Page 5 of Unhinged

“We’re going to have a receptionist?”

Knox nodded. “Vivi’s gonna take the calls, decide which scenario is best for which agent. She’ll consult with me in the beginning, of course, but ideally she’ll be able to take over that aspect of it so we won’t have to bother with the mundane everyday stuff.”

Luke nodded. Paperwork sucked. Better to let Knox’s little sister take care of that. He loved Vivi like a sister, but the woman could talk a man to death. She and Knox had been in constant communication while he’d been overseas, and the tiny spitfire had an opinion on everything. He liked a smart woman who knew her own mind, but Vivi took things to a whole other level. He couldn’t wait to meet the man who would one day take on the challenge.

“Why is the gym going upstairs and not in the basement or on the ground floor?”

Knox shook his head. “Not enough space on the first floor, and no basement. City won’t give us a permit to go so far underground in an existing building, and the previous owners didn’t want or need one.” Luke raised a brow, and Knox shrugged. “Something about excavating the terrain.”

That sounded like a whole bunch of crap to Luke, but what did he know? He’d grown up in Wisconsin, which was about as far away and as different from Florida that it may as well have been the moon.

His vision blurred as a bead of sweat slithered down his forehead and into his right eye. Whipping off his sunglasses, he used his sleeve to ease the burning sensation. It was hotter than Hades here.

Sliding his glasses back into place, he canted his head toward Knox. “Remind me again why you chose Florida?”

Knox grinned. “It’s home.”

Luke shook his head. “And you couldn’t even get someone to sign a permit to dig a basement?”

Knox’s expression turned serious. “I tried, believe me. But it’s actually better this way. All common areas and meeting rooms will be on the first floor so we won’t have the added expense of needing to install an elevator for any visitors with disabilities.”

Made sense. “So, what’s the plan for reconstruction?”

“Company’s coming in next week to clean up all the debris, then the construction workers will be here the week after to take a look around and see what’s salvageable. We’ll need to move walls around anyway, so I anticipate that it’ll just be easier to gut the place and start fresh.” Knox shrugged. “They could be here for two weeks or two months depending on what all needs to be done, but I’m hoping to be ready by the end of next month.”

“Solid. What do you need from me?”

“Get our name out there. Talk to your friends, I’ll talk to mine. Pick up any gigs you can find and get in touch with Vivi.” Knox whipped out his phone and tapped it a few times. Seconds later, Luke’s phone lit up with a message. “I just sent you her contact info. Call that number and she can put it on the books. She’ll work remotely for now, until we’re ready to move her in here.”

“And if we get any interest until the building’s ready?”

“Get their info, put them on the books with Vivi, and do what you can to spread the word. I don’t figure we’ll get anything major in the beginning, but if it sounds like a good gig, take it. I’ve ordered us some polo shirts, and I’ll get cards made up soon so we can start marketing ourselves.”

“When are the other guys landing?”

“Jaxon and Mason are still out of country, but both should be ready to take jobs in the next couple of months. Aiden and Roman are stateside, but I gave them a couple of weeks to tie up some loose ends.”

Luke dipped his chin in acknowledgment. “I’ll see what I can dig up. Ready to get out of here?”

Knox lifted one black brow. “Too soft to handle some dead rodents?”

Luke lifted his foot out of the water and examined his now stained boot. “Doesn’t this constitute hazard pay?”

Knox snorted. “Get outta here.”

Luke grinned. “Hey, it was worth a shot.”

All in all, he couldn’t complain. After everything they’d been through overseas, personal security seemed like a glorified babysitting gig.

How hard could it be?

CHAPTER

TWO

Hannah glanced up from her computer as her eleven o’clock appointment strode into her office and sank onto the couch with an insolent sigh. Pasting on a polite smile, she swiveled her chair toward him. “Hello, Steve.”

“Hi, Hannah, how have you been?” he replied.