Chapter Thirty-Four
Liv
It feels good to make a grown man nearly cry in front of a room full of his peers. Really gets my blood pumping.
“Miley, go grab a quick lunch. You did well in there!” I yell to her as I stroll into my office, Hayes right behind me.
“Wow, complimenting the intern. You’re on a high right now,” he teases, shutting my office door. Despite the boundary I put up between us, he’s remained his same charming self, and I’m thankful.
It’s hypocritical of me, but I don’t think I could handle it if he were cold towards me.
“Feels good to win.” My smile stretches over my cheeks, and he shakes his head in amusement.
“The jury hasn’t decided yet.”
“Doesn’t matter. I know I won.” I shrug, sitting back in my desk chair.
“I’d be terrified to face you in court, Liv.”
“Aw, that’s sweet of you to say.”
He chuckles. “Do you want me to get you some lunch?”
I shake my head.
“More tea?”
Another shake of my head.
“Do you want me to tell you how hot you looked handing Randall Porter’s ass on a plate?”
“Mmm, maybe. Hold onto that idea.” I stand up, waltzing towards him. His hands flex, but he doesn’t move, watching me as I get closer. “Thank you for sitting in there, even if it wasn’t fun being in a courtroom again.”
“Not a problem, boss.” The corner of his mouth kicks up in a grin as he looks down at me.
“You don’t need to call me that. You’ve never cashed a single check I’ve offered for your services.” I plant my hands on his chest softly, feeling his breath catch.
“I don’t want your money.” He looks at me seriously, searching my eyes, probably trying to figure out my wishy-washy behavior.
I practically tell him to fuck off one minute and then can’t keep my hands off of him another. I’m a mess.
“I know. Thanks for being here, anyway,” I whisper, meaning it wholeheartedly.
“Always.” He covers my hands with his, and I fight the urge to lean in more… To take more.
He would do anything I want, but I’m too conflicted to let him.
He sighs, rubbing his thumb over the back of my hand. “I didn’t like seeing how heated Porter got. It’s a reminder of how much danger you can be in. Between your stalker and the nature of your job…”
“I love my job. Making people mad doesn’t scare me.” I’ve had enough people tell me that I have no business in law just because I’m a woman, and I don’t need to hear it from him.
I start to tug my hands away, but he holds them tight.
“I know you love it. I’ll be here to make sure you never have anything to be scared of. That’s all I’m saying.”
“Oh.” I wasn’t expecting that. “Next week will be worse. Jeremiah is the violent one.”
“Are you worried?” He asks, smiling softly.
“No,” I breathe as he tucks my hair behind my ear.
He leans in, and I stop breathing altogether. “That’s because you know I’ll take care of you.”
I don’t think we’re talking about the courtroom anymore, and I can’t stop staring at his mouth.
“Miss Greenwood, I brought you a sandwich–” He jumps away, smoothing his hand over his chest as my hands fall. “Oh. I’m sorry. I’ll come back.” Miley runs back out the door.
“She really needs to learn to knock,” I grumble.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have…” he motions between us like he’s flustered, and I’m not sure what he’s apologizing for. “You’re at work.”
“Don’t…” I start, and he glances at me. “Don’t be sorry,” I tell him softly, not quite meeting his gaze.
I’m so conflicted by my feelings, but it’s not because I don’t want him… It’s because I want him so badly it hurts, and I know how dangerous that is.
Giving him my heart again is a lot scarier than my job will ever be.
I pop out of my office to clear the fog from my head and to get whatever Miley was going to give me, but she’s talking to someone by the stairwell.
I can’t see his face. He has dark hair and appears to be older than her, quite a bit taller, too.
“Who was that?” I ask when she scampers back.
“Oh, that’s my boyfriend. We’re both sort of new to this area. I was just asking him if he thought I should ask you and Mr. Hayes out for drinks sometime. Since it seems like you two are… Something.”
We’re something alright… Just not sure what that something is.
“That’s really sweet of you, but I don’t think it would be appropriate since I am your boss. Maybe once your internship ends,” I tell her kindly, though with empty intent.
“Of course. Here you go!” She hands me a bagged lunch, and I turn to see Hayes watching our interaction with amusement on his face.
“Shut up,” I whisper as I walk past him.
“That’s the second double date I’ve been offered today.”
“What? Who–” I don’t have a chance to finish before my phone rings.
The verdict is in.
* * *
“On count one: Conspiring to unlawfully inhabit land. We, the jury, find the defendant guilty.
“Count two: Conspiring to burglarize. We, the jury, find the defendant guilty.” I don’t react as the head juror reads the verdicts. I’m a professional at maintaining my composure while Porter is growing more agitated in his seat.
“Count Three: Conspiring to kidnap. We, the jury, find the defendant guilty.”
Porter’s hands hit the table, and Judge Fulton gives him a warning glare.
“Count Four: Conspiring to assault. We, the jury, find the defendant not guilty.” I take the blow coolly, letting the disappointment wash over me quietly.
That one was a long shot since Randall didn’t know about Jeremiah’s beating of Curtis until afterward. But it was worth it to try to stick it to him.
“In light of these decisions, I have the duty to uphold the law, Mr. Porter. You are sentenced to four years in a state penitentiary. Time served. Eligible for parole in two years.” He hits his gavel, and I exhale in relief.
This was the easy one. Next week, it’s my job to put Jeremiah away for a lot longer.
“I can’t go to prison,” Randall yells, swiping his table of all his paperwork.
“My ruling is final, Mr. Porter. This court is adjourned. I suggest you leave quietly with the deputy.” The old man walks towards him, preparing to cuff him, but Randall jumps away.
Before I can react, a wall falls in front of me. Not a wall… Hayes.
He stands between us as Porter throws a temper tantrum. The older deputy attempts to grab him, but fails again. Within seconds, Sheriff Malec is striding to the front of the room.
“Randall Porter, you are being detained per Judge Fulton’s ruling. If you resist, you will be charged with resisting and causing a disturbance.” He grabs his arm and easily yanks it behind his back to put him in cuffs.
“Fuck you,” he spits at the Sheriff. “And fuck you, too!” He yells towards me.
Hayes stiffens, but he doesn’t react rashly, and I know it’s solely for my benefit. He doesn’t want to embarrass me at work.
“Make sure he gets in the transport van with no issues,” Malec tells the other deputies as they take Randall off his hands. “I had a feeling there wouldn’t be a smooth ending to this. If Jeremiah’s trial goes without trouble, I’ll be shocked,” he says as I start packing up my table.
Hayes is too still beside me.
“It’ll be fine.” I squeeze his arm, and he finally nods his head, shaking off his rigidness.
“I wanted to wait until today’s proceedings were over, but I’d like to discuss some things with you regarding your stalker,” Malec says under his breath.
There are still plenty of people in the room that I’d rather not know about my personal situation.
“Sure, let’s go to my office.”
Hayes grabs my briefcase before I can and holds the swinging gate open to lead me out of the courtroom. I’m afraid that I’m getting too comfortable with this special treatment.
“What is that smell?” My face pinches as I step into my office. “It smells like pee.” If someone pissed in my office, I’m going to freak out.
Jensen is the first one to investigate, sniffing around to find the source while Malec calls for someone to bring him his forensic kit.
“It’s your lunch.” He leans into the brown bag that Miley brought me. I left it untouched before the verdict.
“It didn’t smell like that before.”
“The food was fresh. It might have hidden the smell, but now it’s been sitting for an hour.”
“Someone peed on my lunch?”
He shakes his head. “I think it’s ammonia. They used it all the time in the prison.”
“Don’t touch it,” Malec tells him, pulling on rubber gloves. He gently opens the bag, pulling out the sandwich inside, and puts it into a crime scene bag.
This is unreal.
“Your assistant brought you this?” Malec asks after he seals all the bags.
“My intern. But she’s just a kid. She wouldn’t have done this.”
“You didn’t ask for lunch, Liv. She brought you this willingly,” Hayes says, his face hard with anger.
“We get this from the restaurant across the street almost every day. I always order the same thing, she was just being nice. What if someone came in here after we went down to the courtroom?”
“Maybe.” Malec looks at me like he’s trying to choose his words wisely. “I’ll have to question her.”
“No, absolutely not. Not without a lawyer.”
“You can’t represent her, Liv,” he tells me sympathetically. “You can trust me.”
I look at Hayes for support, but when he turns to look at me, I can tell that is not what I’m going to get. “I don’t like cops, but I trust Malec. I think you should, too.”
“Traitor,” I mumble. “Fine. But give her the opportunity to obtain her own lawyer, and I’ll be watching. I swear to God, Malec, if you trap her into some bogus confession, I’ll ruin your life.”
He puts his hands up. “I wouldn’t dare.” His lack of defensiveness makes me believe him.
I nod, and he leaves, taking the evidence with him.
“If you had eaten that, it would have destroyed your insides,” Hayes grits through his teeth, finally letting his rage show. “If I find out it was the fucking intern all this time…”
“It’s not,” I say, mostly confident.
But that means we’re nowhere closer to finding out who my stalker really is.