Page 43 of Hot Momosa

Leo

As far as Mondays went,this one wasn’t bad. It’d started with sharing breakfast with the love of my life, our son, and a fish. They had a way of making even the dreaded first day of the week brighter, and I was determined to do whatever it took to keep them under my roof.

The first step to making that happen?

Taking Harrison-fucking-Meriwether down.

I marched into Marchionni Corp and took the elevator to the sixth floor. Something was up with the politician. It was awful convenient that he happened to be in New Orleans the night the stalker had broken into Dahlia’s house—and I didn’t believe in coincidences.

I might not have access to Marco’s resources, but I still had a few tricks up my sleeve. I spotted the person I needed to see in a cubicle decorated with sci-fi posters and Star Wars figurines.

Julia Carpenter took one look at me, went a little green around the edges, and slumped out of sight.

What the hell?

The young woman didn’t look old enough to drink, but she had a mind that belonged at NASA. I could never figure out why she worked for Marchionni Corp, but far be it from me to suggest she belonged elsewhere. Unfortunately, her brilliance didn’t include social skills.

I walked around the cubicle wall and peered down at her on the floor. “Everything okay?”

“Uh. Yeah. I um…lost a contact. It just popped out of my eye.” She patted the ground several times before adjusting her glasses and returning to her chair.

“You wear both?” I motioned to the thick black frames on her face.

She stared as if I’d addressed her in another language. “One is for distance and the other is for up close.”

What the heck?

I didn’t have the time or patience to sort out her behavior, so I cut straight to the chase. “I need you to do some digging on someone. I want to know everything about him, including his whereabouts last night.”

Julia’s eyes lit. “That I can do. I need a name. Date of birth or an approximate age would be helpful.”

“Harrison Meriwether.” I had no idea when the guy had been born, but I had a feeling he was older than he looked. “Late thirties, maybe.”

Her mouth fell open. “The Harrison Meriwether?”

Not sure what to make of her response, I nodded. God help us if there were more parents out there who’d decided to saddle a kid with that horrid name.

“He’s unbelievably attractive. Like the perfect specimen of maleness.” Her cheeks heated. “I mean, he’s not Marchionni hot, but…yeah.”

Marchionni hot? That’s new.Biting back a grin, I cleared my throat. “See what you can dig up on the perfect specimen. I’ll pay you overtime.”

Julia whispered, “Is he…in some sort of trouble?”

“That’s what I want you to find out.” I folded my arms and gave her my best boss stare. I needed her to focus on the facts and not act like some sort of political groupie.

She squinted at the monitor while her fingers flew over her keyboard. “Harrison Cooper Meriwether, forty-six. Parents are—”

“Forty-six?” He’s seventeen years older than Dahlia? “Are you sure that’s the right guy?”

She motioned me closer to the screen. “It’s him, but I would have pegged him for thirty-five at the most. He must have some George Clooney or Keanu Reeves genes.”

Working to keep my expression from showing my distaste, I said, “I’d like to know when he arrived in New Orleans, where he’s staying—”

“I’ll check flight records, but he lives in Baton Rouge. Chances are he drove down.” She continued to type as she muttered to herself. “Traffic cameras. License plate. Hotel records.”

“I need the info as you gather it.”

Julia gave me a quick nod without slowing her fingers or turning her head.

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