Page 99 of Rival to the Billionaire

"Will you tell Mia to come right in when you leave? She's been waiting for us to finish up so that she can drag me to some 24-hour art exhibit in Lower Queen Anne."

I laugh. "Sure thing, boss."

"No free pass because we're friends, by the way," he says. "She's still going to be giving me grief over every little thing."

Derek's bark is worse than his bite, though. I can see that now. "She doesn't seem like the type to let you get away with anything."

"No, she doesn't. I'm living a nightmare…"

We laugh together and I stand. "I'd better be on my way. I have some work to do, but I'll make sure she shows up. The meeting is at eight in the morning, right?"

"Right." He stands and joins me, squeezing my shoulder before we leave. "I look forward to seeing you there. I think it's about time we had coffee and got caught up. I've missed you."

I smile and nod. "Me too."

On the way out, I run into a familiar face in the lobby. "Carmina, hey," I say, surprised that she's still here too. "What, did you decide to join me on the first stop of my groveling tour?"

I smile but Carmina doesn't return it, her brown eyes are serious. "Um, actually, I came to talk to you about something else."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I got a late-night call from Quentin who's on his way back from Tokyo. He received a message from Ryder."

I've never heard Carmina sound so serious. "Wait, you mean Ryder is on his way here?" My stomach turns.

"No, Jen… He's in jail."

ChapterTwenty-Seven

RYDER

"Mr. Anderson?" The officer who has been keeping me company all night steps into my cell. "Your brother's here to speak with you."

"My…brother?"

"Yes, I was told you had a brother coming to visit." He nods, before releasing me from the cell. "I'll let him in and then I'll step outside. Your brother asked to speak with you alone. Let me know when you're done."

"Thank you," I say, not knowing how I'm feeling right now, but waiting for the cop to leave. I stand to my feet from the cold bench on which I've been perched, prepared to see Quentin and his dark golden hair.

A moment later the door opens and a guy steps in, with slicked chestnut brown hair and intense blue eyes. He's a bit taller than Quentin with much more muscle, but he's definitely the spitting image.

"Ryder?" The man looks at me with elaborate disappointment on his face.

Fuck. "Alton," I murmur, and I'm not sure how I feel about what I'm seeing. On the one hand, it's a relief knowing that my longtime lawyer, finance-savvy brother is here. But on the other hand—it's Alton.

"What the hell is going on?" he demands. "How did this happen? What were you thinking?"

"Too many questions. I don't have time to answer them right now," I reply. I scrub a tired hand through my hair. "Lemme guess: Quentin called you?"

"No. He's on a plane right now, but he got your voicemail via text that came to his computer."

"So, who told you I was here?"

"If you must know…it was Jenny. Quentin gave Carmina the heads up, and Carmina apparently told Jenny." He pauses a beat. "You need rest, Ryder."

I snort. "I need a lawyer."

"I am your lawyer. And it turns out your blood alcohol was clean, so I've got that covered. But I still have a bone to pick with you, Ry."

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