Chapter 1 #2
Trent opened and closed his mouth three times. Sterling wanted to laugh. Trent was a man who would shove his arm up to the elbow into the mouth of a python without breaking a sweat. Going quiet because his five-foot-five fiancée told him to, that was priceless.
Okay, so she was an army sniper, but still, classic.
The shutter door swung open, and a man wearing a linen blazer the color of sand strolled in. Damn jacket didn't have a single wrinkle. Amazing and impossible at the same time in Sterling's world.
This man didn't fit in. And not just because of his pressed jacket. His loafers, which were so clean, they had probably never seen a boat deck, were that ugly salmon color that Southwest Florida seemed to love. And his rose-gold watch caught the light off the bottles.
Behind him, a second man in a polo hung back by the door. At first glance, he looked like the kind of man who carried golf bags and said nothing.
It was rare that kind of money walked into Juniper's. At least that kind of display of wealth. There were a few people in Calusa Cove who had money, but they didn't flaunt it. Not with flashy things anyway. But they did give back to the community.
Sterling jumped off his stool. "Sorry, friend. Bar's closed tonight. Private party."
"Oh." The man stopped, took the room in with a gaze that was easy and unbothered. "Didn't know. My apologies." He pointed to a strand of paper bells over the far curve of the bar. "A wedding. Well, how nice. Who's the lucky couple?"
"None of your damn business," Silas said into his whiskey. "And we don't want you or your big-time shipping in here either. You pollute the water, you take jobs off local boats, and you don't give a single damn about anything but your own profit margin."
The man held up two fingers. "I came in for dinner and a drink. That's all."
"Pipe down, Silas." Sterling hadn't a clue as to what had crawled up Silas' ass.
But there was a time and a place, and this wasn't it.
"I apologize for my friend. But this is a private party.
" He nodded toward the door. "Crab Shack's open, though.
It's over by the marina, two minutes up the road.
Not sure what the special is tonight, but they have crab and a fresh fish catch of the day every night.
I can tell you from experience, it's damn good. "
"I appreciate that." The man dipped his head. "Royce Halloran."
Damn. Now Sterling knew what had gotten Silas all riled up. Halloran Maritime. The name was on the side of half the cargo hulls that ran the Gulf and a fair number of the editorials Silas clipped and brought into the bar to wave around and bitch about.
"Sterling Fox."
"Pleasure, Mr. Fox." Royce turned for the door but paused and glanced over his shoulder. "I was told Buddy Ballard from the Aegis Network tends to hold court in here. Since you're closed up, you think I'd catch him over at this Crab Shack tonight?"
That made the hair on Sterling's neck stand up. It also made Silas swivel his chair and Cullen drop his beer on the counter a little too loudly.
"Buddy's out of the office a few days." Sterling didn't move and didn't look toward the far curve where Buddy still stood with his face in Fallon's hair.
"But I work for him. You want to talk Aegis business, I'm happy to sit down with you," Sterling said.
"Tomorrow. During business hours. But right now, it's time for you to go. "
Royce raised both hands. "Have a good night, Mr. Fox. I'll be in touch." Both men disappeared out into the darkness.
Sterling relaxed his shoulders.
"That man has a lot of nerve," Cullen muttered.
"What's your beef with him?" Sterling settled back onto his stool.
"Other than he cares more about his profit sheet than whether there's a waterway left for the rest of us?" Cullen took a pull off his beer. "His son, Graham, started seeing, my ex, Tamara. Man's a dick, and I don't love him hanging around Tyler."
"Don't hold back. Tell me how you really feel."
"Nah." Cullen set the bottle down. "That wouldn't be nice."
An uncomfortable silence settled over the bar. There was more to that story, but Sterling didn't have the bandwidth to ask more questions, and he could tell Cullen didn't want to talk about it. No point in pushing him tonight.
Juniper came down the bar with a towel slung over her shoulder. "You've been nursing that one for over an hour. It's got to be boiling by now."
"Pretty close."
"Shall I get you another one?"
He pushed his near empty bottle across the bar. "I gotta drive home, but thanks."
"How about a water?"
"I'm heading out," he said.
"Already?" Dove leaned around Cullen. "It's nine o'clock."
"Buddy's gone for three days. You're running on saltines.
And Cullen has another job he's got to finish before he comes in tomorrow.
I've got work." And maybe a little digging to do on Royce and his company.
Why? Sterling didn't know. Except he didn't like the way he rolled into a private party where there was clearly signage on the door.
"Work can wait." Dove waved her hand. "There's nothing but paperwork, anyway."
"Files don't jump into filing cabinets by themselves." Sterling shifted on the stool.
"Buddy's taking three days," Dove said. "When has he ever done that? If he can relax, so can you."
"That's some weird logic," Sterling said. "We need to take up the slack when the boss is gone."
Trent reached around her and tapped Sterling's shoulder. "Let him go, Dove. He's been staring at Juniper for two hours. He needs to leave before he does something stupid."
"I've been sitting here looking around like a normal person." He stood.
"Nothing's normal about taking a walk in your head," Cullen added. "But hey, whatever works."
"Drive safe," Dove said, because she knew when not to argue—mostly.
"Always." The stool wobbled as he stood. "I expect everyone to be at work on time tomorrow."
"Even the pregnant lady?" Dove batted her eyelashes.
He laughed. "I'll bring crackers and soda." He waved his hand over his head as he went the long way around so he could stop and say goodbye to the happy couple.
"Hey, man," he said.
"Thanks for coming." Buddy pulled him in for a half a man hug, slapping him on the back.
"Wouldn't have missed it."
"Three days." Buddy held up his hand. "Don't hesitate to call if you need anything."
"We'll be fine without you."
"That's what he's afraid of." Fallon leaned in and kissed Sterling's cheek. "I told him while you all can get along without him, you still want him around."
"That's a true statement." Sterling had gone from living at home with his parents, which had been a semi-normal childhood, to feeling insanely out of place in college.
He wasn't smarter than everyone else, that was for sure. But he hadn’t fit in with the intellectuals the same way he had in high school.