by Lane Hart
Media people began pouring into the courtroom the longer we waited, and by the time the jury came back with a verdict it was almost midnight and the place was filled to capacity.
I tried to read the jurors faces when they filed into the jury box. After they all avoided eye contact with Jax and me I began to worry even more.
"Has the jury reached a verdict?" Judge Bray asks the jury, and a hush fell over the courtroom.
"Yes, your Honor," the accountant stands up and says proudly. He must’ve been selected to be the foreman by the other jurors.
"All right, Mr. Malone, please stand. Mr. Foreman, if you will now read the verdict."
My entire body is shaking as I stand beside Jax, who somehow remains as solid and unemotional as a tree.
"We, the jury, find the defendant…not guilty of the first count, the charge of First Degree Rape."
Oh, thank God!
"With regards to the second count, the charge of Assault by Strangulation, we, the jury, find the defendant…guilty."
What!
Guilty?
No, no, no. How is that possible?
"Order in the courtroom!" the judge yells with a slam of his gavel after the gasps and muttered whisperings grow louder. "Thank you, Mr. Foreperson. We'll now proceed with the sentencing of the defendant."
Oh no. Sentencing? I can't handle this. Everything seems to be running on fast-forward, and I'm pretty sure my legs are turning to Jell-O.
"Calm down, Page. It's okay," Jax says softly. The man who is about to be sentenced is telling me to get a grip. I meet his gaze that seems too calm for the circumstances.
"I'm sorry," I tell him, blinking back tears.
"Shh," he says. "You were great. You did everything you could."
"Mr. Malone, after a finding of guilty of the charge of Assault by Strangulation, a Class H felony, and in consideration of your prior clean criminal record, I hereby sentence you to serve six months in the Department of Corrections, followed by two years of supervised release. Bailiff if you would please take the defendant into the custody of the State."
Oh God, they were taking him now? No! I don't know what to do, but I can't just let them take him away.
"Your Honor," I start. "The defendant would...request that he be given a reporting date...in order to get his ah, finances and everything in order before serving his sentence."
"Your request is denied. Bailiff?" Judge Bray answers right away and nods to the sheriff deputy.
Jax won't look at me, and it’s either to keep from giving away any emotion to the media vultures or because he's pissed at me. Likely the latter since he trusted me to get him through this, without an active prison sentence, and I failed him.
"Your Honor, the defendant hereby gives his notice to appeal the verdict of the jury," I say quickly. "On the basis of ineffective assistance of counsel." I try to think of anything that might keep Jax out just a little longer. "Counsel requests a stay of his sentence until the appeal."
"Request denied, but his appeal is noted for the record. And I have to say, Ms. Davenport, an ineffective assistance of counsel claim is unlikely to be founded."
Shit!
I can't let Jax go off to prison, I just...can't! He's innocent! There's only one thing left for me to do to try and save him.
"Then your Honor, I hereby admit to the court that I proceeded with the representation of Mr. Malone after a clear conflict of interest in violation of Rule 1.8 of the New Jersey Rules of Professional Conduct."
That has the judge's eyebrows raising.
"Page, what the fuck are you doing?" Jax asks, grabbing me by my elbow.
"Whatever I have to do," I meet his dark, questioning eyes and tell him.
"Ms. Davenport, are you admitting in open court to engaging in an inappropriate sexual relationship with your client?" he asks. The entire courtroom gasps, including Jax beside me.
"Yes, your Honor."
"No!" Jax exclaims at the same time.
"Then I suggest you retain your own legal counsel and surrender your law license to the court immediately."
Shit, he’s still not going let Jax stay out.
"Yes, your Honor."
"Page, no! God, why did you do that?" Jax asks. I watch in horror as the bailiff handcuffs his wrists in front of him. A tear escapes and runs down my cheek when they take him away.
"Court is adjourned," the judge says, and the courtroom erupts.
I stand paralyzed, not knowing what to do without Jax. I'm going home, and he's...
"Page," Jude says when he appears beside me.
"I'm sorry," I tell him. "I'm so sorry."
His arms go around me as the tears pour out. "Hey, don't you dare blame yourself. You did great."
"I let him down," I sob.
"No, you didn't. He loves you, and I know he doesn't blame you. He blames that bitch for lying about all this shit."
"I'm going to try and go see him." I need to talk to him, one on one without a room full of people and cameras. Oh God, I just admitted to sleeping with him in front of all these people! The whole world knows what an unprofessional whore I am.
"Page! Page!" I hear my name being called. Turning around, I groan when I see my brother. I don't need his shit right now.
"Save the lecture, Logan. I know I screwed up. Disown me for all I care," I tell him, not in the mood to deal with him or our father.
"Come on," Logan says, yanking on my arm to pull me away from Jude.
"What are you doing?" I ask, jerking away from his grip.
"I've got an idea to save your ass and your law license," Logan says, surprising me.
"Y-you do?" I ask.
"Yes, now let's go through the back hallways to avoid the crowd," he says, heading for the exit to the judge's chambers only attorneys can use.
"I'll call you," I yell to Jude and he nods.
Swiftly we walk through the dark hallway, down the stairs, and out the back door of the courthouse to head for the jail entrance across the street.
"Would you marry him?" Logan asks once we're on the dark, quiet street.
"What!" I exclaim, coming to a dead stop.
"Were you just fucking him or do you love him enough to marry him?"
"I-I don't know. Why?"
The idea of marrying Jax doesn't send me into a full-blown panic attack like the thought of marrying Elliot always did. Actually, the thought of spending the rest of my life with Jax was nice. More than nice. Living with him, having him always be the first person I see every morning and the last person I talk to every night? That's maybe the easiest decision I'll ever make. But Jax...he's terrified of marriage after what his mother did to his father...
"Jax wouldn't..."
"If he agreed to marry you, would you?" Logan asks.
"Yes."
"There's a loophole in the sex with client rule. Marriage. The husband-wife confidentiality trumps attorney-client."
"You think that will really work after the fact? But what about his appeal?"
"He can still allege ineffective assistance of counsel, that you were clearly conflicted, and then have another attorney take his case to the Court of Appeals. But the Bar won't be able to discipline you for it if you're married. Jax wouldn't be required to testify against you, but as it is, they will force him to testify now, and hold him in contempt if he refuses."
"Holy crap, Logan. I think you might be a genius! But what if he doesn't agree. He probably won't, and I'm not going to make him marry me just to keep my license."
"It won't hurt to ask him, right? And there's always a magistrate on duty at the jail. I'll ask Jax and see if he'll actually agree instead of just going along with it in front of you. If so, then we'll get it done."
"You mean, now? Like we'd...we'd get married tonight?" I ask.
"The sooner, the better."
"Oh God. Dad's going to kill me, isn't he?" I exclaim, covering my face when more tears fall.
"Yeah, he is. It's a good thing he's scar
ed shitless of your soon-to-be husband."
Chapter Fifteen
Jax
Don't freak out. Don't freak out.
Despite how many times I repeat my new motto, I'm on the verge of freaking the fuck out. Everything is happening so fast before I can wrap my head around any of it. I can't say I'm entirely surprised by the verdict. Page had warned me all along that I could get convicted because of those goddamn pictures of her neck. But having it happen and now dealing with it is a different story.
I'd had to surrender all of my possessions, including my clothes except for my boxer briefs and socks, which I only got to keep after the guard conducted a cavity search. I shiver at that unpleasant memory. Now I'm back in an orange fucking jumpsuit like I wore while I was waiting to make bond a few weeks ago. Even if the bright color is going to make me go blind, I have to admit it's pretty damn comfortable. The flip flops under my socks are another story, and the handcuffs continuously dig into my wrists, making even the simplest maneuvers difficult.
Of the long list of unpleasantries, the smell is the worst. That familiar aroma of piss, shit and despair have my stomach rolling, and I haven't even made it past the administration stage yet.
Despite how fucked up things are in here, I can’t stop worrying about Page. How upset she must be, wrongly blaming herself. Hell, I'd give anything to be in bed holding her. And now she's fucked up her career because of my dumbass. If I were pissed about anything, other than the bitch lying to cause all this drama, it'd be that Page went and screwed herself over to try and help me.
"Malone, let's go," one of the older sheriff deputies says, indicating I should stand up. Shit, I guess this is where they seal me in behind the bars with some lovely new roommates.
In a tiny, cramped space.
At least they'd finally ditch the handcuffs.
"Your attorney wants to see you," the deputy says when we start down a hallway.
Thank fuck! I need to see Page and try to talk some sense into her if it's not too late.
"In you go," he says, opening a big heavy door that leads to a small room with a metal table and two metal folding chairs.
And definitely not Page.
I start to say to the deputy that he has the wrong guy when I realize the blond, clean-cut man with bright blue eyes looks familiar. Page's brother?
"Logan?"
"How are you doing?" he asks, his expression full of pity.
"Awesome," I respond. "Where's Page?"
"Waiting outside. There's something I need to talk to you about first."
"Okay?"
"Do you love her?" he asks, sitting down in one of the chairs, so I follow suit.
"Yes."
"Enough to marry her?" he asks, and my mouth falls open.
Marry her? Where was this conversation going? Of course, I've thought about it, and hell wanted it, but I knew it was a long shot because then everyone would assume we'd slept together while I was her client.
Being with her for the past few weeks...I can't imagine my life without her now. Thinking about having to go just six short months away from her is physically painful. I never want to be separated from her. I want to spend the rest of my life with that woman.
"I'd marry her in a heartbeat."
"Great, so should I get her and the magistrate to come on in?" he asks, standing up to leave.
"What the fuck? You mean like get married right now? Here?" I exclaim in confusion.
"Like I told her, the sooner, the better. If you're married, I think there's a chance that she might be able to keep her law license."
"Well in that case, hell yes! Go get them." Relief washes over me. She might still be able to practice and hadn't thrown it all away on me.
He smiles and nods. "I appreciate your enthusiasm, and you agreeing to do this for Page."
"I'd do anything for her."
"Then she's lucky to have you," he says.
After Logan bangs on the door, a deputy opens it, and he disappears.
I stand up and pace, waiting. I ask myself if I'm sure this isn't crazy. I can't find a single shred of doubt or second guessing. After how my parents' marriage ended, I never thought I'd want anything to do with the fucked up institution. But I want Page to be mine. Forever.
The door finally opens again, and Page is the first one through. The sadness on her face hits me like a punch to my gut. And then the tears are enough to bring me to my knees. She heads for me, and I have to lift my cuffed hands over her head to hold her, pulling her to me and tucking her under my chin.
"Hey baby, don't cry."
"I'm sorry." She sobs against my chest.
"Me too. I'm sure you never imagined your wedding day quite like this."
"Are you sure about this? You don't have to," she says, looking up with her watery, blue eyes and red face. "It might not even work."
"I want to," I assure her. "I'd marry you for no other reason other than to just make you my wife. If it helps you keep your license, all the better."
"I love you," she says softly through her tears. "And I'm not just doing this for my license."
"I know, and I love you, too. Goddamn it." I groan. "I don't even have a ring. After all the shit I talked about that son of a bitch being too cheap to give you one."
"Don’t worry, our wedding bands are on the way. Hopefully. I called Jude and your dad."
"They're going to let them in?" I ask with a smile, and she nods.
“Logan had to pull a few strings to get us a license backdated so we can avoid the waiting period,” she tells me.
Five minutes later the six of us are squeezed into the small room.
"Congrats, bro," Jude says with a pat on my shoulder. "I did the best I could on short notice. I thought you might want to start with this one. You know, do it right."
He drops a small diamond ring into my cuffed hands.
"Thanks. Like always, I owe you," I tell him.
Going down to one knee in front of Page, I look up at her face that's filled with sadness. It's only temporary, so that'll be what gets me through it.
"Page Davenport, you know I'm a huge pain in the ass, but you also know that I love you and will do anything for you. So are you crazy enough to agree to marry me?"
"Yes," she says with a smile, and I slide the ring that's a little too big onto her finger.
"You two ready?" the magistrate asks.
"Yes," I tell him getting to my feet again.
"No, wait!" Page exclaims. "Shouldn't we do a prenup?" she turns to ask me, which I have to say pisses me off.
"I don't want your money, but I'll sign whatever you want," I assure her.
"No, silly. I meant for me to sign to protect your money," Page replies with a smile. "I barely have a penny to my name."
"Don't be ridiculous," I tell her.
"Are you sure?" she asks.
"You should automatically be awarded half of all his shit just for agreeing to marry the SOB," Jude says.
"I agree," I tell her, then to the magistrate, "Let's do this."
"Right. So do you, Jackson Malone, take Page Davenport to be your wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, through sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, forsaking all others for all the days of your life?"
"Hell yes," I answer, making Page smile.
"And do you, Page Davenport, take Jackson Malone to be your wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, through sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, forsaking all others for all the days of your life?"
"I do," she says softly.
"Rings?" he asks, and Jude hands them to the man.
"Jackson, place this ring on Page's hand, and, Page, place your ring on Jackson's as a symbol of your vow made to each other today, and for every day from this day forward."
I take the ring and with handcuffs still on, push it onto her finger. Then she slides the bigger one onto mine with a smile. I try to remember the weight of the metal, and how it looks on my h
and, knowing the guards are going to take it away from me in a few minutes. After that, I won't see my wedding band again for six fucking months.
"By the powers vested in me by the state of New Jersey, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride," he concludes. And just like that, I'm given a wife.
I loop my arms around Page again to pull her to me, kissing her softly at first, but quickly losing myself in her. After a few pats on the back the room empties, leaving us alone.
The moisture on my face tells me Page is crying again.
"Please stop crying," I tell her, resting my forehead on hers. "You're making me feel even worse seeing you so upset."
"I want you to go home with me," she sobs.
"Me, too, princess," I assure her. "I love you. Let me make love to you. Right here, right now because I may not get another chance for six months."
"I love you, too," she says. "Make love to me."
"Okay, but um, you're going to have to do all the prep work since I'm handcuffed."
At that Page starts sobbing again. "I'm sorry. It's all my fault."
"What are you talking about? Did you lie and say I raped you? No. That bitch did, and this is all her fault. Not yours. You did everything you could to help me. If it wasn't for you, I know I'd have gotten a hell of a lot more time for this shit I didn't do."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Now take your panties off and pull my cock out, so I can finally get inside my new wife."
That makes her laugh, and she finally goes to work, reaching under her skirt to shimmy out of her panties.
"I don’t have any condoms," she says softly, reaching for the zipper on the orange jumpsuit. I've already realized that and knew how this was probably going to go down.
"I don’t need one," I tell her. "Are you okay with that? I promise I'll pull out before."
She nods and after freeing my cock she doesn't let go. She goes to her knees instead and covers me with her mouth. Ah, she's going to make me fucking beg.
"God, I love you, woman. But if you don't stop…then your wedding night story…will be sorely lacking."