She exhaled and set the glass and her plate on a passing tray, then turned to face Thomas. “What are you doing here?”
He grinned, lifting his sport coat at the lapels, then letting it drop back as he displayed his party clothes. “Told you I could clean up. Eh? Eh? And you look ah-mazing. Blue is your color.”
“Damn it, Thomas,” she hissed, grabbing his elbow and dragging him towards the party room exit. “You aren’t supposed to be here.”
“Hey, don’t be pushy,” he whined, stumbling.
Kay drew back and glared at him with narrowed eyes. “You’ve been drinking already.”
“I had a few bars … I mean beers before I got here. What’s the big deal? I took a taxi.”
She leaned in close to him, “You’re a shitty drunk, that’s what the big deal is. And you aren’t supposed to be here. I told you I didn’t want you here.”
Thomas’ eyes went black, and he yanked his arm away so hard that she lost her hold on her clutch, sending it flying across the floor. She didn’t even spare it a look though because the expression on his face was something that so alarmed her she couldn’t speak. What she’d said was true. Thomas was a bad drunk. He got loud, he got annoying, and he got grabby. None of those were things she wanted connected to her at her company party.
But right at this moment, Thomas looked angry. Red-hot angry, causing Kay to recoil a little as she swallowed.
“You know, Kay, you should be a little nicer to me. I’m the guy who hung out with you during late nights while you were studying. I’m the guy who took you to the urgent care when you had the flu last year. I’m the one who’s been your friend, following you around like a fucking puppy for years now. You’re just too stuck up to notice I’m the guy.”
Her face fell, and she immediately felt contrite. Still, she couldn’t help that he always saw things that weren’t there. “I’m sorry, Thomas. I was always straight with you. Right from the start I told you that we could be friends. There was no duplicity on my part.” She reached out to put her hand on his shoulder, but he slapped her away, then headed out of the room
She wanted to go after him but couldn’t quite convince her legs to move. He should never have forced this issue. She wasn’t even sure how he’d known where the Christmas party was to be held. Her blank stare remained focused on the door he’d left through.
After a moment, she heard someone approach. Kay looked back, expecting to see Tamara, but instead Van’s imposing form was there. He held out his hand, and she saw her cell phone there. “I’m not sure if it’ll work. It smashed into the wall pretty hard.”
“Thanks.” She took it and held down the power button, surprised to see the cracked face flicker and start back to life. Rubbing the glass against the side of her slacks, her gaze rounded the room looking for her clutch purse. Tamara was on her knees picking it up, replacing her lipstick and other small items before standing and bringing it to her.
“Here ya’ go. Good as new. You okay?”
Kay could only nod, afraid to look either of them in the eye with all the mortified embarrassment she was feeling. She dropped her phone into her purse and tucked it under her arm. She was about to turn around when Van’s hand grabbed hers, and she was so startled by the intimate meeting of their flesh that she gasped. He grinned and placed a cold glass into that same hand.
“Thought I’d buy you a drink.”
She hadn’t realized her hands were shaking until she saw the way the ice jingled in the glass of bourbon and water. She took a long sip and let the warmth settle over her before meeting Van’s eyes. “It’s an open bar.”
He shrugged, and she found the simple gesture on his broad shoulder somehow intensely attractive. “An open bar that I helped pay for. So, in some form or fashion I’m still buying the drink.”
She lifted and dropped her head in one long nod. “And how did you know what I was drinking?”
“Tamara told me. C’mon, let’s go sit down and relax.”
She followed him without question to a table in the far corner of the room. She knew there were lots of eyes on her, but she focused on Van’s back instead.
“Oh my word, these are good,” Kay moaned as she devoured one of the quesadillas Van brought her. The way she rolled her eyes and savored the bite made him want to see how she would look savoring something else. Shaking his head at his wildly roaming thoughts, he focused on his own plate of hors d'oeuvres instead of her mouth.
She was a little more at ease now, partly because she’d had a few drinks to calm her. He wasn’t sorry about that, but he had transitioned her to water this round. Getting her drunk wasn’t what he necessarily wanted. He just wanted to distract her from the scene Thomas Bergen had made.
“I love Tex-Mex. It’s something I don’t get at home.”
Van had seen the moment the little prick had entered the party. The guy had been uneasy on his feet, swaying a little as his eyes circled the room looking for Kay. He wasn’t sure why he disliked the little creep so much, but the man had a way of getting under Van’s skin, even though they’d only been around each other a handful of times. He was always disappointed that Kay liked to keep company with him.
“No, I don’t imagine there’s much Tex-Mex in Colorado,” he chuckled.
“Sorry, not changing the subject here. You were telling me about you.”
Van shrugged, finished chewing and then spoke again. “I don’t mind talking about you.”
“Oh no,” Kay laughed, the sound just as deep and sultry as her speaking voice. “It’s not every day I’m going to get this chance. Proceed.” She twirled her hand at the wrist in a refined sort of way.
“Okay, I’ll proceed, but first tell me what exactly this chance is that you don’t want to miss?”
Pausing with a tortilla halfway to her mouth, Kay cocked an eyebrow and grinned. “The chance to get the skinny on the boss. Or at least one of them. Probably the most important one.”
The most important one? He wasn’t sure what she meant by that. He was one of five partners in the firm. Still, the blush creeping from her neck to her cheeks said she probably wouldn’t elaborate right now. She stuffed the quesadilla in her mouth and waited for him to speak. He wasn’t sure where to start, what exactly she wanted to know, or what he wanted her to know for that matter.
Kay saved him from having to rack his brain too hard when she asked, still chewing, “What made you choose to go into law?”
“Ah, well, I had a double major in undergraduate school. English and History. After I graduated, I sort of floundered, with no idea what I was going to do with this precious diploma now that I had it. One day I had lunch with one of my father’s friends, and he just happened to be an attorney. He suggested I look into law school, and the rest, as they say, is history.”
She nodded and stared off a moment, wheels turning in her brain. “Well, I suppose English and History make a good base for law, so you were all set in that regard.”
Van snorted a laugh. “Actually, just a few years into practice, I quickly realized the best base for a lawyer would be a psychology degree. About ninety percent of law, especially family law, is driven by emotion.”
“I guess that’s why you were so insistent I be sure about her when I signed up Mrs. Faucett.”
He inclined his head, before taking drink.
“But you aren’t convinced that she’s really ready.”
Van jiggled the ice in his glass as he considered that. “Some studies say that it takes up to seven times for a woman to leave an abusive relationship.”
“But she testified. She went through with the protective order. That’s nothing to sneeze about. It’s a two year order that’s renewable upon expiration. I think that paints her as serious.”
“Yes, but I’ve seen women go back, even with a protective order in place. Hell, I’ve represented men who were charged with violating a protective order when the woman actually moved back into the house with him of her own accord. It doesn’t ma
ke the abuse right, but it does mean that sometimes a woman isn’t as ready as she believed she was.”
He watched from the corner of his eye as she stuffed a cheese-coated chip into her mouth, chewing like she was out for blood. He could practically hear the whooshing of different thoughts zinging around inside her brain. Finally she forced a smile and looked back at him. “So you said your dad’s friend suggested law. What did your dad think of that?”
“Dad was about as easy going as they come. If I chose it, he would’ve supported it wholeheartedly. But we lost him when I was in my second year of undergrad, so…”
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, reaching out a hand to touch his arm. She let her fingers linger there just a few seconds, then pulled away. “I lost my mom more than a year ago.”
“Hmm, then we have a bit in common. I know how difficult that must have been.”
“Yes, it was. Mom was a real lady, in every sense of the word. I admired her and wanted to be more like her. However, I was, shall we say, a willful child.”
“I’m sure you were.”
She drew back, a coy grin on her face, and stared him down. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“That was not a disparaging observation. And willful isn’t a bad characteristic for an attorney either.”
“When have I ever appeared willful to you?”
“You haven’t. But I can see the potential under the surface. Now that law school’s over and done, I have great expectations for your willfulness.”
Kay laughed even as she stood and took both of their glasses in hand. “On that note, I think I’ll get us some refills. What would you like?”
Van lifted his wrist and rolled it a few times to force the face of his watch around, then looked back up at her. “Just water. I’m done drinking for the night.”
She nodded and started for the bar. He didn’t mind at all the chance to watch her shapely backside as she went. The silvery pants she had on fit her just snug enough in all the right places and the metallic surface caught the low lights in a mystical sort of way. She walked with flair when she had on heels, confidence popping forth with each step. He felt someone eyeing him, and he searched the room until his gaze found one of his partners. The man lifted his glass ever so slightly to him.
Kay stood on the street and watched the cars go back and forth for a few moments. Her phone made a half-vibrate/half-ring, and she retrieved it from her clutch to try to decipher what was on the screen.
A text from Thomas. Annoyance turned to anger as she struggled to tap out a short response on the cracked screen. A few minutes passed without another notification, and she breathed a sigh of relief that maybe he was going to leave her alone for now.
She’d taken a cab to the party since she knew she’d likely be drinking. Her original plan had been to hitch a ride with Tamara back to her side of town and then catch a cab from there. Somehow, “open mouth chewer” or not, her friend had managed to leave the party with Kyle instead.
“Can I give you a lift home?”
The sound of Van’s deep voice thrummed down her spine, and she released the breath she had been holding as she considered her options. Turning on her heel to look at him, she smacked her clutch against her thigh a few times before speaking. “Don’t take this the wrong way—I’m not trying to be suggestive here—but the last place I want to go is home.”
“Okay, since I’m not allowed to take that the wrong way, why don’t you tell me your reason for not wanting to go home.”
“Thomas will be looking for me, and I’m nowhere near ready to make nice with the little creep yet.”
“Ah,” he chuckled, “Is that a touch of willfulness?”
“No, just me being pissed off.”
He took two steps to come even closer to her, then dug into his jacket for the card to hand to the valet parking attendant hovering just beside them. When the man was gone, Van took his time studying Kay before responding. She felt uncomfortable and was just opening her mouth to tell him she was going to get a taxi when he stopped her.
“Since we’re not taking things the wrong way, why don’t you just come to my place? My house is big enough I can put you on one end, and I’ll stay on the other and you won’t have to feel uncomfortable about it.”
Kay nodded her head in agreement before she could give his offer too much thought. The very sensible part of her was screaming no, but she was just too tired to give that voice any credence. A car pulled up to the curb, and the valet attendant stepped out. Van opened the passenger door of the black Lexus, motioning with his hand for her to get in. She licked her lips and took a deep breath before complying.
“I wouldn’t have picked you for a Lexus for some reason,” she said when he got into the driver’s seat.
“And what would you have picked?”
She cocked her head, considering that. “For some reason I would have thought a truck. Which makes no sense, but that’s the first thing that popped into my mind.” She laughed, suddenly nervous making small-talk with him. That was silly, considering they’d spent the last few hours chatting easily and exclusively at the party.
“So you’re right, at least partly. This is a lease, and I mainly use it here around town and for court. I own an older Ford F-150, and that’s my vehicle. It’s the one I prefer to drive.”
“Hmmm…” She wondered how she had so successfully pegged him. Somehow she felt he’d been like an open book with her this evening, honestly answering all questions posed to him. It was a strange paradox to their business relationship, an intimacy she hadn’t anticipated and certainly hadn’t pursued. Still, she wasn’t nearly as unnerved about it as she might have expected.
Everyone in the firm knew she wanted full-time employment when she passed the bar. She was all business at the office, working hard, putting in extra hours and excelling in all areas so that she could impress all of the partners with her drive. And there was no nonsense about it. She was going to work her way to the top, not manipulate players to get what she wanted.
She could’ve been worried about this turn in her relationship with Audrick Van Buren. She knew she was an attractive woman, but Van didn’t make her feel threatened. She didn’t at all sense he was trying to take advantage of her in the least.
“So you think Thomas would be at your home, waiting for you?”
“Well, he lives just down the hall from me. Same apartment complex.”
Van side-eyed her then twisted his head with a little shake. “I had no idea he lived near you. That explains a lot.”
“It does? What exactly does it explain?”
She watched his chest expand with a huge breath that he very slowly released. “I don’t mean this to sound insensitive, but I could honestly never understand your relationship with him. I wouldn’t have put him in the same class with you.”
“The same class? Well, you certainly are a snob.” She paused and chewed her thoughts a moment. “Or maybe you’re saying I’m a snob. What class do you think I’m in?”
Kay was sensitive about her origins. It wasn’t that she was ashamed of being the daughter of an earl, but she found people often changed when they found out she was an aristocrat. They either shied away from her in discomfort or tried to manipulate her in some way. It was easier just to keep her family to herself.
“I’m selective about my own friends. I would expect the same from someone like you. I know you have plans, Kay. A person doesn’t get through law school with the types of grades and achievements you have if they don’t. Thomas just doesn’t fit into that.”
“How so?”
He coughed and scratched behind his ear. “I’m on the faculty you know. He might not be in law school, but I know what kind of student he is. And he changed his major again last year. He may never get out of college.”
Kay tried to stifle it, but a laugh bubbled up within her. “Yeah, Thomas doesn’t have much drive. But he’s been good to me. We hang together, and at least when I was studying he helped
and didn’t distract me. I tried to get him to hit the books harder, but if he didn’t care, why should I? His parents have money. He doesn’t really need a degree.”
As she thought on it now, she couldn’t really remember why she was such good friends with Thomas. Maybe it was strictly convenience. Except that he was combative as hell on booze and that he tended to follow her like a puppy dog from time to time, it was easy to just maintain the friendship.
~oOo~
By the time Van had shown her to the spare bedroom and made sure she had everything she needed, Kay’s eyes had been almost too heavy to keep open. She managed to brush her teeth and remove her shoes and bra, then collapsed onto the bed as if she hadn’t slept in weeks.
Now her eyes snapped open, and she struggled to remember where she was as she examined her dark surroundings. Bringing her hand to her chest in alarm, she recognized the feel of the sweater she’d been wearing that evening, and after a few moments the memory of what happened came back to her.
And more panic welled up like an expanding balloon in her chest.
“Holy crap, I’m in my boss’s bed,” she croaked, her throat dry.
So maybe it wasn’t exactly Audrick Van Buren’s bed, but it was definitely a bed in his house and that was way outside her comfort zone. What had she been thinking to ever agree to come here?
The sour churn of her stomach reminded her that she hadn’t exactly been thinking with all of her faculties. Rolling over she found a digital clock on the nightstand and saw that it was only 3:38 in the morning.
This wasn’t unusual for her when she’d had a bit much too drink. Her body would wake her up a few minutes later, demanding hydration. She needed something to drink, preferably orange juice. She rolled her feet out of the bed and raked her hands through her blonde hair, shaking the tangles away.
As she exited the bedroom and padded down the hallway in her bare feet, she tried to recall the layout of the house. The kitchen wouldn’t come to mind, and she didn’t think she had seen it at all. Surely it couldn’t be too hard to find. And Van had assured her that the master bedroom was on the opposite end, so she shouldn’t have to worry about running into him.
Justice for All Page 3
