Everything to Gain: An Asset, Inc. Novel

Chapter 2

2

At 6:00 AM, Piper reached over to the nightstand and turned off the alarm clock. She sighed, taking a moment to let her brain wake up and run through her to-do list for the day. Realizing the one item for sure on her agenda was the interview at eight, and then waiting for Ms. Hiltin to call them back with a confirmation that their contract for the house was accepted, she relaxed, enjoying the softness of the bed and the cloud-light weight of the comforter.

Jesse shifted, curved an arm around her, then nuzzled the nape of her neck. “Mm…” he hummed as his mouth found her shoulder, then her ear. “You feel good. You smell good.”

“I smell like I always do, and I feel like I have a half a beach ball taped to the front of me.”

“You always smell incredible. And,” he rolled her to her back, “you look more beautiful every day.” He would never tire of seeing the love in her eyes when she looked at him. “There’s something about this West Coast air,” he said, and kissed her.

Only when he felt her lust rise to meet his own did he move from her mouth to her chin, to the spot on her neck that, according to Piper, made her toes curl when he used his teeth and tongue on her. Her breasts, changing from the pregnancy, were as sensitive as always. His fascination with the slight changes in her body had him studying her each day, cataloging what he knew she chose not to pay attention to, like the widening of nearly every part of her. He found the process intriguing, and as a man who paid attention to detail, he enjoyed the reshaping of her body to accommodate the life they had created. Slipping inside her, loving her with his body, feeling the shift of her legs as they wrapped around him, her soft fingers as they caressed his arms and back, her moans of pleasure, and the gasp of his name on her lips as she arched into him with her release, had his breath hitching, his heart stuttering. Lucky bastard, he said to himself as he followed Piper into bliss.

Later, when Piper slipped from the bed saying she refused to be late to the second job interview she’d ever had, Jesse grinned and watched a naked Piper pad softly to the bathroom. Tucking his hands behind his head, he stared at the ceiling. Finally, he thought, their life would be their own. No more death threats. No more dangerous assignments. No more trying to fit in with a city that sometimes felt as if his clothes were made of sandpaper. They could make a fresh start. A new address, new phone numbers, new jobs. A home and a family. It was what they talked about, dreamed about, the past couple of years. Maybe, after another four decades of waking up with Piper, he could finally recover from her last assignment and how close he’d come to losing her. But he hadn’t. He glanced at the closed bathroom door when he heard the shower turn off. Thinking he was as excited for Piper’s interview as she was, he liked the idea of working for Randall, if the man would accept Piper’s suggestion and interview him as well. If not, he was confident he could find something here, in their place of new beginnings.

Too nervous to eat a big breakfast, Piper insisted they stop at the coffee shop on the corner. Herbal tea for her, caffeine for him, and whatever pastry the barista offered to pair with their drink order. Wearing a flowered sundress and wedge sandals, Piper donned her sunglasses against the late summer sun that spilled between the high rises, which were not as tall as those in New York or Los Angeles or Tokyo.

Jesse kept pace with her, his polo shirt untucked to conceal the weapon at the small of his back, clipped onto the waistband of his jeans. Behind his shades, his attention scanned the street, the people, the cars. It was a habit, a skill that kept him alive, and one he didn’t feel the need to change.

Piper chatted about the neighborhood through which they walked. She informed him of the businesses interspersed with condos and apartments, and the history of the building that housed William’s office. It was unique, as it only had two stories and a basement. Though the structure was twenty years old, it had never been remodeled or refurbished, and Piper wondered if that was on William’s list. After another two blocks, she stopped in front of the office door and handed Jesse the empty pastry bag.

“I don’t know how long I’ll be. You’ll be close?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“And you’ll do an interview if I can convince William?”

“Yes.”

“Alright.” She smiled, then leaned in for a quick kiss.

“Good luck,” he said, and watched her enter the building.

Half a block down was a public trashcan. Across the street from the office was a café and newsstand. It would be a good place to keep an eye on the building and get a feel for the area that had already charmed Piper. Jesse checked his watch, glanced around once more, then dumped his trash on his way across the street.

Stepping out of the warm sun, Piper pulled off her sunglasses and dropped them into her purse. The hallway where she stood led to the back of the property and opened into a type of courtyard, as she could see weeds and decorative rock. To her left, the wall ended to reveal a carpeted reception area and an open office door.

“Hello,” she called out. A man, tall and wide with short dark hair that was longer on the top than the sides, stood in the doorway. He looked much like the few pictures she’d found of him online.

“Hello,” he said.

“I’m Piper McCarthy,” she informed him, crossing the empty space of the outer office, then extending her hand.

William thought she looked exactly like her most recent picture in the Globe. “Nice to meet you. I’m William Randall. Come in. Sit down. I would offer you something, but I haven’t stocked the office yet.”

“That’s okay. I’m fine.” She glanced at a pea-green, cracked Naugahyde chair, and carefully perched on the edge of the seat.

“Sorry about that,” he gestured to the chair she sat in. “I’ve ordered furniture. It won’t arrive until next week. That, and this,” he pointed to his own worn-out chair with a seventies color-scheme, “are leftovers from the previous business.”

“Which, I’m guessing, wasn’t an interior design company. Or it was, and this points to the reason they are no longer around.”

He felt the corner of his mouth twitch in what might be considered a smile, but it didn’t last long. Her sense of humor would be welcome, considering he couldn’t remember the last time he laughed.

“Thank you for coming to Portland. Regardless of whether or not you accept the position, I’ll reimburse you before you leave today.”

“Thanks.”

“I’m not going to pretend that with your abilities and skills you haven’t thoroughly researched me since I left you that voicemail. I prefer to know instead of assume, and work from facts rather than presumptions.” When she said nothing, he continued, “I’ve spent the last thirty-six hours reading your articles and ordering supplies. I know you are well-traveled, respected in your field—former field—you graduated in the top five percent of your class at Syracuse, you’ve taken world language classes, know your way around a computer, and have a database of contacts that would make a five-star general envious.”

Piper raised a brow. Good thing she hadn’t spent hours updating her resume and writing a cover letter. William made use of his own research skills, and she wondered how he knew of the last piece of information.

“The first request I have is that you tell me about your last assignment.”

Piper sipped from her cooling herbal tea and studied him over the cup. She hadn’t even told her boss at the Globe everything that happened, or her contacts in law enforcement who were still cleaning things up. “If you’ve read my articles so far, you’ll know what happened. Why I was in Egypt and the outcome of that assignment.”

Holding her gaze, he said, “I want to hear the story from you, start to finish. Include the details that weren’t printed in the paper, the ones you didn’t share with your boss or colleagues.”

“Why?”

“There is much to be learned about a person from the way they tell a story.” When she narrowed her gaze, he said, “Not only do I need to know about you, Piper the person, I also need to understand your level of skill. What I plan to do here requires confidentiality, a unique personality, compassion, a strong intellect, the ability to multi-task to the extreme, and absolute attention to detail. So,” he paused and settled back in the uncomfortable office chair, “in your words, tell me the truth about your last assignment.”

He watched her watching him. This was the best test he could devise on short notice. And he was genuinely interested in what the woman would share.

“I’m curious,” Piper said, “why did you name your company Asset, Incorporated?”

“A fair question,” William said and leaned forward. “Employees will be an asset to not only the company with their skills and abilities, but to the clients who are unable to find help elsewhere. The clients are an asset to the company, because they will provide the means for the employees to be paid well for the dangerous situations they will be in, and for the opportunity to assist those who some might consider beyond help. The company, and what everyone within it will do for society, including law enforcement, is an asset in balancing the scales of injustice. My vision offers employees an alternative to the government alphabet agencies, a way to fuel their humanitarian efforts, to ply their skills, and give an outlet for their preference of high-risk situations. In twenty years, I hope to reflect on the track record of Asset, Inc., and know I kept people from harm, found the missing, rescued the imprisoned, returned precious items, and enriched the lives of those who worked for me and those who sought out the services of my company.”

Because she understood and agreed with everything he said, Piper sipped from her tea, then sat more fully in the piece of furniture that should be on its way to a second-hand store after being reupholstered, knowing this interview would last longer than she planned. She thought of Jesse, and her promise to him, the house she’d fallen in love with yesterday, and the easy smile Jesse wore the past couple of weeks. Honesty, she knew, could make or break a relationship. If she wanted this one to work, to be the receptionist Mr. Randall needed, and believed her to be, then she would give him what he asked for, in her words, with all the details. He guaranteed confidentiality. She understood the importance of trust. The description of his new business excited her. Piper realized she and Jesse weren’t the only ones who desired a fresh start. Taking a breath, she nodded, then began her tale.