Hard Lawyer

by Liam Foster

  Samantha walks through the door, so I quickly wipe my eyes and do my best to pretend I haven’t been crying.

  “Has Damon called today?” Samantha asks.

  “No,” I reply bitterly. “And even if he did, I wouldn’t answer.”

  I sound childish, but I have a damn good reason for ignoring him. He broke his promise to me and he broke my heart. He doesn’t get to tell me how bad he feels and how he hopes we can be friends.

  “Next time he calls, I want you to answer the phone,” Samantha says.

  “Not going to happen.”

  “Just do it, Kara. You’re going to have to talk to him at some point. Be a grown up.”

  “Why do you care?”

  “Because you need closure. Until you talk to him, you’re always going to wonder what he wants to say. At least once you’ve heard him out, you can move on.”

  She’s right. I’m constantly thinking about how the conversation with him would go. Would he apologize? Try to pretend he had no choice? Beg for forgiveness? And how would I react? I like to think I’d tell him where he can shove his apologies, but it might not be that simple.

  “When did you become an expert on getting over relationships?” I ask. “You’re the one who usually dumps the guy, not the other way around.”

  “I’m a much wiser woman than you give me credit for. I also watch a lot reality dating shows on television.”

  Samantha happens to be in the room when Damon calls so she practically forces me to talk to him.

  “What do you want?” I snap, as I answer the phone.

  “I just need a minute to explain.”

  “What’s there to explain? You fired me without even giving me the chance to defend myself.”

  “I didn’t need to hear you defend yourself. I knew you had nothing to do with it.”

  “Wait, what?” I’ve been rehearsing a speech to defend myself over the past week. I’m almost disappointed that I won’t get to use it. “If you knew I had nothing to do with it, why did you fire me?”

  “Because I couldn’t afford to lose such a big client.”

  “Seriously? You fired me because you were worried about losing a client?”

  “No, there’s more to it than that. Listen, can I come around and explain in person?”

  “No,” I reply immediately. I can’t see him. If I see him, I’ll cave and accept whatever he tells me. I’m weak, and I haven’t had sex in a week. By recent standards, that’s a long time. One twitch of his cock and I’ll be all over him.

  Damon sighs. “Okay, listen, I was going to fire you anyway. The thing with the client just sped things along a bit. I was so shocked about being betrayed that I couldn’t think of another way out of the situation.”

  “I didn’t betray you.”

  “I know. But someone else did.”

  “So why were you going to fire me? If it’s because I kept taking long breaks during the afternoon then you only have yourself to blame for that.”

  Damon laughs and against my better judgment, so do I.

  “I was going to fire you because I love you.”

  “Most people just buy flowers.”

  “I’m not most people, and neither are you.”

  “You promised, Damon.”

  “I know. And when I made that promise, I meant it. But it can’t work in the long run. It’s not healthy if I boss you around all day and order you to make me coffee.”

  “I don’t care. I needed that job.”

  “You’re not destined to be a secretary to a lawyer, Kara. You should be the lawyer.”

  I sigh loudly. He thinks he’s being nice, but it’s just frustrating. It took me a long time to accept that I’ll never be a lawyer; I don’t want to go back to pretending it might happen one day.

  “It’s too late,” I reply. “I’m not going to be a lawyer and thanks to you, I can’t be a secretary either.”

  “You’re wrong.”

  “I’m not taking the job back, if that’s what you’re implying.”

  “No,” Damon says. “I’m not offering you your job back. You’ll be too busy to work at my firm, what with law school starting up again in a month.”

  I sigh again. It’s a long sigh that turns into a groan of frustration. “You don’t get it,” I say tersely. “I can’t go to law school because I need to work full-time to pay for Mom’s treatment.”

  “I got you into Stanford,” Damon continues, as if I didn’t say anything. “Your sister sent me all your transcripts and test scores which I then forwarded to the Dean. I used to be his research assistant back in my own law school days. He thinks you’ll be a great addition to the school and will send out an offer in the next few days.”

  Stanford? I applied there two years ago and got placed on the waitlist. It’s been my dream law school since I was old enough to spell ‘lawyer,’ which to be honest, was embarrassingly late.

  It doesn’t matter. Stanford is even more expensive than my last school and I could barely afford that one.

  “I’ll reject the offer,” I reply. “You’re not listening to me. I can’t go to law school.”

  “Why not?”

  Was he always this bad at listening? “I can’t go to law school because we need to pay for expensive medical treatment for Mom.”

  “No, you don’t.”

  “Well, if it’s all the same with you, I’ll continue to take advice on Mom’s treatment from doctors. You know, people with medical degrees, not law degrees. They say that she needs treatment.”

  “The treatment is all paid for.”

  “What do you—”

  “Shit, listen, I have to go. Can you swing by the office tomorrow around five?”

  “Why? And what—”

  “Kara, I’m sorry, but I have to go. Speak to your sister about the hospital thing. Promise you’ll swing by tomorrow?”

  “Fine,” I reply. “I need to collect the stuff I left behind anyway.”

  Despite Damon ordering me to clear my desk, I never actually bothered. I literally couldn’t see because of the tears welling up in my eyes. I certainly didn’t go into his office to grab the bloody Bluebook that doesn’t belong to me anyway.

  The Bluebook… it’s the safe word. Oh shit. He was trying to tell me something was wrong and I completely missed it.

  I’m about to say something when Damon says goodbye and hangs up.

  “Samantha?” I call out. She opens the door so quickly that I’m sure she was standing outside and eavesdropping on the conversation.

  “You called?”

  “What’s going on with Mom’s medical bills?”

  “What medical bills?”

  “You know, the tens of thousands of dollars we have to pay for her treatment.”

  “It’s all covered. The debts are cleared and she’s been approved for the surgery, which has also been paid for.”

  “How?”

  “I’ll give you a clue. He has a massive penis and—”

  “Damon?”

  “Yeah, he paid for all of it and apparently he’s paying for you to go to law school. That doesn’t mean you owe him forgiveness or anything, but at the very least, give him a blow job from me, alright. I’ve just quit my job thanks to him and I can’t tell you how happy I am. You should probably swallow. I’m really grateful.”

  I smile, laugh, and then cry. Mom’s going to get the surgery. She’s going to be okay. Everything’s going to be okay.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Damon

  Everything’s ready.

  I’m useless when it comes to computers, so I hired a tech person to look at our system. She confirmed that even though my User ID was the one to enter the fraudulent expenses, it wasn’t done from either my computer or Kara’s computer.

  It wasn’t a mistake; someone tried to frame Kara.

  Kara’s car pulls up in the lot. I quickly dash to the door to intercept her. I should have used the time to think of what the hell I was going to say.

  �
��Hey.”

  “Hey,” she replies. We stand and stare at each other for a few seconds. “So, uh, why am I here?”

  “Oh yeah. Follow me.”

  We head back to the same meeting room we were in when I fired her. A few minutes later, Heather and John join us.

  “What’s she doing here?” Heather asks bitterly.

  “I wanted her to be here to see this,” I reply.

  “See what?” John asks.

  “The reason why Mitchell got invoiced for fake expenses.”

  “We know why that happened,” John says, looking at Heather with a grin that I’m about to wipe off his face.

  “Not really. You see, the fake expenses weren’t entered from Kara’s computer. They were entered from Heather’s.”

  Heather does a terrible job of looking surprised. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, that you entered the expenses under my username and tried to frame Kara. And don’t even try to say that Kara used your computer because at the time the entries were made, Kara was with me.”

  That last bit’s a lie, but I can’t be bothered to argue with Heather. She’s guilty. There’s no need to draw this out.

  Heather looks over to John for help, but none is forthcoming.

  “John, make sure Heather clears her desk. And then clear yours out as well.”

  John grabs Heather’s arm and pulls her towards the door before pausing as my words sink in. “Wait, you want me to clear my desk as well?”

  I nod. “You’re the one who gave Heather the password and it was probably your idea too.”

  “Heather already has your password,” John replies. “She used to be your secretary.”

  “And the second she stopped working as my secretary, I changed my password. The only person who could get access to that would be the system administrator. You.”

  Heather yanks her arm free from John’s grip. “It was his idea,” Heather says. “I only did it to get back at this bitch.” She nods towards Kara who is sat there quietly taking it all in.

  “I really don’t care which of you started it. I am curious though: John, do you have any good reason for screwing us over other than just petty jealousy?”

  “There’s nothing petty about it,” he snarls. “I deserved the managing partner role and instead I got stuck doing the fucking admin.”

  “You’re in charge of recruitment,” I reply. “Or at least, you were. That’s hardly admin.”

  “Whatever. You couldn’t even let me have a go on the cleaner.” He nods towards Kara. “I hired one that’s much bigger than your usual type. She was supposed to be for me. You know I’ve had a rough time since the divorce.

  I’m not often speechless, but I genuinely can’t believe what I’m hearing from John’s lips.

  “I’ll leave,” John continues. “But you’re going to have to buy out my share of the partnership and it won’t come cheap.”

  “I’ll pay you.” I don’t have much of a fucking choice. He’s a partner and therefore has an equity stake in the firm. I could report him to the California Bar Association, but that will bring a lot of attention down on Kara which she doesn’t need.

  “Actually,” Kara says, speaking up for the first time. “I think John will agree to sell for a bargain price.”

  “Oh do you now,” John replies. “Well it’s a good job I don’t take advice from the office slut.”

  I clench my fists, but Kara puts a calming hand on my thigh and I immediately relax. If she doesn’t care, neither should I.

  “Back when I was a cleaner, I remember seeing lots of statements showing transfers out of the client trust fund to one with the last name Price. I assumed it was just a coincidence. Price isn’t a particularly rare name.”

  “We don’t have a client called Price,” I tell Kara. We do have an attorney with the last name ‘Price’ though. John.

  “I know,” Kara continues. “I never did take my legal ethics exam, but am I right in thinking that the Bar Association doesn’t like lawyers taking money from client trust funds?”

  “Definitely not,” I add. “And if the money is going directly into your account, it won’t be difficult to find the culprit.”

  “I was going to pay it back,” John says softly. He knows he’s lost. “I only borrowed the money.”

  “Doesn’t matter,” I say, trying to keep the excitement from my voice. “You can’t touch the client trust fund. You know that.”

  John mutters something about working out a deal and then leaves the room with Heather.

  “You are incredible,” I say to Kara. “You’ve just saved me a million dollars.”

  “Given the amount you’ve spent on Mom and my tuition, it’s the least I can do. Samantha reckons I owe you one.”

  “You really don’t.”

  “She’s insisting that I suck your cock and swallow every last drop of your cum.”

  “Oh. Well, I guess she has a point.”

  Kara and I quickly head back to my office. She’s on her knees before the door’s even shut.

  I lean against the wall as she sucks my dick, sliding her lips further down the shaft than they’ve ever been. She’s getting damn good at suppressing her gag reflex. I’m struggling to suppress the urge to come down her throat.

  I grab her hair and pull her off my dick. She’s red-faced, out of breath, and gorgeous. I was going to bend her over the desk and fuck her, but I can’t hold it in.

  “Open your blouse,” I say quickly.

  Kara tugs her blouse open, exposing her perfect breasts just in time. I squeeze my cock and shoot streams of cum all over her chest and neck. I don’t think I’ve ever come so hard. When the last burst hits her chest, Kara takes hold of my cock and sucks the cum off, almost making me come again.

  “You look incredible covered in cum,” I say, as I help her to her feet.

  “I hear it’s good for the skin.”

  I kiss her and grab her ass for good measure. “You’re not wearing any panties.”

  “Of course not. You told me never to wear panties to the office.”

  I smile and spank her ass gently. “Bend over the desk. It’s time for your punishment.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Kara - Six Months Later

  If there’s one thing that is guaranteed to drag law students away from their books, it’s a chance to network with actual lawyers on the off-chance that a job might be waiting at the end of it.

  Tonight’s panel discussion is all about how to get work as a mergers and acquisitions attorney. That comes a close second to intellectual property law in the list of priorities for students at Stanford Law School, so the room is nearly completely full.

  I’ve got no interest in working in M&A; I’m here to support one of the lawyers talking on the forum.

  Unlike the other three attorneys, Damon has the complete attention of everyone in the room when he talks. In part, that’s because he’s far and away the best-looking guy in the room, however it’s also his tone of voice. He speaks casually and yet authoritatively. He manages to sound intelligent but not pretentious. It’s a skill some of his colleagues could do with learning.

  “Any more questions?” the moderator asks.

  At least twenty hands shoot into the air. “Other than taking business law classes, is there anything we can do while in law school to prepare for careers in M&A?”

  In other words, how do I get a job?

  The woman directed the question to Damon so he answers it.

  “Make sure you keep up with business news,” Damon replies. “You don’t want to be in an interview and not be able to answer a question about a big deal that the entire business community is talking about. That won’t be enough to get you a job, but you’d be amazed at how many people lose jobs based on simple things like that.”

  I look around the room as he talks. I might just be imagining things, but it looks an awful lot like the women are paying him the wrong type of attention. They’re not taking notes; they’re
twirling their hair while sitting up straight and puffing up their chests.

  Good job I’m not the easily jealous type.

  “You also need to talk to as many business lawyers as you can,” Damon continues. “Make sure you know what an M&A attorney does on a day-to-day basis to show that you’ll be able to hit the ground running.”

  There are a few more questions until the moderator brings a halt to the discussion. The second it’s all over, Damon heads in my direction before getting bombarded by questions from law students like a pop star trying to walk through a group of fans. I smile and nod, letting him know I’m not in a rush. He talks to people while slowly heading in my direction.

  “Ms. Ellsworth,” he says formally.

  “Evening Mr. Caldwell.”

  A couple of nearby students look surprised that I know him. I’ve not made much of an impression in my six months here. I missed out on the first year which is when most people get to know each other, and I didn’t make much of an effort to catch up. I’m the last person they’d expect to be dating the hottest lawyer in California.

  “Thank you for sending me your paper on the latest developments on the use of poison pills in takeovers,” Damon says politely. “It’s an interesting read, but there are a few areas that need more support and I believe you’ve misinterpreted part of the Eisner case.”

  Thankfully none of the students eavesdropping on this conversation know I don’t take any business law classes. I’ve never even heard of the case he’s talking about.

  “Maybe we could discuss it further one day?” I ask.

  “I’m free now, if you have a minute?”

  “Sure,” I say, trying to suppress a smile.

  Damon leads the way down the halls. He spent three years here and knows the place better than I do.

  He opens a door to one of the lecture rooms and grabs my arm, dragging me inside.