Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
“Babe, I’m not sticking around for longer than a few minutes. I’ll put the women in a hotel tonight,” I said. “And Stone will be fired tonight, so I might have to make the reservations myself.”
Beau chuckled, which made the entire situation worse. We both knew Stone was the glue holding my business together. He was never allowed to leave. Contractually bound to stay by my side until the practice closed without asking for a raise. And he signed it, showing his level of dedication.
“I’ll call you when I’m on my way home,” I said, taking the turn into my reserved parking spot. Again.
“Everybody, say bye to Dad,” Beau called. A chorus of Daddies and Dashes rang in the background, which meant they were having a great time without me.
“Tell them bye for me,” I said, putting the gearshift in park. “Quick question—why are you home?”
“Charter canceled last minute. They paid in full, so we came home. Scott’s got West with him,” Beau said. “They’re at the public school’s FFA barn.”
Today had crawled by, and honestly, the last few weeks had been slow. Most people in the area were dealing with wrapping up the final tourism dollars of the season, or going on vacation themselves. This would last a week or two longer. Had I known they’d all been home, I could have joined in the good times earlier.
“No wild parties without me.”
“Too late. We’re waitin’ on you. The kids voted on veggie nuggets and steamed summer squash,” Beau added.
“Daddy, come home. It’s gonna be so good,” Mia shouted close to the phone.
Any good mood I had maintained instantly evaporated when I opened the front door to my office and the attached bells rang. I’d left the damned things there to give the office a personal, hometown law firm feel. Even if sixty percent of our business had come from other parts of the United States.
Stone sat at his desk, fingers typing on the keyboard, his head nodding me to the waiting area. Two women sat waiting. My office had remained in the same place as when we first started. We’d added Stone’s office space, a reception desk, and a conference room downstairs. Most of the actual legal work was done on the second floor. As we needed additional space, the lease next door had thankfully come up for rent. Private offices were added, and we included an elevator in the renovations. Even with a hybrid schedule, I was still going to need more room soon.
When I glanced at the women, they stared big-eyed at me. A quick read of the situation was fear and uncertainty. Also determination.
“This is Teresa Rodrigues and Lucia Valentina. Ladies, this is Mr. Richmond-Brooks,” Stone said. I nodded, as they continued to stare at me and remain seated. My gut reaction was that Stone brought me back for a pro bono case. I usually kept them private, and this could definitely wait until morning. Stone left his desk and led the way. I trailed behind the women. Teresa carried a large flexible file box. “It’ll be best to take them to the conference room.”
“Take a seat. Can I get you anything? Water, coffee, or soda?” Stone asked.
“Water would be great,” Teresa said, her voice held hints of professionalism. Huh. I didn’t see that when I first spotted them. My curiosity was begrudgingly piqued.
“Get us three bottles, Stone,” I said before the other spoke. “Shut the door behind you.”
“Yes, sir.” Another thing Stone did that I had no use for was continually calling me “sir,” and he refused to stop doing so. The term made me feel ancient. The insult needed to be stricken from all languages across the world.
“What brings you to the office today?” I took a seat opposite the duo as Teresa began digging into her treasure trove of files.
Stone quietly delivered the water and shut the door as he left.
“We saw your interview with the Huffington Post,” Lucia said.
I nodded. Several new clients had come from our family interview.
“We’d lost hope,” Teresa added. “We’ve been to quite a few attorneys who had varying reasons why we didn’t have a case, but I don’t believe that’s true. It’s just a lot to deal with.”
She slid a document across the table, and I left it between us as I responded, “Give me the nuts and bolts. If I believe there’s a chance of pursuing, we’ll delve deeper into your files.” I tilted back in my chair, a normal position for me, and waited to hear the rundown on the case they thought they had.
“We made this folder for you,” Lucia said.
“We’d like to initiate a lawsuit against Jack Richmond, Richmond Holding, and several members of the Richmond executive team,” Teresa explained, maintaining eye contact while my brow raised in surprise. A silent sigh escaped. I felt sure my poker face was solid, but they’d caught me by surprise. Stone was spot-on for reaching out to me. Regardless of how this played out, I wanted to hear it. “I understand it’ll be a class action lawsuit.”