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.You’re my lawyer, for Pete’s sake.That’s what I was thinking, but instead, I said, “Don’t worry, I’ll handle Cassie.I’ll also get back the pictures of your daughter.”“I’m getting too old for this.I think it’s time to retire.”Harold filled me in on the rest of the particulars.When he departed, I immediately called Neil.“I need to talk to you ASAP.”“What’s going on?” Neil asked me.“Do you have time for lunch? I need to strategize about some new information regarding my trust.”“I have a pretty full day, but if you want to bring sandwiches over, we can eat and talk in my office.”“Done.What time?”“Noon.”“See ya, then.”“Alright, man.”As soon as I got off the phone with Neil, I realized I wouldn’t be canceling the lunch appointment with Cassie.Getting Neil’s take on it would help me be prepared.His mind was cunning and that’s what I needed in dealing with her.I was so pissed, I wanted to take out my aggression on the wall, but I had a feeling the wall would punch back as soon as my fist hit it.A broken hand wouldn’t do me any good.All I could do was keep busy, until it was time to see Neil.Time moved at a glacial pace.My biggest consideration was how this would affect my relationship with Natalie.I didn’t want anything to get in our way.But, she may feel I tricked her into marriage because of the terms of my trust.Nothing could be further from the truth.I wanted her from the moment I held her on Thanksgiving.I was her moth and she was my flame.I had Alice order up the sandwiches and picked them up on the way to Neil’s office.His assistant Laura ushered me in.“I see Laura still dresses provocatively for work,” I said, as I motioned my hand toward her desk.“Yeah, but I just try to ignore it.”Neil got up from his chair and we sat at the table in his office.I broke out the sandwiches, chips, sodas.It was just like being in college again.“So, what’s up?” Neil asked.“You’re not going to believe this, but I found out my parents trust had a stipulation I wasn’t aware of.”“Lay it on me.”“I have to be married to keep control of the company.If I’m not married, the company will be divided amongst the shareholders.”Neil’s brow creased as he processed the information.“Does that sound like your parents?” he asked.“Not really, but who knows what was going through their minds at the time.Maybe they wanted to ensure I had a family life.They were so happy together.”“How is it that you didn’t know?”“Cassie found out, and blackmailed Harold by exploiting his daughter.”“Shit.She’s crazy,” Neil said.“How would she even find this out? I mean, the trust was sealed.I have to be married within a year after turning thirty.”“Maybe she broke into Harold’s office and found your file.Maybe there’s more to the story than Harold is telling you.Hard to say.”“What should I do?”“For starters, Harold is going to retire.He and his daughter are going on a long trip.I’ll have Laura draw up the paperwork stating he is not to communicate anything about his retirement or whereabouts.You’ll have it waiting on your personal fax, before you get back to the office.If he doesn’t comply, then let Cassie do her worst to him.”“Good, but he will still have the problem of her having pictures of his daughter.What if he won’t comply?”“If he doesn’t agree to retire, you won’t give him severance, and you won’t pay for the extended trip.”“He might go for it with that in mind.”“I’ll get my tech guy to hack into her computer and find what she has on Harold’s daughter.He can send a virus to destroy all of her files so it doesn’t look like you did anything.”“Again.You’re smarter than I give you credit for,” I said, feeling a little more relaxed since Neil had a plan.“I’ve had my share of dealing with dishonest people,” Neil said.“I also have to go to lunch with Cassie on Wednesday.She met Natalie last night when their paths crossed at my place.”“You are going to have to keep your cool with Cassie.She’s unpredictable and you have no idea what she is capable of doing.Whatever happens during lunch on Wednesday, stay neutral.”“Easier said than done, bro,” I chided.“I’m so pissed right now I could put my fist through the wall.”“You losing control gives her the power.Somehow, you’re going to have to sit there and play nice.And under no circumstances, tell her that you are married to Natalie.”I nodded.Neil was right.He was always right.He had a clever mind for solving shit.“Okay, I’ll keep calm.What do I do after she lowers the boom and tells me about the trust? I’m assuming that’s why she wants to do lunch.”“I would say something like…I’ll take that under advisement.”“Alright.Stay calm and say as little as possible.But how do I tell Natalie about this? She’s going to think I tricked her in Vegas because I needed a wife [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]