Page 20 of Finally

Charlie let out an irritated huff as I leaned over her to grab my ringing phone off the table next to the couch. It was Saturday and Topher had been shut in his office all day, working from home after a brick was launched through one of the windows of the campaign headquarters. Thankfully, it had happened at night, so no one was there at the time, but even worse than the damage done to the window, was the disgusting slur written across the brick in red paint.

I’d filed a report with the police, and then reviewed the video footage from outside the building. The image was too grainy and there were no discernable markings or anything that would help me figure out who it was or even if the perpetrator was a man or woman. The police assumed that it was a member of the O.O.A., which continued to camp outside the doors, protesting Topher’s run for governor. I knew it was a definite possibility, but I wasn’t willing to rule anything out at that point.

While we waited for a new window to be put in, Topher had agreed to work from home. Charlie had been keeping me company by lying across my lap and letting me rub her ears as I watched the game on TV, but she wasn’t happy about the phone interrupting our snuggle time.

“So sorry to disturb you, Your Highness,” I told her. She leaned up and gave my chin a wet lick, letting me know that all was forgiven.

My phone rang again, and I swiped the screen as I saw Nolan’s name appear. “Hey, man! What’s going on?”

“Ugh! Things are still crazy here. I’m telling you, I don’t know how Mary does it all. The phone’s been ringing off the hook, the printer’s jammed three times already and to make matters worse, the Coffee. Machine. Died!”

I chuckled at the outrage I heard in his voice over the broken coffee machine. Nolan was always cool under pressure and could handle even the most precarious situation without breaking a sweat, but take away his coffee and you’d see a whole other side to him. We always teased him that if he were cut, he’d probably bleed coffee.

“Oh shit, that sucks. Are you still there all alone?”

“Yes,” he answered glumly. “It’s like a freaking ghost town around here. Mary, Carlos, and Micah are still sick with that nasty stomach bug and from the sounds of it, it’s a rough one. Josh and Trevor were here, but they just left for the airport—Josh to Amsterdam and Trevor to California. Brandon and Tony are off on an assignment together; but they’re getting closer to nailing that guy, they had to go dark. You know how that goes, we won’t hear from them until the mission is over or…”

He didn’t have to finish that thought because we both knew what he meant. We wouldn’t hear from our friends unless the job was done, or something went terribly wrong. A shudder swept through me. We all knew the dangers involved with our jobs and we’d accepted them without exception, but the thought of losing one of my brothers made my chest ache.

“What about Jeremy?” I asked, subtly changing the subject.

Nolan laughed for the first time since I’d answered the phone. “He’s a wreck. Seriously, I’ve never seen him like this. He’s been running around like a chicken with its head cut off trying to make sure everything is perfect, right to the last detail. If he’s this worked up over the setup, I can’t imagine what he’s going to be like when the big day actually gets here.”

“Well, he’s only got a week left and then all of the planning will be behind him and he can just concentrate on marrying Zane.” I smiled as I thought of my crazy, lovesick friend. He and Zane had been through a lot together and they deserved to finally have their happy ending. I couldn’t think of anyone who deserved it more and I was looking forward to watching them tie the knot.

My smile melted away as I thought of something I hadn’t before. “Dammit.”

“What’s wrong?” Nolan asked.

“Oh, I’ve been looking forward to going to the wedding, but I forgot one very important detail. Topher.”

“Who’s Topher?”

“Sorry. I meant Christopher. Christopher Brooks, the candidate for governor that I’ve been assigned to.”

Nolan was so quiet that I thought maybe he’d hung up. When he spoke, his tone was serious. “What’s going on, Greg? You’re calling him Topher now? He’s your client,” he said as if I needed to be reminded. Maybe I did because I would never normally let myself get too close to a client. But then again, there was nothing normal about this situation; Topher and I had a history together that was impossible to ignore.

“It’s complicated,” I replied.

“These things usually are,” he said with a sigh. “Look, Greg, I’m not going to lecture you. You’re a grown man and I trust you to know what you’re doing. Besides, you wouldn’t be the first of us to get involved with a client.”

“We’re not involved,” I stated firmly. “It’s just…”

“Complicated. Yeah, I get it. Just be careful, okay? I don’t want to see you get hurt. And bring him with you to the wedding. You can’t leave him alone and any of us that aren’t off on assignment will be going to the wedding ourselves. Besides, anyone who can break through your hard shell must be pretty damn special, and I need to see that for myself.”

“Yeah, I’ll think about it,” I murmured. He believed there was something happening between Topher and me and I didn’t have the energy to argue with him. “Give me a call if you need help at the office. And thanks, you’re a good friend.”

“Right back at you, buddy. Talk later.”

As soon as Nolan hung up, I punched in a different set of numbers and waited for someone to pick up. I didn’t have to wait long. “Hey, Jerry. It’s Greg Wright. I was wondering if you could do me a favor? Nolan’s stuck at the office by himself and the coffee machine broke.” I chuckled as Jerry let out an expletive. He owned the coffee shop down the street from Hamilton Security and he knew exactly what that meant. Jerry often said that Nolan could single-handedly keep his shop in business with the amount of coffee he bought each week.

“Don’t worry, I’m on it. I’ll have one of my guys run a few cups over right now and we’ll keep them going throughout the day.”

“Thanks, Jerry. You’re a lifesaver.”

Charlie nudged me with her wet nose as I hung up. I rubbed her head absentmindedly and she settled back down with her chin on my leg. My conversation with Nolan kept running through my brain, and after about ten minutes of staring at the TV screen, but not really seeing anything, I decided I was too restless to sit there anymore.

“Come on, girl. Time to get up. I need to go burn off some energy.” As I stood, Charlie gave me a look that said she wasn’t on board with anything that required activity then she laid her head back down and closed her eyes.

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