Chapter 7
Tony
That’s right, Cas. You tell her. We’re all on her side.
He’s doing all right. Exactly what I’d do, without the threats of violence.
Who needs physical violence when you can ruin someone financially?
And I don’t know this guy who’s suing Julia.
I don’t know what happened with the screwdriver and the golf cart.
All I know is that if I was shaped the way my mother intended, Jaeger Duke would be standing on a street corner, wearing a barrel and shaking a tin cup.
And this guy Gerry?
He swears up and down he had no idea he was giving Julia away.
And it’s not like avoiding the process server means you’re not getting sued, right?
Then he’s telling them about the time the Ferretti dealer tried to tell him he sold a fifty-footer to Ivan Roskonovich and Gerry was like, yeah I was on his boat last week, see ‘cos I’m an angel investor in his AI-integrated startup, words, words, forty-footer, words.
I don’t need to know what he’s talking about to not like him.
The guys always said I judged people too quickly. Sometimes they were right. But this time, I know. So does Julia. I can feel it.
At least, I feel something. Julia’s next to Caspian. Their legs are touching. Their hands start out twined together like a normal couple. Then his thumb strokes hers. Then she unlatches her fingers to rub his knee.
Dan asks about a mutual acquaintance, and Gerry lowers his voice as if he’s telling secrets.
“Feds got him.”
“What?” Dan also lowers his voice even though he’s just asking a question. “For what?”
“He had a second set of books.”
Dan asks another question, but I can’t hear it over the static.
Second set of books.
The Feds got him.
What if it wasn’t the Feds? What if it was people who could do worse than put you in jail? Dan is asking, “Did his wife know?” and Gerry is answering, but the static goes multi-channel. I’m just one big UHF bandwidth right now.
Now that you put it that way, I need to make more of a point.
The kid in the white suit said that. What did he mean? What did I say before that?
Did his wife know? Did his wife know? Is she going to jail? Would he have done it if he knew she’d be punished?
Wash your hands of the whole thing. Wash your hands. Washyourhands.
Stop.
Telling myself to stop doesn’t clear the static or self-recrimination.
What does stop it is Caspian’s fucking dick.
He pretends to drop something. When he leans down to pick it up, he quickly moves Julia’s skirt over her knees.
Now when he sits up, his hand is right on the skin inside her thighs.
With just the one hand, he pulls her legs open so he can really get in there.
Caspian Cavallo was always a bold motherfucker. The static fades as their hands move. Her body’s buzzing. I can feel it through the fabric of her dress.
“So, what do you guys do?” Gerry asks everyone but Dan.
The tense silence goes on too long. Julia and Caspian are busy under the table. There are four of us with mouths against one of him and we haven’t done four times the talking.
Dan finally speaks up. “These guys are finishing contractors. Best in LA.”
I’ve met men like Dan before. Really affable, approachable guy’s guys who always know a guy. In this case, Dan’s taking the opportunity to sell a guy on Julia and Tonya.
Do I even like Dan? Do I trust him? Neither? Both?
“You got an all-girl crew!” Gerry slaps Caspian on the arm.
“It’s just me and Tonya,” Julia says flatly. “I wouldn’t let these guys drill a hole in the wall.”
Dan and Caspian make agreeable comments. I don’t know if Dan can drill straight, but she’s right about Caspian. He’d make a mess of it. Gerry mumbles some kind of excuse and a “that’s great.”
“Actually.” Tonya checks her watch. “We’d better get going.”
Caspian’s hand moves all the way up Julia’s thigh. She gasps and jerks in her seat.
“I—” She hides a moan in a clearing throat. “I should go to the ladies’.” She puts her napkin on the table.
Gerry’s attention goes to the door. “Nigel!” A man in a pale yellow suit shakes Gerry’s hand. “Come sit.”
“It’s good to see you,” Nigel says. He has a snooty accent I don’t like. It’s the kind of accent you gotta work at, no matter where you’re from. “I have a meeting in half an hour. I’m afraid I can’t stay.”
“Your meeting’s right here. Julia, Tonya, Dan, Caspian, this is Nigel Wiggins. I happen to know he’s looking for someone to polish a space on his boss’s Lürssen.”
Nigel shakes everyone’s hands with his fingertips and repeats the word “pleasure” every time. Julia fidgets. Either her bladder is full or she’s still feeling the effects of Caspian’s fiddling.
“You guys got a card for the man?” Gerry asks.
“Actually.” Julia pats her pockets. The only thing in here is me.
“Shall we meet now, if you have a moment?” Nigel says. “I know this is quite short notice, but it’s possible we can be of use to each other.”
Tonya and Dan seem fine with it. Caspian checks Julia.
“That sounds great,” she says. “Um, but would you mind excusing me for a minute? I have to, you know.” She indicates the bathroom.
“Of course,” Nigel says before grabbing a waitress by the arm and whispering in her ear.
“I’ll walk you there.” Caspian gets up.
“I’ve heard of the two-girl rule,” Gerry jokes, pointing at Tonya as the one who should accompany Julie.
But Julia’s already got her back to him and Caspian’s right behind.
Julia walks so fast that I swing around in her pocket, bubbles bubbling. I hate it when they separate like this. It’s like nausea without a stomach.
There are two bathroom doors.
“Shit.” Julia grumbles. “I always pick a bad time.”
Caspian looks at the two occupied flags over the locks, back at the dining room, and says, “They’ll wait.”
Quickly, he kisses her, pinning her to the wall with his mouth. His hand is huge against her jaw. Ear to ear. He’s holding it exactly the way I’d do it if I had a hand. It feels right. If I can’t do what Caspian’s doing, it’s good to know it’s Caspian who’s doing it.
“I’m going to fuck you from behind,” he whispers in her ear.
“You better make it quick. I don’t want Dan agreeing to contract terms.”
“No one talks business until after the drinks arrive.”
“I don’t want to take up the bathroom that long, loser.”
He kisses her harder—as if he’s punishing her.
A latch clacks, and a guy as old as the mountains shuffles out. He takes forever to move out of the way. Julia goes in. Caspian slips in behind her and closes the door.
Let’s go, buddy. Take care of our girl.