Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 95311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
"Stars Landing. In Pennsylvania," she supplied.
"Okay. No chance you still have the car, right?"
"No," she admitted and he nodded. "And that's most of it. Today when I left my assigned parking space and came back, someone had sprawled 'You were supposed to die, whore' on the ground underneath."
"Okay," Xander said, finished writing. Hannah peeked and he had actually filled an entire page of yellow lined paper. "Well, obviously this person has an issue with you and your new... boyfriend," he said, the word leaving his mouth reluctantly as if he didn't like it.
Hannah nodded. "Who is he?" Xander asked and watched her face rise with panic. "Look sweetheart," he said the word automatically, as if he called all women it, "I don't care who he is. But I need to know."
"Elliott Michaels," she supplied and Xander's brows raised as if he was surprised.
"Of EM Corp," he said, writing it down and eyeing her again.
"Right."
"Well, that certainly doesn't cut down the pool of suspects," he said, noticing her raised eyebrow. He picked up a stack of papers. "I read every paper," he explained. "He has been in it a lot. He's dated a lot of women. Well, 'dated' wouldn't be the right word..."
"Yeah, I know. He sleeps around. I know," she said, defensive.
Xander surprised her by smiling. It was off-putting, inappropriate. Like he was amused by unusual things. "I'm not judging. I'm just saying. A man like him has to have a trail of angry women behind him."
"Yes, well. I need to know who it is. Discreetly," she added, poignantly.
"Oh, sweetheart I specialize in discreet."
"Good. Do you need anything else from me?"
"Just a couple more questions. One- where have the letters been showing up?"
"Work, mostly. Home sometimes."
"Two- do you have a doorman or some kind of security?"
"I bought extra locks. But no. No doorman. I've been thinking about moving though."
"That would be a good idea. Three- has anyone you know, especially at work, been off lately?"
Hannah laughed. A humorless, sad laugh. "I'm going to level with you. Elliott is my boss. And while no one has ever seen us be anything but professional, someone has been spreading rumors about me and just saying nasty things."
"Such as?"
Hannah sighed. "That I'm a slut. That I've slept with every guy in the office building. And that I'm fat."
"You're not fat," Xander said too quickly, like a kneejerk reaction from having heard women say it too often. "And I'm assuming you're not the office slut either."
"Hardly."
"Alright," Xander said, sitting back in his chair and studying her. She felt like squirming under his gaze, steady and piercing. Like he could see all her secrets. "I'm going to dig into this for a day or so and then I can get back to you. It's a pretty risk-free case for me so I guess it will run you about... five-hundred bucks."
Hannah nodded. She had been expecting worse. "Okay. No problem. Should I pay you now?"
Xander shrugged. "It doesn't matter. I'll get paid eventually." It sounded like a threat. Like if she stiffed him he would track her down. Looking at him, she realized he probably would.
She pulled out her wallet and counted out the money in twenties. She handed it to him, putting the rest of her money back in her purse.
"You're in this neighborhood with a thousand dollars in your wallet?" he asked as if she had gone daft.
"Not my fault your place of operation is in a hellhole," she said with a shrug.
Xander smiled and put the money into a drawer in his desk. "Regardless, I'll walk you to your car," he said, getting up and leading her out of the door. He didn't bother to lock it, despite the large sum of money he had just put in an unlocked drawer.
He walked next to her, his long legs coming up to her hip. It wasn't correct to say that he walked. He seemed to practically swagger. Someone so impossibly comfortable in his own skin. "Yours, I'm assuming," he said, nodding toward her Mercedes. There was a group of teenagers looking in her windows and she felt her heart start to pound. She nodded up at him, her eyes wide with concern. Xander let out a quick, loud whistle. The group looked up slowly as if they weren't just thinking about committing a crime. Once they spotted Xander, they stood up straight, eyes wide and fearful. "Get," he said to them and they scattered away on gangly young legs.
Apparently Xander Rhodes was one scary guy.
And that's exactly who she needed on her side.
–
Hannah rushed back into her office, her breath coming in quick gasps. She hadn't meant to spend so much time at the private investigator's. She closed the door and her heart leapt into her throat when her office chair swung around.
"Well now," Elliott said, his lip quirked up, "taking personal time in the middle of the day are we now?"