The Merger – 3

 

Mike stopped by Thirty-One Twelve twice in the next three days, wondering if he'd run into Josh again. He didn't, which he supposed didn't surprise him too much. He did say it was his first time going to the bar, and after I bothered him, he probably decided to make it his last, too.

Therefore, when Rosie, his receptionist, buzzed him Friday afternoon to tell him that a Mr. Aston wanted to see him, Mike had to stop and think for a moment before he realized who she meant.

"He doesn't have an appointment," Rosie added.

"That's all right. I've got a few minutes. Send him in."

"I hope I'm not interrupting something," Josh said when he entered Mike's office.

"Not at all. I just finished doing background checks on potential employees for a client. The only other thing on my calendar at the moment is screening two contractors for a man who is planning a major renovation on his business." Mike smiled, gesturing to the chair by his desk. "Have a seat and save me from total boredom."

Josh chuckled, sitting. "Better you than me. I'd rather be out in the field than staring at a computer screen."

"I totally understand that but half my income comes from this." Mike waved a hand at the laptop.

"And the other half from chasing down insurance fraudsters?"

"Not quite that bad. As I told you at the bar, I do missing person's searches, too. I also do surveillance, serve summons for a couple of lawyers I work with—another bread-and-butter job." Mike smiled wryly "You know…the usual things people expect from a private investigator."

"Most of the things," Josh countered. "You said you don't set up security systems."

"Nope." Mike shrugged. "Not my skill set, as they say. I suppose it could be, if I wanted to get some training, but I manage to keep busy enough without adding that to my résumé."

"Understandable." Josh looked around the office. "You've got a camera in here, which is good, but it's not enough. Any competent thief could break into those." He gestured at the two file cabinets along the wall beside Mike's desk. "At least what you have on the hallway door is decent."

"It better be. I paid enough to have it installed."

"But there's nothing on the other doors."

"Are you trying to sell me on upgrading and having you do it?" Mike asked with a ghost of a smile.

Josh shook his head. "Not really. Like you, I have plenty to keep me busy without having to chase down new jobs." Leaning back, he looked thoughtfully at Mike. "You barely know me and vice versa, but I got the impression when we were at the bar that you pointing out the coincidence that we work in semi-comparable fields was not just casual talk."

"It was and it wasn't," Mike replied, waggling his hand. "I'm well aware I'm lacking a service some of my clients want. I generally send them to one of my competitors if they press the issue."

"Not exactly good for your business if they decide to change over to someone who offers the whole package."

"Most don't because I'm good at what I do. Still, I have lost a couple that way."

"How much room do you have here?" Josh asked.

"That was out of the blue. My office, as you can see, the waiting room, a tiny lavatory, and a room a bit smaller than this one that I use for storage at this point."

"May I see it?"

"Thinking about turning it into an office, too?" Mike asked as he got up. He wondered if that was the case and if this was Josh's subtle way of suggesting they should merge their agencies.