Working Stiff(69)

“He has cleaning people come in a couple times a week, but he can take care of himself. He doesn’t need a staff.”

“Interesting. He’s always been very private. I imagine that’s part of it, too.”

He wasn’t private. Usually, he was an extrovert of the first order who was the center of every conversation.

Although, now that she thought about it, Cash didn’t talk about himself much. He talked to other people about themselves.

She asked Maxence, “Was he so private when you guys were in school together?” she asked.

Maxence tilted his head and watched the coffee drip for a moment. “I’ll let him tell you about that.”

“You guys do keep each others’ secrets, huh?”

He shrugged. “Arthur told me what you said about Casimir’s car accident.”

“It was really bad. He’s still recovering, really.”

“Physically, he seems all right.”

“He’s still taking it easy in the gym. I think the incision still might be sore inside, the one where they took out his spleen.”

“We’ve got to get him out today. If he wins this round, it will establish that we will allow him to become a hermit.”

Rox nodded. “He’s not going to want to.”

“I’ll be back from Mass in a few hours. After that, we will get him to that animal shelter of yours, yes?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

The coffee finished gurgling into the pot, and Maxence took a cup, black. It did seem that he was intent on mortifying his flesh, even with black coffee. They talked about politics and cats while they drank a cup each.

He did, however, seem to savor even the black coffee as if he hadn’t had it for a while.

When she mentioned the animal shelter again, Maxence asked questions about how long she had volunteered there, how many animals it housed, what their needs were, and how much she was spending every month to keep it afloat.

And he smiled.

Rox tried really hard not to stare when Maxence smiled, but damn.

She said, “I buy a couple hundred dollars’ worth of food every month, and I know that Brandy buys that much, too. She’s down there every day, though. The county employs people during business hours—barely, for minimum wage, and it’s almost all teenagers whose daddies are on the city council—but not on weekends. Brandy runs that place, keeping everyone rotating in and making sure that the chores get done every day. I just do the books and help out on Sundays.”

“That’s admirable,” Maxence said, and he smiled again, a slow glow that started deep in his dark eyes and spread over his face.

“I feel stupid that I haven’t gotten him out of the house before now,” Rox admitted.

“No, no,” Maxence said, and Rox heard more of an accent in that. Something not-British. “He needed to be cared for and coddled for a while. I doubt he’s ever had that before. You took care of him when he needed it, and you didn’t turn away.”

She frowned. “Well, of course not.”

“Some people are very shallow. I sense that you’re not. That’s good for Casimir. I think you’re good for Casimir. We all overindulged in hedonism when we were younger, and Casimir started later and so felt he had to catch up. He needs someone like you, someone who will take care of him. Now, however, he needs to be kicked out into the world. You called for reinforcements at just the right time.”

“If you don’t mind, where are you from?” Rox asked. “Your accent isn’t quite as British as Cash’s.”

Maxence leaned in. “Really? What does it sound like?”

“A little French, maybe? A little Italian?”

He shrugged. “I’m Monégasque, from Monaco. It’s near Italy and France.”

“Hmm. That’s interesting. What’s Arthur?”

“Do you think he has an accent?” Maxence asked, leaning on his elbows. His biceps bulged under his shirt. The three of these guys walking down a street was going to cause a riot.

She said, “British, just British, I think.”

Maxence’s smile was more amused this time. “He’s one of the few of us who is an actual Anglophone. He is English, very English, more of an Englishman than any one of the English princes. Just ask him.”

Rox laughed. “That sounds ominous.”

“He needles people, but sometimes, he’s just what we all need.” Maxence finished his coffee, checked the time on his phone, and held out his hand. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Rox. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Do you need a ride somewhere?”

“Not at all. Arthur and I rented cars, but thank you.”