Page 87 of With a Grain of Salt

I literally can’t believe my ears. These kind of things don't happen to me.

"They're not making you pay that money back."

"I've paid thousands of dollars over the last several years in an attempt to clear that credit card," I say because I don't know that he fully understands the weight of what he's telling me.

"And I'll fight that in court. I don't know if I'll be able to get the money back, but I figured it was good news to know you no longer have to make payments on that account."

"No more payments?"

"None," he says before tilting his head. "Have you opened other accounts in an effort to pay this one off? Because if you have, there's a good argument to have those wiped too or at least make Capital First Advantage responsible for those as well.”

“No more credit cards.” I don’t tell him that I tried that and by the time I made that attempt, my credit score was so terrible, people would literally laugh at me when I applied for another card. "What about my credit score?"

"That will take a little more time, but I can get a letter sent and can strongly urge CFA to do the same."

I nod, growing hopeful that I might be able to afford a newer car now.

"I'll let you know when and if we have to go to court, but I'm hoping a few more threats and CFA will just give you a lump sum including interest. Twenty thousand dollars is a lot for you, but it's a drop in the bucket for a company that large. They'd spend more on attorney's fees going to court."

"Thank you so much for doing this," I tell him.

"Hux never should've left you in this mess in the first place," he says, and it feels like he's confessing more to me than he normally would.

"What do I owe you?"

"Nothing," he says without hesitation. "My father was a vet. I'm considering this pro bono. Besides, it only took a few phone calls and I rather like telling people off and making threats. It was fun for me. I'll make sure you have copies of everything you'll need mailed to your house. Have a nice day, Ms. Kennedy."

He turns his full attention back to his computer like it's just another day despite having changed my entire life.

Chapter 37

Walker

It's not that I expected anything from Claire after having her car fixed, but the glint in her eyes when she drove away this morning made me hopeful that she'd at least call me.

She did text... to tell me that she couldn't make her shifts at the bar this week. I know it had more to do with her lack of childcare in the evening rather than anything else, but it still left me disappointed. With Maggie back home for the holidays, it leaves me here working rather than spending time with her. Megan can't handle the bar all by herself, and I know this is something I need to prepare for. I only have one more semester with Maggie working here, and I depend on her too much as it is.

I'm running through the idea of offering to pay for her post-graduate education if she agrees to work here when a dropped bottle clinks on the bar.

I look down and see Mac grumbling to himself as beer suds spread out in front of him.

I grab a bar towel and make my way to him.

"Bad day?"

"Bad month," he grumbles.

"On the house," I tell him, placing a fresh beer in front of him after getting the spill cleaned up.

"Thanks," he says, lifting the thing to his lips and taking a drink without incident this time.

"Want to talk about it?"

"Not really," he grumbles, but I know he's either going to talk about it now, or he'll be jabbering about it after a few more beers.

"I'm here if you need me," I say, tapping my knuckles on the bar top in front of him before turning to walk away.

"Hey, before you go."

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