Page 19 of Wolf's Whistle
“You already did the country a great service by disclosing the faulty power supply,” Julien interrupted smoothly. “In return, you were reviled by Switched Power. We’d like to make some of that up to you. Take what you need. As Julio said, you can pay it forward.”
Richard liked Julien too much to refuse and annoy him so he reluctantly agreed. “I’ll take the suits and whatever else you think I need for school and work, but I will pay you back.”
“I know you will, mon ange. We’ll go out after we eat. Now, I know how you need to dress for work, but you have to tell me how you’d like to dress at home.”
“Rugby shirts, golf shirts, jeans, chinos, khakis, sweaters, T-shirts, sweats. I have a few boxes of decent casual clothes and two reasonably priced suits. I know I need sleep pants and T-shirts if I’m going to be around people in the mornings.” Richard lowered his gaze to his plate.
“You also need a robe and slippers.” Julien chuckled.
“Yeah, they are pretty ratty.” Richard’s skin grew hot. “Mom bought them for me to wear in college my senior year in high school. Between the loans and Mom, I didn’t have much disposable income for clothes.”
Isabel served brunch. They had just finished coffee when the bell rang. Marcel came running up the stairs, “Eh…Mr. La Marche is here with Sean.”
Etienne rolled his eyes. “Armand likes to help the board go shopping for their interns. This is not a democracy.”
Julio hid his laughter behind a cough. Sean stepped out of the elevator as Julien and Etienne went downstairs to welcome Armand.
“I should have known,” Julio laughed, “Armand can’t resist shopping. But at least he’s not still talking over our heads as if we weren’t there.”
“My husband is much maligned,” Sean said theatrically. Then he totally ruined the effect by giggling. “Armand doesn’t want to admit he likes to go out to buy clothes. So, he goes shopping with his board members when they outfit their, eh…interns. That way he can say he went tohelpdress their Ma… interns properly.”
Richard regarded Julio. “Why are clothes so important? I mean, I’m an intern with Garou, not an officer.”
“You’re a direct reflection on Julien. If you are prosperous, he’s considered to be prosperous. Garou is a very competitive place to work. You have to exude confidence. Clothes are part of the uniform.” Sean grabbed a fresh cup and poured himself some coffee. Isabel put out more food for Sean and Armand.
“Garou has certain standards. Your stipend wouldn’t cover the clothing or electronics to convey the type of impression you need to make.” Isabel put out more bagels, croissants and Danish pastries as soon as Armand and Sean arrived. Julio picked up a poppy seed bagel and spread cream cheese on the top.
“I must admit there are things I’d like to have that I could buy with my stipend besides clothing. I haven’t bought a book in so long. I’ve missed out on Jason Jones’ last two series. My Kindle went kaput. It died right after Mom did. I used to read Colin’s books while I sat with Mom in the hospice. I wanted to buy the new ones, but I couldn’t afford them, nor could I afford a new Kindle.”
“We’ll get you a new Kindle right away. Do you have a charge card to use on Amazon?” Julio asked between bites of his bagel.
“I have a card from Chicago, and I don’t owe any money on it. I couldn’t afford to make payments. It is associated with my Amazon account. I could place an order for a new Kindle.” Richard speculated.
“Don’t, you’ll need a new phone and the new phones are also readers and play audio books. You might want to go that route.” Sean brushed the crumbs off his short-sleeved shirt.
“I’ll wait to buy a phone and then I can buy Colin’s books. I’m really anticipating reading the last series that I missed. It all seems so real. Colin writes well, and what’s better, he likes what he writes. He doesn’t feel like he has to write a pretentious novel. He writes what he enjoys. Do I have time for another cup of coffee?”
“Of course, you do,” Julien said as he came up the stairs. “Armand, would you like some coffee?”
“One cup and then we have to go. I took the liberty of making an appointment with Mr. Abbott at noon, and it’s eleven now.” Armand poured himself a cup. “By the way, I had Murphy do some digging on Mr. Kasun. It seems he had many associates who wished him gone. From what Murphy told me, he was a cruel bastard. You escaped just in time.”
“Somehow I always knew that was the case,” Richard said, “no matter hownicehe tried to be to me. When he spoke to anyone else, his true character surfaced. I should have changed jobs, but since I worked at the grocery store and the bar, the two places had to be close to each other and my apartment so I could get to work on time.”
Armand nodded and finished his coffee. “Let’s get going. Those suits aren’t going to make themselves.”
Everyone pushed plates away or set down cups and stood.
Chapter Five
Richard’s Bedroom
Thursday
They got down to the foyer, and Richard’s eyes opened wide, and his cheeks flushed. “I’m sorry, I have to get my wallet,” he told the assembled group.
Sean spoke up, “That’s okay, Julio and I will go with you. We’d like to see your room.”
When they reached it, Richard welcomed them inside. “The paint job is beautiful. It resembles charcoal-gray suede.”
