Free To Catch a Bad Guy by Marie Astor

got as hard as if he were a buck of twenty, ready to go on for
hours. Candace never failed to illicit this reaction from him, and for that
alone he loved her to no end.

Chapter 7
     
     
    At a quarter to five on
a Friday afternoon Janet was staring at the clock on the wall of her office. She
was beginning to have serious doubts about her qualifications as an attorney.
She had been on the job for a week, and she had yet to claim one completed task
to her name. What kind of firm hired a lawyer to sit around and do nothing all
day? She wanted to think that next week things would be different, but all of
her experiences at Bostoff Securities spoke to the contrary. Take the recent
meeting with the Bostoffs: Hank, Jon, and Paul. Jon Bostoff’s demeanor had
seemed to stiffen when Janet mentioned her past experience at the DA’s office.
And the whole set up with Tom Wyman just seemed strange to begin with.
    The way Janet saw it
there were two options: either Bostoff Securities was a clean shop, and she
simply had failed to understand its intricate operations, or her employer was a
crook. Sooner or later all crooks got caught. Granted, she had only been on the
job a week. Her experience working for the DA did not exactly make her the most
trusting of people, but she figured that if it looked like a duck, swam like a
duck, and quacked like a duck, then it probably was a duck.
    Short of quitting,
which due to the mounting pile of bills she had accumulated while unemployed
was not an option, there was nothing Janet could do at the moment to change her
situation. What she needed now was a drink—a vodka martini would get her mind
off things. Thankfully, she would not have to wait long. She was meeting her
law school friends, Katie Addison and Joe O’Connor, at Smith and Wollensky for
drinks at six.
    “You’re still here?”
Lisa appeared in the doorway of Janet’s office.
    “Yeah, I’m waiting to
meet Katie and Joe for drinks.” Janet immediately regretted her lapse, lest
Lisa invite herself to join them.
    “Oh, that sounds like
fun.” Lisa yawned. “But I’ve got a date with Paul. I think he is going to pop
the question this weekend.”
    “You think so?” Janet
tried to force excitement into her voice. She had no doubts that Lisa actually
possessed an ability to physically bend men to her will. If she wanted Paul to
propose marriage to her this weekend, the poor man would no doubt oblige.
    “Yes, I think so. We’ve
been dating for a year; this weekend is our anniversary, and Paul is taking me
to a secret getaway.”
    “That sounds like fun.”
    “Now, if you would just
give Tom Wyman a chance, you too could be wearing a diamond on your finger in
the near future.”
    “I don’t think I’m his
type,” Janet lied. From what she had seen of Tom Wyman, every woman was his
type, at least for one night, but Janet was not looking to be somebody’s
disposable fun.
    “Well, maybe if you
weren’t so prim all the time. Are you going out like that?” Lisa eyed Janet
critically.
    “Yes,” Janet mumbled,
already anticipating what was about to follow. Since her unsuccessful
flirtation with Tom Wyman, she had reverted to her conservative business
attire.
    “Nothing. You look
perfectly swell to take someone’s statement, but I doubt any guy is going to
ask you for a date with your hair tied up in that bun of yours and your blouse
buttoned up all the way to your ears.”
    “Good.” Janet pressed
her lips together. If Lisa refused to observe boss-employee boundaries, she
would do the same. “That’s precisely the effect I’m going for.”
    “Well, have fun.” Lisa
lingered, no doubt waiting for an apology, but Janet sat back in her chair with
her eyes fixed on her desk.
    And then the impossible
happened. Lisa smiled wanly and shifted on her high-heeled shoes.
    “Look, Janie, I’m
sorry. I didn’t mean to tick you off. I know it’s the end of the week, and
you’re probably tired and all. I just want you to be