Page 11 of Single Greatest Threat
“I’ve already told you not to worry about me,” Joesph said, returning from the bathroom. He sat. “Don’t factor me at all. Just focus on what your heart tells you to do.”
Exasperated didn’t begin to cover his feelings. “Of course I have to consider you. You can’t take less money somewhere else. In fact, you deserve more than you make now.”
Haven patted his arm. “You’ll do what’s right. I’ll let you two figure it out.” She walked away, leaving them alone in the kitchen.
They waited until she was gone.
Joesph jumped in first. “Look, I won’t be in any less debt by taking less money. In fact, I might finally qualify for bankruptcy. That won’t clear my student loans, but at least I’ll be out from underneath my medical bills. Don’t worry about me.”
“You still have student loans?” Shaw had no idea why that was what popped out.
“Yes. Do you have any idea how much it costs to go to law school? I didn’t have parents paying my way.” Joesph looked ready to bite off his own tongue. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to sound so bitter.”
He was right to be bitter. It was ridiculous for him to still owe money on the degree needed to work. That was nuts. “Let me know how much it is and I’ll pay it off. That’s something Dad should’ve done when he hired you. It pisses me off that he didn’t.”
Joesph looked beyond frustrated. “Stop. We’re supposed to be talking about you. I don’t want your money.”
Aggravation made Shaw’s decision for him. “We are talking about me. I’m starting my own firm. You’re my first hire. As part of your sign-on bonus, I’ll cover any student loans.” The bravadoleft him as soon as the words did. “That is, if you trust me to make a go of things without Dad’s backing. It’s possible our clients won’t follow me.”
A bright smile exploded across Joesph’s face. “They’ll follow you and so will I. There’s no one better than you. In fact, let’s ease your mind now and put you out of your misery.” Joesph grabbed his phone, turned it on, and clicked around. He left it face up and put it on speaker as ringing filled the air.
“You’ve reached the residence of His Royal Highness, Prince Noir. How may I direct your call?”
“This is Joesph Drake from Howe’s Law firm. Is Noir available? I have business.”
“Hold, please.”
Elevator music filled the air, proving it was likely a service that handled his calls. Prince Noir was the firm’s biggest client. All Shaw’s clients were based on Noir because Noir wasthedrug lord of Atlantic City. His lackeys relied on Shaw to keep them out of prison. If Noir didn’t want to leave Shaw’s father’s practice, this venture was dead in the water before it began. Shaw wanted to beg Joesph to hang up. He thought he might be sick.
“This is Noir.” Noir sounded like the foreign prince he was.
“Hey, Noir. It’s Joesph.”
Noir’s tone changed, turning friendly. “It’s good to hear your voice. You weren’t at Salem’s last party. We were forced to play Two Dares a player short.”
Hope slammed into Shaw. He had forgotten Noir and Joesph were actual friends. He also really wanted to know what Two Dares was.
“Yeah. I was in the hospital.”
Shaw’s gaze snapped to Joesph’s face and didn’t budge. Haven had told him Joesph had been hospitalized a couple of months back. He didn’t realize he had also been hospitalized as little as a month ago. Joesph had been back working at the firm then. How had Shaw not known?
Joesph kept talking, speeding right past the topic. “I’ll be there next time. So, I just wanted to give you a quick heads-up. Shaw and I will be splitting away from Howe’s Law firm and becoming a separate practice. I wanted to make sure your people know where to call from now on.”
Damn. He was smooth.
“Of course. I assume we’ll call you directly?”
“Please? I imagine Shaw Sr. will close up shop soon, since he’s retired. The good news is, prices will go down since it turns out Senior’s secretary has been overcharging clients so she could keep the extra money.”
Shaw covered his mouth. He wanted to laugh, but he couldn’t. Joesph was so much more of everything than him, especially when it came to bravery.
“Is that so? Well, I’ll definitely leave that mess for Shaw to deal with, but there’s no sense in charging less. I’d have to call my accountant to tell him about the change, and it’s worth the extra money to me to avoid doing that. He’s very tiresome.”
Shaw had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. Plus, giddiness just owned him. This was really happening. Shaw would be free.
“Okay. I’ll let Shaw know. You know you can count on him.”
“Always. I only hire the best. That includes you.” The surety in Noir’s voice had Shaw’s throat swelling. He had always been the one to defend Noir and his bunch. His father had already retired before they landed him as a client. But he had needed exactly this today and Joesph had given it to him. The truth hit him so hard, it stole his breath and made him wonder why he couldn’t see it before. Joesph loved him. There was no other reason he would constantly put up with Shaw and still be this amazing afterward. More than that, though. Shaw loved him too. His refusal to accept that truth was one reason his mental health had taken such a steep decline. Shaw had been so fucking determined to hang on to his freedom. He had destroyed everything, including himself. He was such a dumbass, and he didn’t deserve Joesph.
