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I didn't have anything to say to that, so I kept my mouth shut. I began to have the sense I wasn’t the one in trouble here, but was afraid to hope for too much.
"Look, Jace. Getting involved with a client isn't something I'd ever want for one of my employees. It muddies the line between business and, well ... you know as well as I do. That said, sometimes I know we don't control the things our hearts want or need."
I would have said that nothing could really surprise me these days, but this did. "Sir?"
"Your record is excellent, and I don't mean just the time you've been working for me. You should know we do a thorough background check before hiring anyone. Some people's closets have more skeletons than others, and while that doesn't mean we won't hire them, it does restrict the kind of access they might have to clients and information. Before I officially hired you, I pulled your service records, spoke to your CO, and looked over your transcripts from high school."
"Yes, sir." Relief began to thread its way into the worry in my veins. This didn't sound like the kind of conversation that ended with 'you're fired.'
"It's impressive, Jace. And your unit COs on both tours used one word to describe you that means a hell of a lot to me. Wanna guess what that word was?"
Strong? Loyal? Snappy dresser? I didn't know, and I wasn't about to guess. "No sir."
"It was integrity. The ability to make the right decision in a complex environment, to determine the best choice when the only choices you have are bad choices. It's the habit of doing the right thing, Jace, because you have a clear sense of what that thing is. You have that. Always have, from what I can tell."
I felt my shoulders straighten as pride galloped through my veins. I was pretty sure that wasn't the Webster definition, but I wasn't about to question him, and it felt good to hear it. "Thank you sir."
"I want to offer you a job, Jace."
That had me on my feet, confusion and disbelief swirling inside me. For one thing, I already had a job. "Sir?"
"I'm not going to run this firm forever. But I don't want to see it fold either. I need a successor. Not right now, but soon."
My mind flashed through possibilities. I saw myself standing in front of a classroom full of kids, doing the best I could but maybe never really feeling like I was good at my job. And then I saw myself running the firm, handling assignments and strategy, much as I had in the corps. I could do that. I could be good at that.
"What do you think?" he asked.
"I guess I'd be an idiot to say no."
"Is this what you want, though?" he asked. "If high school is your goal, this might not feel like the right choice. I'll email you the terms I have in mind. In short, transfer in a year or so, I'd keep a portion of profits but the rest would be yours to manage as you see fit. Jace, you should know the firm does well. Very well."
I didn't want money to be the determining factor, but it did matter. I’d seen how much in just the past few days. Money could make everything else easier. "Can I take a little time?"
"Of course."
"Thanks."
"And Jace?"
"Yes sir?"
"It would probably make sense to step off the Manchester team if you think your relationship there is serious. Even if it isn't. When you get back and have time to transition in two new team members to replace you and Chad."
"Yes sir." My heart sank at the thought of leaving Juliet to someone else's care, but Austin was right. Being too close to Juliet could mean missing something important in her security efforts. Someone objective and removed would do a better job.
"I'll talk to you when you're back, if not before."
"Thank you, sir."
I hung up and stared out the window for a long time. Long enough to see Chad throwing his bag into the back of a car that pulled down the long drive. Long enough to watch him notice the van and car that were headed toward the house, arriving for the party, and long enough to see him wait for Alison to get out before whispering something to her, which she wrote down. I was just glad I kept watching long enough to see him get in his own ride and go. Good riddance. At least that was taken care of.
Now I just needed to make some decisions about how to take care of everything else.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Juliet
For a little while, I lay on my back, listening to the house around me and hearing the quiet rush and lap of the water below us through my open window. I let the morning settle and shift as I thought about everything my life had become since the first time I’d come to live here with Gran and Tess, just after our parents had been killed in the car accident.
