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I nodded quickly. “Yes, for now, but–”
“The fuck do you mean for now?”
I hesitated, seriously reconsidering this entire conversation. I should’ve just emailed with my findings. Then at least there’d be miles of distance between us.
“Well, I patched the problem, but while I was in there, I noticed that a lot of the wiring was old and I think this problem might reoccur unless you replace the wiring in the building.”
I watched in morbid fascination as he fought to keep control of his emotions. His lip twitched like he was holding back a scowl, his jaw tightened and his grip on the glass looked so intense I was surprised it didn’t shatter in his hand. I took a step back unconsciously, worried I went too far and pissed him off irreparably.
“How much?”
The growl was low and dark. I wanted to run like hell from this man.
“I-I–”
The door flew open behind me, the woman I saw earlier barreling inside, her face still flushed and angry. She opened her mouth to say something, but came up short when she noticed me standing there. Her brow furrowed, and she tipped her head.
“Uh, hey. Who are you?”
“She’s the electrician. I’m busy right now, baby. My decision hasn’t changed.”
She shot him a dirty look before glancing back at me. Unlike him, she seemed to have better control of her emotions because she drew in a deep breath before smiling and offering me her hand.
“I’m Riley, Croy’s old lady. Gotta say, I’m surprised they let a woman do the job.”
Shaking her hand, I lifted a shoulder. “They didn’t know until I already showed up. I got the job done so…”
She nodded. “Probably better than any guy could do, too. You fixed Neo’s room?”
Croy growled, and her head whipped around to glare at him. He lifted an eyebrow at her and gave her a look, and she frowned for a second before making a face. “Shit. I forgot. Lewis. You fixed Lewis’s room.”
The same thing happened upstairs. I didn’t know what it meant that they kept getting his name wrong, but I wasn’t about to ask questions. All I wanted was to get out of here.
“Yes, I was just explaining that the patch will work for now, but you may want to consider replacing the wiring because I noticed it’s a little old.” My voice shrank. Riley seemed a lot less intimidating than Croy, but it wasn’t Riley who I was doing the job for. At least, I didn’t think so. I didn’t actually know what an old lady was, but it didn’t sound like someone in charge. It couldn’t have anything to do with age though because she looked about the same age as me and I was only twenty-four.
Riley looked thoughtful, and she glanced at Croy before nodding. “Well, that makes sense. The building isn’t new. I know the outlet in our bathroom doesn’t work and the one in our bedroom only works half the time. Is it expensive?”
I lifted a shoulder. “It can be, especially with a space this large. I’d have to call my supervisor to do a full inspection. He makes the final call on stuff like that.”
“No.”
We both turned at Croy’s dark reply. It wasn’t a surprising answer. I kind of expected it, given how irritated he already was, but Riley didn’t seem to agree.
“What? You don’t want the wires fixed? You’re the one who’s been complaining about it.”
“I don’t want her boss here. Either she does it, or it can wait until we handle this shit with Hammer.”
My eyes widened. That was a first. I’d never had someone who would rather work with me than my supervisor. I hesitated, struggling to work up the courage to speak.
“C-Can I ask why?”
His dark gaze shifted from Riley to me and I felt like maybe I stepped into ‘none of your business’ territory. He studied me, suspicion taking over his features.
“You from around here?”
I shook my head quickly. “No. I lived in Tucson for most of my life, moved out to Sierra Vista for work last year… Why?”
He didn’t reply, but he looked satisfied with my answer, nodding once. “Tell your boss I’m only workin’ with you. You guys want the cash, you do the job on my terms. Any other questions?”
