The Deadbeat DILF (City Loves #2)

Chapter One

CHAPTER ONE

There was never a moment of pure silence in the towering office building of Ashcroft Legal Group. Meetings happened every hour, clients came and went, phones rang, and email notifications dinged.

I was used to the constant drone of noise, even through the walls of my corner office. My eyes remained glued to my computer screen as I read over one of the hundreds of documents I had to review. I’d started working at Ashcroft as soon as I graduated from law school, and I was twenty-nine now, which meant I’d been here for five years. I’d learned there was no lull in the chaos, but I thrived in it.

Then my personal phone buzzed with a text message.

Mom: I hope you haven’t forgotten our lunch this Saturday. Don’t be late.

I tightened my jaw. My family’s monthly lunches were something I dreaded, but I’d never figured out a good way to get out of them. If I made an excuse, my family would just reschedule for the following week. If I said I was busy for the foreseeable future, my family would guilt-trip me. Brooke doesn’t have time for her family now that she’s a fancy lawyer. She thinks she’s too good for us.

I’d long ago decided the best strategy was to just get the lunches over with. It was only a few hours every month.

I decided to text my mom back later, once I finished work. I could already imagine what I’d say. I’d promise not to be late, like the responsible, perfect daughter I strove to be.

The deep trill of my office phone ringing cut into my thoughts, and I snatched the phone off the receiver and pressed it to my ear. “Brooke Collins,” I answered.

“Sorry to bother you, Brooke,” Ashley, the firm’s receptionist, said. “There’s a man here to see you, but he doesn’t have an appointment. He says he knows you personally.”

“Sure, send him in,” I said. It was my automatic response whenever Ashley told me someone was here to see me. As soon as I ended the call, though, I paused.

A man here to see me? Someone I knew personally?

I couldn’t think of anyone. Clients and other people I knew professionally would have made an appointment. I didn’t have a boyfriend or any male friends I was particularly close to. The only people I could think of were my dad and my brother, but surely they wouldn’t come here. They probably couldn’t even remember which company I worked at.

There was a knock at my door, and my stomach clenched. I stood up, my hands smoothing over the black material of my sheath dress, and plastered on a client-friendly smile. I wanted to be welcoming to whoever it was.

“Come in,” I called.

A tall man walked in. He had dark brown hair, much longer than the hair of all the white-collar men I worked with. His jaw was covered in stubble, and his blue jeans looked worn. His large biceps filled the sleeves of his dark gray Henley, and even in what I assumed to be his late forties, he had the physique that guys in their early twenties strived for. He was clearly strong, with broad shoulders, a solid chest, and a trim waist.

I stared.

“Brooke,” he said, stepping closer, allowing me to get a better look at him. “It’s been a long time.”

My gaze swept over the disheveled but noticeably handsome man who looked very familiar.

“I’m sorry, remind me…?”

“Robert James,” he said, gesturing to himself. “Mike’s father.”

My heart jolted. I had dated Mike James in college, which felt like a million years ago. We’d met in an Introduction to Political Science class, and our relationship had been fun and sweet, but not very serious. Mike had been cute, and like me, studied hard and had big career ambitions, but I broke up with him in our senior year. He’d wanted to stay together, but he was moving to the city for a job, and I was going to law school. I didn’t think long distance would wrk, and I wanted to be free of distractions so I could focus on law.

While we were dating, I had visited his family home a few times. He’d had a huge house. His mother had long black hair and had always been dressed in expensive clothes, and she was quite protective of her son. As for his father…

Well, even back then, I’d noticed that Mike’s father was good-looking. Mike had inherited the warm, chocolate brown eyes and perfect bone structure from his dad.

“Yes, of course,” I said now. “How is Mike?”

As soon as the question left my mouth, I internally grimaced. I hadn’t spoken to Mike since we graduated, and it was obvious that I didn’t know what he was up to these days.

“He’s good,” Robert said. “He’s working at a consulting firm, doing well.”

“Good to hear,” I said, then gestured to one of the two padded seats on the other side of my desk. “Please, take a seat. Is there something I can help you with, Mr. James?”

“Robert,” he corrected as he sat down in the left seat. Despite his calm voice, his body was a little stiff. “I know this is strange, me showing up out of the blue, but Mike told me you were a lawyer these days.” He hesitated. “I need a lawyer’s help, and I wasn’t sure where to go.”

I wasn’t surprised. As a lawyer, I frequently got asked for advice—from acquaintances asking if I could help them sue someone, to my brother asking me to help him get out of a speeding ticket. Even though it happened a lot, I always tried to be polite about it, rather than getting annoyed.

“Tell me the issue,” I said with an encouraging smile.

Robert rubbed his jaw, his fingers grazing stubble. He’d always had facial hair, even back when I was in college. Nowadays, as part of my job, I was constantly surrounded by clean-shaven men, but Robert’s stubble suited him, accentuating the sharp cut of his jaw. Sure, it added to his overall disheveled appearance, but he made it work. It made him look… rugged.

“I’ve been evicted from my home,” he said. “My landlord gave me the notice last week, and they’re giving me two weeks to find a new place. Apparently, they’re bulldozing the building and turning it into an apartment complex. I was wondering if there’s anything I can do.” He gave me an embarrassed smile. “I know I’m asking a lot of you, and you can say no, of course. But I wasn’t sure where else to go.”

He looked out of place in my shiny office, with my long mahogany desk and the abstract art that hung on the walls—all gifts from previous clients. I wondered whether he felt intimidated walking into this building. He must’ve been brave.

Or desperate.

“I’d love to help,” I said, “but I’m a corporate lawyer. Have you considered going to someone who specializes in real estate?”

He winced. “No, not yet.”

The implied meaning hung in the air: he couldn’t afford it.

I knew as well as the next person that lawyers were expensive, but I remembered Robert had his own construction company. More importantly, why was he living in a rental when he had a gorgeous home in the suburbs with his wife?

“It’s okay if you can’t,” Robert said, and he smiled again, but his eyes looked defeated. “I just thought I’d give it a shot.”

I glanced at my computer screen, where I had hours of work to complete. My stomach twisted. I was used to turning down acquaintances’ requests for help, but something about Robert made me hesitate.

Maybe it was because I could tell that underneath his nonchalant smiles, he was stressed.

Or maybe it was because I remembered how kind he was when I visited Mike’s home in college.

Or maybe it was because he was good-looking, and something about his deep brown eyes made me want to help.

God, I was shallow.

“I can’t promise anything,” I said. “But I can take a look at your rental contract and see if there’s anything I can do.”

His entire face lit up, and I noticed that his brown irises had flecks of gold in them. When was the last time I’d seen someone with such breathtaking eyes?

“Are you sure? I don’t want to impose.”

I waved my hand dismissively before plucking a business card off the holder on my desk and extending it to him. “It’s no problem. If you send me the lease agreement and any other related documents, I can look over it all tonight and let you know what I find.”

Robert took the card from me, his fingertips brushing mine and sending an electric charge through my body. “I really appreciate it, Brooke. You’re an angel.”

My stomach flipped. Angel. He was just being kind, but when was the last time someone called me something like that?

“Just a lawyer,” I insisted with a small smile. “Once again, I can’t promise a favorable solution.”

“That’s okay. This is more than enough.” He rose to his feet, towering over me at a little over six feet. A few strands of his hair fell onto his forehead as he looked down at me. “I won’t take up any more of your time, but thank you, Brooke. Really.”

I stood from my leather office chair, reaching out to shake his hand. His hand was warm and swallowed mine.

“I’ll try my best,” I said. I did want to help him out—if there was one thing I hated, it was disappointing others. “I’ll call you once I’ve finished looking over everything.”

Robert nodded, holding my hand for a second longer before releasing me. He headed toward the door before pausing in the doorway and looking over his shoulder at me. “It was nice seeing you again.”

“You too, Mr. James.”

“Robert,” he corrected again with a smile, then left the office, gently closing the door behind him.

I dropped back down into my chair with a long exhale, my heart thumping faster than usual. That blast from the past had been nice, but now I felt unease pooling in my stomach. I didn’t want to disappoint Robert. On top of that, I had a whole bunch of work to do, and I had to see my family this weekend.

Well, the only thing I could do was get through it all, one step at a time.