Can't Forgive You (Second Chance Diaries Book 2)

by Emma Vikes

  Logan sighed and then placed both of his hands on my shoulders. “I promise I’ll behave and I won’t do anything to make you uncomfortable. I’ll keep myself in check even when I want to kiss you so badly.”

  His words weren’t helping. They were only making me want him more and the way he was pleading me was softening me.

  “I respect what you want, Liv, but I also still want another shot with you. Have dinner with me?”

  I knew him well enough to know he wouldn’t stop pestering me until he got what he wanted. Besides, technically, we’d been having dinner together all week. The only difference with this one would be the fact that Amy wouldn’t be present. And if I kept declining, Logan would keep asking, and we would probably stay here all night until I agreed.

  I sighed and slowly nodded my head. “Fine. But we go home by 8:30.”

  Logan did a mock salute, grinning brightly. “Aye! I’ll get you home by 8:25, so it won’t be past your curfew.”

  His joke made me crack a smile and I paused to pile my things into my bag. Logan offered to help, carrying the other documents I’d planned to bring with me.

  There were eyes on us when we left and I knew there would be questions and speculations by tomorrow. The way Logan helped me and the way he looked at me, it was clear this wasn’t a client-lawyer relationship.

  My colleagues weren’t stupid. They would easily connect things together although I knew they wouldn’t figure out that Logan was Amy’s dad. It was a good thing the trial was tomorrow. We weren’t supposed to fraternize with clients this way and it would be enough of a reason to remove me as Logan’s lawyer.

  But by now, Hadfield couldn’t do anything and I think Logan was aware of that.

  Logan followed me to my car and then stopped when we were in front of the driver’s seat. “I’ll drive.”

  I furrowed my eyebrows. “You don’t have your car?”

  He shook his head and shrugged. “I asked my driver to drop me here. I thought it’d be weird if I brought a car and we carpooled to the venue.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him but handed him my keys. I actually didn’t mind if he drove. I could use the brief time to relax given the situation I had put myself in.

  I found myself falling asleep in the middle of the drive and felt Logan gently shaking me to wake up. When I opened my eyes, I stared at the massive house in front of me. “Did you just bring me to your house?”

  Logan wore a sheepish smile on his face again. “Yes. Don’t worry, there’s no one here but us. I thought about bringing you to a fancy restaurant like I used to promise you when we dated. But then I remembered we had our lunch there once when we were discussing the case. It wasn’t as fun as I imagined it to be.”

  I cocked my head to the side, staring at him in confusion. “So you decided that we’d have a date in your house?”

  His eyebrows rose and a teasing smile made its way on his lips. “All I said was that we were having dinner, Liv. You’re the one suggesting this is a date.” He got out of the car then rushed to my door and opened it for me. A teasing smile still painting his lips and his eyes were twinkling with amusement. “And since you’re thinking that this is a date, I better act like a perfect gentleman.”

  I huffed as I got out of the car.

  Logan was grinning like a fool as he led me to his house. He only had the dim lighting turned on and he gestured to the grand staircase.

  I eyed him cautiously. “Why are we going upstairs?”

  He rolled his eyes. “I’m bringing you to my bedroom so we can have a little fun under the covers and have each other as dinner. How does that sound?”

  His words left me flustered and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes as I climbed the stairs.

  Logan was laughing behind me and then suddenly grabbed my hand and urged me to climb faster. He tugged at my arm and we ran through one hallway until we reached a glass door that led to a balcony. He pressed a button on the side and the doors slid open.

  I stared in awe at the sight.

  A table sat in the middle of the balcony, with candles in the middle. The lighting set a perfect tone to the whole thing and when we stepped closer, I caught sight of the food he had prepared. “Takeout from Taco Bell?”

  Logan laughed and nodded and the sight of this reminded me of the first one we ever had. It took him weeks until I finally caved in and went on a date with him. Given that he was Logan Crewe, I honestly expected he’d take me to a fancy restaurant in the city. Instead, he brought me to his apartment and had the table set up the same way as it was now, albeit it was in his living room.

  “It’s still your favourite right?” Logan asked me as he pulled a chair and motioned for me to take a seat. “You used to tell me that it’s the food that comforts your soul. I know you’ve been reassuring me that we have the case in the bag but with everything that went on, I think you deserve this.”

  I swallowed and could feel heat behind my eyes, tears were threatening to fall. His thoughtfulness made me feel so soft. On our first date, he bought me Taco Bell because I had mentioned to him in passing that it was my comfort food. Ten years later, he still hadn’t forgotten about it.

  He playfully made a show of putting the napkin on his lap and then motioned for me to dig in.

  My stomach rumbled at the scent of the food and I tried my best not to tear off the packaging. I took a bite of the taco and moaned.

  In front of me, Logan hissed and glared at me. “I’m trying to restrain myself here, Liv,” he said, his voice pleading, his eyes turning darker by the second. “And if you moan like that, it’s not really helping.”

  I couldn’t help it. I burst out laughing after I saw his face.

  He literally looked like he was in pain although I knew that he was merely acting.

  Logan grinned widely when I laughed and then began eating. He started an easy conversation with me after we sobered from our laughter and for the rest of the dinner, the flow of conversation was easy and fun.

  It honestly felt like I was brought back to how we were ten years ago, when we were still getting to know each other. During the dinner, Logan didn’t offer me any wine or any other alcoholic drink. He stuck with the root beer that came with the takeout. He didn’t even ask me if we could move inside.

  Throughout the entire evening, Logan remained respectful. He cracked a couple of dirty jokes here and there but only to alleviate any tension between us. Honestly, he was being absolutely admirable and remarkable. He was proving to me that in the past ten years, he really had grown mature but still remained the same thoughtful and sweet Logan I fell in love with.

  “It’s already 8 o’ clock,” Logan said, a pout on his lips as he looked at his watch. “I’d love to drive you to your house but I wouldn’t have any car to use to drive myself back.”

  I slowly nodded my head, a pang of disappointment flooding my chest. I was loving every second of the time we were spending together. But I managed to hide my disappointment as I followed Logan out of his house.

  He walked me to my car and unlocked it for me. He even opened the driver’s door for me and handed me the key when I was seated. “I hope you had fun tonight,” Logan said, a small boyish smile on his face.

  My heart skipped a beat at the sight of him and I felt a little flustered at the smile he gave me. “I actually did. Thank you for forcing me to have dinner with you.”

  Logan rolled his eyes and then reached to touch my face gently. He had a longing look in his eyes and involuntarily, my eyes fluttered close as he leaned in and kissed my forehead. He rested his forehead against mine. “Drive safe, okay? I still want to love you for the rest of my life.”

  23

  Logan

  “Oh hell,” Clara muttered under her breath. She was in the car with me and we just arrived at the district court to see that it was flooded with reporters from all over San Francisco. The embezzlement scandal I was involved in was the biggest news to hit the media. As Clara had advised, I tried my best to keep
it lowkey since the news broke out but even that didn’t do the trick.

  The reporters were like pests, swarming all over us the moment we stepped out of the car. I’d hired extra bodyguards but even they weren’t enough to shield me from the flashes of the camera. I kept my head low, my sunglasses shielding my eyes as Clara and I rushed to the entrance of the court.

  Olivia was already inside, waiting for us.

  When I saw her, my heart raced. I remembered the dinner we had last night and how easy it was to simply be with her. There hadn’t been any tension but I guess it was because we’d already put everything on the table. She wasn’t hiding any big secret from me and I had told her that I still loved her and still wanted to be with her.

  We weren’t together the way I wished we were but I felt like last night had loosened up a lot of things between Olivia and me.

  She even smiled when she spotted us and did a little wave, as if we didn’t see each other this morning when I picked up Amy for school.

  “You seem to be in a chipper mood. I’m assuming you’re confident that we’ll win?” Clara’s tone was clipped and I knew that she must be feeling nervous.

  Olivia merely smiled at her. “I have my reservations with confidence when it comes to winning cases. But I’m certain that we’ve done the best we could and have all the evidence we need. At this point, it’s up to Lady Justice if she’ll be in our favor.”

  This was one of the things I’d always admired about Olivia. She always remained humble despite so many people saying she was smart and great with everything she did. Hadfield had picked her out to handle my case because he was confident at her ability. But it was still amazing to see her remain humble amidst the praises of everyone around her.

  She led us to a small conference room where we could stay, while we waited.

  I nudged her gently. “You ready?”

  Olivia looked thoughtful for a moment. “For the trial or for later?”

  When she mentioned ‘later’, I remembered that intended to tell Amy the truth after the trial. Amy was going to take the bus today after school since I couldn’t pick her up but I did promise her that I would come by after the trial. Of course, even if I didn’t make that promise, I still had to come by because Olivia and I agreed to tell her the truth today.

  I had momentarily forgotten about it. I scratched the back of my neck, feeling a little sheepish. “For both?”

  Olivia shrugged her shoulders a little. “I already said that we have all the evidence we need for the trial and I’m prepared as I can be. I wish I felt the same with what’s going to happen later though. With trials like this, it’s easy to anticipate certain things. With Amy, not so much.”

  I reached for her hand, making sure Clara didn’t see me do so, and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I’m confident that all will be well later.”

  Olivia didn’t pull her hand from mine and managed to flash me a small smile.

  We were finally called to the court room and Olivia directed us to where we were meant to sit. She sat right next to me and Clara took a seat behind us.

  Julija and her lawyer came in, as well as the jury, and the rest of the people that came to watch.

  The bailiff asked all of us to rise to start the session, introduced the judge, and asked us to sit again. The judge was a big man, with skin the color of ebony, and greying hair. He had a kind sparkle in his eyes and I felt like a bit of tension lifted off of me. The judge looked fair and kind and looked nothing like someone who would gamble with justice.

  “Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Calling the case of Julija Marie Burrows vs Logan Asher Crewe. Are both sides ready?”

  Both Olivia and Julija’s lawyer, Catherine, stood up. Both of them quipped that they were ready and then the clerk was called to swear in the jury.

  After that, Catherine stood up for her opening statements to address the jury of the case, “Your Honor and ladies and gentlemen of the jury… the defendant has been charged of a crime of embezzlement or the misappropriation of funds placed in one’s trust or belonging to one’s employer. In this case, the defendant is the co-owner of Outright Auto wherein nearly half of the funds of the company had been transferred to his account.” Catherine barely glanced at me. Her gaze was fixed on the judge and then would sometimes transfer to the jury. She was impressive and knew how to hold her stand and she spoke with such conviction.

  But despite how good she was at her job, I couldn’t help but be excited to see Olivia in action. I didn’t get to see her in a mock trial when we were dating but I’d seen her on the debate team.

  Olivia pushed her chair back and stood up. She was calm and collected, her voice even as she spoke, “Your Honor and ladies and gentlemen of the jury: under the law, my client is presumed innocent until proven guilty. During this trial, you will learn that the evidence and claims pitted against my client aren’t true.”

  I was in awe at how assured Olivia’s voice sounded. Her face remained neutral and showed nearly no emotions. The way her tone was clipped and confident, I couldn’t help but admire her even more.

  “You will come to know that Logan Crewe did not take any funds from Outright Auto and did no such withdrawal as the claims suggest. There are no records of withdrawal in any of his accounts and we have proof of that. All the claims against him aren’t true therefore, my client is not guilty of the claims held against him. He has been framed as a victim by an act of revenge.”

  There were whispers all around when Olivia dropped the last sentence.

  I dared to glance at Julija.

  Her hands were clenched into fists and she was glaring daggers at Olivia. “Revenge? For what? Why would I seek revenge from a greedy bastard like him?”

  Catherine shushed Julija whose eyes remained narrowed at Olivia.

  A tiny smirk showed on Olivia’s lips as she took a seat next to me. She didn’t bother to glance my way. Instead, she remained focused on the judge as he called Catherine to present the evidence.

  She handed each of the jury and the judge a copy of the documents they had as evidence. “As you can see, Your Honor and ladies and gentlemen of the jury, those are records of the defendants accounts. The complainant, Miss Julija Burrows, used to work as his accountant, hence why she has access to such things. When she noticed that something was amiss with Mr. Crewe’s account, she knew that she had to do the right thing. In the documents I presented, it has Outright Auto’s account. The amount is the same from the 12th to the 15th of May until it changes in the 16th. There’s been a transfer made from that account to another and you will see that same amount in one of Mr. Crewe’s account. It disappears in the 17th, however, which means that he had withdrawn such a hefty amount.”

  I had the urge to slam my hands against the table but I felt Olivia’s hand on my lap. She still wasn’t looking at me but I knew that she wanted me to remain calm.

  The jury kept looking at the evidence until Olivia was called to stand.

  She handed each of the jury and judge another set of documents. “In the documents that Miss Shaw had presented, it is correct that the amount in the account remained the same from the 12th to the 15th and a sudden transfer had been made on the 16th,” Olivia began, standing in the middle of the room, “but I’ve gathered copies of my client’s accounts from the bank itself. There isn’t any trace of that amount being transferred and withdrawn in any of his accounts.”

  The room began to buzz with the revelation.

  I leaned back on my chair, watching Olivia in awe yet again. On my right, I could hear Julija muttering to her lawyer to do something but all Catherine kept telling her was to be still and be quiet.

  Olivia went on, “There’s a likely chance that Miss Burrows had faked the documents that her attorney had earlier presented to you and made such claims.” Olivia did a little walk in the middle of the room. “If that’s not convincing enough, may I call on Mr. Crewe’s partner in the automotive company to take the stand?”

  There was movement
behind us and Mitch came forward. He was taken to the stand and sworn in.

  Olivia approached him. “Mr. Johansenn, for how long have you known Mr. Crewe?”

  Mitch glanced at me and shrugged. “About five years? I had this small mechanic shop five years ago that he would take his cars into. We became fast friends because he’s really nice. Three years ago, he made the proposition of the two of us starting a business together. All’s been well with Outright until now.”

  “And in that length of time that you’ve known him, can you say that he’s a good man? Let’s say, he isn’t one to steal any money?”

  Mitch nodded. “Back in the days, Logan used to lend me money. That’s why I’m certain that he wouldn’t steal from the company we made. He has enough money in the bank to last him a lifetime.”

  “Thank you. I have no further questions, Your Honor.” Olivia nodded and sat next to me.

  Catherine was asked to cross examine Mitch.

  She stood, looking slightly uncertain. It was clear they didn’t believe our side would bring Mitch to the trial, although he was the main witness to the whole thing. But I was certain they also didn’t bet on how close Mitch and I were.

  Catherine didn’t have a lot of questions to ask Mitch. Most of them merely echoed Olivia’s.

  “Can we call the defendant to the stand?”

  I stood up and was sworn in by the clerk.

  Catherine was the first one to cross examine me. “Mr. Crewe, for how long have you had Miss Burrows work for you?”

  “For four years.”

  “In that length of time, is she allowed access to your accounts as your accountant?”

  I nodded. “Yes. She handled all of my accounts and the companies that I was involved in.”

  Catherine nodded. “And when you say all of your accounts, would that also include any third-party or offshore accounts?”

  My eyebrows furrowed, unsure where she was going on with this. I glanced at Olivia who just nodded at me. “No. All of my offshore accounts aren’t managed by her. All of them are personally managed by me.”