Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 76539 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76539 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
“Sure,” I say, already turning back to my work. “Whatever.”
But instead of leaving, he leans closer to me. “I’m not going away, my frigid little princess, so stop thinking you can treat me like another simpering loser until I disappear. It won’t happen.”
He stands up straight and walks out. I watch him go, seething. That’s not what I’m doing—if anything, I’m giving him more grace than he deserves.
It seems the honeymoon is over. Now we’re down to the real work, and he’s not enjoying himself anymore.
Not that it matters. So long as he lets me do my job, I’ll keep working for the best of us.
Chapter 6
Sara
“Well, what’s it like working for my husband?” Brice grins at me and leans closer across the table. Robyn’s sitting on my left and Cassidy is sitting on my right, and everyone’s looking at me like they want me to dish about the case.
But if they saw the pictures of those mangled corpses, they wouldn’t be so interested.
“It’s fine,” I say and take a drink of water. We’re all out to dinner at a decent Mexican place in downtown Dallas, which means it’s crowded and the buzz of conversation has me on edge, or maybe it’s the fact that I spent the last few days obsessively reading about murder.
“Fine? That’s all you have for us?” Cassidy laughs and looks at Brice. “She doesn’t look like it’s fine.”
“Carmine said it was a complicated case.” Brice frowns a little, looking worried. “He’s not asking too much of you, is he?”
“It’s fine, really.” I try to give them a smile but it feels wrong and I let it drop.
“I heard Angelo’s been helping out,” Robyn says and her smirk makes me grimace.
“I wonder where you heard that,” Cassidy mutters.
“Sorry,” Brice says quickly, “but ever since the wedding, I figured—”
“I’m fine, okay!” I can hear the anxiety in my tone and I try to pull it back, but the girls are already staring at me. “It’s just a hard case, that’s all.”
“I’ll talk to Carmine,” Brice says and nods to herself. “I’ll have him find someone else. I love you, Sar, and I’m not about to let you kill yourself just because you want to do a favor for my husband.”
“No,” I say quickly, “seriously, it’s not like that. He’s doing me a favor, if anything. Work hasn’t been exactly—” I stop talking suddenly, face turning bright red. I’m utterly mortified and I don’t know why I’d spill that out now all of a sudden, but the girls are giving me pitying stares.
“You want to talk about it?” Robyn asks, and I shake my head.
“You don’t have to,” Cassidy says. “But we’re here for you.”
I hold up my hands. “Look, I’m really fine.”
“You keep using that word but I don’t think you know what it means,” Robyn says with a grin.
“I’m just tired and cramming a lot to get myself up to speed.” The waitress returns with our meals, and I stare down at the line of lovely looking tacos, and my appetite is completely gone.
I wasn’t kidding about work, but I shouldn’t have mentioned it. I’m at the bottom of the totem pole and even though taking on this Carmine case is big business, I still have at least half a dozen other attorneys sniffing around acting like I can’t handle anything. Even the big shot at the end of the hall, this massive trial lawyer named Aldrick Genette, has been stopping by to give me pointers that are basically thinly veiled insults.
Nobody thinks I can pull this off.
Not even me.
But the girls take pity and the subject changes. I sit back and mostly listen while Cassidy discusses her training business, and Robyn tells a particularly raunchy story about a Tinder date gone wrong, and I keep catching these looks from Brice. I know what she’s thinking, but I wish she’d leave it alone.
When dinner’s done, we say goodnight, and I’m left out on the street trying to decide if I should go back to the office for a few more hours or if I should head home. Brice sidles up next to me while her driver waits nearby.
“Must be nice,” I say, nodding at the limo.
She smiles and shrugs. “I can’t complain.”
“I know what you’re about to ask.”
“You do?”
“You’re worried about me, aren’t you?”
“There are some red flags.” She smiles at me and tilts her head. “But you never let that stuff get to you, do you?”
“It’s not in my nature.”
“Which is why I’m so worried.” She takes my arm and leans against my shoulder. “We all know what my husband does for a living. I love that man but his business is a little bit…”
“Illegal? Messy? Violent?”
“I was thinking complicated, but sure we can go with all of the above.”
“You know what’s strange? Even despite all that, I still want to move ahead with this case.”