“Thank you.” She scoffed and walked away.
I plopped down in my chair, happy that the unnecessary magazine interview was over. I opened a drawer to shut off my voice recorder and caught a glimpse of my digital photo-book. Scrolling across its screen, I smiled at the pictures Claire and I had taken of Caroline and Ashley last month.
Over the past eight months, I’d realized that I finally had everything I could possibly want—almost everything I could possibly want.
Claire and I had grown closer than ever and she’d finally learned to accept our relationship and be comfortable with it. Sure, she still frustrated the shit out of me from time to time—but not because of insecurities or being seen in public together.
It was mainly because she’d agreed to move into my house, but not before turning it into a damn renovation project that never seemed to end.
She was always finding something new to tweak, some part of the house that could be “done better.” If I didn’t love her so much, I would’ve put a stop to it a long time ago—like the time she shattered the windshield of my Bugatti while installing new lights in the garage.
“Mr. Statham?” Angela’s voice bounced off my walls.
“Yes?”
“Corey and...Miss Gracen are here to see you.”
I looked at my watch. There was no way Claire had left her company this early—surprise weekend getaway or not. I always had to personally drag her out of there at the end of the day.
“Send them in please.” I looked towards the door and watched as Corey held the door open for...Ashley.
I smiled. “Yes, Ashley?”
“Can I have fifty more dollars? I forgot to account for a few things...”
“A few things like what?” I handed her a hundred. “Is that the only reason you came by?”
“No, not really. I was wondering how long you and my mom were going to be gone this weekend...”
“Why?”
“No reason.” She put on her best poker face—something she’d definitely inherited from Claire. “I just thought I’d stop by to ask. That’s all.”
“We’ll be back on Tuesday...”
“Good to know!” She clapped. “Have a safe trip!”
“The house is under state of the art surveillance.” I narrowed my eyes at her. “Only two cars are allowed through the gate within the same four hours unless I have the key, and I’ve already alerted my security team to check the property every hour to make sure no extra guests arrive while we’re gone.”
Her jaw dropped. “I thought we were friends, Jonathan.” She shook her head. “You and I have history...”
I laughed. “We do have history. I still haven’t told your mother about the last secret pool party you had on my yacht, her crashed Audi, or last weekend when you and Caroline came home at four o’ clock in the morning. Would you like me to?”
“No.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll see you later...It was nice seeing you again, Corey.” She gave us both a hug before walking out of my office.
“How do you tell them apart again?” Corey sat down at my desk. “I could’ve sworn she was Caroline.”
“Instincts I guess. Are we all set on the CS account?”
He nodded. “The shipment should get here within an hour. I’ll sign for it and have Greg bring it up. You made an appointment with me so I could tell you that?”
“No...” I looked at the only photo on my desk, the one of Claire and Hayley playing Scrabble. “I need you to find out who Hayley is dating.”
“What?”
“Claire slipped up and said something to me about it yesterday...She and Hayley are apparently BFFs now and they’re keeping secrets from me. I need to know who this man is so I can kill him.”
Corey blinked. “Kill him?”
“Yes.” I balled my fists. “Not literally kill him. I just want a few words.”
“Right...” Corey cleared his throat and adjusted his tie. “Well, I um...I already screened the guy.”
“Great. What’s his name?”
He sighed. “Um...”
“Mr. Statham?” Angela called over the intercom again.
“Yes?”
“Miss Gracen is on line one.”
“One second, Corey.” I picked up the phone. “Hello?”
“Hey...” Claire’s voice was faint.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing...I just decided to leave work early today.”
“Was there a fire?”
“No...” She laughed. “I was ripped off a couple hours ago. The man I’m seeing stopped by and he just...”
“He just what?”
“He left without giving me what I wanted. And to think, I purposely avoided his phone calls all day so he would get the hint. He usually doesn’t back down so easily...”
I smiled. “You’re at home?”
“Not yet. I’m leaving my office now. But as soon as I get there, I’m going to take a nice, long shower to get ready for this weekend.”