entire ocean. I even flew commercial.”
The door opened a crack, revealing one brown eye behind the lens of her glasses. “You did?”
Aha! “I did.” I leaned forward, infusing my tone with my customary charm. “Please let me in. We need to talk.”
But the suspicion inexplicably returned. “Did Trevor speak with you?”
This had my eyes narrowing. “No. Why?” What was she up to? If Trevor was involved, it couldn’t be anything I’d like.
Shaking her head, she opened the door a few inches farther. “No reason. Never mind. I can’t let you in until you tell me why you’re here, sir.”
The time was finally upon us to deliver the good news. My lips curved into a wide smile and I extended the flowers once more. “I came to hire you back as my assistant!”
This time, when the door slammed, the sound of a deadbolt clicking into place followed.
“Women,” I grumbled under my breath as the Audi cruised along I-40 to downtown Greensboro the next morning.
“What was that, sir?” Andrew cocked an ear my way, unable to hide his shit-eating grin.
“You know my family pays your paycheck, right?”
“And you know my job is secure as long as I don’t allow any harm to come to you, right? It’s in my contract.”
“What? I didn’t know that. What ever happened to serving at the pleasure of the king?”
“It was one of the conditions put in place after you drugged me in that cabin and stole my car keys,” he responded through tight lips.
“Oh, right. That.” I tried not to smile at the memory. It was how Leo and I had escaped our security detail to embark on our journey of adventure and intrigue with Ruby last time I was here. Ah, what fond memories. “I did apologize.”
“And I renegotiated my contract.” He turned and spoke to the window. “I’ve got a nice little nest egg as a result.”
“And I can’t fire you unless I’m dead?”
He simply nodded his response.
A new thought occurred to me, one I liked even less than the first. “Or… maimed?”
“Now you’re catching on.” He didn’t turn to me, his eyes on the passing cars as Matthias took the next exit.
“Huh.” I considered that for a moment. “Seems a bit unfair, don’t you think? What if you get sick of the job or get cross with me and decide, ‘Eh, I’m about ready to retire anyway. Go ahead and cut off King Malcolm’s ears. He had it coming’?”
“Other people might take that as incentive to behave with more fealty.” This time, he let his eyes meet mine, and I swear there was a hint of coldness in place of his usual dismissiveness. Then he blinked and it was gone.
“Ah!” I pointed at him. “You almost got me there.”
He merely shook his head in one of his various expressions of exasperation and I responded with a shove to his shoulder. I’d win him over eventually.
“Here we are,” Matthias announced from the front seat, and I only then noticed we’d pulled into a parking garage beneath a building. “You two get out here. I’ll find a spot and meet you up at the Triumph offices.”
“Excellent.” If Alice thought I’d give up so easily, she clearly didn’t recall much about me.
After I’d been dismissed the previous evening, I decided the next best move would be to track down Ruby and try wresting information from her. It had been a breeze finding my brother’s girlfriend, as there was only one place she’d be with her uncle Carl resting up after his surgery.
As I approached the open garage door at Crankshaft Auto Repair, it was impossible to miss the lower half of a slim figure clad in dirty coveralls sticking out from under the chassis of a woefully beat-up Ford Taurus. “Hey, Legs! What does a guy have to do around here to get a drink?”
Out rolled the dolly to reveal Ruby’s grease-streaked face, her mouth spread in a huge smile. “Mal! What are you doing here?!” She sprang to standing and threw her arms around me, clearly not caring that my clothes were likely ruined from all the dirt and grease. Not that it bothered me one bit. Then she pulled back sharply. “Wait. Aren’t you supposed to be home preparing for the coronation?”
I bobbed my head from side to side. “Probably. But I had a little business to take care of.”
“Here?” Her hands still gripped my biceps, but as I nodded, she released me and took a step back, the smile falling from her lips.