by Nadia S. Lee
“Are you crazy? And jeopardize the firm?”
Lina stared at her sister as it became clear. “You’re mad because you want to salvage the business relationship the firm has with Jared’s family.”
The muscles in Jolie’s jaw bunched. “It’s not about that. You left without any explanation.”
“Explanation? You couldn’t figure out what happened when you saw Jared with his pants down and Crystal with her skirt up around her waist? You sure you went to Harvard Law?”
“Don’t make this about me,” Jolie said, her cheeks reddening. Her eyes glinted, the same glint she always got when she was about to swing her ax at the opposition’s witness. “This one is all you. You not following the family tradition. You not pulling your weight when you need to. You not doing your best.”
Blood roared in Lina’s head, and she could barely process the list of failures.
“Do you think we enjoy the fact that you had to marry well to make your way? You don’t get to decide your own destiny, Lina,” Jolie continued. “You can’t get a well-paying job, and you don’t have any decent skills to monetize. So of course you’re at the mercy of others. That type of person always is. Jared was a good choice for you.”
“He cheated on me!”
“And if you’d managed him better, he might not have! And for that matter, if you’d been more selective with your friendship, that tramp would’ve never been able to get near him. Do you think Mom and Dad went through all that trouble just so some crass beer-swiller like Crystal could have him?”
“So I can’t even have friends you don’t approve of?”
“Well, it couldn’t have gone worse, could it?”
Lina found herself panting like she’d run ten miles. Her whole body hurt. This…this was the reason why she hadn’t answered the calls from her family.
“Anyway, come home. We’ll figure something out.” You’re our burden—the failed one—and we’re responsible for you. Jolie didn’t have to say it, but Lina heard it loud and clear.
“You don’t have to figure anything out,” Lina said. “I already did.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” You’re too stupid. What could you have figured out?
“You said I’m not in control of my own destiny because I’m unemployable.”
“Well, duh. Ever since you graduated from college with that drama degree, you haven’t been able to find anything decent.”
That sneer destroyed Lina’s better judgment. “Well, for your information, I have a job. So I’m not going anywhere.”
Her sister snorted. “Minimum wage at a fast food joint? Come on, Lina. You won’t last a day, and they don’t pay enough for any of the nice things you want in your life.”
“I’m working at Sam’s father’s law firm.”
“Sam?”
“Yes, Sam. Your ex-fiancé? Surely you haven’t forgotten about him already.”
Suddenly, Jolie stiffened, her gaze sweeping beyond Lina. “This is Sam’s house?”
“Yes.”
“Oh my God! I can’t believe you dragged my ex into this.”
“I didn’t drag anyone into anything.”
Jolie wasn’t listening. “You have no right to run to my ex. You know I prefer to keep them where they belong—in the past.”
Her perfectly rouged mouth twisted into an ugly line when her gaze landed on a spot beyond Lina. From the way the fine hair on Lina’s back stood up, she knew Sam was behind her.
“What are you doing with my sister?” Jolie’s voice hit a shrill note on the last syllable.
“Just trying to help her out, that’s all.”
“By giving her a pity job?”
“Excuse me?”
“Or is it really because you’re still mad I wouldn’t move here with you? Do you think this is going to mean anything to me? That it’ll make me change my mind?”
“You broke off the engagement, and, so that we’re clear, you’re no longer a factor in my decision-making process,” Sam said, his voice taking on that hard attorney edge Lina had heard so many times from her parents when growing up. It was the “you’ve crossed the line and gloves are coming off” voice.
“That’s hilariously rich coming from you.” Jolie’s tone matched Sam’s. “If what you’re saying is true, you should’ve never involved yourself with my sister. Getting your father to give her a job is so low, I can’t even.” She looked back and forth between Lina and Sam. “Don’t come running to us for damages when she burns down your firm. And Lina, I’m giving you two weeks, tops. Don’t take too long before crawling home, because it’ll only get harder.” Jolie spun on her nude Louboutin stilettos and walked out, slamming the door behind her.
Lina slumped, her knees shaky. She felt like she’d been mentally and emotionally pummeled, and the humiliation was worse for having the fight in front of Sam. No matter how much Lina wanted to deny it, nothing Jolie had said was untrue.
“Hey, are you okay?” Sam asked, placing a comforting hand on her back.
“Yeah.” She kept her gaze on a spot six inches beyond the tips of her shoes. “I’m fine.”
“She shouldn’t have talked that way to you.”
Lina sighed and then, gathering her courage, looked at Sam. “I’m sorry I got you into this mess. Jolie can be pretty unforgiving when she feels wronged.”
“The wronged party here is you, Lina. Don’t try to excuse her.”
“I’ll get my stuff and go.”
“Where?”
“I don’t know. I’ll just…drive around until I reach Denver and fly home. Like she said, it’ll be harder if I delay the inevitable.”
Sam’s jaw firmed. “What about that stuff about the job?”
Lina flushed. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lied about that. It’s just, she made me so ma—”
“No, I mean do you really want a job? You don’t need the money.”
“Well…I really do need a job.” She didn’t elaborate, since she didn’t want to get into her humiliating financial situation with Sam. She’d quit her junior assistant job at an interior decorating firm in New York because Jared had insisted she take the time to get used to being his wife, hosting parties and so on to help build his business. She had maybe a couple thousand bucks in her checking account, and most of that was earmarked for credit card bills.
Sam frowned as he considered. “It’s legal secretary work. Can you do it?”
Lina nodded. “I worked as a legal secretary for a few summers in college. You know, helping out with the grunt work at Pearce Vogel Lott.” Jolie had made a point of telling her, It’s so you know what your life will be like if you don’t get a good score on the LSAT. Of course, neither Jolie nor her family had counted on the fact that Lina hadn’t minded working as a legal secretary. She’d earned her own spending money and discovered that she enjoyed helping the lawyers keep things organized…much to her family’s horror.
“Come on,” Sam said, jerking his head toward the door. “Let’s go see my dad.”
“Your dad?”
He took her wrist with one hand, grabbed his keys with the other and pulled her out of the house. Thankfully, Jolie was gone.
“We weren’t kidding about needing a secretary ASAP,” Sam said on the way to his car. “If you have some experience at your dad’s firm, that’s good enough for me.”
Chapter Nine
The decision to take Lina to his folks’ house and ask his dad to give her the job was impulsive—nothing like what Sam would’ve normally done. But he couldn’t stand the way Jolie had berated Lina even when she’d known he was watching.
He couldn’t imagine talking to any of his siblings that way.
When he’d seen Jolie march inside, he’d assumed she was there to offer Lina some moral support and take her back to Manhattan. His ex-fiancée had never been natural at comforting people, although she managed a fair approximation when she could bill someone for the effort. But if Lina didn’t deserve love from her family for what sh
e’d gone through, he didn’t know who did.
And for the hundredth time, he was grateful he’d dodged that particular bullet. Marrying Jolie would’ve been a huge mistake. Although he’d been dazzled by her beauty, boundless energy and brilliant mind, he wouldn’t have been able to live with a woman with so little compassion and understanding. He’d sensed something not being quite right when he’d noticed her utter lack of enthusiasm for meeting his family, then her lashing out at his beloved home town because it fell short of her idea of a “cool, acceptable place” she would deign to set her dainty foot.
When they arrived at his parents’ house about ten minutes later, his dad was in the living room, fuming and pacing. He was in a dark burgundy robe cinched over gray pajamas, his feet stuck in matching slippers. The moment Steve spotted Sam, he said, “Can you believe this?” A hand went up in the air. “Nobody can send us anybody for at least a month! I thought the job market was terrible, and people were eager for honest work. What the heck has hap—”
“Dad, calm down,” Sam said. “I think we’ve got—”
“I should’ve fired Amanda the last time she missed work, rather than being understanding. Losing her mom or not, a job is a job, am I right? You gotta show up! This is the thanks I get for being a good guy. And how are we going to find anything now? I can never figure out her filing system.”
Sam shut up and just started nodding. His dad needed to get it all out of his system before he would be ready to listen to what Sam came to say.
“Do you know she said God told her to seize the moment and marry that man? Ha!” Steve snorted. “It wasn’t God who spoke to her in Las Vegas!”
“Most likely not.” Given Amanda’s fondness for alcohol, it’d been probably Jack Daniel’s.
Steve looked like he was about to start in again, but then he stiffened. “I didn’t know we had an audience. My apologies, Lina.”
“It’s okay, Dad. She needed to see your temper.”
Steve’s black and silver eyebrows shot up. “My temper?”
“Lina has some legal secretary work experience at her dad’s law firm. I thought maybe we could ask her to fill in until we find somebody permanent.” Lina probably couldn’t stay for long, but even a few days or so would help.
“I wouldn’t mind it being permanent,” she interjected.
Steve waved a hand. “No need to commit to anything long-term right now. But if you don’t mind, yeah, it’d be a big help. We’re a small firm, just me and Sam, so it won’t be as overwhelming as your dad’s. But listen. I don’t know if you got a pass at Pearce Vogel Lott because your dad was a name partner, but I’m not giving you one.”
“I don’t expect you to,” she said.
“Well, beggars can’t be choosers, so yes. You’re hired.” Steve’s tone was gruff.
Sam was wincing at his dad’s rather ungracious comments when he sensed someone behind him. He turned and noticed his mom standing there. She was dressed in a verdant house dress with a spring flower print—her favorite, because it was so comfy—but from the way her arms were crossed, not even the dress was making her feel better. Great. Now it was clear why his dad hadn’t been as nice as he would’ve been otherwise.
Still, Sam knew the best way to thaw his mom was with some charm, not confrontations.
“Hi, Mom,” he said with a bright smile.
“Hello, Sam. Lina.”
“Hi, Patty.”
“Molly told me you still have some of that jarred applesauce left from last fall,” Sam said. “Mind if I take one?”
“Not at all.”
“Can you show me where it is?” Sam smiled innocently. “I’m terrible at finding things in your kitchen.”
“Are you calling my kitchen disorganized?”
“Not at all, ma’am.” He looped an arm through hers.
They entered the kitchen together, and she dug around in the pantry and pulled out a medium-sized jar. “Here.”
“Thanks, Mom.” He gave her a winsome grin.
Patty didn’t smile back.
“Oh, come on. Are you that mad about giving this to me?”
“You know why I’m upset, Samuel Roberts, and I’m not going to have you make light of my feelings.”
“Aw, Mom. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make light of anything. I wanted to cheer you up.”
“Why is she getting a job at your father’s firm?”
“Amanda left. You heard, right?”
“Yes, but I can fill in for a few days if necessary.”
“Mom, be realistic. You’d hate it and want to leave within an hour.” Patty might be married to a lawyer and had a son who was one, but she’d made it no secret she usually found legal stuff pretty dull. All mumbo-jumbo, she’d said. Besides, she was an outdoors person, and being cooped up in an office, tied to a desk, would drive her insane.
“But her?”
“You said you’d be nice last night.”
“Because it was only for one day. Now you’re changing this to however many days.”
He frowned. “Why are you so against her?”
“She reminds me of her sister. They even look similar, and I know you have a thing for polished blondes.”
Sam stared at his mother. “I do not.”
“Yes, you do. That’s why you were going to marry that horrible girl. I don’t want to see you broken up over another dashed…” She waved her hand.
“I’m honestly not broken up over Jolie. I was disappointed she was so rude to you and the people of the town, but I realize now we would’ve been totally incompatible. Besides, Lina’s nothing like her sister. And as it happens, Jolie came by this morning, did you know that?”
His mom gasped. “What? Why wasn’t I told?”
“Gossip hasn’t had a chance to spread quite this far, I imagine. But she came and berated Lina for daring to stand up for herself and not being good enough. She tried to destroy Lina’s self-esteem by telling her she’d never be good for anything except flipping burgers at some hamburger joint.” That was a bit of an embellishment, but he didn’t mind too much, since it was all more or less true.
“Oh my goodness!” she said, one hand over her mouth. “That poor child.”
Sam smiled inwardly. One thing his mother had a weakness for was an underdog. “So this job is Lina’s way to prove to herself and her sister that she’s better than what Jolie said.”
“That horrible girl—Jolie, of course,” Patty said. “I knew she was bad news the moment she told me she didn’t wear hiking boots when I proposed we take a walk. Like I’d be crazy enough to carry her if she broke an ankle in those skinny heels.”
Sam blinked. He hadn’t known about that incident. Another reason why his mom couldn’t stand Jolie.
“Anyway”—Patty tilted her chin—“now that you’ve clarified the situation, I do believe Lina should succeed. Just to prove Jolie wrong.”
Chapter Ten
The work wasn’t too bad, Lina decided after a week of working at Roberts & Son. The previous secretary had a weird filing system, but it’d taken Lina only an hour to make sense of it and reorganize everything properly. She’d hate to leave Sam and Steve in a lurch when they’d done so much to help.
The clients who came in were vastly different from the moneyed corporate types she’d seen at her father’s firm. The people here were more down to earth and wanted to get help with estates and leases and so on. Not a single client wanted to crush the other guy until he was left broken and bleeding—or worse.
And the best thing? They didn’t look right through her, like some clients at her dad’s firm had because she was sitting at the secretary’s desk. They all said hello, most of them smiled and introduced themselves, and she smiled back and remembered all their names and their cases, since that was what good secretaries did for their bosses.
It was also sort of cute and sweet how some of Sam’s cousins dropped by with homemade baked goods. Bri and Bekah, who owned the only bed and breakfast in town, had
the best danishes, although Emma from Books ’N Beans had the best croissants, in Lina’s opinion. They all said hello and asked her how she was adjusting, and said how if she needed anything she should call them. She thanked them for their kind offers, making a mental note to get to know them better. After Crystal’s betrayal, it was a little difficult to open up to people, but Lina didn’t want to let the past stop her from living life to the fullest.
She finished typing up Steve’s dictation for the day—he loved to use his super-fancy dictaphone—and printed a copy after saving the files on the firm’s cloud server. He liked to review them every night. Lina wasn’t sure if it was because he wanted to make sure she was doing it right or because that was just his process. She hadn’t found the right moment to ask Sam, either—she didn’t want to come across like she was complaining.
“You’ve done very well,” Steve said on Friday afternoon, stopping at her desk on his way to the break room.
She flushed. Nobody had ever praised her—certainly no one at her father’s firm. “Thank you.”
“Thank you. Have to admit I was skeptical at first, but I’m a believer now.”
Her face grew warmer with pleasure. “I’m glad you gave me a chance.”
“So am I.” He cleared his throat. “Is it okay if I ask you to come back next week? I know it was until we get another secretary, but…if you’re going to stick around longer…”
“Sure. I can be back next week and the week after that. Basically as long as you need me.”
“Perfect.”
She went back to printing out invoices for clients and stuffed them into envelopes with the firm’s logo printed on the outside. Just as she was finishing with the last one, she felt a frisson of electric energy at her nape and turned around. It was Sam.
He was watching her while leaning against the door to his office. The suit he wore was gray, which made his eyes even more vivid. The careful tailoring of the outfit showed the lean lines of his body underneath. She flushed, remembering how Sam looked in his shorts and tank top after his morning runs. No man she’d ever dated made her knees weak like that.
“You about finished?” he asked.