Advice of Counsel (The Samuel Collins Series Book 1)

by Trueman, Debra

  Landra looked at her watch. “You ready to go?”

  I went next door and retrieved Oliver and his car seat while Landra fetched Mrs. Howard, and we all met back at my house and I installed the car seat in the back seat of my Suburban, which was no easy feat. If four days earlier, someone had told me that I would be driving an 80-year-old woman, an almost-4-year-old boy, and a beautiful con-artist to dinner, I would have told them, when hell freezes over. But there I was, Mrs. Howard sitting next to me, Oliver in his car seat behind me, and Landra Krally next to him. Unbelievable.

  “So, which side are you on with the deer?” Landra asked me.

  I had no idea what she was talking about. “What do you mean?”

  I was watching her in the rearview mirror. She was playing some game with Oliver that involved covering her eyes, and every time she took her hand away from her face, Oliver laughed.

  “I’m surprised you haven’t heard. Park residents either love them or hate them. And both sides are equally passionate in defending their views.”

  “I like the deer,” I told her. “That’s part of the reason I moved here. Where else can you sit on your front porch while a dozen deer graze through your yard? I think it’s awesome.”

  Mrs. Howard had been humming to herself and I wasn’t sure if she had even been listening to the conversation, but she reached over and patted my arm. “We like them too,” she said smiling at me. I could tell she was glad we were on the same side.

  She hadn’t brought muffins over for the last two mornings and I had actually been disappointed. “What happened to my muffins?” I asked her, slowing down to let a doe cross the street.

  “Oh! I was out of flour, but Landra brought me some today so I’ll do some baking tomorrow.” She patted my arm again. “It’s nice to have someone to bake for.”

  We got to the restaurant and stood in line to order. The place is decked out with rustic old license plates and neon beer signs hanging on the walls. They have a good selection of imported beer and I always thought they should put in a nice beer garden out back – a place for the local Parkers to hang out. As it was, they had a back room where they could roll up the walls when it was nice outside, which would have to suffice.

  We took a table in the back room, but no sooner had our food come, than Oliver announced that he had to use the bathroom.

  “Right now?” I asked in disbelief.

  “I’m busting,” he said dramatically. He crossed his legs and sort of danced in place.

  I looked at Landra, waiting for her to volunteer.

  “I want you to take me,” Oliver told me, pulling on my hand.

  I looked at her again, but no offer was forthcoming. In fact, I could tell that both she and Mrs. Howard were amused and that neither of them planned to bail me out. I groaned and got up and followed Oliver to the bathroom. After an eternity, we returned to the table. My burger was cold and the fries were gone.

  “What happened to all the fries?”

  Landra stopped chewing and looked guilty, then she finished her bite and swallowed hard. “Sorry.”

  “You ate all the fries?”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, looking up at me with those big brown eyes. “I’ll get another order,” she said, jumping out of her chair.

  For some reason, her hearty appetite was a real turn-on. “Don’t worry about it,” I told her, pushing her back into her seat.

  “No. I insist,” she said. She got up and disappeared through the door, and Oliver and I sat down and started eating. Landra reappeared within minutes with another order of fries. She set the fries down in front of me, then salted them and squirted ketchup in the corner of the tray, then she proceeded to eat at least half of the order. I was impressed to no end.

  “No wonder you have to work out,” I told her.

  Landra narrowed her eyes and pointed at me with the last fry. “Are you insinuating that I eat too much?”

  “Let’s just say that I wouldn’t want to be stranded anywhere with you if there was a food shortage.

  Mrs. Howard laughed and Landra acted insulted. “You want the last one?” she offered.

  “Not after you’ve had your fingers all over it.”

  She looked me in the eye and held the stare with this cute little smile on her face. She was playing with me, teasing me, and right there in front of Mrs. Howard. I took the challenge and stared right back at her and made her look away first. She laughed out loud and polished off the last fry.

  We drove home after dinner and I pulled into Mrs. Howard’s driveway and dropped the two of them off, then I parked the Suburban in my driveway and walked Oliver home. Maddie greeted us at the door.

  “How was it?” she asked, bending down and hugging Oliver.

  “It was fun!” Oliver said.

  “I forgot your car seat,” I told Maddie.

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s a spare.”

  I reached down and messed up Oliver’s hair, then gave his head a little shove. “See ya later, Oliver.”

  He wrapped himself around my legs. “Bye, Samuel. You want to play catch tomorrow?”

  “I don’t know. We’ll see.”

  I went back to my house and Landra was sitting on my front porch petting the Siamese. Shit . . . about both of them.

  “I can’t believe he lets you near him.”

  “Siam loves me,” she said, rubbing him behind the ears. She picked him up and nuzzled her head against his. “Don’t you?” she asked the cat.

  “Siam? That’s his name?” I could hear him purring from five feet away.

  She put the cat down and stood up. “I think I left my jacket in your car.”

  We walked over to the Suburban and Landra retrieved her jacket, then she followed me back to my front steps. I had no intention of inviting her in. Landra Krally was nothing but trouble. I knew that. But I was thinking with the Old Fella again, and with each minute I spent near her, the importance of my neighbors’ welfare slid further and further down the scale.

  “Aren’t you going to invite me in?” she asked, cocking her head to the side and flashing me that smile.

  “I hadn’t planned to.”

  “Why not? Do you have a girlfriend?”

  “No one I date exclusively.”

  Landra rolled her eyes. “Typical lawyer response. So that’s a no? You don’t have a girlfriend?” she said, pinning me down to a definitive answer.

  “No. I don’t have a girlfriend,” I admitted. “And I’m not looking for one either.”

  “Sure you are,” she said confidently.

  She turned me around and directed me towards my front door, then she followed me inside and hung her jacket on the coat rack by the door.

  “Make yourself at home,” I said sarcastically.

  “Okay. Thanks.”

  “Has anyone ever accused you of being overly assertive?” I asked her.

  “First I eat too much and now I’m overly assertive? Come on Sam, can’t you say anything nice?” She led the way through the living room to the kitchen.

  “That’s Samuel to you. And no, I can’t say anything nice, because frankly I’m afraid where it might lead.”

  Landra laughed out loud. “Why? What do you think’s gonna happen?”

  “Nothing’s gonna happen. That’s what I think.” I opened the fridge and took out two beers and handed one to Landra. She had these nice full lips that were just begging to be kissed.

  “You want to know what I think?” she asked, moving closer to me.

  I held my ground. “Not particularly,” I said, holding her stare.

  “I think you’re scared of girls.”

  This time it was my turn to laugh. “Only one of them.” My eyes were locked on hers and I was dangerously close to doing something I knew I would regret.

  Without taking her eyes off mine, Landra set her beer down on the counter and moved in right next to me. She slid her arms around my waist, clasping her hands behind my back, then she turned her face up towar
ds mine and fixed those damn eyes on me.

  “I am so attracted to you,” she said, and that was it. To hell with the neighbors. I was a goner.

  I took her head in my hands and I brought my mouth down to meet hers. Her lips were soft, and mine molded perfectly to them. I kissed her long and hard, probing her mouth with my tongue while she reciprocated with matched vigor. She smelled so clean and she felt so soft and warm that I couldn’t stop. I breathed in her scent and I ran my fingers through her hair as the kiss progressively intensified then slowed to a more passionate, leisurely pace. I picked her up and she wrapped her legs around my waist, and she used the leverage she had gained to become the aggressor. The girl was sparring with me, even as we kissed! I put her back down and pinned her against the fridge and the pace and furor picked up again as I regained the upper hand. She put her hands on my shoulders and tried to climb up me, but I rested my weight against her so she couldn’t move. We had both started to laugh and I finally had to end the kiss because our teeth were colliding.

  Landra threw her arms around my neck, laughing out loud. “Oh my God, that was awesome! Can I be your girlfriend?”

  Now, I’d had quite a few partners in my time, but none that I had wanted as badly as I wanted Landra Krally right then. I had a colossal erection that was threatening to bust my zipper and I was breathing hard just from kissing her. I wanted to rip her clothes off and take her right there on the kitchen floor, but something stopped me. She wasn’t the kind of girl that a guy could do that to and hope to see again. And I definitely wanted to see her again, and a whole lot more of her for that matter. Landra Krally was fun. And I hadn’t dated anyone who I would classify as fun for a long time. Plus, she was a great sparring partner. Shit, even in the depth and breadth of a heated kiss, she was trying to one-up me. Yeah, Landra Krally could be my girlfriend any day, but I wasn’t about to tell her that.

  “Didn’t your mother ever tell you it’s not safe to seduce a guy you don’t even know in his own home?” I was trying to sound serious but I couldn’t pull it off because I was still laughing.

  “Well, I won’t make a habit of it.” She ducked under my arm and retrieved her beer and handed me mine, then she backed me up against the counter and stood right in front of me, leaning her weight against me. “If I can’t be your girlfriend, will you at least ask me out on a date?”

  She was such a tease. She nuzzled her face against mine and kissed me so lightly on the lips that it sent goose bumps down my spine.

  “I was waiting for you to ask me. It’s obvious that you like to be in control.”

  “Funny, I’ve noticed the same thing about you,” she fired back.

  I pulled her to me and kissed her again, another long drawn-out one, and when I pulled away from her it was only with considerable effort.

  “Name a time and place and I’ll be there,” I told her.

  “Friday night,” she said smiling. “You can pick me up at my house. Do you have a tux?”

  “For what?”

  “A 50th wedding anniversary party.”

  “You set me up!”

  She gave me a look that included curling her bottom lip into a pout and batting her eyelashes. “Pleeeease!”

  I knew I had been conned, but I didn’t care. In truth, the idea of going out in public with Landra Krally all dressed up in formal gear sounded pretty damn good.

  “All right. But you’ll owe me big time.”

  “You’ll go?” she said, wrapping her arms around my neck again. “Awesome!”

  I undraped her arms from my neck. “Now get out of here and go home.” I directed her back through the living room towards the door.

  “You’re kicking me out?” she exclaimed, laughing.

  “Damn right,” I said. The Siamese was sitting on the hearth again. “And take that bastard with you.”

  The cat looked at me and hissed, and Landra laughed and scooped him up in her arms and let him out the front door. She took my hand and pulled me down one step below her so that we were eye level with each other, then she wrapped her arms back around my neck and gave me a good night kiss that somehow managed to top the first two. I was about to pull her back inside and take her straight back to my bedroom, when she abruptly ended the kiss and bounded down my steps all in one motion.

  “Bye Sam,” she said, without turning back, but I knew she had a smile on her face because there was laughter in her voice.

  “That’s Samuel to you,” I called out, and I could hear her laughing as she crossed the street into Mrs. Howard’s yard and disappeared into the house.

  I went back inside and took a cold shower while I contemplated how big a fool I was for getting involved with Landra Krally. But then I thought . . . Fuck it. I like her. Anyway, it wasn’t the first stupid thing I’d done in my life. I searched through my closet and found my tux and set it out so I’d remember to take it to the dry cleaners in the morning, then I looked through some files I’d brought home from the office. It was impossible to concentrate because the kitchen scene kept interrupting my thoughts. I couldn’t wait to kiss her again. I eventually gave up on the files and went to bed, and when I finally fell asleep, it was with visions of Landra in that hot little exercise number running through my head. It was the best night’s sleep I’d had in ages.

  Chapter 3

  True to her word, Mrs. Howard was knocking on my door at 8:00 a.m. the next morning, and I found myself actually glad to see her. Funny how a man’s stomach can overrule his mind in matters involving food. The stomach and the Old Fella are a lot alike in that respect. They both have the capacity to think for themselves, almost like they’re separate entities within a man’s body, and they can both make a man do things he would never do otherwise.

  “Good morning, Mrs. Howard.”

  “Hi, Sam,” she said happily. She looked kind of tired and the bun on her head was not as tidy as it usually was.

  “You doing okay today?” I asked her, taking the basket of muffins and looking under the napkin. Blueberry.

  “Oh, I’m fine.”

  “I’ll give these back to you,” I said, handing her the two baskets and napkins from the muffins she had brought over the previous week. Now that she had me hooked, I had to make sure she had a good supply on hand so she’d have no reason to cut me off.

  “What did you think of Landra?” Her eyes were sparkling and I got the feeling she knew exactly what I thought of Landra.

  “I think she’d drive me crazy if I gave her the chance. She conned me into taking her to some function Friday night.”

  Mrs. Howard laughed. “I know. She told me. Landra is a very head-strong girl, but you seem to know how to handle her.”

  What did they do? Sit up the night before and talk about what went on in my kitchen? I dug into the basket and ate one of the muffins.

  “How do you make such good muffins?” I asked, deliberately changing the subject.

  “I just have the best recipes. I’m glad you like them, dear,” she said, giving me a toothy grin. “I’ll let you get to your office now.”

  “Okay. Thanks, Mrs. Howard.”

  I was busy at the office that week and the first three days flew by. I wondered if Landra would call or stop by when she was visiting Mrs. Howard, but I hadn’t heard a word from her.

  On Thursday, I made my way into the office around 9:00 o’clock and returned phone calls for the first two hours. It was just past 11:00 o’clock when Penny knocked on my door and came in. She had standing instructions that, barring an emergency, I was not to be disturbed if my door was closed, so I knew that the shit had hit the fan for whoever was on hold.

  “It’s Maddie Griffin, and she sounds close to tears,” Penny said, pointing to the phone. “She insisted I disturb you.”

  “That’s okay.” I picked up the phone. “What happened?”

  “I guess the company got their copy of my discrimination charge. Larry’s giving me such a hard time, Samuel. He’s giving me all this shit-work to do, and
he’s saying horrible things to me.”

  “Are you in your office right now?”

  “Yeah, but I’m on my cell phone.” She said it like sale phone. “Hold on a second. Someone’s at my door.” She put the phone down and what I overheard next floored me.

  “Listen, bitch,” a man said. “You try to bring me down and I’ll make you look like the biggest slut on the planet. How do you think the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s going to react if I tell them we had sex in my office?”

  “Get out,” I heard Maddie say.

  “I’ll leave when I’m good and ready.”

  “Get out of my office, Larry.”

  “Sit down and shut up or I’ll write you up for insubordination. That’s better. Now . . . here’s how it’s going to work. You’re going to march those big tits of yours right back to the EEOC and withdraw your charge.”

  “Or else?”

  “Or else I’ll make your life so miserable here at Datacare you’ll wish it was you that died in that accident instead of your husband.”

  Keep your cool Maddie. Let that asshole dig his own grave.

  I heard a door slam and Maddie was back on the phone. “Did you hear that?”

  “Every word.” I had just become a witness in our lawsuit, a fact that had the possibility of coming back to haunt me down the road.

  “I’m so mad I’m shaking. I’ve got to get out of here.”

  “Don’t drive when you’re so upset. I’ll come get you and take you to lunch. Where can I pick you up?”

  She hesitated for a second before answering. “I guess in front of the main building.”

  I looked at my watch. “I’ll be there in 15 minutes.”

  “Okay.”

  “Hey, Maddie!” I caught her just before she hung up. “Think dollar signs, and add a zero every time that asshole says something like that.”

  She managed the slightest laugh. “Thanks, Samuel.”

  San Antonio is a culture all its own, with its rich Hispanic heritage, and nowhere is this more apparent than in its cuisine. In a city where the breakfast taco has made the little brown bag an institution, and the all night Mexican eateries draw as big a crowd at 2:00 a.m. on the weekends as they do for their lunch crowd, Tex-Mex restaurants rule.