Alexander
Alexander
A lex had made a few calls to discreetly call in a few favors. He had a few guys over in Simon’s firm who owed him favors and it was time for them to pay up. All he asked was that they keep an eye on Evie while she snooped around the firm for evidence to help Nova’s case.
He was just about to toss his cell phone down when it rang, and his brother’s goofy face popped up on the screen. He had a picture of Rod as a kid saved on his phone and it always made him smile to see his brother’s twelve-year-old face. It reminded him of the good old days when they didn’t have any conflicts between the two of them. There was no jealousy, just brotherly love. Alex wanted to get back to that somehow.
“Hey, Rod,” he answered.
“Alex,” Rod returned.
“How studying for the bar going?” Alex asked. That was how their conversations usually went. Rod would call to check in and Alex would question him about the bar and when he’d be coming to work for him. His younger brother had agreed to take a position at his firm once he was a full-fledged lawyer and honestly, Alex couldn’t wait. He was hoping that it would give them a way to find their way back to being brothers again.
“It’s going. I’m scheduled to take the test next Wednesday,” Rod said.
“You nervous?” Alex asked. When he had to take his bar exam, he was a bundle of nerves. He had studied his ass off and then foolishly gone out the night before with some friends and gotten drunk. He had to take his exam with a vicious hangover and how he passed it was beyond him. He didn’t remember much from that day, but he thought for sure that he bombed it. When he found out that the opposite was true, he was pretty damn thankful.
“A bit,” his brother admitted. “But I’ve put so many hours into studying, I think my brain just needs a chance to decompress, you know?”
He knew exactly what his brother was talking about—it’s how he ended up with a hangover on the day of his exam. “Just do yourself a favor and go out drinking now instead of the night before your exam,” Alex said. “Trust me, it’ll be for the best.”
“Wait—you went out drinking the night before the bar exam?” Rod asked.
“Yep—and I regretted it the next day,” Alex said.
“How did you pass the exam?” Rod asked.
“No clue—hell, that whole day is one big blur, but somehow, my muscle memory kicked in and I passed the bar. Although, I don’t recommend doing things the way that I did. I was an idiot.”
“Still are, big brother,” Rod teased.
“You still planning on starting at the end of the month?” Alex asked.
“If that works for you. Plus, I have to pass the bar, but fingers crossed,” Rod said.
“How would you like to get a leg up on a case?” Alex asked. “You know, get your toes wet, so to speak. I need some help with a custody case, and I can’t trust just anyone with it.”
“Sure,” Rod said. He had interned for Alex while he was in law school, and he knew that his brother was going to make a damn good attorney. If he could get Rod to help with Nova’s case, he’d be able to concentrate on keeping her safe and digging up some more dirt on Simon.
“It’s for my new assistant,” Alex said. He wasn’t sure how much he wanted to tell his brother. On the one hand, he knew that Rod would find out about her sooner or later because Alex planned on keeping Nova around long-term. Hell, he planned on marrying her, but he hadn’t even gotten to the point of telling her that yet. He was going to have to slow his roll, or he’d end up scaring the poor woman away.
“Is she hot?” Rod asked.
“No,” Alex growled. “She’s not hot to you, Rodrick,” he insisted.
Rod’s laughter filled the phone and Alex wanted to end the call and toss his cell out of his window. “I see,” Rod said. “You have a thing for your new assistant. HR is going to have a field day with you, man,” he teased.
“HR has nothing to do with Nova and me,” Alex shouted. “And you keep your hands off of her—she’s mine,” he growled.
“I see,” Rod said, “so, you’ve staked your claim then?”
“I have,” Alex said. “She’s living with me, and I plan on keeping it that way, even if she doesn’t know that yet. I like her,” he admitted. “Hell, I’m falling for her, if I’m being completely honest.”
“You know, this is the first real conversation that we’ve had in a damn long time, brother. I like this girl already. When do I get to meet her?” Rod asked.
“When you come in to grab the files, I have on her asshole ex. He’s holding her son and won’t let her see him except for the court-appointed twenty-four hours a week. It’s bullshit and I have evidence that he’s paid off judges on other cases. I’m betting he’s paid off the judge in his divorce case too. All I have to do is prove it and then, I can turn over the evidence to get Nova’s son back and put Simon away for a damn long time.”
“Simon as in Simon Meyers?” Rod asked.
“Yes, why?” Alex questioned.
“Because I ran into him last night. I stopped by to see you and security told me that you were out to dinner and where to find you. I didn’t want to bother you, but Simon was adamant about finding you. He said that you were working on the same case and that he had new information to disclose. Said it was urgent, so I told him where to find you,” Rod admitted.
“Yeah, he caught up with me. I was out to dinner with Nova,” Alex said.
“Shit, I’m sorry. Had I known what was going on, I wouldn’t have told him where you were,” Rod promised.
“No, it’s not your fault,” Alex said. “He showed up and made a scene with lots of witnesses around. Actually, it was good because he was drunk and out of control. He threatened Nova and I got the names of everyone who saw him do it, so I can call them to testify if it comes to that.”
“Wait—you said that it was good that he threatened Nova,” Rod said.
“Yeah—now we have a leg up in the case and she’s moved into my place, and that’s where I plan on keeping her,” Alex admitted.
“Man, you do have it bad for this woman,” Rod said.
“I do,” Alex agreed. “So, will you help me?”
“Do you think that the case will end up in court again?” Rod asked. He knew that his brother was dying to get into court, but he’d learn that not all cases ended up there. Alex was hoping that would be the case in this instance. Nova didn’t need to be put through all of that again. He saw how upset she was when Simon burst into the restaurant last night. Alex would do just about anything not to have her look like that ever again.
“I’m hoping that it won’t,” Alex admitted. “I think that if I can prove that Simon is paying off judges, especially the one on his custody case, I’ll be able to have him disbarred and put in prison for a long time.”
Rod sighed, “I’m in,” he said. “I’ll swing by later today to pick up the files and meet my future sister-in-law,” he teased.
“Ha, ha,” Alex barked. “Just don’t call her that until I actually get up the nerve to ask her to marry me, asshole.”
“I’ll try, but no promises, big brother. Talk soon,” Rod said, ending the call. Alex tossed his cell onto his desk and looked out the wall of glass window that separated him from Nova. God, she was beautiful, sitting at her desk, studying the HR handbook like she was going to be tested. Yeah—he’d find the nerve to ask her to marry him, but it was going to take him some time. First, he’d need to get her kid back for her, then, he’d find a way to pop the question and convince her that it didn’t matter that they had only known each other a few short days. He was falling in love with her and that wasn’t going to change for him.
Alex noticed the blond sitting on the corner of Nova’s desk before he heard their giggling. He walked out of his office and the blond stood and straightened her dress, smoothing her hands down her body.
“You must be Evie,” he said, holding his hand out for her. “I’m Alex McTavish, it’s good to meet you.”
“You too, Alex,” she said. “I’ve brought the evidence that I’ve been able to collect on Simon’s activities paying off judges but I’m afraid that I won’t be able to get you anything else. Hopefully, that will be enough to bring Simon down,” Evie said, nodding to the thumb drive that she had handed him. “I’ve been fired,” she said.
“Why didn’t you tell me that when you got here?” Nova asked. “I wouldn’t have been sitting here joking around and being stupid. I’m so sorry, Evie.”
“It’s not your fault,” she insisted.
“What happened?” Alex asked. “What reason did they give for termination?”
“They said that I violated my NDA,” Evie said. “My boss said that he had evidence that I was talking about the firm’s cases to outside parties and that I was fired. He told me that I was lucky that they weren’t going to press charges, but I’m guessing that’s because they don’t have the evidence that they claimed to have on me. If they only knew what I just smuggled out of their building, they’d really have grounds to fire me.”
“How did you get the thumb drive out of the building?” Nova asked.
“Well, let’s just say that I put it someplace that the security guards would either need a search warrant to find it or be dating me and have permission to go to second base.”
“You put it in your bra?” Nova asked.
“Yep,” Evie said. “Right in the crater,” she teased.
“Can I see that thumb drive, Alex?” Nova asked. He handed it to her, and she grabbed a tissue and wiped it down, handing it back to him.
Alex chuckled, “Feel better, honey?” he asked.
“Yep,” Nova said. “I don’t want you touching my best friend’s boobs; even if it’s secondhand touching.”
“You’re insane,” Evie said. “Well, I better get going. I’m going to have to update my resume and hit the job market. I’ve got a job to find. Let me know if I got what you need, Nova. I’m hoping that you can get Jack back and Simon gets thrown in prison.”
“I’d love the same to happen,” Alex said. “I’ll go through this now and will have Nova let you know. Thanks for all of your help, Evie.”
“No problem,” Evie said. “I told you that I’d do anything for my girl. That includes kicking any man’s ass who hurts her.”
“Got it,” Alex said. “Loud and clear. But for the record, you won’t have to kick my ass because I don’t plan on ever hurting her.”
“Good to know,” Evie said. She pulled Nova in for a quick hug and told her to call soon. She was gone so quickly, that Alex wondered how someone so tiny could cause such a ruckus.
“I told you that I like her, and I was right,” Alex said. “She’s great.”
“Even though she threatened you bodily harm,” Nova asked.
“Yep—that just means that she loves you, honey,” Alex said. “I really like her.”