Roman leaned back in his seat. “Yes, I have, and yes, we do. Come on. I’m starving.”
Reluctantly, Nicole gave in. “Fine. What do you have a taste for?”
You. I have a taste for you, Nicole Chatham, and, with a little more time, I plan to have you. “You choose. I’m going to put myself in your hands.” Roman’s demeanor was innocent, but his intentions were anything but.
Chapter 12
Davis was attending his weekly staff meeting when his administrative assistant interrupted. “Mr. Chatham? You have a very important phone call.”
He looked up irritated. “Is it Nicole?”
“No. But it’s a call you need to take.” Davis’s expression turned from irritation to curious. He stood. “Let’s finish this meeting at another time. If there are any pressing matters, schedule a one-on-one with me through Sara.” Davis left the meeting, walking side by side with Sara to his office. “Who’s on the phone?”
“Your lawyer, Mrs. Hinsdale-Manchetti.”
A feeling of dread crept over him. He rolled his head around his shoulders. When they arrived at his door, Davis thanked Sara and closed it behind him. He walked over to the phone and picked it up. “Davis.”
“Davis, it’s Braylee. I received a call from the Attorney General’s office today.”
He was matter-of-fact. “Good or bad news?”
“Your business and most of your personal accounts have been frozen.”
“What!? I thought you said because they couldn’t draw a direct connection between the dirty money and me, that they were leaving my accounts alone.”
“There was a caveat. I said . . . for now. However, they didn’t touch the Chatham Family Trust.”
“Does that mean the AG believes he’s found the link he’s been looking for?”
“It means nothing, other than they are trying to play hardball. They want information, and they think you may have it. If you don’t, I don’t think it will matter to them. Either way, it seems they plan to use you as an example of their efforts to destroy terrorist’s networks.”
He slammed his fist down on his desk. “Shit, Braylee! Goddammit!”
“Believe me; I understand your frustrations and my team is working on getting this decision reversed. You’ll need to exhibit patience unlike you’ve ever had to before and when that’s been used up . . . trust me. We are handling this. It may seem glacial, but we are going to make all of this go away. That brings me to the other reason for my call. This information is going to hit the media today. I’ve had several reporters call me about it.”
He yelled into the phone. “I trust you to keep me out of prison, but Braylee this could ruin my business!”
“Believe me when I say, we are way ahead of you on this. We knew there was a possibility that your assets could be frozen, and we have a plan to deal with the press. I had hoped we wouldn’t need to execute it, but that’s what contingencies are for.”
Frustrated, Davis ran his hand down his face. “What the hell is the plan? How much longer before all this nonsense is over? There’s only enough money in that family trust to keep everything going for a few months at best. I have payroll and family obligations.”
“We’re going to resolve this as soon as possible. And I won’t let this situation take you down. It’s good you decided to hire Masterson and Holloway. I’ve been in touch with them. The entire team needs to huddle up today. If possible, in the next couple of hours. Can we meet at your home?”
He was despondent. “Yeah.”
“Good. In the meantime, talk with your IT department. Disable outbound e-mails, company cell phones, and all outbound telephone calls except for emergency numbers for the next few hours.”
“Can we do that?”
“IT can do anything. If yours doesn’t have the expertise, call me back. I can get some people over there within the hour to make it happen. Also, make sure they track everything. We can’t control personal devices, but we don’t want anyone from inside your company leaking information, so say as little as possible.”
“I’ve got to get a hold of Nicole and talk to her. I think she had to go to work today. She has no idea what’s going on.”
“You haven’t done that yet?”
Davis threw his head back and closed his eyes. “No, not yet.”
There was an uncomfortable silence before Braylee spoke again. “Davis . . . I’m sorry to say, but you’ve run out of borrowed time to have that discussion.”
*****
Nicole was surprised when she walked through her front doors to find Davis home to greet her. He was holding a laughing DJ on his shoulders. “What are you doing here?” She double checked her watch to make sure it wasn’t later than she thought.
“I live here.”
“Do you, Mr. Chatham?” She said it jokingly, but she wasn’t kidding. “Sometimes I forget this is where you reside.”
“No matter where I am, my heart is always with you.” The love in his eyes was undeniable.
“Aww . . . that’s so sweet.” She kissed him softly on the lips and a smiling DJ on the cheek. Nicole made a mental note. If Davis keeps this up, pull out
