Page 13 of Shadow
When he got out of the shower, he picked up his phone and dialed Carrie’s number.
“Go away, Ripley. It’s too early after the night we had.”
“Hush. Is Olivia still there?”
Carrie grumbled, and he heard rustling in the background.
Finally, she said, “No. She had a meeting at Liv’s Place. Left a little while ago. Don’t be a stalker, Ripley. She doesn’t need that.”
He sighed. “I’m not planning to stalk her. I just wanted to check on her and give her something. Just because she’s pissed at me right now doesn’t mean I’ve stopped caring.”
Carrie stifled a yawn. “I get it. Just don’t freak her out and don’t be pushy. Now I’m going back to sleep. I don’t want to hear from you until at least noon.”
He laughed. “Sweet dreams, short stuff.”
When he disconnected, he called his old supervisor and arranged the first of his debriefing meetings that were required now that he was back in the States. Then he got dressed and called an Uber to take him to Liv’s Place. As he was climbing into the back of the car, he added buying a vehicle to his mental to-do list for the week. He hated not driving.
Chapter 5
OLIVIAopenedthedoorto her house and took a deep breath. It was probably irrational, but she felt Ripley’s energy, and it unnerved her. He didn’t have a right to invade her space that way, and she didn’t like the feeling it gave her. Perhaps she ought to call one of her Witchy friends to come sage the place or something.
The thought made her laugh out loud. Despite having tons of Pagan and Wiccan friends, she’d never bought into all the woo-woo stuff for herself. She believed it worked; it just wasn’t something she’d ever practiced.
Her cat came wandering up to her and glared.
“I know, baby. I let a stranger feed you. Forgive me.”
The cat mewled and rubbed her furry head against Olivia’s leg. With only a few minutes until she needed to leave again for her meeting with Niki, she hurried into her bedroom and changed out of the ill-fitting clothes she’d borrowed from Peter. She was too tall and too heavy to fit anything of Carrie’s, and her own clothes from the night before had been ruined by the smoke.
When she was dressed again, she sat on the bed and scratched the cat’s back where she lounged. “I’ll be back soon, Jade.”
As she drove to Liv’s Place—the bar that wasn’t currently a crime scene—she couldn’t help but think about Ripley sitting in the driver’s seat last night. He looked damn good driving her truck. “Get it together, Olivia,” she muttered to herself while she waited at a red light. Fantasizing about how good he looked would not do her mental health any favors. Or her resolve not to take him back.
When she got to Liv’s Place, she shoved all thoughts of the sexy soldier to the back of her mind and switched to business mode. Niki was waiting inside with Fiona, the manager for Liv’s Place. “Thanks for coming in early, both of you,” Olivia said when they settled into a booth with coffee.
“Fiona, I hope you’re feeling better. Rachel said you went home sick last night.”
Fiona smiled and waved her hand. “Just a migraine. I’m good now.”
She picked up a tablet and flipped it around to show Niki and Olivia a schedule. “It shouldn’t be too hard to fit your people in over here, Niki. I wouldn’t mind having extra help on the weekends right now. We’ve been slammed lately.”
“Rory requested time off since he lives a little farther from here than Olivia’s, so that’s one person we don’t have to worry about. I’ll call the others and see what shifts they want to take,” Niki said.
Olivia took the tablet and looked at the numbers. “Don’t worry about this affecting your staff, Fiona. Olivia’s was sufficiently in the black that we can still run payroll out of that account, and it won’t change your numbers much at all. I’ve already been in touch with my accountant this morning to make sure we do everything right. I’ll want you and Niki to work together on payroll for the next few weeks.”
Fiona nodded and took the tablet back. “No problem, Olivia. I’m sure we can manage.”
“Niki, since we don’t know how long it will take to get repairs done, I want you to join me at the mixology convention in Vegas. There are a lot of good leadership classes for bar managers happening. Fiona attended with me two years ago after I hired her, and it really upped her game.”
Niki grinned. “Sure thing, boss. I’ll never turn down a trip to Vegas.”
Olivia laughed. The mixology convention was one giant party at night and most people showed up to classes and seminars hungover, but it was considered a can’t-miss event in the industry. “I’ll make the travel arrangements, then.”
The women spent another hour discussing logistics and plans for if repairs took longer than expected. When it was time for Fiona to open the bar, Niki was already making calls to get her people on the schedule.
“Thanks, ladies. I’ll check in with you tomorrow after I’ve talked with the arson investigators about when I can get construction going.”
They all shook hands, and Olivia headed for the exit, happy with the outcome of the meeting.
