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Stepmom life had come a-calling. Nadia went from being a workaholic to being a woman with a family—four children and a partner, Trade. She wanted to take a step back and have a better work-life balance, so when she asked my opinion on taking someone else on, I spontaneously suggested that I might be interested. She was surprised, and asked me a few times if I was being serious. But when I told her it actually sounded like a good idea, she offered the job to me immediately.
“So...what’s the pay like?” Sim asks, arching her brow.
“Decent,” I reply, realizing the reality of what I did. “I mean, it’s good, it just depends how many cases I take on, which is up to me. Money isn’t the issue. I just needed something different. And this is a freelance job, so I can work as many hours as I like until I figure things out.”
I even spoke to Nadia about us upping our prices a little so we can make a higher profit for us both. Nadia is very modest and humble. I’d be charging much more for our services, depending on each case, of course. I’d also be willing to help people out if they needed it, don’t get me wrong, but rich people can afford to pay a little more for our services.
“Okay. You are a hard worker, Seth. She’s lucky to have you.”
“Thanks.”
“But you know, if it doesn’t work out and you ever need another job, let me know,” she teases, smirking as she gets down from the counter, opens the fridge, and scans its contents.
“Thanks, but no thanks.” Somehow I can’t picture myself grooming dogs with her at her business.
She laughs. “Come on, let’s celebrate your new job then. Is it too early for cocktails?” she asks as she opens a bottle of vodka.
I glance at my watch. “Nope.”
“Wonderful.”
I see Mrs. Masey in her garden from the window, so I wave at her. She spots me, her eyes wide, and then ducks, hiding herself from my view.
I sigh.
At least now no one will be scared of me because of my badge.
“So where did you say you were going? And for how long?” I ask. Sim finally had a chance to hire help at the business, and now she’s going on an extended vacation.
“About three weeks. And I’m just going on a road trip. I’m heading east and I’ll see where I end up!”
“Well, be sure to be safe, and check in with me every couple of days.”
She rolls her eyes. “Yes, Dad.”
Simone makes me a Bloody Mary and orders a pizza. We try to get together every couple of weeks, but with the recent job change, it’s been a while. We sit down on the couch, talking shit, just like we normally do. We’ve always been pretty close, and our mom always drilled it into us that we had to look after each other.
When our mom died, all we had left was each other, since neither of us had spoken to our father after he walked out on us when I was ten. So we always make time for each other, even if it’s just to check in.
“This Bloody Mary needs less blood and more Mary,” I tease, barely tasting the alcohol.
She laughs. “You still have to drive out of here. I think we are too old to be getting drunk in the middle of the day, Seth.”
“How responsible of you.”
“Responsible is my middle name,” she replies, lifting her chin. “The pizza will soak up the little alcohol in there and then you can remain being a functioning adult.”
My phone rings, and Nadia’s name pops up.
“Hey,” I say.
“Hey, are you at the office?”
I glance over at my sister. “Nope, why?”
“We just got an email about a new case. I can’t take it—it involves a little bit of travel. Can you take a look and decide if it’s something you can swing?”
“Okay, will do.”
