“So you’ve been visiting all this time?”
“Yes and no. I only planned to be there for a week. But I ended up getting involved in local affairs. Miranda’s cousin Cam is on the City Council in Wishful, and I helped him start a local coalition against the big box store that wants to build in town. So I’ve actually been working my ass off with that.”
Cecily studied her with a quirk to her lips. “And having something of a local affair while you’re at it?”
Norah’s cheeks heated. “Am I wearing a sign?”
“You have The Look.”
“What look is that?”
“The sort of stupefied, punch drunk, oh my God I met The One and I’m happy look.”
“You got all that despite the fact that I’m flipping out over this lawsuit?”
“Yep.” Cecily grinned. “Looks good on you. So is it this Cam guy? Miranda’s cousin?”
“Yeah.” Despite the rocky spot they’d hit, Norah’s conviction in that remained unshaken.
“And is Cam as hunky as Mitch?”
“He is.”
“Do they have any other cousins who are single? Lord knows I haven’t been having any luck in this city.”
“As a matter of fact, there’s one more unattached cousin who’s only a couple years older than you. He owns a bookstore and has horn-rimmed reading glasses.”
Cecily sighed. “Young, financially solvent. And I do have a soft spot for horn-rims. Maybe I should get myself down to Mississippi.”
“I promise you an introduction if you come.”
“I’ll hold you to it.” She nodded to the laptop. “So this anti-big box store campaign. Is that what you’re working on?”
“Not exactly. Things on that front haven’t turned out all that well.” She filled Cecily in on the coalition and the latest blow to the cause. “But all that work ended up having an unexpected consequence.”
“What kind of consequence?”
“A job offer.” Needing to confide in someone, she settled in and told Cecily about Peyton Consolidated.
“Peyton Consolidated? Seriously? That has to be it.”
“That has to be what?”
“Philip’s had the new guy and half the firm working on a campaign to woo the CEO. He’s made at least three tries that I know of, and the guy keeps saying no. If Philip knows the guy is turning him down in hopes of hiring you, I bet that’s why he’s going to the mat to ruin you.”
“Whether I take the job or not, Gerald isn’t going to hire Helios. He told me so outright. But if this is all about loss of business for the firm, then Philip isn’t going to just back off. He’s not going to stop until my reputation is completely destroyed.”
~*~
The black sedan cut in front of Cam close enough it should’ve shaved the front bumper off his truck. Cam slammed on his brakes, laid on the horn, and swore. And, of course, he missed getting through the light. Hush howled her disapproval from the back seat. She’d been a trooper through the all-night drive. Of course, she’d been able to sleep. He’d been fueling himself with truck stop coffee and sugar, and an all too brief three-hour nap at a rest stop somewhere in southern Illinois because the highway was starting to blur and he didn’t figure Norah would appreciate him knocking on her door at three in the morning. By now, both he and his dog wanted out of
the truck.
He’d expected to show up at Norah’s apartment with coffee and breakfast and get to the bottom of things. But she’d already been gone by seven-thirty, and he’d been forced to turn on the friend finder app to track her phone. By the time he made it into the business district almost two hours later, she was on the move again, this time to the north side of the city.
Why in God’s name anybody would ever want to live in a place like this, he couldn’t fathom. You couldn’t get from one side to the other in anything resembling a reasonable span of time, as evidenced by the fact that he’d been chasing Norah all over the damned city and just missing her. There was no rush hour. It was just rush rush rush, all the time, bumper to bumper cars, shoulder to shoulder people. Between the excessive caffeine and sugar, the lack of sleep, and all the freaking people, Cam felt like he was about to crawl out of his skin.
He could’ve just called Norah and asked her to stay put, but he wanted to see her face when he showed up in her city. Plus, he didn’t want to interrupt whatever she had going on in case one or more of these stops were meetings with her attorney. She’d worked so incredibly hard for her reputation. Having it maligned like this…she had to be losing her mind. So yeah, on the drive he’d come to terms with the fact that she hadn’t been acting rationally when she left. Mostly.