Love's Verdict

by Carsen Taite

  She’d have to stay up most of the night, but if she left now, she could still get the work done by morning. “Okay. I just need to save my work. Is he at home? I can meet you there.”

  “Oh no. I’ll take you. It’s the least I can do since it’s so last minute. I can fill you in on the way.”

  Carly hesitated, loath to get stuck at Trevor’s, but she could always Uber home if necessary, and surely he’d understand she needed to get back home to prepare for trial. “Yeah, okay. Why don’t you come in and wait while I grab my jacket?”

  “That’s okay. I have to make a phone call. I’ll be in the car. It’s the Corvette parked by the curb.”

  Shelby walked away and Carly retrieved her keys, phone, and jacket. Satisfied she didn’t need anything else, she locked up and started walking to the parking lot. She’d barely made it two steps before Mr. Jasper’s door opened.

  “Hey, Mr. Jasper,” she said but didn’t stop walking.

  “How’s the trial going?”

  “Good. I’ll tell you all about it later, but I have to get to a meeting. Have a good evening.” She heard him tell her to have a good day too as she strode away, and she resisted the urge to tell him good days were behind her for a while. At least until she got over Landon.

  * * *

  Landon stood in front of Jane’s desk, unable to believe what she was hearing.

  “I guess there’s no point in pretending it’s not true,” Jane said. “Yes, you’re getting the partnership, but for obvious reasons we’d appreciate it if you don’t tell anyone until after the trial. We’ll make a formal announcement at the holiday party.”

  “‘Obvious reasons’?” Landon’s voice rose, but she didn’t bother trying to dial back her anger. Everything had unraveled after she’d left the courthouse. Her first call had been to her father, who’d conveniently been out of the office. Next, she’d called Ian, who’d told her he knew nothing about their father’s maneuverings. She believed him, but it didn’t ease the sting that came with knowing her father thought he had to purchase her success. She’d deal with Dad later, but for now all her fury was focused on Jane. “Let me guess,” Landon said. “You’re scared if word gets out you didn’t award this partnership based on merit, you’ll chase off one of the smartest lawyers you’ve probably ever hired while simultaneously pissing off your big celebrity client.”

  “Oh, I don’t think Carly will leave us. She’s a top-notch appellate lawyer, but she doesn’t possess the rainmaker qualities necessary to be a good partner. You have a big enough personality to draw in the new business we need to grow into a full-service firm, handling more than simply criminal defense. We can hire some brainiac first-year associates to do research.”

  Landon could read between the lines. Her so-called big personality was really just her connection to Holt Industries and the business her father could throw their way. “Thanks for implying I’m not intelligent enough to make it on my smarts alone.”

  “That’s not what I meant. I didn’t think you were so thin-skinned. Come on, Landon, you know how this works. We’re only successful if we can continue to attract new clients. Most criminal defense cases are one-offs, but if we can expand the practice to include transactional work, there’s no limit to how big we can grow.”

  “You sound like my father,” Landon said, and the words triggered a realization. “You wanted me to give the opening statement because you needed to close the deal with my father and show him you were willing to put me front and center. He acted so proud of me when he called this morning—your strategy was on the money.”

  “I’m sure he was proud of you, but what’s important right now is that we focus on Trevor’s case. Win or lose, the press from this trial is going to bring us a lot more business from athletes. If you want, you can have it all. Frankly, I find these guys who’re wrapped up in sports rather boring.”

  Landon shook her head. What should’ve been a major milestone in her career was now marred forever. “Why the charade?”

  Jane shrugged. “Like you said, the client likes Carly. I promised your father I’d promote you before the end of the year, but we needed to make sure Carly would stick around to keep Trevor from looking elsewhere. She’ll be fine, and if she chooses to stick around, maybe you can find a way to make it up to her.”

  Landon chose to ignore the implication. “She won’t because I’m going to make damn sure she knows how you played her.”

  “You’ll do no such thing. What happens at the partnership level remains confidential. You’ll learn soon enough the importance of not upsetting the rank and file with details that don’t concern them.”

  “Actually, I won’t. You’ll have to figure out some other way to get my father’s business, because as soon as this trial is over, I’m done with this firm. I quit.”

  Landon stormed out of Jane’s office before she could respond. She needed to hole up in her office and work on her motions, but there was no way she’d be able to concentrate with Jane down the hall, plotting her next scheme. Instead Landon packed up her files, stuffed her laptop in a bag, and left the office. When she got behind the wheel of her car, she took a few deep breaths and pondered her next move. What she wanted to do was see Carly and tell her what had happened, but Carly’s words echoed. Leave me alone outside of the office. Carly deserved to know what happened, but she also deserved to have her wishes respected.

  Landon started the car and drove to Ian’s restaurant. She wasn’t the least bit hungry, but she needed to vent and Ian was the only person who could truly understand. The drive was quick and she was through the doors in less than fifteen minutes. Ian was standing at the bar, and when he spotted her, he ran over and swept her into a tight hug. After a minute of brotherly squeezing, she squirmed out of his grasp. “Let go or you’re going to make me cry.”

  “And that wouldn’t be the end of the world. Maybe you need a good cry.”

  “Maybe I need to punch someone in the face.”

  “Maybe. In the meantime, how about lunch?” Ian waved a hand and Beckett, the waiter, materialized at his side. “I’ll be in the back room with my sister. Bring us one of each of the specials and a half carafe of the new red.”

  “I have work to do,” Landon protested.

  “Fuel first. Come on.” He led the way back to the room where she and Carly had shared dinner several months before. As she stepped into the room, her heart ached at the idea she might never share another evening, or anything else, with Carly again.

  “You look like someone stole your last piece of candy,” Ian said. “Sit and tell me everything.”

  Landon slid into the nearest chair and gave him the rundown, starting with the made-up race for partner and ending with Jane’s admission that the entire thing had been a fake-out. When she was finished, she put her head between her hands. “Everything is so messed up.”

  “I talked to Dad.”

  She raised her head. “He denied it, didn’t he?”

  “Not even. He was proud of his little chess game. Jane’s been after him for ages to get his business, and in his mind, he played her like a pawn, getting his daughter to move back to Dallas and work for the family business. I let him have it when he said he knew what was best for you.”

  “Well, the joke’s on him because I just quit.”

  “Holy shit, really?”

  “Oh yeah, there’s no way I’m going to work for him, even indirectly, but it’s not just that. His little game with Jane really fucked with Carly. Apparently, she never intended to make Carly partner but was just stringing her along because she didn’t want her looking elsewhere before this trial was over.”

  “That’s rough. You really like Carly, don’t you?”

  “Like is an understatement.” Like didn’t begin to cover the flush of heat she felt when she remembered last night in Carly’s bed, but it wasn’t just the incredible sex they’d shared. A ton of other feelings—affection, happiness, genuine respect, all tumbled through her whenever she thoug
ht about Carly, and she didn’t want to imagine a life without her in it even if she didn’t want to say the words out loud just yet.

  Ian nodded with a knowing smile. “I knew it.”

  “You didn’t know jack shit. Hell, I just realized it myself. I don’t want to lose her over this, but she’s really angry and basically told me to get lost.”

  “People say things in the heat of the moment. Give her some time.”

  He might be right, but Landon couldn’t bear the idea of sitting next to Carly for the duration of this trial with a sea of hurt between them. And when the trial was over? What would happen then? “I can’t wait.”

  “Then you need some kind of grand gesture.”

  “I quit my job. That was kind of a big deal.”

  Ian shook his head. “No, the gesture needs to be personal. Something that will warm her heart and make her fall in love with you.”

  “Like a flash mob? Oh, I don’t think Carly’s a grand gesture kind of girl.”

  “Yeah, I didn’t get that impression either, but flash mob wasn’t what I had in mind. You need to tell her what happened and how you feel. No ducking it, just say it outright. Go see her and lay it on the line. Take a risk, sis.”

  “Easy for you to say.”

  “What have you got to lose? You’ve already quit your job, and it’s not like you’ve ever let yourself feel this way before. Go big or go home. If you fall on your face, you can have Beckett’s job because he should’ve been in here at least fifteen minutes ago with our food.”

  They both laughed and Landon felt the tightness in her chest release. Before she did anything else today, she would find Carly and tell her how she felt.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “I thought we were going to Trevor’s,” Carly said as they zoomed past the exit she would’ve taken for Trevor’s place. Shelby had been quiet as she navigated traffic on the tollway, and Carly’s few attempts at conversation hadn’t yielded much of the promised information Shelby had used to lure her into this urgent meeting.

  “Trevor sent a text saying he wants us to meet him at a friend’s place.” Shelby kept her eyes trained on the highway as she talked. “Less likelihood of reporters being around.”

  The reasoning made sense, but Carly hadn’t seen Shelby on her phone during the ride. She supposed Shelby could’ve received a text from him before she’d gotten into the car. Carly wrote off her unease to the odd circumstance that put her in a car with this woman who’d expressed clear hostility from the day they’d met. “You were going to fill me in.”

  “What?”

  “About Trevor and how he’s doing. You said you were going to talk to me about it in the car.”

  Shelby’s hands tensed on the wheel. “Yes, of course. He’s very upset. None of this is going the way it was planned. He never should’ve been charged. He couldn’t have killed those girls.”

  Carly replayed Shelby’s words in her head. Her cadence was stilted, but there was something else off about her wording that struck Carly as odd. She decided to try to get her to say more so she could sort it out. “It’s a little too early in the process to think it’s all going downhill. Yes, there’s some evidence we hadn’t anticipated, but I was researching ways to keep the jury from hearing it when you came by.” She let the implication hang that she’d still be working if Shelby hadn’t interrupted.

  “There shouldn’t have been any evidence.”

  Shelby uttered the statement with a growl, and Carly was certain this time she wasn’t imagining that Shelby knew more than she was saying. Was Trevor really guilty? Had he confessed to Shelby? Was that why he was so upset? Had she been summoned to help him figure out a way to turn himself in? She treaded carefully. “Trevor seems like a great guy. I’m sure he wouldn’t hurt anyone on purpose.”

  Shelby frowned and her voice rose. “Trevor would never hurt anyone.” She dropped her voice back to a normal, conversational tone. “You shouldn’t fawn over him the way you do. It’s embarrassing.”

  Carly was disconcerted by the abrupt change in subject, but strangely relieved that Shelby had finally said how she really felt instead of implying it. “I promise you I have no interest in Trevor except as his attorney.”

  “Uh-huh.” Shelby appeared distracted and then quickly changed lanes, narrowly missing the car to their left. “He likes to make everyone feel special, but he doesn’t realize how he leads women on. I almost feel sorry for them. Almost.”

  It was pretty clear Shelby was lumping her in with “these women.” Carly started to protest again, but decided not to bother. What Shelby believed wasn’t her concern, but at the next opportunity, she was going to make it perfectly clear to Trevor that the only relationship they would ever have would be a professional one. Funny, that seemed to be her mantra today. She remembered Landon’s face when they parted at the courthouse. Landon had appeared genuinely surprised when Carly confronted her about her father, but Carly wasn’t sure it made a difference even if Landon hadn’t known in advance. Could she be with Landon knowing that Landon’s family name and influential connections would always have the power to rob her of what she’d worked so hard to earn? She’d never trusted anyone that much.

  But if Landon hadn’t been involved in her father’s scheme, why shouldn’t she trust her? Carly remembered Landon’s reaction to her father at the Cowboys game. No way had Landon faked the animosity between them, and although it was possible they’d repaired their relationship in the two months she and Landon were barely speaking, did she really believe Landon—sweet, gentle Landon, who’d been so attentive to her last night—would be capable of conniving with her father to buy her way into the partnership? Surely she hadn’t misjudged Landon so incredibly.

  Shelby swerved into another abrupt lane change, and Carly looked up at the road. They were still headed north on the tollway, but they were outside the loop and headed into the suburbs. “Will we be there soon?”

  “Soon enough. You’ll see.”

  Shelby’s deceptively simple statement was delivered with exaggerated emphasis, and for the first time since she’d gotten in the car, Carly felt truly uneasy. Deciding she might feel better if she let someone know where she was, she reached into her bag and pulled out her phone. A text notification rolled down from the top of the screen. It was from Landon. I promise I didn’t know. Carly started to type a response, but all the things she had to say were more than her thumbs could handle. She switched over to her contact list, located Skye’s number, and dialed.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Just making a quick call.”

  Carly had the phone halfway up to her ear and could hear Skye saying hello, but before she could respond, Shelby reached between the seats and yanked a gun out of the console. “Hang up.”

  Carly’s insides froze and she struggled to remain calm. “Shelby, I’m just making a call.” Carly spoke louder than normal, hoping Skye could hear her.

  “Don’t say another word.” Shelby pointed the gun directly at her. “Hang up. Now. Or else.” She brandished the gun to show Carly what “or else” meant.

  Carly’s heart raced as she quickly ran through her options. No one knew where she was, and her only lifeline was the phone in her hand and its connection to Skye. She needed to get away from Shelby and fast, but with the car speeding down the tollway, that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

  “Now!” Shelby shouted.

  Carly jumped like she was scared—not a stretch—and tossed the phone onto the rear floorboard, praying she hadn’t disconnected the call and there was some small chance Skye could still hear her. “I’m sorry. You frightened me. Why do you have a gun?”

  Shelby’s lips curled into a feral smile. “I don’t like to use them, but they do come in handy for getting people to do what you want.”

  Carly decided her best bet at this point was to get Shelby to disclose where they were going in case Skye could hear them because Shelby clearly had something nefarious planned. “You don�
�t need to threaten me to get me to come with you. Is the place we’re going near the training facility? I’ve never been inside, but I remember seeing it once from the tollway.”

  Shelby laughed. “Quit pretending you have any interest in football. I can tell by the way your eyes glaze over whenever anyone talks about the game that you aren’t a fan. You can bet Trevor sees through your little act.”

  “I’ve tried to take an interest, but I’ll admit I’ve never been much of a fan in the past.” Carly hesitated, and then decided to press her luck. “I hear the facility is gorgeous.”

  “We’re not going there, and Trevor’s not there anyway. Thanks to your inability to get his case dismissed, he’s not allowed to train with the team. I don’t know what he sees in you.”

  “Nothing, Shelby. He sees nothing. How many times do I have to tell you there is nothing going on between Trevor and me? When we see him, I’m sure he’ll clear this up.”

  Shelby laughed, an awkward snorting sound. “If you think I’m taking you to him, then you’re as stupid as all the other girls. Trevor doesn’t know anything about all of this,” she waved the gun again for emphasis, “and he never will. It’s my job to protect him.”

  Carly’s gut clenched as the pieces started to fall into place. How could she have missed the subtle clues? The way Shelby always hung by Trevor’s side, her overt jealousy every time Trevor turned to her instead of Shelby for advice, her insistence on knowing every detail of his case.

  Moments passed in awkward silence while Carly debated whether she should provoke more confessions from Shelby or hope for the best whenever they arrived at their destination. The urge to take action finally won out. “You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

  Shelby smiled. “Of course I am. He needs me. He’s always needed me.”

  Shelby delivered the statement in a soft, tender, and totally creepy manner considering the implication. Carly had to know more. “Were there others besides Jocelyn and Vanessa?”