Top Dog

CHAPTER 5

KEVIN

The kids were running around and trashing the house when Brooke showed up. It pained me to have to work on the vacation I promised my twins, but I knew it was for the best. It would set my company up in an industry we’d been making strides to obtain for years and put us on an international map we’d never dreamed of. And I had plans to make it up to everyone, including Brooke. I would pay her generously for her time and foot whatever bill was necessary to keep the kids occupied in her presence. Even though she crossed a line with her snarky comment yesterday, I trusted her with the kids. How well they took to her. And when she appeared at my front door ready and willing to watch them, I was still happy to see her.

“Brooke!” Daniel said. “You’re here!”

My kids took off, running right into her legs. She stumbled backwards and wrapped her arms around them, and all I could think about was their mother. How she should’ve been the one doing these kinds of things for them. I knew that was why they had latched onto her. There was a motherly spirit about Brooke they had gone without their entire life.

It clenched my stomach with guilt as Brooke stepped inside.

“There’s an envelope taped to the fridge. It’s got plenty of money in it. Order you guys some lunch and go find something fun to do, and whatever money you don’t spend is yours to keep.”

“You don’t have to pay me, Kevin. It’s only a couple of hours.”

“I’m paying you,” I said. “That’s how this is going to work.”

“Okay,” she said. “I’m—sorry.”

“You’re what?” I asked.

Her eyes fluttered up to me as the kids held her hands.

“My comment yesterday. I’m sorry,” Brooke said.

“Water under the bridge. You guys have fun, okay?”

I wanted to stay a bit longer. But I couldn't. If I did, I’d miss the meeting with Gianni. Yet, somehow, as I got a good look at Brooke with my twins, that didn’t seem like such a big deal.

I took the golf cart and met up with Gianni in the middle of town. He insisted on this restaurant that supposedly had the best island food around. I wasn’t going to break it to him that it was subpar, at best. Gianni was one of those men that wouldn’t have been caught dead in a hut eating fish from a stick.

He had money and he wanted people to know it.

“Gianni, glad to see you again.”

“Kevin,” he said. “I’m so glad you could make it. I hope I didn’t throw a wrench into your vacation plans.”

“Not possible for you,” I said with a grin. “So, what can I help you with?”

“I’ll get right to the point so you can get back to those beautiful children of yours. The security company I use for my bank is no longer upgrading their software.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I mean, their business is stagnant. They pedal the same product over and over without attempting to tweak it or overhaul it in any way. It is no longer sufficient to fulfill our needs.”

“So you’re looking for something else.”

“I am, yes,” he said.

“Then you came to the right place,” I said with a grin. “Our newest line of product has some things I think you might be interested in.”

“Talk to me, then.”

“Cameras you can hook up with night-vision surveillance. Applications you can install to access those cameras on your laptop wherever you go. Closed circuits that are accessible only to those who know the frequency and the passcode, so no intruders from the outside can see what’s going on with your institution.”

“I like what you’re offering,” he said.

“We have a variety of products, from cameras to lasers to ear-bleeding alarms that trigger when someone walks past them. Those things can bring a person to their knees within a half a second of hearing that noise. Stops anyone dead in their tracks.”