by Rachel Dylan
Stacey blushed. “I hope I can live up to your expectations. I’m willing to work really hard.”
“That’s all anyone can ask of you,” Morena said. “I’ve got this from here, Layton. I’ll keep you posted on her progress.”
“Wonderful.” Layton walked out leaving the two women together. He couldn’t wait to see what Morena could do with a young energetic powerhouse like Stacey. The girl didn’t realize how much untapped potential she had. But luckily he did.
**
“You want to do what?” Layton’s big blue eyes practically bulged out of his head.
“Mediation,” Grant replied. He wasn’t going to back down. Layton needed some tough love. He’d brought Layton into his office and now Layton was sitting with his mouth dropped open on the other side of his desk.
“Why in the world would we want to mediate? I want to destroy them. Take this case to trial and embarrass them. Get back what is mine,” Layton yelled. “No way.”
“Listen to me. You hired me for a reason.”
Layton threw up his hands. “And it sure doesn’t sound like you’re doing your job to me if you’re suggesting mediation.”
“If you’d give me a minute to explain, I think I can clear up any misgivings you may have.”
Layton crossed his arms around his chest. “Misgivings is putting it lightly.”
“We wouldn’t be going to mediation to settle the case.”
“Then why would we go?”
“To rattle Astral Tech. We’d do a joint session at the beginning where both sides’ lawyers present their case. It would be sure to get a reaction from Clive and Nina Marie. It’s a tactical move.”
“To get inside their heads?”
“Two fold—definitely to get inside their heads, but also to hear what their initial take of their defense will be. It will provide us strategic insight as we move forward into the next phase of litigation headed to trial.”
Layton rubbed his chin. “Maybe you have a point.”
“I told you. This is what I do for a living.” When Olivia had mentioned mediation, he didn’t like the idea. But then he realized he could totally work this to his advantage.
“You said the lawyers will make a statement. What about us? Can I talk directly to Clive and Nina Marie?”
“It would all depend on the mediator. Each mediator has a different philosophy. Generally though, they’re trying to resolve the conflict. So they don’t want to do anything to fan the flames.”
Layton huffed. “But I want to agitate them.”
“Right. So the selection of a mediator would be important. And both sides have to agree.”
He laughed. “How do you expect us to be able to agree to anything?”
“Leave that to me. If you give the mediation the go ahead, I’ll make sure it happens.”
Layton smiled. “You really think you have that Olivia Murray wrapped around your finger, don’t you?”
“I wouldn’t go that far, but I’m confident in my ability to do my job.”
Layton’s smile disappeared. “Don’t underestimate that woman. I don’t trust her, and I think she’s a more formidable opponent than you would think.”
Wasn’t that an interesting way to put it? “Don’t worry.” But then he felt compelled to say something else. “Remember what I told you about making sure we’re on the up and up as far as the litigation goes.”
Layton frowned. “And I told you there was nothing for you to be concerned about.”
“Why do I feel like there’s something that I’m missing here?” Normally he wouldn’t push his client like this, but he had to be clear on this point.
“Everything is fine. We’re all behaving in a professional and legal manner. Now I’m going to head back to the office. Let me know when you figure out the logistics for the mediation.”
Grant shook Layton’s hand and walked him to the main reception area before returning to his office.
But then he decided instead of calling Olivia, he would go see her at the Astral Tech office. Layton’s visit had started off his day on a high note. Although Grant had to admit that he didn’t trust Layton. Unfortunately, he didn’t trust a lot of his clients. It was just the nature of the business.
Olivia might not appreciate an unannounced visit, but this was his first step in gaining back the upper hand in their professional relationship. He’d cleared his head and was ready to face this entire situation like his old self would—logically and rationally. None of this spiritual crap would influence his legal strategy.
He walked into the Astral Tech lobby and the receptionist, Melanie, gave him a big smile. It was almost like she was flirting with him, but he didn’t have time for that right now. Come to think of it, he rarely had time for women these days. His life was all about growing his law practice. When he’d taken the chance and started his own firm a few years ago leaving the more established firm, it had been a risk. But it had paid off big time. He had a growing client list and a stellar trial track record.
Girlfriends weren’t very understanding when you canceled on them all the time. It just wasn’t worth the hassle right now. Especially since every woman he’d ever dated had really failed to keep his attention. If he did ever settle down, and that was a big if, he would want someone he was attracted to and who was smart enough to spar with him.
“Mr. Baxter, nice to see you again,” Melanie said.
“Hi, Melanie. I’m here to see Olivia. I don’t have an appointment though.”
She grinned. “No problem. Let me give her a buzz. Have a seat.”
He took a seat on the plush navy sofa and waited for a few minutes. Then he heard the sound of heels clacking on the floor.
Looking up, he saw Olivia walking toward him. She looked great today in a black suit and red blouse. Her long dark hair was down instead of being pulled up in a bun or ponytail.
“Grant, what are you doing here?” she asked.
“Can we go to a conference room and talk?”
“Sure.”
She may have said sure, but her wrinkled brow let him know that she was skeptical.
She led him down the hall to the conference room that she was using as an office where they had met before.
“What’s going on?” she asked right when the door closed.
“I have updates on the mediation.”
Her eyes widened. “Really.”
“Yes.” He took a seat.
“Well, don’t just sit there staring at me. Tell me.”
He laughed. “You look great today, by the way.”
She snorted. “Don’t try to soften me up with compliments.”
“All right. Even though I was just stating a fact. I’ll move onto the mediation. My client has agreed to the mediation. The sooner the better.”
“Really? How in the world did you pull that off?”
He leaned back in the chair. “I can’t divulge my secrets. Especially not to the enemy.”
“I won’t push you. Thanks for taking it to your client.”
“I did my part. Now it’s your turn to step up and get your people to agree. Then we’ll have to settle on a mediator which I’m assuming will be a contentious process.”
Smiling, she looked him in the eyes. “Why would you ever think that anything related to this litigation would be contentious?”
“I love your sarcasm. Get your client on board and I’ll go ahead and propose a list of mediators. Then you can shoot them all down and we can go from there.”
“Agreed.” She bit her bottom lip. “Is everything else going okay?”
He knew what she was getting at, even if she didn’t come right out and say it. “Yes, I’m totally fine. Feeling much better. Don’t even think any more about that.”
“You know that if that changes, you can talk to me about it. That’s totally different than the legal issues we’re dealing with.”
“Don’t give it another thought.”
The door opened and he saw an auburn
haired woman walk through the door. Her dark brown eyes immediately locked in on him.
“Am I interrupting?” she asked.
“No, we were just finishing up. Nina Marie Crane, this is Grant Baxter, the attorney for Optimism.”
A slow smile crept across Nina Marie’s face. She walked over to him and outstretched her hand. He stood and took her hand in his. Right when they connected he immediately felt uneasy. She didn’t break eye contact or the handshake.
“Very nice to meet you, Grant. Just because we’re at war with Optimism in this lawsuit doesn’t mean that we can’t be friendly.”
Talk about distrust. That’s the only way he could describe it. There was something sinister about this woman. Underneath it all, he wondered what her real motives were.
Finally, she dropped his hand, and he took a deep breath. “Okay, Olivia. Let me know when you have updates on what we discussed.” He clearly wasn’t going to discuss the mediation in front of Nina Marie. That was Olivia’s job, to take it to her client first.
“Nice to meet you, Grant. Come back and visit anytime.” Nina Marie winked at him.
He couldn’t get out of the Astral Tech office fast enough.
**
“Isn’t he a cutie,” Nina Marie said.
Olivia waved her hand. “Right now he’s my opposing counsel. So I’m not concerned with whether he’s attractive.”
Nina Marie walked over to her. Olivia felt Nina Marie’s touch on her arm. “Olivia, you’re an absolutely awful liar. I think you’re quite taken with the man.”
Olivia took a step back straightening her suit jacket. “I think you have the wrong idea, Nina Marie. Romance is the last thing on my mind right now.” And that was the truth.
Nina Marie nodded. “Maybe so. But just because you’re fighting in the courtroom doesn’t mean that you can’t also tangle outside of it. If you know what I mean.”
Olivia understood exactly what Nina Marie meant, but she didn’t want to have that discussion. “About the case…”
“Yes, what did he want?”
“We’ve been discussing a mediation.”
Nina Marie’s eyes widened and she laughed. “Olivia, please don’t tell me you’re that naïve.”
“It was my idea.”
“Why? There’s no way that Layton Alito is going to settle this case out of court.”
“It’s not about settlement. It’s about strategy. We’ll get to hear their arguments in the mediation. It will help me prepare our defense. It will also give you a chance to put some pressure on them. If they see we’re not afraid to try this case, maybe they’ll think twice.”
“Hmm. You are a good lawyer, aren’t you?”
“Yes, I like to think so.”
“But is it really worth it?”
“There’s really no downside for us. Besides taking the time out of your schedule and the emotional toll it may take on you.” She was baiting Nina Marie. Once Olivia threw down the challenge, Nina Marie wouldn’t be able to say no.
“What emotional toll?”
“You know. Coming face to face with Layton might be intimidating for you. Having to hear about the case. You might even want to say something to Layton or he may say something to you. Sometimes in mediation things can get rather heated. Tensions and emotions run hot.”
Nina Marie flipped her hair back behind her shoulder. “No, Olivia. It’s not me who has to worry about any of that. It will be Layton and his thugs that will be the ones hurting when this is over.”
“So you agree to the mediation? We’ll have to get Clive onboard too.”
“Don’t you worry about Clive. If I say we’re mediating, then we’re mediating.”
“Good. Just confirm it with him and give me the green light. We’ll get it set up as soon as possible.”
Nina Marie smiled. “I’m looking forward to this.”
Olivia thought it better not to ask Nina Marie if she was the one who had gone after Grant. After seeing how Nina Marie had acted toward him, it definitely made her suspicious. But on the other hand, she didn’t want Nina Marie to think that she and Grant were that close. It would be better this way.
“Anything else you want to discuss?” Olivia asked.
“How are you doing? I know that you had a bit of a scare with that hotel room nonsense right after your arrival. But you haven’t raised any concerns at all since. Have you had anymore issues?”
She didn’t want to lie, but she also realized it was better not to reveal everything to Nina Marie. She couldn’t trust her so she just didn’t answer her question directly. “I’m doing fine at the hotel now. I’m focused like a laser beam on this litigation.”
Nina Marie patted her shoulder. “Good, because I’m counting on you to take down Optimism.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“I know you will.” Nina Marie paused and looked her in the eyes. “You’re an interesting woman, Olivia.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.” She controlled the chill that shot through her. She could practically feel the evil oozing out of Nina Marie. Even though she wore a smile and a warm touch, this woman was dangerous. But on the other hand, there was also something vulnerable that Nina Marie was hiding beneath her perfect smile. And Olivia intended to find out what it was.
Chapter Seven
The past week had flown by in a blur for Grant. But as he got ready to walk into the mediation, he was prepared and ready to make a big impact.
He’d briefed Layton extensively on what to expect and how to behave, but he had no realistic expectation that Layton would listen to him. The man was a loose cannon. Today he hoped to use that to his advantage. If Layton’s tactics could put some fear into Astral Tech, then all the better.
They’d agreed to conduct the mediation at his law office since he had multiple conference rooms that could be used for each side to have their own private time.
“Olivia,” he said. He walked over and shook her hand. Her touch always made him warm, even as he tried to shake off any undercurrent of feeling he had for her. “Let me show you to your private conference room.” Then he turned to Nina Marie. “Nice to see you again, Nina Marie.”
“Likewise,” she said. Her mischievous brown eyes troubled him greatly.
“And I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Clive Township.”
Grant shook the distinguished looking gentleman’s hand. “Nice to meet you. Right this way.”
He led the three of them into the conference room designated for Astral Tech for the duration of the mediation. “We’ll have the first session at ten a.m.” He looked at his watch. “Just enough time to grab some coffee. The mediator is already in the room.”
“We’ll be right in,” Olivia said.
“See you in there.” He walked down the hall to the main conference room that was being used for the first general mediation session of the day.
“Layton, do you need anymore coffee before we start?” he asked.
“No. I’m ready to get this going.”
Layton was all business so far today, wearing a designer black suit and purple tie that Grant wouldn’t be caught dead wearing.
The mediator, Mary Beth Moore, a retired judge, walked into the room. The petite gray haired woman might look sweet, but she had a reputation for being very tough. She was the only person that he and Olivia could agree upon.
Grant walked over to Mary Beth. “Anything else you need?”
“No, I’m good. Has the other party arrived?”
“Yes, I just showed them their private room. They will be in here soon.”
“Wonderful.” She sat down at the head of the conference room table.
Not long after, Olivia walked into the room followed by Nina Marie and Clive. Nina Marie wore a bright red dress that wasn’t entirely appropriate for a legal mediation. Clive on the other hand wore a conservative navy suit and tie.
He watched as Olivia did introductions with the mediator and her client. Olivia had her game face
on and a gray power suit to match. She was giving him a cool vibe today. They both had a job to do here.
“Why don’t we get started,” Mary Beth said. “Optimism, you’re up first since you’re the plaintiff here.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” Grant stood up. He loved presenting his case. Being a trial lawyer was more than a job for him. It was his passion. Although today he was going to have a completely hostile audience instead of a jury.
He took a breath and looked directly at Nina Marie. “Juries don’t like thieves. And at the end of the day, that’s what this case will come down to. A jury will determine if they believe that Nina Marie stole the technology for the app from Layton Alito. I contend that a jury will side with Optimism once all the facts are presented. The jury will hear about how Nina Marie seduced Layton into a romantic relationship just to gain access to his technology.”
He kept his eyes mostly on Nina Marie expecting her to have an outburst at any moment. But instead, she smiled at him. Was this woman truly psychotic?
Spending the next thirty minutes of his allotted time laying out the case, by the time Grant sat down he was a bit deflated. Not one single outburst from the Astral Tech side. He’d purposely been as inflammatory as possible and nothing. Not one peep.
Now it was Olivia’s turn. Standing up from her chair, she made eye contact with him before she directed her attention to Layton. “There’s an old saying—there’s two sides to every story. And once a jury hears both sides, there will be no doubt that Astral Tech should face zero liability in this lawsuit. A lawsuit born out of jealousy and revenge. After Nina Marie ended the romantic relationship with Layton, he was mad. A man of his background wasn’t used to being dumped and humiliated. He wanted revenge. So he plotted this entire lawsuit as a means to try to get back at Nina Marie for what he felt was a personal slight.”
She stepped out from behind the table and moved toward the front of the room. “Optimism has the burden of proof, and they simply won’t be able to provide one shred of evidence that would implicate Nina Marie in the theft of the app. The Astral Tech app was created in house at Astral Tech through the hard work and creative genius of Nina Marie and her team.”