his, “I have to go to Sydney tomorrow, so I’m going to need you to attend a lunch I was supposed to go to with your father.” He places a file on my desk. “This is the information you need to know for it.”
We arrived home yesterday from our trip and are straight into the campaign today after taking yesterday afternoon off. I resigned from my job the day Joe told me to and wasn’t surprised in the least when my boss told me I didn’t need to give any notice. I suspect Joe had a hand in that. He’s got what he wants now—me settled into an office right next to him so he can keep an eye on me and boss me around.
Joe really did marry the wrong woman.
I’m determined to show him that.
I pick up the file. “I’ll go through it today. Is there anything else you need me to do while you’re away? When will you be back?”
“I’ll be home on Friday. I’ll email you what needs to be done before then.”
He exits the office, and I spend the next hour going over the information in the file. It’s more about the mine that Dwayne Moss is trying to gain approval for and that Joe and Dad are trying to help him with. All so very above board when the premier is doing dirty deals behind doors to push a mine through that half the state doesn’t want. I don’t have an opinion on it either way; at this point, I can only focus on what I’m trying to achieve.
Closing the file, I push my chair back and stand to go in and tell Joe I’m going out for lunch. I’m almost at the door between our offices when I hear his angry voice. Slowing, I stop and eavesdrop on his conversation. This is the only good thing about working so closely with him, and I intend to make the most of the opportunity to snoop.
Although he’s talking angrily, he’s doing it in hushed tones, so I can only make out some of what he’s saying. By the sounds of it, he’s discussing some financial investments he’s made on behalf of a client that don’t sound like they were legal. If I’m not mistaken, he’s involved in money laundering and insider trading. Thank God for my degree in finance; it’ll help me figure out Joe’s dirty secrets.
He abruptly ends the call and I dart back to sit at my desk in case he comes in.
A minute later, he appears in my office looking stressed. “I have to go out for the afternoon. I’ll see you at home tonight.”
I watch him leave, thinking about this new information I have on him. I know what I’ll be doing while he’s away: going through his files looking for proof of his illegal activities.
Joe comes home super late that night. I’m already in bed, so I’m spared having to spend time with him, and then he leaves early on Wednesday morning to fly to Sydney. The universe appears to have come to its senses and decided to play nice with me. It starts my morning off well and this continues for the rest of the day.
I attend the lunch Joe asked me to and impress my father again with my knowledge of the mine. I then spend time trying to crack Joe’s password on his computer so I can take a look at his files. After two hours of trying to do that and also rifling through his paperwork, I admit defeat. I’ve found nothing in his paperwork and can’t figure out his password.
By the time I arrive at Alexa’s for the dinner we rescheduled from lunch yesterday, I’m frustrated and annoyed. And I’m ready to have a drink with her to take the edge of that frustration.
“How’s your mum today?” I ask as we walk into her kitchen, where she’s making tacos for dinner.
“They sent her home this morning. She needs to keep being monitored, though.”
“On a scale of one to ten, how worried are you?”
“Nine, but this is me we’re talking about.”
I smile. This is why I was adamant about making sure we caught up sooner rather than later. Alexa is a worrier when it comes to her family. A nine for her is the equivalent of a five for most other people. “I bought a bottle of your favourite wine.” I hold it up.
She opens her fridge to show me two bottles of the same wine sitting