Page 28 (2/2)

“He doesn’t want his kids to know that he forgot aboutmoney from one fund to another And he only offered her y wasso inflammatory”

Straightening, Jem looked over at the other ht in his eyes, or the frown beneath that grayed mustache That afternoon was the first he’d heard that theTressa said he’d tried to “pat her on the head” afterward

“She mouthed off when he accused her,” he clarified She’d specifically said she’d been a bit tactless when the elderly investor had first accused her Tressa wasn’t one to ad him the truth

“That’s when she called him an asshole”

Obviously the “tactless” reference Oh, hell Tressa, will you ever learn to hold your daue inside your mouth?

She wasn’t anything like her parents; he’d give her that And couldn’t i up with theular basis

But how much did she have to lose before she realized that people did not tolerate the verbal lashes that seemed perfectly normal to her?

Lord knew he’d tried to tell her She thought he was the one who didn’t get it Until she was in trouble Then she ca to him

And so he caolf Or find some other way to chew on her crow

“Okay, look, Mick, sheaccused of theft She said the conversation took place where other customers could have heard him”

Tressa thought she had a case for slander Jeree He just needed her to be able to keep her job Heto support Tressa forever They were divorced She had to learn to take care of herself

But still, she was the ood heart

“And other than this one incident, she’s been good for the bank,” he continued “She tells rown a third in the year and a half she’s been there”

“She’s good at helping people see how to get their money to work for them”

“Right” At least she had given that to hiht “They benefit and so do you Everyone wins Which is a hell of a lot better than having a salesperson who can convince people to do anything, but then later have it not be good for them”