Bargain Hunting Read Online Free PDF Page A

do is fill in the gaps so I’ll know why I’m bleaching shoes at dawn.”
    “I’ve done questionable things for you.”
    That was true. Liam had helped me break and enter, and even destroy evidence on one occasion. “I know that. But you’ve always known why I was in trouble. Now the proverbial shoe is on the other foot.”
    “They took my gun five years ago.”
    “Why?”
    “Because I shot and killed a kid.”

My road to happiness is under construction.

three
    When I emerged from my bedroom, Liam was asleep in the guest room, so I tiptoed down the hall, folded his clothes, and left them in the doorway to his room, then headed off to work.
    I had mixed emotions. What if the glue didn’t hold? What if the police discovered him in my house? But mainly, why and how was he responsible for shooting a kid? He’d refused to answer my battery of questions, so I was left to wonder. I was sure there was a good reason, but Liam wasn’t going to share.
    As I arrived at the office, Margaret Ford, firm receptionist with a quarter-century of service, was just getting settled behind the horseshoe-shaped desk in the lobby. Glancing up, her face registered shock when she saw it was me entering the building before nine.
    “Do I have any messages?” I asked her even though I already knew the answer.
    “I haven’t checked with the service yet. Try back later.”
    “And a cheery good morning to you, too,” I muttered, appropriately loud enough as I went to the elevator.
    The firm took up the entire four-story building and my office was on the second floor. In my tenure at the firm, I’d gone from a shared cubicle in the bullpen to a private office with an almost-view of the Intracoastal. Now I got to hand assignments to the bullpen, which made my life a lot easier. It was no longer my responsibility to have exhibits prepped, or make copies, though I did have the freedom to walk the two short blocks to the courthouse to file documents as needed, a task I normally scheduled to coincide with lunchtime and/or the end of the day. This allowed me two-hour lunches and the chance to leave earlier than the required five o’clock. But today I’d come in early so I could catch Tony before the actual start of business. I knew he came in early after dropping Izzy off at the pricey Palm Beach Day Academy, my alma mater. And his car was in the parking lot.
    After preparing my office by turning on the computer and the coffeepot, I went up to the fourth floor. The executive offices were in the shape of a wagon wheel. The partners’ private receptionist wasn’t in yet, so I was able to walk into Tony’s office without being announced.
    He greeted me with a warm smile as he shrugged off his jacket. “What’s up? Wait. Is Izzy becoming a pain?”
    I waved my hand. “Of course not. I just thought we should talk about my early morning call for help.”
    “Don’t give it a thought. Liam explained it all to me.”
    “Are you going to help him?”
    Tony got a blank look on his face. “Help him buy a new tire?”
    I blinked twice. “What?”
    “He said he’d call AAA and it was a good thing he was near your house.”
    I felt a little like I’d fallen down the rabbit hole. Plus I was distracted by his cologne. “What tire?”
    Little lines appeared on Tony’s forehead. “Liam said he didn’t have a spare. He walked to your place and then you called me. Bad choice by the way, I hate changing tires.”
    That sneaky bastard. Liam hadn’t told Tony the truth. Should I, or not? I decided not since I’d run the risk of suffering Tony’s ire if he found out I’d spent the night aiding and abetting. Between screwing with my mother’s mind and lying to my boss, Liam was working his way to the top of my shit list.
    “Okay, then.” I started to back out of the doorway. “Sorry I called. Hope it wasn’t a bother.”
    “What’s wrong?” Tony asked.
    “Long night. Sleep deprivation.” I hurried out. Well, I hurried as much as you can