Page 7 of Under His Skin

He had spied on this woman, had seen her at her most vulnerable, and if he hadn’t reported his suspicions of Spencer’s criminal activity to his buddies in the FBI, Ginny Johnson wouldn’t be at risk of being turned away from her home and sent to a state institution that wouldn’t be anywhere near the quality of care she was used to.

“All right. Say I feel like maybe I owe it to at least Ginny Johnson to take this case on. How exactly do you plan on paying for my fees if you’re as tapped out as you claim? Is Daddy going to be footing the bill?”

There was the slightest flash of anger in her eyes before she smiled. “Once I settle up Ginny’s bill, I’ll have a little money left.”

“I’ll need a ten-thousand-dollar retainer. Up front.”

Her smile froze. “That seems a tad high, don’t you think?”

“The guy has a high profile, which means that if he hasn’t been caught by now, he’s smarter than your usual runner. We could be looking at an international search, which adds up. Not to mention that a guy like Spencer is probably pretty desperate to stay out of prison. That makes him dangerous.”

She looked down, as if she was running some numbers through her head. “What about two thousand now, and I’ll get the rest to you as soon as I can.”

“I don’t work on credit.”

She bit her bottom lip, taking another minute. “Okay. How about you get a take on what I recover? Maybe…three percent?”

“For all we know, that might be three percent of a big, fat nothing once he’s finally tracked down.”

“True. But if not, that money would be far more than the other eight thousand.”

She was right about that, but Reynolds wasn’t in this business to get rich. He did what he did because he had an interest in justice and helping people out, which was why he’d been a cop in Denver until he was shot on the job going on six years ago now. Helping Ginny Johnson by securing her future would be reward in itself.

Not to mention the satisfaction of seeing Spencer Johnson back in custody again, where he would hopefully be the rest of his life.

“The two grand now and, once Spencer’s caught, five percent of what you recover,” he said, upping the offer.

“Deal,” she said quickly, as if she thought he might change his mind.

He nodded, hoping that he didn’t come to regret this.

She smiled and he was sure that she was fighting back tears. “Thank you. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it,” she said, digging in her purse and bringing out a checkbook that she scribbled on before ripping one off and sliding it to him. “What more do you need from me?”

“This is a good start. I have some contacts that I’ll reach out to get started,” he said, coming to his feet, eager to see her on her way so he could take a moment to process.

She followed him to the front office just as the phone started ringing. She stopped a few feet from the door. “I didn’t see a receptionist when I first arrived.”

The phone rang a second time. “I’m temporarily receptionist free.”

“I see,” she said as the phone rang again. She turned to face him, a hopeful smile on her face. “You know, if you were looking to hire someone, I’m available. I could start tomorrow. I could take your calls, schedule your appointments, do some administrative tasks,” she said, her enthusiasm seemingly growing with every word.

He rubbed his jaw. “That’s an interesting offer, but there’s no urgency. And I have an answering service who takes my messages.”

“You mean the answering service who thought I was scheduling an appointment for a dog-grooming visit when I called? Yeah. I think you could do better.”

He crossed his arms in front of him, studying her. “You do, huh? And what kind of experience would you be bringing with you? Have you ever worked as a receptionist before?”

Her face lit up. “No, but I’ve worked for my family’s charity foundation, which involves chatting with people on the phone, taking point on questions and concerns as they come up, not to mention planning events and booking vendors as needed. I could do this job for you,” she added with more determination. “And do it well.”

He steepled his hands in front of him, pretending to consider her offer even though he knew without question there was no way that was going to work.

Waverley Abbott just didn’t belong here, and hiring her would undoubtedly end up being more trouble than she was worth. After all, her ex-husband’s name and face were still at the top of most news hours as the search went on for him and the details of his schemes came to light.

He didn’t need that kind of publicity around here.

Then there was the fact that there was just something about this woman that had burrowed deep down under his skin from the first moment he saw her, and he’d been trying to get her out of his mind ever since.

“Thanks for the offer, but I’m doing just fine.”

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