The woman had short dark hair, dark eyes and dressed impeccably in designer suits and Louboutin shoes. Hayley favored the latter, too. “Yes, Hayley, come in.”
They sat at a conference table off to the right of a large, sparsely furnished room, making Hayley feel less like she’d been called before the principal.
“So, I was wrong?” Maria asked.
Oh, dear. “About me?” Her own voice was horrified.
“No, of course not. I was wrong about assigning you to Paul Covington’s cases. It seemed like the right thing to do then.”
She sighed. “We went too far. I’m sorry I let you down.”
“You did, in a way. But that doesn’t change my view of you. You’ve been a good addition to our staff for the past five years, and I still consider you that.”
“I’m glad I haven’t lost your trust.”
“Pardon me for asking, because my question could be construed as harassment, but what is it between you two? Attraction?”
You know, I read a study where suppressed attraction makes people fight with each other.
“No, of course not.”
“Glad to hear it, because that could get sticky.”
“He gets under my skin, Maria.”
“I’ve worked with some men like that. But you have, too, with other men, and they never got you in trouble.”
“I guess.” She shook her head. “For the record, we agreed to get along better when Judge Branson put us in the same cell, alone, for the night.”
“That’s fine. But you’d still irritate each other.”
“Maybe.” In truth, she kind of liked him and didn’t want to irritate him anymore.
“No matter. I’ve already talked with Michaels. He’ll handle Covington. You’ll have your full load elsewhere.”
“That’s fine with me.” She cocked her head. “Thanks, Maria.”
“Thank me by never letting this happen again.”
“I will.”
They both stood and Hayley left the office. She went down to her own, closed the door, and sat in her chair. For a minute, she let thoughts of Paul surface.
I like you better without a lot of goop on your face.
Now that little pinkish suit with a tank top makes all the men in the room sweat.
You wear your hair like a spinster.
When she realized she was thinking of all his comments about her appearance, for God’s sake, she picked up a folder—her next assignment—and dismissed Paul Covington from her mind. She’d finish the trial today then put him out of her mind forever.
* * *
Paul waited in the large foyer of the courtroom. He should go inside, study his notes, but he wanted to see Hayley before they faced each other in court. Worse, he’d gotten her coffee, the kind she said she liked that morning when she woke up in jail. Hell, so what? Today would be his last time with her, then she’d be out of his life.
Walking over to the wall of judges who presided in these chambers, he set her coffee on the ledge and stared blindly at the rectangular cases.
“Hey, Covington, got yourself in some hot water this weekend?”
Shit. He knew people would find out about this today, but he hadn’t expected an attack so early. He turned to find a vaguely familiar face. He cocked his head.
“Paul Covington, right?” the guy said.
“Yeah.”
“Harrison. Todd Harrison. I work at Harrison, Baker and Snow.” A rival to Cook, Cramer and Coldwell. “We met at last year’s Bar Association dinner at the Tavern on the Green.”
“I remember.” The guy had been at his table and was a showoff for all the people sitting with him.
“Must have been hard to be cooped up in a cell with that little beauty this weekend. Is she hot!”
He didn’t say anything.
“Don’t you think so?”
“That’s an unflattering way to describe her. And if it got around, you could be charged with harassment.”
“Come on, we’re both boys.”
He was a boy. Paul was a man.
“No comment.”
“Hey, sure. But watch out for her.”
Surprisingly angry at Harrison, Paul was glad when the guy walked away. He picked up her coffee and crossed to the elevator to wait for her.
The doors opened.
Early for court, Hayley got off the elevator. She was nervous and the reason stood off to the side. “Waiting for me?” she asked cheekily.
A full, sweet smile spread across his face, making her heart thump. “Yeah, I am.” He lifted his arm. “Double latte. Full fat. They didn’t have cream.”
She grinned. “You remembered. How thoughtful.” She shifted her briefcase from one hand to the other and took the drink. “Did you want to talk?”
“I think we should. Let’s find an empty room. There’ll be several this early.”
They walked side by side down the hall. She knew he was taller than her, and she was five eight without her heels. Still he had inches on her, which she only noticed today. And his shoulders were wide, stretching the material of his summer suit. The light tan flattered him.
“Here we go.” He opened the door to a small conference area. Once inside, he pulled out a chair for her.
“Trying to impress me because I called out your manners?”
“No, why, what’d I do?” He meant it.
“Sorry,” she said. “It was a dumb thing to say.”
He sat adjacent to her. “So, Ms. Hayley. How do we deal with the rest of the trial? We talked about a truce. Still on board with that?”
“I am, but what makes you think we can carry it off?”
Paul shifted in his seat. He seemed nervous, too. “Well, for one, we don’t have a choice. We can’t go to jail again, though it had some high points.”
She swallowed hard and hoped he didn’t notice.
“The case will probably end today,” he continued. “And, um, I’m not allowed in the courtroom with you again.”
“Me either, with you. I feel like a teenager who’s being punished.”
“I had that exact thought.” He waited. “Did your client call you?”
“Yes, his mother did. She wasn’t happy with what happened Friday. You?”
“My uppity parents read me the riot act. I threatened to quit if they didn’t settle down, and they probably knew they wouldn’t be able to replace me with someone of my caliber.”
“Modest, aren’t you?” Hayley teased.
“No, are you?”
“Not where my job is concerned.”
“So, we agree we have to do better today. Promise you’ll be on your best behavior.”
She chuckled. “Promise? Where’d that come from?”
His blue eyes shadowed. “It was a thing we did as kids. If we promised not to do or say something, it was sacred. Far as I know, none of us betrayed that.”
“That’s nice. Okay, Mr. Paul, I promise to be on my best behavior.”
“As do I.”
He checked his watch. “We have a few minutes. What about you and your brothers? How do you get along?”
“Great. We had a common enemy.”