Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 96802 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96802 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
I shrugged one shoulder. “Sure.”
“You know I don’t need you checking in on me.”
“Okay.”
“So, don’t bother,” Taylor said huffily.
“All right,” I said. “I do care though, Taylor. I’m not just here because of Dad.”
“This is supposed to be my new start,” Taylor said with a sigh. “I don’t need anything to make me different here.”
I glanced around the coffee shop. Everyone looked a little different here. A little less Hollywood, a little more New York City. Dark and haunted and tortured. Angsty, edgy, and artistic. The darkness to my light. I’d always fit in in LA. Maybe a little too well. But New York seemed to favor Taylor. I understood wanting to fit in.
Then my gaze snagged on the TV. A face appeared that I recognized—Jane Devney.
Court’s ex-girlfriend and her Upper East Side alias. Her real name was Janine Lehmann, and she was a dual German-French citizen who had stolen more money than God from banks all over the world. All with the force of her personality. She had conned Court for two years while they dated and stolen I didn’t even know how much money from his trust fund.
The very reason that I had been hired to help Court’s image.
I leaned forward to read what was scrolling across the bottom of the news channel.
Jane Devney, pseudonym to Janine Lehmann, refuses a plea deal and pleads not guilty to charges of grand larceny and fraud. A court date has been set for December 10.
“Fuck,” I spat, jumping to my feet.
“What?” Taylor asked. She turned to look at the television. “What’s going on?”
“I have to go.”
“Go? Where are you going?”
“Work,” I said, grasping my bag. “I have to get back uptown. We could meet up again… later.”
Taylor rolled her eyes. “Don’t bother. I know that work comes first.”
And it did. It had to.
“Maybe you’ll understand one day. Maybe you won’t,” I said with raised eyebrows. “Enjoy school. Keep your head down.”
“Whatever.”
I wished there were a way to make this better between us. But it certainly couldn’t happen over forced coffee. And it wouldn’t happen when I had to deal with Court first. He was the priority. No matter what was going on with Taylor.
I dashed into the first cab, stealing it from another couple who yelled at me. But my need was great. I called Court and texted and called again. He never answered. I knew he was out with Gavin for their weekly lunch, which mostly consisted of drinking. But he should have his phone on him. The last thing I wanted was for someone to ask him about Jane without him knowing about it, without me talking with him first.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I murmured. I leaned forward. “Can we go any faster? I can pay.”
The woman shrugged and turned down the next alley. Soon, we were zipping through the streets. She drove like a maniac, but right now, that was what I needed. I felt frantic. It was the worst time of day for me to be in Greenwich Village when I needed to be in Midtown.
It was an interminable amount of time before the cab screeched to a halt in front of the St. Regis. Thankfully, Court had a routine, and he lunched here every Wednesday. King Cole Bar was a staple for the business types. Dorset & King, the oil company Gavin ran in the city, had their New York headquarters nearby. Occasionally, they went to The Mark or Casa Lever, but I remembered Court had said something about St. Regis, and I was betting on it since he hadn’t fucking returned my call.
I walked through the lobby and straight into the restaurant and bar, bypassing the receptionist, who looked put out.
“Excuse me, miss. Can I help you? Do you have a reservation? Are you meeting someone?” she asked, hustling behind me.
“No. I’m fine. Thank you.”
Then, I continued forward as she followed me. Everyone looked alike here. So many two-thousand-dollar business suits and musky cologne. Don Draper from Mad Men could have stepped straight into this place. There was not a single other female. It was disorienting.
Then, I found Court sitting opposite Gavin. They had dirty martinis in front of them. Gavin laughed at whatever Court had just said. There were four other men with them, who I’d never met before. Though one of them looked familiar. I couldn’t place him though. Robert something?
I inhaled and then exhaled. At least I wore a sensible black dress and heels. I couldn’t appear frazzled to these men. They ate that for breakfast.
Gavin’s cunning eyes saw me first. He ran a hand back through his reddish brown hair and then jumped up. “English, love!”
“Gavin King.” I winked at him. “Just look at you.”
Court whipped around. His eyes narrowed in confusion. I hadn’t interrupted his guy time like this since I investigated his monthly poker game with Camden.