Page 55 of Toxic

Not much got past her. “Rip found a connection between the founder and CEO of Fission Solutions and an old enemy of ours. So we’ve been digging to see if it’s a coincidence, or if it has anything to do with us.”

“Why would it have anything to do with you?” she asked. “I didn’t even know you before now.”

“True, but we made things…difficult…for this company not too long ago. For all we know they could be buying up land around our clubhouse and in our city to retaliate in the future.”

“Do you think that’s part of what’s happening?” she asked.

“Not likely,” I admitted. “But we’re not ruling anything out just yet.”

She studied my face. “You seem to have learned a lot.”

“Yeah.”

Here we go.

“Did he call you this morning?”

“Who?” I asked, stalling.

“Riptide,” she said, suspicion entering her eyes.

“No. He told me the other night at the clubhouse. Told us all during church.”

She gasped. “Why didn’t you tell me then? I deserve to know what’s going on, Toxic. It’s my ranch.”

“You do,” I said in an agreeable tone, “which is why I’m telling you now. I didn’t want anything to convince your grandfather he should stay, because it’s not safe for him here.”

“Oh,” she said, calming down immediately. “I guess that makes sense.” She pointed at me. “But don’t think for a second that you’re going to go sneaking off and saving the day while you keep me in the dark. This is my ranch that they’re trying to steal and I want to help.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I told her. Her scowl just made my grin grow. “In fact, I wanted to see if you wanted to give me a hand with something before the guys come out this afternoon.”

“Sure,” she answered immediately. “Help with what?” she added.

She didn’t realize that I already knew her like the back of my hand. If she thought she was going to go back to the way thingswere before she came into my life, waving shotguns and threats, then she had another thing coming. She didn’t stand a chance of holding out against me.

“I’ll explain on the way.” Standing, I went and opened the door, waiting for her to walk through before following her.

“I don’t understandhow this is going to help?” Billie muttered to me under her breath as we walked through the lobby of a building downtown.

“Just gathering a little intel,” I told her, smiling at the people passing us by. “Quit looking so nervous.”

“You should have told me to change,” she hissed. “I don’t look like I belong here. Neither do you for that matter.”

Everyone was in suits and skirts, the kind that were starched and pressed and went down past the knee. The people in this building could be described as ‘young professionals’. Billie was right, we stood out like sore thumbs. Not that it mattered.

“Just follow my lead,” I told her, as we approached the front desk area.

“Good morning,” the blonde sitting there said with a smile. Her eyes locked onto me and she batted thick black lashes.

They were so thick, and obviously fake, that I worried she’d tip forward due to the weight. Her nails were long and as sharply pointed as a cat’s claws. She pointed at the clipboard. “Sign in please.”

I scrawled a fake ass name across the sheet. “Good morning.” I hit her with a charming smile, not at all missing the fact that Billie rolled her eyes. “We’re here to meet with Declan Finch.”

The woman’s eyes had been roaming down my body, but now they snapped up and met mine. “Do you have an appointment?” She said it as though she highly suspected we didn’t.

“We don’t. My name is Bob Johnson and I’m with the EPA.”

She’d been opening her mouth to send me away, but as soon as she heard EPA, she froze. “Oh. Um. Mr. Johnson, of course,” she stammered, sifting through papers on her desk. She was trying to find the name of the last Environmental Protection Agency douche that had shown up. This company dealt with nuclear. No way the EPA wasn’t up their asses constantly with reporting requirements and studies and all the rest of the bullshit the government loved to bog people down with.

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