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CHAPTER54
King
“Morning, Mr. Vass.”The man at the front desk looks down at his screen, then back up at me. “I don’t think Nero is in today.”
“Vernon,” I nod my head. “I know he’s not. I just need to use my office for a few hours.”
“Gotcha.” He taps a button under the desk and the bulletproof, glass doors to my right unlock.
Before I step away, I pull up a photo of Val on my phone and show it to him. “I told my sister to stop by later. Please have someone show her up when she arrives.”
Vernon takes the proper amount of time to study the photo before nodding. “You got it.”
Nero Security is all Nero’s, and not officially affiliated with The Alliance. But we recruit soldiers from the men here all the time, and since I don’t have an actual office for mylegit business,Nero hooked me up with a private office next to his here. Neither offices are used much, since Nero mostly delegates now and I rarely feel the need to leave home, but they’re private.
As I pass through the multiple layers of security on the way to the top floor, I admire the set up.
From the outside, this three-story brick building is unassuming, plain. But on the inside, it’s state of the art. Because it has to be. Wouldn’t do much good if you had a security company that wasn’t secure.
When I make it to my office, I unlock the door, using the same fingerprint readers I have at my house and step inside.
Hmm, I bet adding Savannah’s prints to the lock system would go a long way to building her trust. Especially since she got zapped by one.
I blow out a breath and make a mental note to have her added. That, along with the diamond burning a hole in my pocket, might be enough to make her smile at me.
* * *
A message popsup on my monitor, alerting me that Val is on her way up.
I take my glasses off and rub my eyes––glad I leave a pair here in the desk––and roll out my neck.
A minute later, after I’ve groaned my way through a back stretch, there’s a knock at the door.
I tap the control panel for the door, first turning the glass from opaque to clear, so I can verify it’s Val on the other side, while apparently startling her at the same time. Then I press the key that unlocks the door and the man who escorted her holds it open until she passes, then pulls it shut.
Her brows are raised. “Well, this place is intense.”
I nod. “A bit.”
I hate that she looks nervous about being here.
“Want something to drink?” I offer as I stand.
Moving around to a plain wall panel, I press a hidden key and it swings opens to reveal a mini fridge, a coffee maker, and a row of liquor bottles.
“Well, that’s impressive.” When she steps up to my side to look at the selection, I relax a little.
Val and I, well, Val and the rest of my family, had a rocky start. Considering she was the product of one of my father’s many affairs, it’s probably understandable. But none of that was on her. My mom tried to forbid Aspen and I from meeting her, but of course we didn’t listen. And then when dad died, and we found out he left a chunk of his money directly to Val, it only made things more tense.
But that was a long time ago, and I like to think we’ve moved past it, but when I see her hesitate around me, it reminds me that I should do more.
Which is why she’s here.
I open the little fridge door, showing her what’s inside. “Anything look good?”
“Um, I’ll take a root beer. Please.”
I grab two glass bottles out of the fridge, handing her one.