Page 120 of Mr. B

“What did you want to talk to me about?”

“I wanted to make sure that, in spite of our last encounter, we can maintain a congenial professional relationship.”

“Of course.”

“Excellent.” He cocked his head. “You’re looking…good, Cassandra.”

“If that is all you wanted, I have work to do.”

Ryan stood. “Of course. If I have any questions, can I come to you with them?”

She went to the door and opened it. “Polly can answer any of your questions. She’s been working with Wes for seven years.”

He left the office, and Cassandra swung the door shut behind him. It banged a little too hard, but she didn’t care. She returned to her desk. “Arrogant bastard.” She picked up the phone and called Polly.

“Yes, Dr. Jordan?”

“Will you get a message to Mrs. Alpert and ask her to come see me when she’s done for the day?”

“I’ll do it right away.”

“And I apologize ahead of time for Mr. Thomas. I told him to ask you if he had any questions.”

“That’s fine. He seems a bit…prickly.”

“Just don’t let him get too comfortable.”

Wes held up the teak plank, looked down at its smooth surface, then set it back down and continued sanding. It was his second full day off work, and he was trying to stay busy. The weekend with Cassandra had been great, and he’d been sorry to see her go home last night. But she’d promised to stop by on her way home from school.

The sound of a vehicle pulling up brought him outside. Abe stepped out of his truck with a white plastic bag. “I thought you might be hungry.”

“Pizza?”

“Burgers from Molly’s.

“Even better.” He smiled. “Currently. In this situation. Not—”

“Don’t hurt yourself, brother. I get it.” He walked into the garage and set the bag on the workbench. “The boat is looking good.”

Wes went to the old refrigerator that had once been in the house, took out two beers, and handed one to Abe. “Are you off today?”

“Yeah. Maggie went to White City to shop and took Kai with her, so I’m a free man for a few hours.”

“I appreciate you coming to see me.”

“I figured you could use some company. When was the last time you had a few days off?”

“Not since I was teaching and had summers off.”

“How long are they going to drag this thing out?”

“I don’t know.”

Abe took a bite of his burger. “Why aren’t you more pissed?”

“I’m plenty pissed.”

“I know just what you need.”