I nodded. “I was going to do one of the ACT practice tests, and see how that turns out. From there I guess I’ll see where I’m doing the worst and jump in on that.”
The conference room was cozy, at least as cozy as you could get with a room that had a table designed for eight people to sit around. I plugged in the computer and turned it on. Monica left once she was sure I was all set up, closing the door behind her. I launched Google and started looking around at shopping sites, thinking what Rita might appreciate. I wanted to get her something for what she’d done for me. The problem was, I didn’t know a lot about her. I’d spent a total of maybe two hours with the woman in my entire life, with most of it talking about Kade. So what do you send someone in this sort of situation anyway? I wanted to thank her for her generosity in sharing what she knew about Kade, and in guiding me. But how to do that?
I surfed around to a bunch of different sites for a while, but in each I kept drawing a blank. Finally, an hour into the morning, I sighed and took out my phone, dialing Rita’s number. She picked up after two rings, sounding chipper as ever. “Mornin’ Alix. How have you been?”
“I’m great. I’m up here in Portland, and loving every second of it.”
“Really?” Rita said with a big smile. “Just how loving?”
“Let’s just say that my backside is a little sore.”
“How many?” Rita asked, laughing.
“Twenty-one,” I said. “Eleven right, ten left.”
Rita sounded impressed. “I stand corrected. You’re stronger than I first thought.”
“Well, if it wasn’t for you, I don’t know if I’d be in the place I am now. Kade and I both know that. Which is kind of why I called.”
“You don’t need to do anything, it was my service to Kade,” Rita said. “Sometimes the greatest way to serve is to let him go.”
I nodded, listening intently. “Rita, I’m going to ask you something very strange, but please answer me honestly.”
“Sure, go ahead.”
“Well, if you could have any gift in the world, what would you want and why?”
Rita thought for a moment, then spoke up. “I could use a new top of the line tower for my work,” she said after a moment.
Not what I expected, but that was fine, I could add in something personal from me too. “Email me what you want. Kade’s in a giving mood.”
“I’ll make sure to not ding his generosity too much. On that note, do you think there might be space for me to come up to visit any time soon? Hanging out with him last week was fun. And I do mean just hang out.”
“I’ll ask him. In the meantime, thanks. I have to get to work myself,” I told her. “I’m going to try the whole college thing, see how it works out.”
“You can do it,” Rita said. “I’ll send you some advice on that along with my computer specs. Thanks, Alix.”
“Thank you, Rita. See you later.”
Chapter 18
Kade
I was surprised when I finished work, and I hadn’t seen Alix since lunch that day. Vince had left early to go to a bar exam study session, and I found Monica still at her desk, putting things into her purse for the end of the day. “Hey, Kade.”
“Have you seen Alix?” I asked. “I haven’t seen her since lunch.”
“She’s still at it in the conference room,” Monica told me, pointing. “She brought out an answer form and asked me to double check that she had scored it right just after two. I double checked her numbers for her, and since then she’s been quiet in there. The one time I checked on her, I brought her a cup of tea, but she barely acknowledged me other than to say thank you.”
“How were her scores, anyway?” I asked curiously. “Just for a starting point.”
“Better than I’d expect for someone who took three years off from school,” Monica replied. “I don’t know the questions, she just handed me the answer key and her test sheet, but she did pretty well.”
“All right, thanks, Monica. Go ahead and take off, I’ll lock up and everything.”
“Thanks, Kade. Is Alix going to be coming by more often?” she asked, shouldering her purse.
I nodded. “As long as she wants to pursue this college dream, yes. I figure with the three of us around, she’ll have all the support she needs. And if she needs some tutoring or something, there’s one of those test prep academies just down the street.”
Monica grinned and patted me on the shoulder. “Good job, Kade. You’re finally becoming what I always saw inside you.”
“Oh?”
She nodded. “You’ve always been a good attorney, but this . . . you’re becoming a good man, too. Good night.”
I watched Monica go and shook my head in amazement. Even after working together for over two years, she still surprised me. “Dad was right,” I said to nobody in particular before going over to the conference room door. I knocked lightly and opened it to see Alix bent over a piece of paper, her tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth as she worked. “Hey Alix, it’s after six.”
She looked up, surprised. “What?”