Hunter stands up. “I’m not sure. I need coffee. Do you mind if I make some?”
“Sure. I’d like some, too.” I watch him as he moves around, grabbing everything he needs. Seeing him so comfortable in my place causes that butterfly feeling in my stomach. I really like it.
“If I were Peter, I might do another episode focusing more on the why. Why would RHS want to take out a cartel member? He claims we are working with the cartel, so if he’s going to tell fictional stories, that’s likely where he will go next. But beyond that, I don’t know his game plan, and that bothers me.”
I go over everything as Hunter makes coffee.
He places a mug in front of me. “You okay?” he asks.
“I was thinking about what you said about us not knowing Peter’s game plan. We need to find out and get ahead of him. I don’t think my reputation can take another hit.”
I pick up the mug and take several gulps of coffee. If he puts out another episode about me, I won’t have a chance at finding another broker here.
“Are you tired?” Hunter asks.
I glance down and realize I nearly drank the entire cup of coffee in seconds. I set the mug down. “No, I was distracted.”
He grins. “Okay. I thought that’s how you drink coffee.”
I laugh. “Yep. Only way to get my eight cups in a day.”
“I like this. That we can joke around even with everything going on,” he says.
“Me too.”
We sit in silence for a moment as my mind continues to race.
“According to Maggie, my boss wants to distance herself from me. I’m jobless again.”
He takes my hand. “I’m sorry. You should call your boss and talk to her directly. Explain the situation.”
“If I have a bad reputation, clients aren’t going to want to work with me.” That means it won’t matter if I find a new broker again. “I can put out a statement that all of this is false. I can say he’s making it all up for ratings.”
Hunter nods. “You could. But then he might accuse you of lying. And while he didn’t provide real evidence, he made connections some people will still believe. You need proof.”
“How do I prove a negative? That Ididn’tdo something?”
“I think the way to go after this is to prove he lies about everything.”
“And do you have any thoughts on how we would do that?” I ask.
He leans back and stares at the floor. Then slowly, asmile spreads across his face, and he looks up. “Actually, I think I do. We’re going to beat him at his own game.”
“And what is that?”
“We are going to record him.”
CHAPTER 32
Axel
I nervously watch as Savvy enters the restaurant. I want to be with her, but we both agreed if Peter sees me, he’ll run. And rightfully so, because I want to knock some sense into that man.
Trip really came through and was able to locate Peter.
Peter ditched his car and credit cards, which was smart. But then he decided to hide at his grandparents’ place. Not smart.
Savvy called the house phone and was able to reach him this morning. He agreed to meet with her. She said she had questions. I’ll bet he has questions, too, and hopes to lock her into something he can use on his podcast. The joke’s on him. We arrived an hour before Peter, and I set up a few cameras inside.
