by Ward,Alice
“Of course I do.” I reached out and brushed my fingers down her arm. “It was the first of many.”
“Yeah. Those were good times.” She turned back to the file.
Until I left without a word.
I was striking out with the woman more than I could remember doing with anyone in my adult life. I needed to change the subject and take my aggression out later that night when I was alone.
“What are we going to do about Jon? He’s waiting to hear back from me on the settlement statement.” I sat back, half grateful that she didn’t chide me for touching her.
“I’m going to make an appointment to go see him later today or tomorrow. I need to dig around a little to see what he’s up to. He’s either completely ignorant to what Melissa is doing, or he’s knee deep in it.” She glanced up at me again. “You slept with a twenty-year-old girl because you were lonely from your shitty girlfriend leaving you?”
Her question shocked me. “I fucked a young woman in my office because she came onto me, and I hadn’t had sex in months. My girlfriend was much more interested in my wallet than anything else I could offer.”
She flinched slightly, but turned from me. “I see. I still want to examine the rooms and get you to retell the story in detail.”
“You don’t like details, remember.” I sat back, not wanting to challenge her for fear of losing her. But something inside of me wanted to dominate her, to force her to remember how much she wanted me. It was the fleeting desire of a child, but after watching her eyes widen and breathing falter at dinner the night before, those same wants lived inside of her. I saw it. I felt it. I desperately wanted to experience it again.
“I need the details, Zek.” She looked over at me. “I’m not a prude, and I can remain intensely professional no matter what. You fucking some girl against a window isn’t the worst thing I could come up with. It’s… it’s just not.” Her cheeks colored pink, and she sat back, closing the file. “Alright. I’m taking the rape case, as I said before. I’ll meet with Jon and Melissa. I need you to plan a time that we can go to your office and out to the cabin. Good?”
“Yeah. Are we just going to check out the cabin and come back, or are you wanting to stay out there for a little while? It’s peaceful if we want to go through everything and review out there.” I ran my fingers through my hair before standing up. She was ready for me to go, and though I hated like hell to only get a few minutes of her day, I knew better than to push things just yet.
“I don’t know. I’m not sure staying in a cabin in the woods with you is a smart bet.” She stood up, her tone rather derogatory.
Anger welled up inside of me. She didn’t believe me. I reached out, grabbing her upper arm. “I would never hurt a woman. Ever.”
She pulled from me as her expression tightened. “I didn’t say you would.”
“You implied it. If you don’t believe that good exists in me, then don’t take the damn case. I’ll find another lawyer and save us both the hassle.” I was being childish. I knew I was, but I couldn’t help myself. I needed her to believe in me, and she didn’t. Melissa had a record a mile long of dragging men through the mud after offering up her tight little body for the night, and I was still being looked at as a villain.
“Save you the hassle? What hassle would that be?” She turned on me, her expression telling me that the welcome mat had officially been rolled up.
“The hassle of looking at you and wondering what if, Alisa. I know we were just kids, and I know I was the one who ran, but it’s been a long fucking life since.” I slid my hands into my pockets. “The last thing I needed to do was run into you and be reminded of what could have been.”
She lifted her hands into the air and shook her head. “Get out. I’m not diving into this with you. I don’t believe you’re a villain at all. I believe in you like I did back then. You’re the same boy, but you have a whole new set of circumstances. I’m not here to love you, Zek. I’m here to get you back on track and let you live your life. I have my own shit that I’m dealing with. You deal with yours.”
I stood stone still. “Then why did you question going into the woods with me, like I’m an ax murderer?”
She shook her head. “This meeting is over. I’ll call you tomorrow after I talk to Mr. Mills.”
Walking to the door, I paused, not able to leave without resolution. “I’m sorry I touched you. It won’t happen again.”
“Good. Have a nice day, Mr. Kellington.” She turned back to her files as I stood there, looking stupid.
I closed the door as I left and tried to calm the raging emotions that pumped through me turbulently. Lizzy’s door was open, and the sound of her voice caused me to stop by her office. She glanced up and smiled, dismissing her secretary and motioning for me to come in.
“Come in here and tell me what’s going on.” She leaned forward, pressing her forearms to her desk and looking at me with concern. “Are you upset? You’re flush.”
“No, I’m good. Just tired of this shit already. I spend my life building an empire on good decisions, and for what?” I walked to the window, not able to sit still just yet.
“There’s still a lot of hope left in all of this and you know it. Stop giving up. That’s not the man I know.” She got up and walked to the window, moving to stand beside me. “Mark would shit a brick if he heard you sounding so defeated.”
“Yeah, well, forgive me. I’m just trying to mull through how the fuck this is going to turn out well for me. Every scenario in my head comes back with me in jail and everything destroyed. I didn’t rape the girl, so I’m good there.” I reached up and pressed my hand to my forehead. “I don’t know what I was thinking with the investment deal. I should have said no.”
“Yeah, you should have. Don’t you tell another soul that you did anything wrong. Do you understand me?” Her voice was firm and demanding.
I glanced over at her and nodded. She was like a sister to me, and I knew without a doubt that if she could, she would save me because of how much she loved Mark. Where was my opportunity for a relationship like that? Why did it really matter anymore? I would have nothing to offer anyone soon.
“Alright, but I’m not lying to save my ass. I’ve already bent my ethics for no good reason, and I feel like shit about it.” I rolled my shoulders, turning at the sound of Alisa’s voice.
“So I think I found—” She stopped short as her eyes widened a little as she looked at me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize…”
“It’s alright. I was leaving.” I turned and walked toward the door, passing her before looking back at Lizzy. “Tell Mark I’ll call him later, and don’t let him know that I’m not as much of a superhero as he believes me to be.”
“He could never be disappointed in you, Zek. You’re everything to him.” Lizzy crossed her arms over her chest.
“Oh, I know, I just wanted to make him think that I have all this under control. No need to burst his bubble.” I forced a laugh and focused on Alisa as she turned back to look at me. “Good day, ladies. Thanks for your time.”
There was no point in pleading my case with either of them. They were going to help me without question. Whether Alisa and I would survive it would be a different situation all together. Her words still worked to sting me as I walked from the building, though there had to be an alternate meaning. Her reaction was too strong when I exploded.
If she wasn’t scared to go to the cabin with me, then why would she respond like she was?
CHAPTER 5
e
Alisa
I watched him go and my heart sank. Why would he think I was scared of him? We didn’t know each other at all anymore of course, but still… scared that he would hurt me? A scowled pulled at my lips and I turned to find Lizzy watching me closely.
“Did something happen between the two of you? He seems rather deflated.” She motioned for the door. “You can close that if you want to.”
“No, I’m good. I need to schedule something wit
h Jon Mills. I just wanted to tell you that all of the rape cases Melissa has filed have been settled out of court. She’s lying. I need to dig up the proper evidence, but I think if I can get in to see Jon today, I can understand if he’s in on it as well.” I walked to the door. “Nothing happened with Mr. Kellington. He misunderstood me, which is upsetting, but we have some baggage between us.”
“How much baggage?” Lizzy’s voice wasn’t condescending or sharp. I needed to start trusting her a little if I was soon to ask her to fine an ally in her, which I needed due to being new to the firm.
“Very little. We had a sweet love story that turned into nothing. He was four years older and went off to college when I was a freshman in high school. He was my brother’s best friend, so I was smitten. I think some part of me wants to know what could have been, and I assume he’s going through the same thing.” I touched the door handle and leaned against the door frame. “He’s a good man. I want to help prove that. I’m just scared that I’ll end up wishing that he were my good man.”
“Let’s keep those thoughts locked away until after the case is tucked in bed, but I can understand where you are in all of this.” She dropped her hands by her side. “I’m here if you need to talk. You’re great at what you do. Treat Zek like you would any other client, but soften your approach a little bit. That might rub him the wrong way if you’re stiff and unyielding.”
“Because he’s used to getting his way?” My shoulders tightened at the thought of relenting to anyone. I was my own person and was far too pig-headed to relent.
“Because he’s a relationship guy. He’s good to everyone he works with, and for someone to treat him like he doesn’t matter tips him off fast.” She tilted her head a little, studying me much more than I was comfortable with.
“He does matter, but that’s the issue I’m running into. I need this to be purely professional. I can’t have some silly childhood crush ruling my decisions. I’ve just gone through a nasty divorce, and honestly my job is the only thing saving me from a dark room and a bottle of scotch.” It was probably more than I wanted to tell my new boss, but she needed to understand my side of the situation as well. She was related to Zek. She would bend to him, which was good and fine, but I wanted her to see my struggle as well. This wasn’t just about me not wanting to take a case, or questioning the worth of a client. It was me still running from something that haunted me, though it was ignorant that it did. Eighteen years was plenty of time to get over someone.
Especially when you didn’t even date him.
“That’s heavy stuff.” She took a few steps to stand in front of me and reached out, resting her hands on my shoulders. “Life has a way of throwing shit our way when we least expect it. I have no clue how your divorce is affecting you, but I do know that you have a chance to push into your gifts here as an incredibly talented attorney. You don’t owe me any favors. Do what you think is best where Zek is concerned.”
I nodded and fought back tears. I wasn’t losing myself in front of her. Period.
“I’m going to visit with Jon Mills. I’ll let you know how it goes if you’d like to be kept in the loop.”
“I would love that. Thank you for helping him.” She squeezed my shoulders and released me. “Send in my secretary if you don’t mind.”
“Of course not.” I turned, delivered the message and walked to my office, closing the door behind me. “God, you’re impossible, Zek Kellington.”
And he was. The image of him jerking around and grabbing my arm tightly rolled over me and I shook off the need to groan. I wasn’t into being manhandled by anyone, but something about the dark need that moved through his eyes as he glared down at me opened up so many possibilities in my mind.
I needed him to disregard my rules and tug me close, lower his mouth to mine and show me the man he’d become.
“See… this is the fucking problem.” I growled and walked to my desk, needing to get my mind off of him before I went stir crazy. It was more than obvious that he was pissed at the thought of me being scared alone with him in the woods. That rested on the sound proof that I mattered.
Picking up the phone, I dialed the number to reach Jon Mills and waited impatiently.
“Mills, Canterbury and Viking. How can I help you?”
“Hi, I’m looking to speak with Jon Mills. This is Alisa Manning from Dellup and Brown. I’m representing Mr. Zek Kellington.” I paused to give the woman a few minutes to put together who I was.
“Yes, Miss Manning. Give me just a second and I’ll see if he’s available. Please hold.”
“Perfect. Thank you.” I pulled up the file on my computer and scanned through the information on Jon’s firm and his rise to success. He was listed as the personal attorney for Zek and several other billionaires in the area. “Sucks to be sued by your own damn lawyer. Funny how he probably knows exactly what Zek is worth.”
“Miss Manning?” The woman’s voice was on the line. “He’s in a meeting right now, but he said that he would be more than happy to meet with you this afternoon if you’re free.”
“That would be perfect. Three o’clock?” I checked my watch, realizing that I would have time to grab a quick sandwich before I’d need to head that way.
“That’s perfect. Do you need directions to get to us?”
“No, but thank you. I’ll see you shortly.” I hung up, grabbed my suit jacket and my briefcase and walked out into the lobby. Lizzy’s secretary, Marsha stood and smiled.
“Before you go, we just had someone leave a message for you. He said he was an investigator from the SEC. Want me to text you the information?” She smiled warmly.
“Yes, please. Thank you.” I pulled out my phone, waiting for her text. I would call them on the way to see Jon. Chances were that they just wanted to make contact with whoever was representing Zek. I wasn’t so sure that would be me for the securities claim, but I would stand in the gap until we knew better who it would be.
*
“Miss Manning. What a pleasure.” An older man with white hair and a stiff smile walked from the open door across from the waiting room. He extended his hand and shook mine firmly. “I’m Jon Mills. Thank you for coming by to chat. We’ve heard so much about you.”
“I wish I were here to chat.” I gave him a curt nod and followed him into one of the conference rooms down the hall. Taking a seat, I unbuttoned my jacket and pulled out the files. “I’m going to jump right into the meat of the matter.”
“Please do. No reason to waste anyone’s time, now is there?” He sat across the buffed wooden table from me and slid his arms out in front of him. “I assume you want to haggle a little on the settlement. It would only be prudent to do so.”
“No. Actually, I’ll be representing Mr. Kellington, and we won’t be settling out of court.” I pulled out a pair of glasses and perched them on my nose.
His eyes grew wide. “Surely you’re pulling my leg. Have you seen the evidence stacked against Zek? I know your green, but here… let me offer you a piece of advice.”
I glanced up. “I don’t need advice. If you’d like to show me the pictures you have as evidence, I’d love to see those.”
“What?” His face contorted as if he’d eaten a lemon. “Why would you want to see pictures of a young girl’s body having been violated and bruised?”
A smile lifted my lips. “You’re a lawyer and quite a successful one. You’d want to see them too. I’m not here to play games, Mr. Mills. I’m here to present a few facts to you as a respect to your practice. We’re not settling out of court, but if we go, we will bring every bit of Melissa’s past into the courtroom with us. Substantial evidence will point to the fact that this isn’t the first, but the fourth time she accused a man of rape and ended up settling out of court.”
His eyes flashed and I could see the muscles in his jaw clench in anger. “How dare you imply that Melissa wasn’t violated!” He exhaled deeply, then sat back as his expression softened, but only slightly. “Do you have k
ids, Ms. Manning?”
He wasn’t talking to me as a lawyer might another, but as an older man giving advice. It was the bane of my existence to look six years younger than I was. I’d been practicing law for five years, and I could hold my own. I didn’t need a training session, nor would I stand for one.
“I do not, but if I did,” I leaned forward and locked my gaze onto his, “there is no way in hell that I would ever settle out of court for any amount of money. I would want the guy who touched my daughter to rot in a jail cell for the rest of his life.”
“Well, do not mistake my graciousness for a lack of animosity and hate toward your client.”
“He’s been your client for quite some time now. I’m a little taken aback by your willingness to settle due to that alone. Both the vile combination of him allegedly harming Melissa, combined with the trust that should have been part of your relationship… you must have been destroyed after receiving the news.” I moved back in my seat and busied myself with the files.
“You have no idea.”
“Of course not. I don’t have children.” I glanced up and gave him a blank stare. “I’ll need to meet with Melissa before we fully decide our next steps.”
“You’re not meeting with my daughter. That’s not part of the process and you know it.” He stood up. “What kind of practice are they running over there at Dellup?”
“The kind where we investigate and gather evidence before we reach any solid resolution, including settlements.” I stood as well. “You can schedule the meeting with Melissa for me, or we’ll set up the first round of hearings and I’ll bring to the stands her allegations as well as your continued involvement, as history has repeated itself once again. It’s not only her who will be on trial, Mr. Mills. You will be as well.”
His jaw locked as his cheeks flushed pink. I had him, and though I hated to play hardball most days of the week, the old man needed a lesson more than I did. He was part of the ruse from what I could tell. I needed to dig quite a bit more, but my intuition rarely sent me in the wrong direction.
