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The man snarled at me. “You b*tch! You won’t have it for long, I can promise you that! You’ll
get what’s coming to you. Wait and see. Fiona and Alan will own this company by year end!”
“Oh, I highly doubt that, Adam. But you continue to think what you want. And oh, by the way, if I were you, I’d get checked for STI’s. Fiona isn’t as faithful to you as you think. Our security
cameras record a lot of activities. It’s surprising what you learn when you watch the footage.
Better than Jerry Springer.”
I’m not sure what exactly it was that caused the look of shock on his face. Was it the fact I
knew he was screwing Fiona? Or that fact that she was cheating on him? Doesn’t matter. The
seeds of their downfall have been sown. Let’s see how long it takes for them to germinate and
take over their lives.
With Adam gone from the room, we all breathed a sigh of relief. Tony and Spencer offered to
stay with Alana and Jonathan to make sure Alan, Fiona, and Adam were escorted off the
premesis. I gratefully accepted their kind offer, stating I wanted to be out and away from the
building and the area before those three left the building, as I didn’t want to risk them
following me.
All staff had turned in their keycards as new ones would be issued by security on Monday
morning. Access codes were being changed by the Graystone Security firm this evening. All
keyed locks were also being changed with the keys being delivered directly to me on Monday
morning. I was making sure there was no possibility of anyone entering the building without proper authorization.
Bradley, Victor, and I said our goodbyes and were on our way. I wanted to be as far away from the building as possible. I had no doubt that Alan, Fiona, and Adam would be retreating to
Alan’s house in Lower Sackville. That left me worry free about running into them this evening,
thank goodness.
Since it was getting on for six, we decided to go directly to the waterfront and Salty’s to meet
up with Jenna. Truthfully, I was looking forward to having a drink. The guys had been fairly
quiet throughout the meetings, and afterward. Can’t say as I blame them. I mean, that was a
crap storm. I’ve had to fire people in the past, and much as I hated doing so, it was a cakewalk
compared to this afternoon. Of course, none of the people I let go were greedy, unethical,
scumbags either.
We parked in the public parking area and strolled along in the direction of Salty’s. The weather was perfect for a walk, and the area wasn’t as yet too busy. We walked in comfortable silence,
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enjoying the sea breeze and the muted chatter of those around us.
It almost startled me when Victor spoke. “Anna, how did you remain so calm with those people? I wanted to throat punch all three of them with the way they spoke to you. I had to hold Bradley down so he didn’t beat Adam to death.”
I snickered at that. “At one time, it would have bothered me. But Alan and Fiona have always treated me like trash, so I don’t expect anything else from them. I don’t let what they say or think bother me. As far as Adam is concerned, well, I did throat punch him. Damn, it felt good
to do that.”
“Red,” Bradley stopped walking and turned me to face him. “You are not to go anywhere
without me or Victor. I don’t trust those three. All three of them made threats to you today, in
front of witnesses, and on camera. I can almost guarantee they are after much more than
Fredericks Design. Are you sure they don’t know about Graystone International and your
connection to it? I’d be checking that out closely if I were you.”
The look Victor shot at him confirmed my suspicions. Bradley was pointing me in the direction in which I needed to look. He was still abiding by the “can’t tell” stance but was
finding a way around it by posing questions to direct my focus.
I let him know I was picking up what he was laying down, as the saying goes. “I have Sean, the
head investigator for Graystone Security, looking into that for me on a priority basis. I’m
praying he has a preliminary report for me by the end of the day tomorrow. Now let’s put this
aside for the evening, and go meet Jenna and introduce her to Victor.”
“One more thing before we do that. Victor and I are going to the house with you tomorrow. I’m
also arranging to have some of my security men there in case Adam or the other two show up there tomorrow, I wouldn’t put it past them to try something. I want you safe, my love.” Cupping my cheek with his hand, Bradley gave me a gentle kiss. “Now let’s go meet your
friend and have dinner. I’m starving.”
A few minutes later, we arrived at Salty’s and were led to our table in the upper dining room.
We took our seats at a table that overlooked Halifax Harbor. We could see the Dartmouth ferry
plying its way between Dartmouth and Halifax taking commuters home after a long work day
and bringing people to the waterfront to enjoy the nightlife. It was a beautiful view, one I never
tired of.
While we were waiting for Jenna, we ordered a bottle of Pino Grigio as it was a wine we all
agreed on. Jenna arrived before the wine. Victor had watched her from the moment she
appeared, his eyes following her every step as she made her way to our table. His adams
apple bobbled in his throat as he swallowed hard.
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I was pleased to see she had followed my advice. Her dress was a sleevless navy blue, above
the knee, with a cross–over bodice that hugged her body and then flared out softly at the hips. Her long toned and tanned legs were bare, and on her feet were strappy, high–heeled sandals in a matching navy color.
We stood up as I made introductions starting with Bradley. Victor never took his eyes off of Jenna. When she held out her hand to shake his greeting, he raised her hand to his lips and
placed a kiss on the back of it. I don’t believe I have ever seen Jenna blush until now. Now, she
couldn’t break eye contact with Victor. Nor did she remove her hand from his.
Bradley and I grinned at each other. Yep, Victor and Jenna were two smitten kittens by the
looks of it. Victor held out Jenna’s chair for her as she got seated, then Victor immediately
took her hand back into his. I noticed she didn’t so much as hesitate to let him do so. My
friend, my sister of another mister, was mesmerized by Victor.
They only broke eye contact when the waiter returned to the table with the wine and four
menus. After a bit of discussion, we ordered and then settled in to chat as we drank our wine.
“Jenna, how did it go with the paperwork for the house sale? Any hicups?” I asked.
“None at all. I had talked to Tony this morning, and he got started on his end of things. I have
the offer in my car. I thought after dinner we could go back to your place for a nightcap, and
you can sign where needed. Maybe even scan and email the document to Tony so he has it
first thing in the morning. He said it shouldn’t be a problem getting everything settled by
Monday afternoon at the latest.”
“That’s awesome! Spencer offered to act as the lawyer for the buyers if they wanted. He won’t
even charge them legal fees as I will take care of them. I want that place gone, out of my
name, and out of my memory.” I wanted that place gone so bad I had almost been tempted to
give it to the buyers. Almost. But I’m not stupid. I wanted my money back. I had a better use for that money. I was donating it to the women’s emergency shelter. The shelter needed the
funds more than I did.
“I am sure the buyers will appreciate the offer and take you up on it as the lawyer they had
talked to couldn’t see them until late next week.” She took a sip of her wine and then dropped a bomb. “This is my last property deal here in Halifax. I’ve accepted a transfer to the Toronto
office. I start the new job mid–October, but I’m moving early so I can get reacquainted with the
city.”
“You’re kidding! How did this happen? I didn’t know you were even thinking about moving!” I
exclaimed, not sure how to feel about this news.
“The company has been after me for a while to do this. They want me to take a management
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position, no more sales. They are offering an obscene amount of money, like three times what I’m making right now, as well as a company car, full health benefits, and a whole truckload of perks. I’d be foolish to turn it down. I’m going to miss my bestie, though.” she sighed at this thought.
“Mmmm, I don’t think you are. Bradley and I are getting married at the end of next week, and I do believe I’m moving to Toronto. So what do you say, want to be my Maid of Honor?”
