Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 108531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
“What happened?” She knew she shouldn’t ask since Quaid didn’t seem to want to talk about his brother, but she couldn’t help herself. “You’re obviously not close now.”
“Time happened. Distance. Life. Me screwing up about a thousand times and making his life harder than it had to be,” he admitted. “He was only a couple of years older than me, but he was always more mature. A therapist will likely tell you that it has something to do with the way our parents treated us. Quaid was the responsible one and I was the charmer who entertained everyone. Quaid had his path set, and I rode the wave in his wake. Quaid belonged to our father, and our mother became my champion. It split our family in a way I don’t think they intended.”
“That’s a very astute observation.”
He grinned, lighting up the whole café. “I played a therapist in an off-off-Broadway show. I say off-off because it was actually in Anaheim. I studied and everything.”
She wasn’t buying his charm, but she did understand his appeal. He was a pleasant companion. If she wasn’t sure it would irritate Quaid, she would be enjoying herself. “That soup isn’t going to take long.”
He waved off that worry. “I ordered the quiche because they ran out earlier and that sucker just went in the oven. I made sure the waitress knew we wanted to eat together so she’ll have the kitchen hold your order until mine’s ready. We’ve got plenty of time. Wow, that is a very intimidating look. Do you use that in court? I need to remember it in case I play a lawyer. My dad smiled a lot.”
His eyes narrowed, jaw going straight. He looked slightly constipated. She did not look like that.
He was so annoying. “What do you want, Paul?”
His expression went smooth and pleasant again. “I want to have a nice conversation with a woman who is obviously important to my brother.”
She stared at him.
Paul sighed. “Fine, I need a lawyer.”
Oh, that was an easy answer. “No.”
“You haven’t heard why I want to hire you,” Paul replied, a pout coming over his face. He was very emotive.
“I don’t need to.” It was likely nothing more than a way to screw with Quaid, and she wasn’t going to be a part of that.
“I can pay you,” Paul said quickly, as though he was afraid he was about to lose her.
It was a good call because she was weighing her need to eat against her need to get away. Money might be the one thing that could get her to stay. Still, she had to think about Quaid. “Your brother wouldn’t be happy with me taking you on as a client. You need to talk to him.”
“He won’t take a meeting with me. He literally sent you out in your jimmy jams to make sure he didn’t have to talk to me,” Paul pointed out. “There isn’t anyone else I can trust with this. I need a lawyer.”
“There are one point three million lawyers in the US. We are legion. Go find one.” She reached for her purse. She would take her lunch to go and eat at her desk. Hopefully Quaid and his mom had closed the door to his office so she could sneak in unnoticed. If this was all some kind of setup, she wasn’t going to fall for it.
“Jayna, please.”
He’d lost all the affectation, and his expression seemed open and raw.
She let go of her bag. “What do you need a lawyer for?”
“I need you to review a couple of contracts for me,” Paul explained. “The first one is a simple real estate contract. I’m selling some property I own in LA. I’ve never worked with this real estate agent before. He’s a guy who was recommended to me, and I’m not sure I trust him.”
“Then get another agent.”
“Not really an option.”
Something about his tone was setting off alarm bells. She’d been a lawyer long enough to know when a client was about to tell her something she didn’t want to hear. “What’s going on, Paul?”
“I might owe some money to a guy.”
Yep, she didn’t want to hear that. “How much?”
“Well, I told Quaid it was a quarter million, but it’s closer to half.”
“Half a million?” She lowered her tone because it was the lunch rush and this was gossip central. “You owe some guy half a million dollars?”
“It started at three hundred, but he’s serious about the interest.”
Jayna took a deep breath because this was way worse than she’d imagined. There might be a real reason Quaid didn’t talk about his brother. How much trouble was he in? No legitimate lender would charge him that much interest. Banks could be predatory, but not like this. “Paul, are you telling me you owe some mafioso half a million dollars?”