Chapter 16

The morning began smoothly as the two loving women woke up happy and ready for their workout and a new day. I told Jules at breakfast that I had a large check to deposit, and that I wanted her to come to lunch with me so that I could take her by my bank and have her become a signer on my account.

Jules was overcome with delight that I would trust her with all my savings. I told her, "It's only right for you to be able to use my money if we're going to be together as partners/lovers/soulmates forever. You're refusing my rent money and I'm getting more than three grand's worth of living quarters, maid service, food, and car care. I can at least give you access to whatever wealth I have. You see, I trust you more than you think, Jules. I know that you'll try to turn my money into a lot more. I'll enjoy watching it grow, knowing that it could be our life line if something were to happen, and you had a hiccup in the markets at the same time. Just keep the main account growing and use the risk account to play."

There was a car with Nevada tags already there on the other side of Rebecca's Ford, Kelly's Corvette, and Connie's Camry, when I pulled into the office parking lot at seven thirty. That had to be the order of their arrival. I was going to have to get here earlier.

Rebecca was cheerful when she said, "I really like your new assistant. Rey seems like the kind of guy people will want to work with." I gave her the OK sign and checked on how the doors to the new addition were coming along. The smell of new timber, metal studs, drywall, and spackle filled the air, but it was a sign of progress. I looked into the corner office that would become the assistant's, and it looked big enough for someone of importance. What was more important was that the offices looked done.

Rey was sitting at a chair in front of Kelly's desk in my office. She was looking at the application Rey had filled out and comparing it to the application he had filled out when originally applying in Las Vegas. Rey was explaining the differences. He had finished two more university classes toward his MBA while a salesman there. He also said that he had been in a relationship that he had thought would lead to marriage, but didn't work out in the end.

Kelly wasn't frowning, but she seemed concerned and I didn't know what was worrying her.

I told Rey, "Come with me while I make my rounds this morning. Let's see what news they have from yesterday's activity."

Our first stop was the sales department. Matt was holding a meeting to compliment his team for bringing in more than a dozen listings yesterday, along with a total of ten sales. He gave me the floor to introduce Rey, which I did and I told them that he would have to prove himself to them. We left with Matt talking about making sure they got good credit applications from the customers.

Connie was happy to see me, and was almost going to warmly greet Rey, but held back for some reason. I didn't understand, but figured I'd hear what the reason was later.

We checked with finance and the insurance group and they weren't very interested in Rey there either. I sort of waved at Kelly to get lost back down in the office. She took the hint, but I saw her set her iPad up to record our conversation.

As soon as Kelly left, Rey said, "All the introductions were nice, but tell me that you're making a lot more money doing all the stuff our manager was. How much will you cut me in on, and what do I need to do to score a place of my own?"

I asked in a very casual manner, "So what percentage do you think you should get for what I get out of the company?"

Rey said, "How about thirty percent of the fake invoices, for starters. I think I might get about the same on overpriced and under-shipped invoices on materials. I sort of figured you to pick up on the former manager's plan to make me his assistant soon."

I looked at Yori, and then back at Rey. "What else should you get a piece of?"

The man had a lot of moxie, as he said, "How about ten percent of what we get out of construction overcharges."

That was enough. I couldn't handle it any further. I asked him, "Come with me."

Yori figured out that I was done with this guy.

We walked out the front door and I directed him to his car. "Get in your car and go away. Go far, far away. Never even tell anyone that you ever had anything to do with the Mooney Corporation. Do that and I'll forget you ever existed."

I stood by his car with Yori off to the side watching. Rey put his key in the ignition and rolled down the window. He said, "You're making a big mistake. I'm willing to share all your profits with you, but I'm not going to watch you get rich while I do the work."

"Go away, Rey. If you had listened and watched me, you would know I don't do what was being done in your branch office."

The man reached over to his glove box and pulled out some kind of gun that looked like the semi-automatics I had seen lately. He was cycling a round into the chamber as he brought it around toward me. I was so shocked that I didn't know what to do except to hit him as hard as I could right in the middle of the face.

Damn, that hurts.

That caused Rey to move the gun around to where it wasn't pointing at me. Yori was right there and had his weapon under his chin while taking Rey's gun from him, followed by pulling him out of the car.

I got my cell phone out and called 911. The operator said the incident had been reported as soon as I stated where I was, and that a car had been dispatched.

I looked around and could see Rebecca through the door.

Rey was cussing and spitting at Yori until I went up and hit the guy smack in the face with my fist again. As he was on his knees trying to hold his nose, I told him; "You were going to get one of the cherry jobs in the company, and you were so greedy that you couldn't wait for your own opportunity. Now, you get to go to jail and learn how to be someone's bitch, or be just another crook who spends the rest of his life being a punk."

The cops took him away for having an unregistered firearm. We later found out it had been a stolen weapon, and that he had an opportunity to have stolen it. That was worth another five years.

I sat down in my chair and blew out a big breath when everyone was gone. I looked at Kelly and asked her, "How come there are so many really good people, but the ones we have to deal with often are total scum bags? I'm going to do what I wanted to do in the first place."

Kelly questioningly just looked at me.

I told her, "Go relieve Rebecca and have her come see me."

My secretary, my girl, my assistant, knew what was coming, and almost ran out of the office.

Rebecca came in and looked around with a lot of insecurity. I pointed at a chair at the round table where Yori was sitting. She sat while I got up and came over to sit with her. "How about a mug of coffee?"

Rebecca was totally out of her comfort zone, and looked at me for a couple of seconds before saying. "I drink it black, please."

I brought two black coffees and a green tea for Yori.

I looked at Rebecca and said, "I thought of you when I began thinking of an assistant, but knew that I would get a lot of resistance from people because you weren't the college girl, the daughter of someone important, or the person who had worked their way up. I liked you for the way you made things happen, became involved with everything, and advised me of what was happening. That is a unique talent."

I looked at Rebecca long enough to make her squirm, uncomfortable from being observed.

"I want you to be my assistant, Rebecca."

I watched her go through several emotions before she relaxed in the chair and smiled at me. This woman, who had been nothing but professional so far, looked me in eye and asked, "Does that mean that I get to go home with you to fuck Katie, Jules, and you?"

I was really happy to not have any coffee near my lips. I jumped up in shock, and was about to yell at her until I saw the mischievous look on her face. I wanted to put any future questions to rest and told her, "Never, ever, say anything like that to me in the office. You are too important to me to talk like that, Rebecca. We'll meet somewhere if you want to talk to me in that manner and you can talk until you get it all out."

I looked around and Yori was the only witness.

"Will you be my assistant?"

Rebecca said to me, "I'd love to be your assistant. Thank you for even considering me."

Done deal.

I told her, "Find me a new receptionist who will be what you have been. Teach her to become everyone's friend and confidant. The value of a receptionist is that she or he has the pulse of the business and can tell me in advance of a problem. You know what I need, and I want you to impart that to the new person."

Rebecca smiled and told me, "Do you want to meet your new receptionist this afternoon?"

I looked at my new assistant, and told her, "Get her in here and let's begin teaching her."

Kelly returned, and when the office was empty except for Yori, she said, "You're unleashing an amazing amount of energy into this place. That woman is full of an explosive personality that will blanket everyone in the office. You'll be fully involved trying to maintain your place here."

I told the two; "I'm going to try and channel that energy to make her the assistant that I want her to be. It will be how we can work together to be successful from now on."

Julio came to my office door, and said, "Your addition in front is done. All you need is furniture. Your data guy wired them for phone and data while we had the walls open. The upstairs isn't finished yet, so figure out how you want to use that area and we'll get right on it."

Rebecca was busy at the reception counter, and asked me how I wanted the rooms furnished. I told her, "Get Alec to do her thing, but tell her that the rooms will be used for both architect interviews and closings. You and Alec should work on the corner office too. That will be your office. We'll be close enough to interact and you will have some privacy to do what you'll need to.

I had been busy enough that I hadn't realized that the time was flying by. Rebecca called me to the front. Kelly jumped up and said, "I'm coming with you. I want to meet the new receptionist too."

We walked out of the office and to the lobby. Rebecca was outside her counter area, hugging a girl about the same height as her and Kelly. This person separated from Rebecca and I wanted to run and hide. This girl was something. She was dressed in a very conservative skirt and top, but there was something about her that was yelling sex, sex, sex. I was actually staggered that someone could affect me even more than Willy.

Rebecca was actually beaming as she introduced the woman. "This is Joan Trent. She was the receptionist for the Collins group, and just left there. She's experienced handling office manager duties and I believe she will be as good, if not better than I am, at that job."

"It's nice to meet you, Joan. Can you come back to my office for a few minutes, and then I'll let Rebecca show you around. I let Kelly lead Joan toward my office while Rebecca held my arm. She was grinning when I looked at her, and asked, "Nice, huh? Don't you think this office can handle at least one more good-looking woman?"

"You should have warned me in advance, Rebecca. I was ready to run down the hall. My second thought was to not entertain the thought of hiring her, just to keep within the no employee shenanigans policy, because I would be the one breaking them."

She asked, "Do you want me to be with you when you interview her?"

"I'll be fine. Kelly will be with me."

Yori was actually blushing and trying to focus on his pad when I went into my office. I introduced Joan to Yori, explaining that he was a companion for a while, since some people think I may need a keeper after coming to LA. Joan and Kelly both laughed.

"I'm sure you know the first question, so give me the answer that you need to give, and then tell me the real reason. Why did you leave a major law firm of the stars?"

Joan said, "I wanted to spend more time with my family."

"Okay, now tell me the real reason."

You could tell she was distressed, and looked to Kelly to help. Kelly told her, "Tell Brad the truth. He'll always do that too, so unload if you need to."

"I made a mistake with one of the partners. He was so good-looking and constantly flirted. He didn't wear a ring and seemed to always have several women calling him. I jumped at the chance when he asked me out to dinner, even though I knew he probably was a big time playboy. The guy really gave me the rush with dinner, dancing, flowers, and I was on my back so fast that I didn't even believe it. Dummy me; I should have found out more about him, but I didn't. He left me alone like a true playboy once he tried me out for a while. I didn't care, because I had friends who I went out with. He would go through a week about every six weeks when he couldn't get enough of me, and then he would go on to his other women. I think he liked the idea that I didn't show jealousy or anything like that. I was there almost five years when the catastrophe happened. We were in my apartment when some people used a passkey or jimmied the lock, and came storming in while we were busy, if you know what I mean. They took pictures and a woman with them was yelling and screaming at the guy. It was his wife. I was so dumb. The guy dressed and beat feet, and I called the cops for a home invasion. I had made two of the men give me their business cards and I stalled them until the cops got there and arrested them all for breaking and entering."

That was bad in itself, and I figured that no one from the office would know and thought my job would be fine. I worked hard for those people, taking care of all those minor problems that come up. Another partner asked me out a couple of months ago, and I told him no because I knew that he was married. Another invitation came from another partner the next day. This went on until every last partner had asked me out, and I didn't go with any of them because they were all married. The guy who is now involved in a divorce asked me out last week, and said it would be legal now. I thought why not, the guy isn't attached now. Well, he took me to his apartment in Hollywood that must cost about five grand a month, and was going to take me straight to bed. I thought something was wrong, because I saw a few suit coats lying around and none of them were the type he would wear. The other thing was that his other bedroom door was closed and it had never been closed before when I had played with him there. I opened the door as I passed by, and one of the partners who was in the bedroom hollered, 'Hey, the entertainment for tonight is here'."

I did a 180 and was going to try to leave. The partners from the other bedroom came running out, telling me this could be the start of something big. The man was holding a stack of hundreds and telling me that I could have those and more every time we could get together. I dialed 911 and was giving the operator the address because I was afraid they wouldn't let me out. The partner I had dated pulled me to the door and pushed me out. That was exactly what I wanted. I sure as hell didn't want to be the one in the barrel for a gangbang."

Almost every partner said that I should have stayed the next morning, as I could have made five times more in a night than what I made in a week at the front desk. He even asked me if I would go out with him for a thousand. That's when I typed my resignation up and left. I don't know whether or not they will send me my last paycheck, but I'm out of there. I'll never go out with a guy again until I can confirm whether or not he's married."

"That's a hell of a story, Joan. Are there any skeletons in the closet?"

"Yeah, a big one, but you may not ever see what I did. I tried the movies and was soon involved with a porn movie studio. I made a total of six full-length sex movies. I made some good money, but I could also see that something that I enjoy could become a chore and just work. I like all that stuff and get off on guys checking me out. I saw your reaction to me, and you handled it well, thank you. Your secretary is as nice as I am, and Rebecca isn't bad at all. She says that you have more foxes here and none of them are getting any of you. Rebecca knows that I've been a little loose before, and told me that you don't put up with any in-house fooling around. I agree with that, and I promise I won't flaunt myself at you or any others."

I said, "That's cleared up at least. How do you know Rebecca?"

Joan smiled, and said, "She will have to tell you about that, but suffice it to say that we're good friends."

Kelly told Joan, "The boss doesn't mind if we date guys from the office, but it has to be out of the office and no influence on our jobs. There are a couple single guys around, including the boss, but he does have a committed relationship with a couple of real choice women."

Joan said, "Ooh, my kind of guy. So you're enjoying two, huh?"

"Not good office conversation. Go let Rebecca work with you for the last hour and half we'll be here today."

I watched her walk out and noticed that Yori even had to adjust his posture. Kelly laughed, and said, "Can you believe that one? She is a walking sex bomb and talks about it. I didn't note one bit of embarrassment about her porn days. I want to get one of her movies and watch it. I'll bet it's hot."

I leaned back in my chair, and said to Kelly, "How about trading that drafting table for another desk and nice chair for Yori. I think I'm going to have him do more. He likes to investigate, so I'm going to have him run all of the key people in the offices I will be working. By the way, Kelly, I need the files for Reno and San Diego. I'm going to San Diego tomorrow, but you already know that. Let Rebecca use my desk and PC tomorrow. It'll probably take a day or two to get furniture in the new rooms. She can also work with Ken and Alec to design how to use the new space upstairs.

I called Dorothy at the home office. "You won't believe this, but the kid from Las Vegas wanted a cut of my action. He meant a cut of what I was skimming from the company. I walked him out and he pulled a gun on me. I hit the man, but it was self-defense and the cops discovered the gun had been stolen when they came. Anyway, the guy is terminated, and I will have Vegas cut the termination papers unless you can do it from there."

Dorothy asked, "That was Rey, wasn't it? I really thought he was going to be a good one for us. That's too bad and now you have to start your search all over again."

"Nope, it's done. I promoted my receptionist to become my assistant. We need to bring a female or two on, and I'm the guy to do it. I won't fool around with them, and I'll teach them to be the best damn managers the company has ever had."

Dorothy said, "Bless you, Brad. You're the first with the guts to use some of the female talent that's available. Rebecca has been with us a while, and I know she's savvy about the business. Teach her your way and she'll be very valuable, Brad."

"Oh, the aircraft will be in LA Thursday through Sunday, Brad. Use it. Where to?"

"Reno. I think I can do everything in a day. I'll go to the Bay Area and maybe up to Sacramento next week. I don't want to mess around with good operating offices, but want to meet the managers and key people. I'll look over their activity and how they operate. I'll try to give them a push in areas that might be weak. You know me; I don't try to fix something that doesn't need fixing."

"Call me as soon as you can so that I can have the pilot and crew get in touch with you, Brad. Congratulations on hiring a woman as your assistant. I'll bet other offices begin doing it now that you've broken the ice."

I asked Kelly, "San Diego is tomorrow, and should I do Reno Thursday or Friday? I think I'll go on Thursday and be back here for the close of the week."

Kelly nodded. "Good idea. I like that schedule. Do you want me to call Dorothy for you?"

"Do it."

I turned to Yori, "So, are you supposed to go out of town with me?"

Yori smiled and said, "Dai was instructed to keep me with you. You'll have to speak with Hideki to get rid of me."

I told Yori, "Hideki often knows more than most others, and I respect that. I'll enjoy having you with me if he feels you should be at my back. Next question, what do you think about driving to San Diego? Do you want to share the drive with me, or do we use Brindle?"

The man thought of this long and hard. He said, "Use Brindle. You'll be fresher and she loves to drive. Use the time going down to get ready and the time coming back for your reports. I know you like to do them as fast as possible, and you will have the whole back seat. You need to instruct her that you will use the BMW, or you'll be in the Bentley. Michi loves that big car and can take Katie to work and go get her. Hideki doesn't want Katie taking the bus anymore."

I wondered if Jules might be able to use Katie as an assistant in working the markets. They could do it all from home and remain safe.

My phone alarm went off and I realized it was four fifty-five. I straightened my desk and shut my PC down. Kelly was just about finished, and handed me the files for Reno and San Diego. She said, "I took them back to put some more information in them. I think you're ready. Don't forget to charge your laptop, or do you have a car charger?"

"I have one and will use it. I should have decent internet coverage with hotspots along the way."

I slid the files into my slim Samsonite briefcase and walked out to the front with Yori. Rebecca had come out from behind the desk and stood next to me. I stopped people so they would bunch up in the lobby tonight. When I could see everyone from upstairs and down, I announced, "The man who was going to be my assistant didn't work out. You'll all hear why in time. What's more important is that Rebecca has accepted the promotion to be my assistant for the LA, and eventually the California region. I'll be traveling and Rebecca will be where the buck stops here. Help her learn and keep her informed the same way you do me now, and keep talking to me too. We are going to be one hell of a special office."

"One more change is that we have a new receptionist who is very experienced and will be fun to have around. Joan Trent comes to us highly recommended by Rebecca, so you know she'll be good. Tell her all your secrets so that she can be 'gossip central' the way a good receptionist should be. Thank you all for another great day. Tomorrow is going to be even better. Now get out of here."

Everyone was laughing and full of smiles.

When Joan came from behind the counter, she asked, "Do you do that every night? That is so special that you would do that. Does that mean Rebecca will be doing it by herself every night when you travel?"

Rebecca smiled and elbowed Joan. "Just look how far I've come in just a few short years. We're on the rise, Joan. Now I can't wait until you meet this guy's women. You'll be one up on almost everyone who meets them if you can keep your hands off them."

Joan may have made a mistake by the way she casually asked Rebecca, "So what do we have in the fridge or freezer for supper? I didn't buy a lot because I didn't know if I would have a job right away."

Rebecca heavily blushed, and quietly said to me, "Don't tell anyone that we're roommates. We've known each other for a lot of years, and it's very convenient that we room together. Have Jules and Katie invite us out for supper, and we'll give you the real dirt. I know they would enjoy us."

They went to their cars, and Yori smiled at me with a raised eyebrow. The plot thickens.

The drive home was decent without the usual stop and go in wall to wall traffic. You never know what's changed to allow a normal – or maybe that should be abnormal – drive home. Jules was in my arms for a hug and kiss as soon as the two of us stepped into the house. She said, "Come into the office a minute. Have Charles or Steven make you a drink, and come see what I've done today."

I walked into the saloon and Steven gave me a drink. I took it to the office with me, where Jules had the desk covered with papers that were all labeled 'Deal Sheet'. She pointed to the top left, and said, "I pulled two hundred grand from your account, and used it to buy copper because I had several others willing to go in with me to buy two million dollars worth. The price was too high to stay by ten this morning, so I sold for an eight percent profit, and I then invested what we had in the Russian Ruble because it was being leaked they were going to shore their currency up, and it would have a much greater value. They announced it at noon our time and I was able to sell for an almost unheard of twenty-two percent profit. The Greeks are still in the toilet, but the Euro is being propped up again, so I bought a few million there and was going to sit back, but Germany began buying Euros for some very strong numbers. I sold out to them, and then leveraged everything into a new offering, an IPO on the tech exchange. We were there first and the price on the shares being held skyrocketed when the original IPO offering sold out. We could have made more, but I needed the cash to buy Yuan at the bottom of the market. China always comes through and brings the yuan back strong. I sold the stocks at a huge profit, and bought enough yuan to fill a couple of freighters. The yuan was peaking three hours later, so I dumped it all. Just to keep the money invested, I bought gold that may or may not go up a percent overnight. Let's see, I think I have made your two hundred thousand into three hundred and fifteen thousand today."

I was stunned. Jules had just demonstrated her knowledge of the markets and her feel for what was going to happen. I had more than a fifty percent profit. Jules kissed me and said, "I get paid commission for the trades, of course, but that is already taken out of it, and I put a lot of my money in the deals too so I made a ton, a lot of money. My grandfather found out how much money I made for him today and wants to treat us. I told him that a treat would be for them to eat with us, so they are coming for dinner."

Katie came in and kissed Jules, then me, and then Jules again. "I was almost squirting at my desk when you texted me that you had made me almost a million, and a million in our joint account. I had to go to the bathroom and relieve myself. Can you imagine that? I'm a millionaire, and Jules and I have a joint account that is probably close to five million. How much is Jules worth? Don't ask."

I told the two, "Who cares? I have you two for all the love I can handle. You're a magician in the markets, Jules. How much are you handling for all the different people you invest for?"

Jules thought about it a few seconds, and said, "I think about a hundred and twenty million right now. I made a lot of commission for the many trades I did today, but every trade ended up making good money for the investors. I don't take a commission or charge a trade fee when I finish a day and put everything in gold. I put the capital in gold to insure it for the night or a few days. The markets are going to be cold tomorrow after such a hot day. They will probably back off a little for a while, unless there is a currency exchange or buy-up somewhere. Japan is due, and the Korean Won may be moving, but I'll just watch and move when I see we can make a hit."

We moved into the saloon where I had my drink refilled and the girls were served what they wanted. I asked, "Should I take a quick shower? This has been a crazy day."

Jules said, "I've heard all about it. Rebecca kept me informed when you had the guy from Las Vegas arrested. You'll have to tell us about that. She then called me to tell me you promoted her to be your new assistant. It's so neat that you made a woman your assistant. She also told me that you scolded her for making an improper remark."

"It's just like the Kelly thing. I want my office to be the best place a person can work, male or female."

Jules was grinning now, and said, "I've already heard about your new receptionist. Is she really so good looking that you thought you might just tell her to go away?"

I thought for a second, "You know, she's really not as attractive as Willy or your pictures of Cindy, but she exudes sex. You two would be leaking if you checked her out. Surprisingly, it wasn't long before I was able to see her as a person instead of the sexy goddess she is. Have Kelly tell you her story she told about her past and why she was looking for a job. It's interesting. Better yet, invite Rebecca and Joan out for dinner and have a chat with her. She isn't bashful and easily tells her story."

Charles announced, "Hideki and Nobuko Kamatsu, and Dai Kaba."

There was a flurry of activity between the women, while Hideki took me by the arm and led me to the library with Dai following. Hideki asked me to take my suit coat off once inside. I did and Dai pulled out some kind of harness and fitted it to me, adjusting the various points until he was satisfied. He asked me to put my coat back on, and then produced a gun to slide into the holster.