Series: Paige Michaels
Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
“Thank you, Detective,” Jordi said with her heart in her throat. She hated that someone was targeting her business.
“Call me Nicoya. Now, build me a pretty deck. I need a place to hide from the bad guys and girls out there.”
“We’re on it,” Jordi confirmed.
Working steadily through the morning, Jordi thanked Paul so many times for being there, he finally told her to stop. After that, they worked efficiently in silence like they normally did. The old deck was completely gone and the new framework was in place by midafternoon.
“Let’s quit for the day, Paul,” Jordi suggested. “We need to let this concrete set for the night before we move on to the next step.”
“I thought you’d never get tired,” he said, smiling for the first time that day.
Nicoya stepped outside just as they were wrapping up. “Hey, I’m glad I caught you. This looks awesome. That old rotting deck was dangerous.”
“This new one will be so much better,” Jordi agreed. “They’ll come to pick up the old wood tomorrow and it will disappear forever.”
“Perfect. By the way, I ran that number. It’s a new account—a secondary line running off this number.”
She held out a piece of paper to Jordi. A quick glimpse made Jordi’s stomach twist and her heart sink as she stared at the paper she now held. “Thanks, Nicoya.” Her breath hitched as it suddenly dawned on her how this had happened. It was all her fault. Why was I so stupid?
“I take it you recognize that number,” the detective stated, obviously reading Jordi’s body language.
“I do. I’ll take care of this, Paul. She won’t bother you again,” Jordi promised.
How she got home that afternoon, Jordi didn’t know. Thank goodness her truck knew the way and made the turns and stoplights automatically. Pulling into her old spot at her apartment, Jordi dropped her head to the steering wheel. Grabbing her phone, she made a call.
“Jordi? Did you finish early today? I’m already at the house. Are you heading home, Sunshine?”
“Hi, Callen.” Jordi heard the flat tone in her own voice and couldn’t infuse any excitement into her words. “I got bad news at work and drove back to my apartment on autopilot. I’m just going to crash here for the night. I’ll come back to your place tomorrow. Take care of Norwood for me, and tell him I’ll be there soon.”
“Not happening, Little girl. I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
The call disconnected before she could argue. Jordi dropped her head back down on the steering wheel and tried to think through what she should do. Finally, she dragged herself out of the truck and up the stairs. Thank goodness, her apartment key was on her work keychain.
Walking into the quiet apartment, Jordi realized how lonely it had been to come home every night. She wrapped her arms around her stomach as it lurched again. How was she going to explain this to Callen? What if he was mad at her? She’d made a very bad decision, and it had affected her job.
Taking a deep breath, she rushed over to her computer. First things first. There was one thing she could do to at least put a stop to the nonsense.
Fifteen minutes later, just as she was finishing the first step in reclaiming her life, a knock at the door made her jump. She’d been so focused she’d nearly forgotten her Daddy was coming.
“Sunshine? Let me in.”
After racing to the door, she fumbled it open and fell into his arms. Callen didn’t say a word but just held her close as he edged his way into the apartment to close the door. Scooping her up, he carried Jordi to the couch and sat down.
“Tell me what’s going on, Little girl.”
Suddenly the dam broke loose. She had no idea why she thought she should spend a night away from her Daddy and not talk to him. Except that she was embarrassed and humiliated, and she didn’t want him to find out how stupid she’d been.
She drew in a deep breath. “Someone’s been calling Paul’s number and canceling the jobs I had set up for him. They’re identifying themselves as my secretary.”
“How long has this been going on?” Callen asked, looking concerned.
“Remember when you helped me put the beauty stations together?”
“Yes, you said your assistant’s son was ill,” Callen recalled.
“It was actually his daughter. Well… That’s what the message said. I thought it was from Paul because it said:
“Hey, this is Paul. My daughter is sick. I can’t make it today.”
“And it wasn’t Paul?” Callen guessed.
“No. I should have noticed that the rest of our messages weren’t under that number, but I was too concerned with how I was going to get things done,” she admitted.
“So we need to find out who this is.”
“I already know. Luckily my job this week is at the home of a police detective. Paul was quick-thinking and asked her if she could run the number from the incoming calls and texts he got.”