Page 64 of Our Lips Are Sealed
“Stop beating yourself up. My dad and Simone didn’t even recognize him at the party,” he said. “And now that I think about it, Trevor didn’t recognize him either, which makes me feel better. I was becoming concerned that he might have been hiding or helping Toby conceal what he’s been doing.”
Evie turned to see her car tailing them with Jamison behind the wheel. “I guess we’ll know soon enough. Surely, Cohen has sent the police, or whomever, to bring Toby in for questioning by now.”
Color seeped in red patches up Samuel’s neck, and Evie’s heart sank. “Tell me.”
“Mathis sent officers to the hospital, and he personally went to Toby’s listed residence, but the bastard was gone. The hospital said he didn’t show up for his shift, and the house he was renting is empty. Mathis said it looked like he left in a hurry.”
“How would he know to run?” Evie asked, and then the disappointing answer came to her. “Nick.”
“I’m not sure what they’ll do to him, but it won’t be pretty. He’s obstructing a federal case, and he’s an ex-felon.”
Poor Judy had so little time left, and losing her remaining child here at the end of her life was heartbreaking. Nick wasn’t trying to hurt anyone. He thought he was protecting his family.
“Promise me, we’ll help Judy,” Evie said. “She told Jamison they wanted to send her to a hospice care facility next week, but I think if something happens to Nick… Samuel, I don’t want her to suffer any more.”
“I’ve already made phone calls while you were asleep,” he told her. “Our lawyer is the one who facilitated the nurse. She’s there when Nick isn’t, but we’re bumping it to around-the-clock care, plus the hospice service will increase their visits and keep her in her home as long as they can.”
Evie sighed, her love for him threatening to burst right out of her bones. “I love you.”
Samuel shot her a devastatingly handsome grin. “It’s hard not to when I’m this awesome.”
Snickering at his arrogance, she stretched her arms above her head. “Any word from the house?”
“Abe said to tell you Annabeth is fine. She’s been cooking and cleaning since he told her about Toby.”
“That’s what we do when we’re nervous.” She flicked a finger over the latch in front of her. “Like right now, I want to clean out your glove box to take my mind off everything.”
“Weirdo.”
With her headache gone, she relaxed in the seat. “Keeping distracted helps me not become a basket case. So, unless you want me to clean your car for the next two hours, talk to me about something unrelated to the shit storm we’re about to walk into.”
The hand on her leg crept higher. “Did you want me to talk dirty to you?”
He was trying to make her laugh, and it worked. “Tell me what your plans are for Micah and me. What big project are he and I going to tackle together?”
“Honestly, I don’t have plans to keep you together.”
Evie’s head snapped towards him. “What?”
“Micah needs to work part-time when he starts classes, and the new Firewater hotel project is still in its infancy, but it’s an ideal place for him to start,” he explained. “By my estimates, he’ll be done with his degree around the time the project is ready to hit full steam, and since I’ll have had him assigned to it from the start, Micah will have a shot at taking a lead position on the financial team.”
It was a hell of an opportunity for her friend, and Evie begrudgingly huffed her thanks. “But what will I be doing?”
Samuel wagged his eyebrows at her. “You’ll be working directly with me.”
“In what capacity?” she asked. “And whatever you say, better not involve your couch.”
“Don’t act like you would mind,” he shot back. “But no, I plan on putting you to work with a few of the Fairweather controlled stores in Firewater’s shopping district.”
“I thought you said the place would only be opened to small local businesses out of Hollingsdale and Port Michaelson?”
“It is, but three of them will be backed by Fairweather Holdings, and it’ll be your job to help the owners find their footing within the business model they’ve laid out for us.”
The idea of working with Samuel excited her, but finding out she would be helping new small businesses get off the ground made it even better. He knew she hated working on corporate accounts. “Tell me about the stores.”
“The first is a specialty wine shop.”
Evie snorted. “Rich people love their wine. That shop will be easy to keep in the black.”
