
CHAPTER 5
Harrison
One month earlier…
I leavethe crew around one in the morning, because I have a zoom call with one of my investors from Tokyo. I don’t usually work that late, but it’s a Thursday, and I know the investors are eager to finalize our deal before the close of business on Friday.
I spend the evening watching as my friend and notoriously bad card player Jake loses another couple of thousand. He’s wearing a poker hat like you’d see at a casino and is steadily losing his not-hard-earned fortune one thousand dollars at a time.
He doesn’t seem to mind. It isn’t his money. It’s his great grandmother’s inherited fortune. Jake seems to want to lose it as quickly as he can. I give him several hand signals, including sliding my finger across my neck to signal that he needs to shut it down, but he ignores me. Instead, he holds up his glass and smiles.
When I asked him to help me entertain the gang of high rollers who are in town for a business trip from Russia, I didn’t expect him to lose so much money to them, but it’s all just green to him. There will always be more where it comes from. His money makes so much money just sitting in investment accounts that he can gamble thousands away each and every night and still not run out.
If it was me, I’d be so pissed about losing that I’d give up and take up some other hobby, but Jake is an addictive type. He sucks on a vape pen, drinks his beer, and spends money gambling.
There’s nothing in his life to stop him from doing any of it.
I hope it won’t be the death of him.
I take the spiral staircase that leads from the main floor of the penthouse to the second, and my office that overlooks Central Park. Before I’ve even got my laptop opened and my browser set up for the Zoom call, Sherri opens the door and comes over to where I sit in front of my desk.
“Hey, Harrison,” she says, leaning against the wall, her dress pulled down at the neckline to reveal the tops of her very large breasts. “You working so late?”
“I have a Zoom call with clients from Japan,” I say and turn away, staring at the computer screen to see if the client had entered the meeting room yet. “So, if you don’t mind…”
“I don’t mind, if you don’t,” she says and moves closer, standing behind my chair, pressing her breasts against my back, her arms on my shoulders. “Alexi is busy and doesn’t seem interested in anything but playing cards.”
I stand and gently move her away from my desk. She grabs my belt buckle, attempting to unfasten it. “We could have a quickie before the meeting starts…”
She's a little tipsy and not processing what’s going on.
“Sorry, Sherri, but I have this code. I don’t touch other men’s possessions, women included. Besides, I have this meeting…”
