Sex and the Billionaire Crime Boss

Ch. 11: A Change in Plans

Tuesday goes by smoothly. I'm getting acclimated in the office, and I even spoke with a business client of my grandfather's whose nephew has a rather impressive collection of speeding tickets and parking violations. The guy is now teetering on the edge of losing his license - which has already been suspended - and being charged with a felony traffic violation. I make an appointment to meet with him later this week.

Tuesday night I'm only mildly disappointed when Max texts me that he's caught up in an all night poker game with some important business thrown in, and won't not be able to call me. A day without a late night phone call from Max is probably a good thing. It's been getting pretty intense, and I have to keep reminding myself how little I actually know about this man.

Now it's Wednesday, and today I'm having lunch with Samantha Rolling, an old law school friend of one of my supervising attorneys back at the Philadelphia PD's office.

Like my colleague in Philly, Samantha is also a supervising attorney, but in the Miami-Dade PD's office. She offered to let me shadow two of the lawyers in her office later this week—one in misdemeanors and one in felony—and introduce me to several of the judges. Every court has some different procedures, and I can't expect the system here in Miami to function exactly like the one in Philadelphia that I'm familiar with.

I'm counting on the fact that I'm a quick learner, and her help in smoothing my transition to a criminal practice here in Miami is going to be invaluable. I want to be able to hit the ground running.

When I walk across the lobby toward the elevators heading out to meet up with her, I stop short. There's a man leaning against the counter talking to Jenny, the receptionist, and I know he looks familiar. I'm trying to place him when it kicks in.

It's the asshole who kept hitting on me at the club.

I walk up to him.

"Dylan, isn't it?"

He turns, and then smiles as recognition hits him. But the small doesn't reach his eyes.

"What a nice surprise," he says. "What are you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing. I work here."

"Well isn't that interesting," he says. "It's possible that I'll be working here soon, too."

"This is Dylan Barclay," Jenny says helpfully. "He has a meeting with your grandfather in a few minutes."

Dylan's eyes widen and he studies me. "Hadley as in Hadley Reese Jones," he says slowly.

"That's right," I say. "I'll be sure to let my grandfather know you're here."

I turn on my heels and head directly for his office.

I tap lightly on the doorframe before walking in, and my grandfather looks up.

"Hadley. I'm sorry, I have a meeting in a few minutes."

"I know," I say, stepping over to directly in front of his desk. "I ran into him in the lobby."

He frowns. "Is there a problem?"

"Are you thinking about hiring him? Because that would be a mistake."

He leans back in his chair, tenting his hands and pressing his fingertips together in a gesture I've noticed he does when he's focusing.

"Sit down. What do you know about him?" If he's surprised that after being in Miami for less than a week I already have an opinion on another lawyer, he doesn't say so.

"I was checking out the Miami nightlife, " I tell him, sitting down on one of his visitor chairs in front of his desk. "He tried to pick me up, and when I made it clear I wasn't interested, he got pushy."