by Lee Kilraine
Which to her mind was a dumb question because, pfft, of course she hadn’t thought it through. It had been ill-advised, half-baked, foolhardy, headlong, and probably about a million other compound words she could think up. And she was an English teacher, so she could think up a lot.
Paxton had donned a dark suit and a red power tie since his visit to the jail that morning, and the man wore a suit well. Perfectly fitted and stylish but not, she’d guess, the same expensive suits he wore when he represented clients in D.C. But then, compared to practicing law in D.C., it must be as different as driving a car behind eighty-year-old Beatrice Simon in a school zone versus driving in the Daytona 500.
The man had charm; he was a real sweet talker. Except for her, everyone liked Paxton Cates. He remembered little details, like when he asked Stu Baker, the court bailiff, about his daughter’s softball game. And he’d had Bettyjean Pruitt, the court stenographer, all but melting when he asked about her carpal tunnel. The opposing counsel was close to busting a gut when Paxton relayed some golfing story that involved shots of whiskey, a runaway golf cart, and the Silver Foxes golf tournament.
Watching him relaxed and chatting up the handful of people called into a rare Saturday court session wasn’t helping calm her down. The more Paxton laughed and joked with people, the tighter her insides coiled up like a spring, compressed and ready to explode out.
It was only when his warm, firm hand settled on her knee that she realized she’d been wiggling her foot so furiously her whole leg was shaking as if she was sitting on some vibrating chair.
“Relax, Jolene. You’ve put yourself in my hands, and not to brag or anything, but I’ve got very talented, capable hands.”
“If you’re trying to take my mind off being nervous with cute banter, please don’t bother.” The last thing she needed was his cute banter, although something about his touch and his deep voice in her ear steadied her nerves.
“Touchy, Jojo. Touchy. You don’t need to worry. I know for a fact Judge Garvey is in a hurry to get home to tend to his pumpkins this afternoon.”
“How would you know that?” She narrowed her eyes at him, studying his handsome face. Those summer leaf-green eyes that made you think you were the only interesting person in a room when they locked on you. As far back as she could remember, Paxton had liked to talk to people, and people liked to talk to him. And not just women either, so it wasn’t because of his good looks.
Probably.
Yes, she admitted he was a very fine specimen. Heck, he was a Cates brother and had been blessed with some sexy DNA. Each one of them was tall and well put together, with dark brown hair and those disgustingly rugged jaws.
“He told me just last week about the new heirloom pumpkin varieties he’s growing this year. He added a Speckled Hound hybrid right next to his Polar Bear white pumpkin. He’s fixing to enter them in the county fair in September. If I recall, today’s the day he’s supposed to add compost to his garden, so trust me, the man wants this over quick.” He winked at her, flashing his dimple. “Here we go, princess.”
The door opened and the bailiff called, “All rise. Department One of the Climax County Court is now in session. Judge Garvey presiding. Please be seated.”
It was like a switch flipped and Paxton became a serious, sublimely professional corporate lawyer.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. This is case number CR 16-117, the People of North Carolina versus Jolene Joyner, on for arraignment.” The judge looked over at her table. “Mr. Cates, do you waive the reading of the indictment in its entirety?”
“We do, Your Honor. In fact, sir, in the matter of expediency, I move we dispose of this case today.”
“Let’s hear it, Mr. Cates.”
“Due to the fact that my client has a spotless record—”
“Your client had two unpaid speeding tickets as of six o’clock this morning.”
“Had, Your Honor. She discharged that debt, and my client is truly remorseful about them.”
Jo didn’t even need to fake a look of guilt. She really did feel awful about forgetting to pay them. Although she’d felt much worse about speeding in the first place. Either way, she looked remorseful when Judge Garvey’s steely gaze took her in.
“Due to the fact that my client was motivated purely by her kind heart to try to save the life of an innocent animal scheduled for euthanasia the next day, the animal shelter has agreed not to press charges in exchange for seventy-five community service hours.”
Why couldn’t Paxton have told her that while she was sitting here nervously waiting for the judge? Because he enjoyed seeing her suffer, that’s why. But what he’d said about her motive was true. Mostly true.
Paxton opened a file in front of him, selected a paper from the stack, and moved forward. “May I, Your Honor?”
The judge waved him forward with a two-fingered motion and Paxton handed him the paper. “Ms. Joyner, please approach the bench.”
Jo stood and walked on wobbly legs until she stood next to Paxton.
“Here is the signed and notarized statement of Mr. Bufford from the shelter and his notice of discontinuance.”
Judge Garvey glanced it over, then tilted his reading glasses down his nose to peer at Paxton. “Well, this looks in order, but I hesitate to set a precedent in my court room that all it takes to avoid charges is ‘a kind heart.’ Can you give me another reason why this is the appropriate punishment for Ms. Joyner?”
“Ms. Joyner is an established member of the community. She’s been Climax Citizen of the Year for two years running and was named the county’s teacher of the year three years ago. In her free time she coaches the girls’ varsity cheerleading squad, is a volunteer for the Suits for Success program, which provides interview and work clothing for the underprivileged, and has chaired the coat drive for the needy every year since she was a junior in high school.”
“I see Officer Davis dropped the aggravating a police officer, resisting arrest, and bribery charges.” Again Judge Garvey’s sharp gaze landed on Paxton. “Explain.”
“Well, once I showed the officer the photographs of the bruising to Ms. Joyner during his arrest, he agreed that in fact there was accidental contact on both sides, and as Ms. Joyner won’t be filing police brutality charges . . .”
“Thin ice, Mr. Cates.”
“Yet a fact that will wrap this up and get us all out of here that much sooner. It’s beautiful gardening weather.”
The judge harrumphed at that, but he couldn’t hide the gleam of anticipation in his eyes. “What about the bribery charge? A rather serious one, I might add.”
Jo bit her lip and twisted her fingers together under the judge’s dark glare. She totally had not offered Officer Davis a bribe. “Your Honor, I jus—eep!”
Paxton put his hand on her ass. On her ass. The judge couldn’t see, but it took every thought right from her head. She turned and frowned up at him. Who the heck did he think he was?
“Your Honor, Officer Davis is new to Climax. So when my client offered to discuss something over a Krispy Kreme, he had no idea it was standard operating procedure around these parts.”
“Sounds about right. Last charge to dismiss, aggravating an officer?”
“As soon as I explained that Ms. Joyner manages to aggravate me on a daily basis, that she can’t help it, it’s just part of who she is, he dropped that charge too.”
“The State agrees to drop the charges in lieu of seventy-five community service hours. Case dismissed.” Judge Garvey banged his gavel, bringing Jo some much-needed closure.
If she was lucky, this would close the chapter on Jolene Joyner, criminal, and she’d walk away with her good reputation still intact. She had Paxton to thank for that. He’d already refused her check, instead mentioning some in-kind payment to be named later. Like she didn’t know where he was heading with that. He had a reputation for being very persuasive and charming. She hadn’t fallen for it in all these years, so he could go ahead and throw everything
he had at her.
Chapter Two
“Ms. Joyner, why do we have to read what some dead guy wrote over four hundred years ago?” Chuck Fisher, not one of her hardest-working students by a long shot, called from the back of the room. “I mean, I’d like to read something that relates to me, you know?”
“Love, betrayal, honor, murder, justice. Any of those relate to you?”
“Yes! That’s exactly what I’m talking about, Ms. J.”
“Wonderful, because that’s exactly what Shakespeare wrote about. King Lear has greed, lust, fate, and the transformative power of adversity. Othello has jealousy, racism, and self-deception. Juicy stuff, like your favorite reality TV shows.”
“Huh. Why didn’t you say so before you assigned the reading?”
“Because I’d hoped you’d read it as assigned and discover that for yourself.” Jo sent her student a pointed look. “Give it a try. Do you guys realize that some of your popular movies are based on the work of old dead writers? Has anyone watched 10 Things I Hate About You?”
“Get out! I love that movie. You’re saying it’s Shakespeare in disguise?”
“Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew. She’s the Man with Channing Tatum is basically an updated version of Twelfth Night.” Jo looked around at the suddenly interested faces of her students. “A very famous animated blockbuster movie about a scheming uncle who murders his brother, the king, in order to assume the throne over the young son is argued to be a loose adaptation of Hamlet.”
“Wait. What movie?”
“Think about it, Chuck. It’ll be a bonus question on the final.” Jo smiled and wiggled her eyebrows. “Hey, if you guys give this unit a fair chance, I’ll add watching one of the movie adaptations to the end of the unit.”
“Cool. Now you’re talking, Ms. J!”
Nothing like using a bit of bribery as a teaching tool. But some students really did need to be pushed a little. And Jo had found by tying the Bard’s work into present day situations the students ran with it.
“And if Shakespeare just isn’t your thing, next year we’re exploring modern classics in senior English. Toni Morrison, Jeannette Walls, and J. D. Salinger. But to get there you have to pass this class.” Jo moved over to the whiteboard and wrote a reminder. “Don’t forget the study session for the final. The more the merrier.”
The bell for fourth period rang, cuing a mass exodus for the door. There wasn’t much teenagers liked more than the end of the school day except of course the end of another school year. Jo’s gaze landed on the one empty chair in class today. Maggie Pope’s seat. This wasn’t the first time she’d skipped class this year. But Jo had Maggie’s dog in her kitchen, so she’d need to track her down and figure out how to get the dog back to her without her father knowing how it happened.
It was only a matter of time until the Grapevine got hold of all the sordid details. In fact, it probably already had. You had to be very careful about your secrets to avoid everyone finding out your business. Jo had lived her whole life in Climax and she knew that was true. Not personally. Not until two days ago, that was.
When Jo first watched Paxton Cates walk away as she stood in the jail, it had been accompanied by a feeling of panic skittering around in her chest. Locked up behind bars made it hard to breathe, like the time she’d hiked in the Colorado mountains and no matter how much air she sucked in with her lungs, it never felt like enough.
She’d held on to the bars as the night rewound in her head and had to slap her hand over her mouth to stifle the hysterical laugh that threatened to escape. She could still feel the cold steel bars, a solid reminder—she was a criminal. She’d broken into the animal shelter. It had sounded all kinds of crazy and bad when the cop had said it. And when Paxton had said it. For a few minutes in that cell, Jo had even fleetingly wished she’d never answered her phone that night.
Now, two days later, she knew that had been the panic talking. She had needed to help Maggie. English may not be Maggie’s best subject, but the girl was a hard worker. At least she had been up until a few months ago. The last thing that poor girl needed was another black mark on her record. It was much better that Jo was the one in trouble. Besides, she couldn’t stand the thought of an innocent puppy being put down because it had tinkled on the floor. Who does that to their daughter’s puppy?
Picking up the stack of quizzes from today’s class, Jo slipped them inside her soft-sided briefcase before heading out of the classroom and down to the faculty meeting. The students had cleared out quickly, although laughter and loud voices echoed throughout the hallways. The end of the school year always ratcheted up the kids’ excitement. She grinned, thinking they’d probably be shocked to learn teachers felt the same way.
“Ms. Joyner! Psst. Over here,” a voice hissed at her from the stairwell she’d just passed.
Stopping, Jo backed up five steps to peer in through the open door and found Maggie leaning up against the wall.
“Well, hello. Missed you in class just now. Everything okay?”
The girl’s cheeks flushed and her gaze flicked away. “I was afraid you were mad at me after Friday night, so I chickened out and hid in the library. I was reading Shakespeare, though.”
“Oh, that seems like a fair trade-off. Not.” She focused on Maggie’s face, trying to read what was going on with the girl. “Maggie, I’m not angry with you. It was an untenable situation and we probably both should have used cooler heads and not let our emotions drive our actions. That being said, I’ve got your puppy.”
“Oh, thank you. You just don’t—I can’t thank you enough, Ms. J. I was so worried. He’s okay?”
“If by okay you mean wagging his tail a mile a minute and wanting to play every waking moment, then yes, he’s okay.”
“Can you keep him for me a bit longer? I haven’t figured out a way to explain his return yet.”
Neither had Jo. Because what neither one was saying was that her dad had lied to her and said the dog had run away. Maggie had overheard her parents arguing about it. Having the dog suddenly reappear might put a lot of tension on their already strained father-daughter relationship.
“Sure. I’m sure we’ll come up with a good explanation soon.”
“You’re the best, Ms. J. He’s the cutest, isn’t he?”
“He is, but you know what’s cuter? You in class. Don’t skip anymore, got it?”
“Are you kidding? Shakespeare is my favorite! Well, after J. K. Rowling.”
Jo looked at the sincerity on Maggie’s face and refused to fall for it. “I don’t play favorites. I marked you absent and that kicks in the auto phone call home. Just because I helped with your dog, don’t think everything is going to fly. Get it together, Ms. Pope. My door is always open if you need to talk.”
Yep, the girl’s enthusiasm was a wonderful and rare thing in high school students these days. Much rarer than a 4.0 GPA or a transcript filled with AP classes. Maggie may not be an A student but she was curious, creative, and excited about school. If only her father would recognize it.
* * *
Paxton dropped by the diner to grab lunch on his way back from meeting with a new client over in Greensboro. One of the trade-offs of leaving the large firm in D.C. and heading up the satellite office for his new firm meant rebuilding his reputation locally and finding clients. For now, his firm wanted him to focus the Climax office on real estate and business law. But after Mr. Smith retired last year, it was becoming clearer Climax could use a lawyer who practiced general law. It might be worth a mention at the next monthly meeting.
He’d used his trip to Greensboro to do a bit of committee work and meet with Paul Stockton, another board member, for coffee. Paul was smart, personable, and had a good reputation as a solid divorce lawyer. All in all it had been a positive meeting—until Paul had asked if he’d see Pax in Asheville in the fall at the bed and breakfast wine tour.
The answer of course was no because it was one of those couples events that he’d been missing ou
t on. Networking was one thing; rubbing elbows and socializing with each lawyer’s significant other was part of the glue that helped. He knew that for a fact because he’d seen it in action during his time in the D.C. law firm. He’d been part of a couple back then and he’d been pleasantly surprised at the boost to his career. The extra face time alone gave him a leg up on a few of the single lawyers.
That was back when he’d been naïve enough to believe in love. After that relationship broke up he’d made the easy decision to put all his energy and focus into his career. But Paxton had never been one to give up easily, and he remembered the flash in Jo’s eyes the last time they’d talked. Was it guilt? Excitement? He wasn’t quite sure—but it was something that gave him hope he could talk her into helping him. So it was time to lay out a bit of groundwork.
As always, it was crowded during the lunch rush, which meant he had a few options for how he could accomplish his goal. The trick for setting this up carefully was to scatter a few bread crumbs so the rumors would spread slowly. He only needed a wisp of smoke to start—not a full-on brush fire. Timing was everything because he still needed to get Jo to say yes before the Grapevine sank its teeth into the rumor that they were an item.
Which meant sitting with Agatha and Beatrice was out. They were ground zero of the gossip mill. Their lightning-fast work was akin to igniting a four-alarm fire during a drought. That also ruled out Renee.
“Hey, Paxton, it’s a fifteen minute wait, but I think Hawk has a whole table to himself in Cheryl’s section.” Renee carried an ice-tea pitcher in one hand and a coffee carafe in the other, topping off drinks as she walked between tables. “You should wear a suit more often. Very hot.”
“Always nice to be appreciated.” He winked at her, making her laugh. “Would you ask Cheryl to put in an order of Lu’s special to go?”
“Will do, hon.” Renee nodded and topped off a few more coffees before heading to put in his order at the kitchen window.