Page 123 of The Charmer

I groaned. "I was joking.”

“I know. But I think there’s a way we can do this. I'm sure Anthony, Beckett, and Zachary can help.”

"You've lost me. How, exactly? What do we even need their help with if you have the documentation?”

"Our younger brothers have skills we don't," Xander said.

"I'm going to sound like you now, but care to expand on that?"

"They’ll know how to find out exactly where Kyle transferred the money. And also how to let people know without revealing that the information came from us."

"You sound like you're in a James Bond movie," I countered. I wanted to tease him some more, but I knew he was right.

"All right," Xander said. "I'm going to talk to our brothers. Do you need me to look at the documentation for your acquisition of Robert's bar?”

"If you have time, sure."

"This is family business. Of course I have time."

"Thanks, brother." I trusted our legal and finance team, of course, but Xander was simply better at everything. "We'll stay in touch."

After hanging up, I felt so full of energy that it was insane. I had half a mind to talk to my brothers right now. But since Xander wanted to do it, there was no point.

I checked my emails for news from the legal team. They wanted to meet in the afternoon. I grinned—served me right. Why would I assume they’d just be able to do this at the drop of a hat? I was impulsive, and I'd trained the people working directly with me on a day-to-day basis to accommodate that. But the legal team was handling everything for the entire Orleans Conglomerate, not just my stuff.

It made no sense for me to stay here until the afternoon, so I called Georgie as I walked down the stairs to the ground floor. It wasn't anywhere near noon, but I could drop by for coffee.

"Hey!" I greeted. "You busy right now?

"Not that much. I have a bit of a lull, so I'm working on checking in the next batch of book boxes."

I was so proud of my woman. She had a very solid business mind.

"Listen, I'm not sure if you heard, but Kyle is—”

“Spreading some rumors.”

“So you know.”

She sighed. “Yes. I got a call from Calliope today. I had a lengthy conversation with her. When I told her everything that went down between me and Kyle, she quickly understood his incentive to spread lies.”

“Don't worry. Soon everyone will know what a scumbag he is.”

"How do you mean?”

“Xander and I will show everyone that he’s a stealing bastard.”

"Julian, you don't have to do that on my behalf."

"It's not just on your behalf, though it’ll ensure that he never bothers you again. He's a menace to everyone. And it's time someone made it known what they’re dealing with. Want me to drop by with a coffee?"

"Um... no."

"You sound off. Something wrong?" I asked as I reached the foot of the staircase and took the employee exit toward the back. The narrow side street was relatively empty at this time of day.

"I don't know."

I was confused. She stayed silent. "Georgie, talk to me." I was certain something was wrong. I just didn't know what. "Georgie, you’re worrying me. You can tell me anything. You know that, right?"

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