Limiting Liabilities: Book Two - The Martinique Files

by Colette Alaine

  “Ah, that’s my girl.” He stops momentarily. “That was sexist, wasn’t it?”

  “It’s okay. This time. I get what you mean.” Now she hesitates a minute. “Don’t take this the wrong way but you didn’t choose me because you only have two females in the department and needed to show that you gave one of them the best job?” Tawny wants to know that it is primarily her work that gets her this prime position.

  “Always suspicious, Tawny? No. I chose you because you’re the best and this is the best pairing. Honestly, I tried every way to not pick you but each time I rearranged the pairings I knew you and I were best together. The whole female thing is not an issue. I have four female paralegals and I’m covered.”

  “And they are great.” Tawny gives the women kudos.

  “They are, aren’t they? I never used paralegals. I always wanted associates but those women rock this office. In no time, Linda’s gonna be put in her place for good. She needs some humbling and between the paralegals and the legal secretaries, she’s gonna get it.” Billy is tired of his secretary’s shenanigans.

  “I thought we might have too much support help at first but they really know their stuff.” Tawny is finding how helpful the paralegals can be.

  “True. Although they did say their workload decreased tremendously since Barbie’s gone. She must’ve been quite the princess.”

  “Well you took care of it.”

  “I didn’t plan that at all. I was really glad to bring on another female and I had big plans for her to work with Nick. No way would I let her get by with what she said to me,” Billy defends his actions.

  “She would’ve run right over Nick.”

  “Yeah. Word is she’s trying to find a lawyer to sue me. No one will take the case.”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “Oh honey, I’m certainly not concerned about her. I think it’s amusing, is all.”

  “Billy, you can’t call me honey.”

  “You know I’m going to mess up. The only way this works is if you can deal with it. I’m sorry I said it but it’s probably going to happen again.” Billy is being completely straight with her. She needs to decide right now if she can handle it.

  “Try not to do it in front of the others.”

  “Trust me I will certainly not do it at all if I can help it. So Florida on Monday?” He returns to the business at hand.

  “Florida on Monday,” Tawny confirms.

  “Linda’s got all the info and your tickets. Nothing else for you to do. Have a good time this weekend. It should be a busy week.”

  “Will we be there the entire week? I want to make sure I pack enough clothes.” Packing for Tawny is a big deal. She has to have enough clothes to be professional and comfortable. And, of course, she has to pack enough shoes.

  “Yeah. Ken’s got a few other things brewing and while we’re down there we’re going to get caught up with everything. Since the government took over the HenKov matter from last year we haven’t heard much about it. We’ll be meeting with those attorneys to find out what we need to do to move that case along. Make sure you’re up to speed with the latest information you know. It shouldn’t take long.” Billy implies that she may have to spend some time in the office on the weekend.

  “Okay. Bergman and Bird is having a super sale and Jaclyn asked me to come to the store and model some of the jewelry. It’s this new thing the guys are trying.” Tawny is not crazy about telling Billy about this side job but she knows she better in case he does not see her in the office when he expects.

  “Draping a beautiful woman in jewels to sell them isn’t new. You need to open a magazine.” Billy compliments her again but does not flinch this time.

  “I’m just there to show any man how the pieces will look on a woman if he’s buying for his love.” Billy cannot help but grin. “Okay. Yes, they’re using sex to sell.”

  “What does Drew have you wearing?” Billy is not fooled one bit.

  “A short black dress that shimmers.”

  “Uh huh.”

  “It’s not Drew. It’s Jaclyn’s idea really. She’s up for some kind of jewelry industry award for selling so much inventory this year. I mean Bergman and Bird is well-known and very successful but she’s gone crazy with selling. They can’t keep pieces in the store and she’s selling very expensive jewelry. She thinks she can get some of the old rich guys to buy more if I model it. I’m appeasing her because she’s a good friend and she made my birthday such a wonderful day.”

  “That was a fun day. I had a good time. You have a great group of friends. Drew, excluded.”

  “He’s your friend too. Why is he okay for you and not for me?”

  “Because he’s too much like me. Or like I used to be.”

  “You’re a reformed man. I hadn’t heard,” Tawny teases.

  “Not completely. Anyway, I may have to check out the sale myself.”

  “No. Please don’t. I should’ve never told you. I never thought that you might come by. I just wanted you to know that it’ll be hard for me to come into the office on Saturday.” Tawny frets. Having Billy stop by the jewelry store is the last thing she needs.

  “Sorry. Cat’s outta the bag now.”

  “Whatever. Just know that I’d prefer to see you next on the plane headed to Florida.” She is going to make one more attempt to keep him away this weekend.

  “That’s just not going to happen.”

  CHAPTER 14

  “F irst Class. This is much better than the first time when I went to Houston, stuck cramped in coach.” Tawny gets comfortable in the window seat next to Billy.

  “We need to discuss some business issues. No way am I sitting back there.” Billy never strays far from his own desires.

  “I guess I’ll leave my iPod in my purse.” Hoping to chill out on the flight to Florida, she realizes her attention will be on work for at least part of the flight.

  “You didn’t bring any documents with you?” He is determined to treat her like an associate.

  “Yes, but I need to research and I can’t do it in the air. I do have a few cases I was going to review while I was listening to my music.”

  “You can do that later. Did Jaclyn meet her quota?” Billy is going to bring up her weekend modeling stint despite her telling him to forget about it. He stopped by Bergman and Bird around one o’clock on Saturday and did not leave for two hours. Jaclyn practically asked him to leave because he was keeping Tawny from her modeling duties. But then he redeemed himself with her by buying over ten thousand dollars of jewelry and her strong hints that he leave turned into gracious invitations for him to stay. It didn’t hurt that his wealthy friends showed up and made some grand purchases themselves.

  “Yes, thanks to you and your buddies. She’s very happy and so are Jake and Drew. She’ll be in the top ten salespeople in the country. There’ll be a big banquet in New York and she and Eric are going with the two owners.” Tawny relays the good news, knowing that Billy really could care less.

  “Good for her. Is she the top?”

  “No. She just needed to get into the top ten. She’s a long way from the top. You’d have to buy out the store a few times over I think.” Tawny provides the details.

  “Anything for the roommate of my right hand. . .attorney.” Oh, he is trying to play by the rules. His hesitation shows that he almost made another slip but he caught himself just in the nick of time.

  “What would you even do with all that jewelry?” Tawny decides to join his conversation full out, hoping he will not mention the modeling. Doubtful that’ll happen.

  “I have no idea.” He laughs as she brings reality home. “Did Drew hit on you? You looked incredible.”

  “Yes, he did but he wasn’t alone.” Tawny decides now is a good time to retrieve the documents she copied for the trip.

  “And?”

  “And what?”

  “Did you go with him? Or any of the others?”

  “It’s truly none of your busin
ess.” Tawny sits back in her seat a little tense as the plane races down the runway and lifts into the air. She is always glad when take-off and landing are over. Billy waits while she focuses. It takes her a minute to settle in but she brings the paper in front of her and gets ready to read, a highlighter and pen in her hand.

  “Why don’t you read those on your iPad?” Good, he changed the subject.

  “I want to write on them. It’s easier this way. Sometimes it’s better not to use them in electronic form. You know I have a photographic memory. It works better with paper, especially when I write on it.”

  “Nice gift. Wish I had it. Since Drew’s my friend and you’re my associate, it is my business if you went out with him. Or anything.” Apparently, he is not going to drop the subject until he gets the answer.

  “It is not your business.” Now she is just going to mess with him.

  “That doesn’t sound good.” What is it with him? He does not want her but he does not want anyone else to have her.

  “If you must know, I was with him from the moment he closed the store Saturday night until this morning when I left for the airport. I’m absolutely exhausted.” It takes all her might to keep a straight face.

  “I know that’s not true.”

  “If you know so much why are you asking me?”

  “I had lunch with him yesterday.”

  “So that’s what he did when I told him I needed a nap.” She continues to play with his emotions.

  “Tawny.” The velvety firm way he says her name tells her the game is over.

  “I left the store Saturday at seven with Jaclyn. I haven’t talked to Drew since. Are you satisfied?” He opens up a document on his tablet but she does not miss the relaxing of his shoulders. He heard what he hoped she would say. “But as Barbie says, my personal time is mine.”

  “And that got her so far, didn’t it?”

  “Why does it bother you that I go out with other guys? I mean, have you stopped dating?” Since he is pursuing this subject she is going to get some answers too.

  “Go out with whomever you please. Just not him.”

  “Is this some kind of rivalry?”

  “He could hurt you.”

  “Like you care, but you know, it could be magic too. He could be the one.” Tawny really wants to know what’s behind Billy’s warning.

  “I’d rather he hurt you.” It is a short sentence that says a lot. Too much and he knows it.

  Tawny sits back in her seat and tries to concentrate on her work. Billy obviously has feelings for her and does not want her to fall for anyone. If she casually dates around it does not matter but falling in love is another story. Of all the guys she hangs around, Drew is his biggest threat. He is not ready for the relationship himself but he does not want to lose out in the end. What an ego! She really needs to keep her personal life private and find friends who do not know Billy Solomon.

  Finishing the work she brought she falls asleep for a short while. Billy nudges her after the flight attendant announces they should prepare for landing. Shaking the cobwebs from her mind she puts up her tray table and brings her seat upright in anticipation of the landing. Forty-five minutes later, they are in the taxi heading toward the hotel.

  With the time change, it is four o’clock in the afternoon when they meet Ken at the land-based lab. Having never been here herself, Ken gives Tawny a quick tour while Billy gets reacquainted with the building. He has been here a few times, although he mostly visits Ken in Houston.

  Ken explains that after the disaster last year in the underwater lab, which was positioned well off the coast of Florida in the Atlantic Ocean, the government agreed to bring it to the surface to be cleaned. At first, Ken could not bear to go to the ship that was raising it but then he could not stay away.

  Flying by helicopter he landed on the bed of the ship and watched carefully as the lab was gently brought up from the depth of the sea floor onto the tanker. It was like raising a small ship, he tells her but it was built to be moved from one location to another. Motorized, it acts almost like a submarine.

  No one anticipated bringing it back to the surface anytime soon but the tragedy of last year when so many scientists and marine biologists died from toxic poison dumped in the area required a thorough inspection. Donned in protective clothing no one can keep Ken from entering the lab once the bodies of the fallen have been retrieved and sent home for proper burial.

  It takes months to sterilize the underwater lab. Not a lot of contaminated water leaked in but it was certainly enough to kill those inside once they breathed in the substance and let it touch their skin. Making certain not a trace of the poisonous pesticide is present takes several cleanings. No one wants to risk another valuable life.

  In the meantime, Ken is inundated with inquiries and resumes from environmental engineers, scientists and marine biologists from all over the world interested in the next expedition. Ken is shocked that anyone wants to risk going back under the water but he is propelled by the interest and the excitement of so many wanting to share his dream.

  The underwater lab began as a thesis for Ken in college and through hard work and dedication it became a reality three years ago. The envy of every nation, it is exclusive to the United States’ government. All of those that died last year were true Americans. The chance to open up the exploration of the sea to other countries entices Ken but red tape can stifle progress.

  With such massive interest, Ken tells Tawny he began interviewing a new group to take over the study begun by his beloved deceased colleagues. It was difficult to choose because so many well-qualified entrants are at his fingertips. Only wanting to assemble a group if the underwater lab is cleaned and cleared for new studies, he anxiously awaits any word from the government.

  But it is not the American government that first contacts him. It is the Nigerian government after an inquiry about toxic waste dumping. Trying to clean up their waters in an attempt to aid their suffering people, the usually corrupt leaders decide they need to do something to deter any uprising. Too many are encouraging an overturning of the government so restoring the fishing industry is becoming a high priority.

  Between the toxic dumping allowed by the government in exchange for huge profits, mostly kept by the government officials and the trawling of foreigners who stripped the marine life beyond replaceable limits, the Gulf of Guinea has suffered. The Nigerian government hopes that by placing the underwater lab deep in the Gulf some method of revitalizing the stock and clearing the waste will materialize.

  Ken is immediately concerned with any further risk to his people but the Nigerian government promises a safety zone around it. Coupled with changes to the underwater lab itself to protect its inhabitants while loading, unloading and living in the lab, Ken is persuaded by the group he assembled that they are ready to engage.

  With the eventual permission of the United States government, numerous tests were conducted in the safety zone area and when the word was given that all was secure, the underwater lab was transported there. That was six months ago and all has been going well with the current studies.

  The problem that Ken fears is the pirates. Activity has increased over the last two months. The Nigerian government assures him that the underwater lab is quite a distance from where the pirates generally target. A set pathway through the Gulf is how most ships maneuver in and out. Sure, there are some deviations but for the most part the boats follow the same pattern and the underwater lab is miles and miles away from the passageway.

  The Nigerian government explained that the pirates concentrate on hijacking ships to overtake them, steal the cargo and use those boats as motherships, if they meet the criteria. Or they kidnap the crew or the captain and hold them for ransom. It is all about the money to the pirates. They have no idea that the underwater lab exists, much less that it is docked anywhere near their criminal pursuits. In the very unlikely event that they do discover it, it holds no real appeal to them.

  In order to en
ter it, the pirates would have to break the reinforced glass, which would require a team well-equipped with professional tools. That would most likely mean dynamiting the lab and killing anyone in it. As difficult as it is for anyone else to get in, it is that easy for those inside to get out. Getting to the docking station takes only a few minutes and it takes no time for a helicopter to reach them. Plus the lab is constantly monitored so any indication of foul play will bring out military forces from all over.

  Despite the reassurances, all of this is not enough to comfort Ken he continues to tell Tawny. He lost too many friends last year to relax about pirates. He understands that it would take a savvy group of experienced perpetrators to place any risk at all on the lab but still he is wary. Ken admits he is probably overthinking the reach of this case. The authorities will take care of the pirates. Yet he feels he should at least mention it.

  “Pirates! Seriously?” Tawny almost laughs as she says the words.

  “I’m sure there’s no risk but you know how I worry.” Ken tries to reassure her even though he is still concerned himself.

  “I’m not going near any pirates, just so you both know,” Tawny informs them.

  “Neither am I. Ken, you may be concerned about your scientists but don’t worry about your lawyers. Now let’s talk about the Chicago Lake Michigan problem. We can’t find our culprit. Tawny’s done massive amounts of research and we know a lot about the area metal shops. She’s gone beyond the local area too. Nothing really pinpoints a perpetrator yet. We can’t get subpoenas based upon nothing.” Billy jumps into the conversation and changes the subject away from pirates.

  “No one sticks out at all?” Ken really needs to find out who is responsible for dirtying the lake water. His team is busy cleaning it up but he certainly does not want to clean it just have it made toxic once again. Resources are not unlimited.

  “We can’t go on a fishing expedition, Ken. The police are keeping an eye on every area that they can. The good thing about the public being aware is that if anyone sees anything suspicious they will call it in to the authorities. We have to hope that if they have any intentions of dumping again, they’ll be caught. If they don’t then the lake should stay clean.” Billy lays it out.