Page 24 of Act Like You Don't Care
"Floor to ceiling. Even the bedroom."
"Of course." Jim squeezed into the elevator, holding the last of the bags. "I might need to rethink some of this."
I poked one of the bags with my toe. "What do you have in here?"
"Mostly the usual stuff. He's up high enough we probably don't have to worry too much about someone accessing through the windows, but I want to cover his door, and give him a panic room you can put him in if anything goes wrong."
The elevator doors opened. "He's going to love that," I said, and stuck my head out to see if anyone was around.
"He doesn't have to love it, he just has to have it."
We paused in front of Tam's front door and I punched in the code. "He's still asleep, so keep it down."
As soon as the bags were inside, I checked the corridor again to see if anyone had noticed us, then followed Jim in and closed the door, leaving the alarm unset. "So, this is the place."
Jim wandered between the living room and the kitchen, an admiring look on his face. "In other circumstances, this would be a nice spot to live. That view..." He went over to the sliding door in the living room and opened it briefly to peer out onto the larger of the two balconies. "I'll wire this one up now. You said there are others?"
"Master bedroom, guest room. That dining area there. None of the bathrooms have windows if you’re looking for a panic room. We’re going to need cameras, too, but he’s got concerns about privacy.”
“Can’t say I blame him. Did you notice that there aren’t many of those tabloid-style pictures of him out there? I mean, he’s obviously not in control of every picture, but somehow he’s managing to control what sort of pictures get out.”
I nodded. “There’s more to him than the stories let on. Every objection he’s raised has been about his career goals, not his comfort or his ego. He’s been a lot easier to work with than I’d expected.” I met Jim’s eyes and let a small smile curl my lips. “He’s apologized to me a couple of times already over small things.”
“Miracles! Or maybe he’s just softening you up before he goes in for the kill,” Jim joked. “Where do you want to start?”
“Out here, I guess. You can do the guest room tonight too and I'll talk to him about you doing the master tomorrow while we're away."
"Yeah, Dad showed me the schedule," Jim said absently as he traced around the edge of the glass. "Okay, I know what I want to do. You need to sleep, or can you give me a hand for a couple of hours?"
"I'm good, don't worry about me."
By a quarter to three in the morning, we had all the doors to the balconies wired, all the windows that would open wired, and the rest of the glass covered in a thin film that not only would make it harder to break but carried a microcurrent that would also set off the alarm if it was broken.
"Let me know what it looks like tomorrow," Jim asked as he packed up his tools. "I haven't used this brand before, but it’s supposed to let the most light through. Those curtains have to go, by the way."
"I sent Mom an email." I twitched the maligned curtains back into place. "You can leave your stuff in my room if you want."
"Naw, I'll bring it back with me if the ferocious omega lets me back in."
"Don't call him that," I snapped. "He's our client."
"Uh-huh," my brother said. "Well, I'm out of here." He grinned and gave me a one-armed hug. "Just be careful."
“Jim,” I said threateningly as my brother laughed and picked up his duffel bags.
"Since when am I not allowed to tease my little brother? I thought that was my pay for all those years you followed me around."
I checked the hallway again, then ushered my brother out the door. "You were babysitting, I was supposed to follow you around. And I don't notice me needing supervision now."
"I dunno," my brother said, and craned his neck to peer back inside the condo. "I mean, it is Laydon's apartment you're in."
"Shut up, and get out," I whispered and started pushing him down the hall toward the elevator. "I'll call you tomorrow about codes and finishing up in Tam's room." Thankfully, the elevator opened right up when I hit the button.
"So are you guys really on a first name basis--"
I pushed my brother into the elevator, ignoring the grin, and hit the button for the parking garage. "Good night, Jim.” I stood watching as the door slid shut on him, then headed back to the apartment to grab a shower and some sleep before Tam's six in the morning wake up time.
Tam
