The Other Side of Greed (The Seven Sins #5) - Lily Zante Page 0,6
a question I have to ask, even though it is obvious that any talk about her husband makes her uneasy.
“He’d dead. Got beaten to death in prison.”
Her reply stuns me, even after all the interviews I have conducted, I should be better prepared, but I’m not. Every one of these people have a story to tell, and each story is hard to comprehend. “I’m … I’m so sorry.” Though I suspect that she’s not. I ask her about the duties she used to perform, and the answers she gives me tell me that she is way more qualified than I first thought. That she is not who I thought she was. This woman, who was qualified to work in an office, now wants to work.
By the end of our talk, I am suitably impressed enough to take her on. She says she can’t start today, but that she will be here first thing tomorrow morning. This will give me time to process her paperwork.
Simona comes in just as Yvette leaves, and I introduce them both.
“Are you sure this is wise?” Simona looks worried. “She didn’t come from the agency.”
“She’s legit. She’s okay. She needs help.” I understand her concerns. I’ve broken my rule of not hiring directly, but my instinct tells me that Yvette is a desperate woman in need of help. I like to think we can give her that help.
My mom was one of these women—not quite as desperate, there was no husband in prison, or dying. Just a cheating husband who walked out one day after his lover turned up on our doorstep in tears, and very visibly pregnant. My mom was a single mom who raised two daughters. She worked three jobs just to keep a roof over our heads and she could have benefited from something like this. That’s why I do it, why I’m driven to the point of being obsessed. Why I devote all my time and energy to Redhill, much to Simona’s annoyance.
She thinks I should be spending time going out, having fun and meeting Mr. Right. At the age of twenty-eight, I’m not looking for Mr. Right because he doesn’t exist. My last boyfriend was a testament to that.
I have people to help. My younger sister, Penny, is in college and that’s one thing taken care of.
Between keeping her in college and running Redhill, there is no time for anything else.
Chapter Four
BRANDON
Billionaire undercover. That’s how I’ll do it. A Trojan horse into Kyra Lewis’ company. I’ll convince her, gently nudge her towards a decision, do what it takes to get her to see that relocating would be in her best interests.
The idea is brilliant. So much so that I couldn’t even hold my attention at the art gallery yesterday. Luckily, Jessica was too busy showing art collectors around, and I was left to stare at paintings that a three-year-old chimpanzee would have created if he’d been given a bucket of paint.
At least the champagne was flowing.
When Emma walks in, I steeple my fingers together and stare at her, deep in contemplation.
“What now?” She puts down the pile of daily newspapers.
“Brad Hartley,” I state.
She frowns. “Who’s he?”
“My new alter ego.”
Emma raises an eyebrow and I pick up one of the papers, pretending to glance at the headlines so that I can give Emma time to absorb this news. “What?” she cries.
“You must have seen those reality TV shows?” I prompt. She stares back with a blank expression.
“I’m going undercover like that, working for Kyra Lewis.”
A tangle of lines forms on her otherwise smooth forehead. “But not to help her.”
I smile, because she understands. “Of course not.”
“I should leave,” she mumbles, her wrinkles deepening.
“Hear me out.” If anyone will find holes in my idea, it will be Emma.
“You’re obviously not going on a TV show.” Her dry response and the disapproval wedged into her lips tells me not only that she knows what I plan to do, but that she doesn’t approve.
“Never.” I guard my privacy and am hardly ever seen in the press. “This is how I’ll get Kyra Lewis and her people, and all the other Greenways business owners to leave. I think it’s perfect.”
She scoffs. “Only you would think of that.”
“Persuading her to move is the easier option. This way I avoid the circus of a public hearing with all its hoops and legal tape to jump through.”
“But it’s wrong,” she replies, her voice flat with weariness. Enamored she is not.