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was because he’s the one who loaned me what I needed after the
     bastard left with everything I owned. I pointed at the phone in his hand. “Go ahead
     and call Mr. Holmes. Bitch about the check. I dare you.”
    That shut him up. He closed the phone, gave it back to me, then pulled his own cell
     out of his pocket as he walked away.
    After giving myself a moment to calm down, I went to help with the unloading.
    Robichaud was instantly all over me. “What are you doing? You need to stay close to
     the truck.”
    Following orders, I went back to the side of the truck and noticed the news vehicles
     were moving. “How’d you convince them to leave?”
    “I told them I’d have the sheriff out within an hour to arrest them for inhibiting
     our work.”
    “Is lying a particular talent of yours?”
    “I wasn’t lying. We’re under an elevated terrorism threat, which gives us the right
     to prohibit non-essential people from the area.” He nodded toward A.J. “You gonna
     tell me what that was all about?”
    I watched A.J. pace back and forth beside his car, a late model Mercedes. Robichaud
     was looking at me expectantly, so I told him. “Ever heard of Drake Oil and Gas?”
    He let out a low whistle. “You’re one of those Drakes?”
    “I was, until they disowned me. They were furious with me for having the bad taste
     to get a degree in engineering and take this job. Drakes don’t work outside of an
     office. Especially female Drakes, who typically don’t work at all. But marrying A.J.
     was the icing on the cake. Drake women don’t marry men from questionable backgrounds.
     A.J. was tried for mail fraud and found not guilty, mostly because of a technicality.
     He claimed he was wrongly charged.” I grimaced. “I believed him.”
    “Why?”
    “Because I wanted to.” I glanced up at Robichaud. “Didn’t you ever do something stupid
     over a woman?”
    He stared at me a couple of beats. “No.”
    “Liar.”
    There was that crooked smile again. “This is your story. Maybe later I’ll share my own tales of stupidity.” He circled a finger in
     the air. “Go on.”
    “After we’d been married a short while, A.J. figured out he’d never get his hands
     on any of the family money because Drakes don’t do trust funds. My father also sent
     me a copy of his new will, which specifically left me out. All I had was the paltry
     amount I’d saved from working at Lacrouix and Book, along with some jewelry I’d inherited
     from my grandmother. A.J. helped himself and hit the road.”
    “How long ago was that?”
    I kept my gaze on my ex, not wanting to see any level of pity in Robichaud’s expression.
     “I married him about six months after I started this job, and he left three months
     after that. It was a long time ago, and I never told anyone with the company except
     Trick, who bailed me out by loaning me some money to get back on my feet. I’d appreciate
     if you don’t mention this because it’s embarrassing, and it can’t be good for the
     guys to know I was such a sucker.” I finally looked at him and was relieved that he
     only appeared curious. “I’m telling you all this because I think we need to keep an
     eye on him. Right now, he’s calling his investor to request a deposit check. I told
     him we weren’t going to start work unless we had some money up front.”
    “And he agreed?” Robichaud was clearly incredulous. Asking for money up front in the
     oil business isn’t done. Ever. It’s the last bastion of the Old Boys’ Club, where
     most deals are still sealed with a handshake. Good thing I’m not an old boy.
    “He agreed because he knew Trick would back me up.”
    He peered at A.J. curiously. “Wonder who his investor is.”
    “We’ll find out soon, but my guess is it’s a rich man with a gullible daughter.”
    Robichaud moved a little closer. “It kind of killed you to tell me that story, didn’t
     it?”
    I looked up at his dark, intent eyes. “Not so much as