Free Midnight (Night Fever Serial Book 2.5) by Jessica Hawkins Page A

now. The transfer has already been arranged, and the first payment will be deposited into your account at midnight. The rest will come soon after.” He reached out and shook Beau’s hand. “Good luck, kid. Maybe we’ll see you in here again.”
    Beau and Grubman took the elevator down to the lobby, where they passed security and stepped out into the mild night. The Metro Local hissed as it pulled up to the curb a block over. Beau made a move to go after it, but he stopped himself.
    “Never have to take the bus again, son.”
    Beau looked back at Grubman, who was smiling for maybe the second time since they’d met. “Good,” Beau said. He hated the bus vehemently.
    “So, what’re you going to do now?” Grubman asked.
    “I have no idea,” Beau said. “Tomorrow, I start research on my next project, but…” He stuck his hands in his trouser pockets. “I hadn’t really thought about tonight.”
    “If I were you, I’d take a damn break. Pick up my girl and waltz my ass into the ritziest joint in Beverly Hills for a juicy porterhouse. I’d liquor her up good, then go home and fuck her brains out. That’s a celebration for a rich man.”
    Beau just stared at him. He’d barely seen a girl in months besides Brigitte. She was practically his sister and therefore didn’t count. That didn’t mean Beau didn’t think about girls, though—frequently. “I’m single.”
    Grubman’s face fell, and he actually shuddered. “You lucky son of a bitch,” he said. “Twenty-seven years old, and you just signed a lifelong deal for pussy. Blonde, brunette, redhead, black, white, Asian—any kind you want. You lucky son of a—”
    “I get it.” Beau’s heart palpitated, and he implored it not to give out—not now that he’d arrived. It’d been ten months and twelve days since he’d last gotten laid. That was the toll 327 million dollars took. No small price to pay. If he thought a second too long about any kind of fucking, he’d have to hobble home with his hands covering his crotch.
    “Well,” Grubman said, sweeping an arm, presenting Beau the world, “get on it, son. City of Angels is your oyster.” He shook his head with a forced chuckle. “Female population’d better watch out. There’s no more dangerous animal in the world than a man with new power.”
    Beau nodded once at Grubman, glad to get rid of him once and for all. He held out his hand. “Thanks for all your help. I’ll put your check in the mail as soon as the money clears.”
    “You better, don’t want me on your bad side. My profession is going after snakes. Feel free to tip too.” He laughed nervously, looking sidelong at Beau. “You know, you’re going to need a lawyer now more than ever. You already know you can trust me, and—well, trust me, that’s going to become an issue for you.”
    People like Harold Grubman were necessary stops along his way to the top. Harry wasn’t the kind of man you carried through life if you didn’t have to, though. Beau stuck his hand back in his pocket and backed away. “I have your card.”
     

Chapter Two
    Beau walked around downtown until it was late. His heart was getting a workout today, thumping extra hard every time he thought of the ridiculous amount of money that would hit his bank account at midnight. It was like having the ticker of a newborn. He was experiencing a second birth, the life he was supposed to have.
    He’d always had a plan—visualization was important. Beau looked up at some skyscrapers, rectangular lights popping on with the settling night. Important people were up there. For years, he’d seen himself working in the sky too. Next week, he’d start thinking about moving out of his apartment, preferably somewhere also above the city. During one of his foul moods a few months earlier, Brigitte had driven him through the Hollywood Hills to pick out their dream home. Admittedly, that simple act had eased the day’s frustrations, whatever they’d been. Maybe he would