9. Rory
RORY
Itossed and turned all night as I thought about how Aasim and I abruptly ended our date.
The evening started out perfectly. Somehow, I ended up home, alone and hungry.
I wanted to call Aasim to apologize. I felt bad because I didn’t want to cut our dinner short.
The idea of Danny seeing me with Aasim and running back to tell everyone at work made me nervous.
After some thought, I could have played it off like Aasim was a potential client.
I was glad I didn’t go that route, because he deserved more than to be some secret.
All night, I thought about the way our evening transpired.
My feelings for Aasim were increasing each day.
In our short time together, I felt he could be my person.
I went through the motions of getting ready to head to work. Every movement I made felt slow because I was exhausted. I looked down at my phone more than I cared to admit. Aasim still hadn’t reached out. I didn’t know if he was caught up handling business or if he was upset with me.
I could have reached out to him, but my pride wouldn’t let me.
The idea of him not answering left an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.
It was too early in the day to start it off with him blowing me off.
Once I was dressed, I grabbed my purse and briefcase to hop in my car. I hoped the traffic wasn’t terrible.
When I got in the car, I turned on the GPS out of habit.
I always put my route in, in case there was something going on.
The city was unpredictable. Things changed in the blink of an eye.
Victoria Monét’s Jaguar II album blasted through the speakers as I drove.
As traffic flowed, I finally reached my office and parked my car.
When I arrived at the office, I said good morning to the few people I saw. I beat Mark, which gave me a moment to breathe. When he got in, he’d have something for me to do.
In the meantime, I sifted through some emails. There were several referrals for new clients.
Once a week, the team met to discuss new cases we took on.
As one of the top law firms in the city, there was no shortage of clients.
The purpose of the meeting was for us to prioritize which cases would be beneficial for the practice.
I chose four potential cases to present.
Even if we didn’t get through them all, I liked to be prepared.
A knock at the door made me look up.
“Good morning, Rory. Do you need coffee or water before you head into your meeting?” Mark greeted me.
“Morning, Mark. I’m good. I’m about to head over. I’ll check in with you after.”
Mark gave me a warm smile before heading back to his desk. I grabbed my notepad, phone, and my coffee, then headed toward the conference room. When I entered the conference room, I sat next to Ava, like I always did.
“Hey, girl. I got stuck on a call. Sorry I couldn’t swing by to walk with you down here,” she said.
“It’s fine. There were so many referrals that I almost lost track of time.”
Our conversation ceased when the partners walked in.
John kicked off the meeting with the normal pleasantries.
He randomly chose the attorney seated closest to him to start.
Once he was done, Danny was up next. I looked at Ava, and we rolled our eyes at the same time.
Then Danny mentioned a name that piqued my interest.
“I reviewed a lot of referrals, but one case looks really promising. They charged Kurt Lawerence with possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute. What makes him interesting is he recently became a prospect at the Sons of Destruction motorcycle crew. John, I know your buddies at the DEA have been trying to get something on these guys for years. Maybe taking Kurt on as a client could be rewarding for us and them,” Danny explained.
The mention of Aasim’s crew made my heartrate increase rapidly. I had to tell Aasim he was under surveillance.
Danny laughed and said, “One of my buddies at the precinct sent the interrogation video. The kid was crying the entire time. He kept saying he would do anything to avoid jail time since it’s his first offense.
The cops took him up on that and have been using him as a confidential informant.
They’re willing to make a deal if he can get them some useful information.
The kid may be their only chance to get some insight into Sons of Destruction’s operation. ”
My stomach sank to my feet. I felt perspiration form on my forehead.
I couldn’t wait for this meeting to end.
Danny talked so much that we only got through half of the team.
Whenever he had the floor, he always overtalked.
He was like a child that didn’t get attention at home.
Danny was a pretentious asshole who always kissed the partner’s ass.
When the meeting wrapped up, Ava and I walked back to our offices together. We stepped inside of my office and closed the door before Ava asked, “Girl, wasn’t that Aasim’s club Danny was talking about in there?”
“Yeah. It is. I have to tell him, right? I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t? This can’t be happening.”
“Are you ready for what can happen if you do tell him? I know you’ve been thinking about your exit strategy. Have you thought about what you’re going to do if it happens sooner than later?” Ava asked with her hand on her hip.
“It’s all I’ve been thinking about for the past few days. I can’t think about that right now. There’s no way I could keep this from him. Let me call Aasim. Come grab me when you’re ready to head to lunch,” I said as I let out a deep breath.
“Okay, girl.”
After taking a seat at my desk, I picked up my cell and called Aasim. The phone rang until the voicemail came on. This only confirmed the reason I didn’t want to call him this morning. Now wasn’t the time for me to be in my feelings. I texted him.
Me: Hey, I know we left things a little awkward last night. Can you come over later so we can talk?
I held the phone in my hand for a couple of minutes. When he didn’t respond, I got back to work. If he reached out, I would tell him. It was on him how we moved from here on out. A knock at the door diverted my attention.
“Come in,” I said.
Mark walked in with a long, white box. “This just came for you.” He placed the box on the desk, then turned to leave my office, and closed the door behind him.
I was skeptical to open the box. This time, it didn’t surprise me to see a bouquet of black roses.
The shock I had when I received the first package was now replaced with annoyance.
Somebody was fucking with me, and I couldn’t put off figuring out who it was any longer.
I checked around until I found a card. This time around, it read: Tick Tock what’s done in the dark always comes to light.
Tick Tock, my ass. The longer I stared at the card, the angrier I became. My phone alerted me to a text message. I picked it up to see Aasim’s reply.
Aasim: I can come through. let me know what time.
Me: Six.
Aasim: Cool.
Instead of going back to work, I focused my energy on finding the person responsible for sending these flowers. For hours, I pulled through old case files. Around one, Ava called me, “Hey girl, are you ready?”
“I can’t go. I got another package. I’ve been locked in my office, going through files since it came hours ago.”
“It came to the office? He’s getting bolder, huh? Let me grab us some salads, and I’ll be right there.” Ava disconnected the call without waiting for my reply.
The last thing on my mind was food. I was determined to figure out who was behind these deliveries. When Ava came, she placed two salads down on the desk.
“What did the note say this time?” Ava asked.
I handed it to her. Ava scrunched her nose after she finished reading.
“What’s done in the dark always comes to the light? What the hell does that mean? Are you involved in something I should know about?” she asked, rattling off a series of questions.
“Nothing. Which makes this all even more annoying. It’s gotta be a scare tactic. I’ve been at this computer for hours, going over old case files. I don’t recall any of my clients having a pattern of sending gifts like this. Nothing is sticking out to me.”
“Why don’t you give your eyes a break? Just eat a little, and then you can go back to it.”
I rubbed my dry eyes and realized Ava was right.
Staring at the computer wouldn’t give me the answers I needed.
Maybe a break would help jog my memory. Ava cleared her calendar so we could eat.
Even after lunch was over, she stayed with me.
We reviewed some old cases until five o’clock came around. I had to leave to go meet Aasim.
Ava and I walked out of the office together. “Thanks for helping me out today.”
“You know I got you. Tomorrow, we’ll pick back up. Did you tell Aasim?” Ava asked
“Not yet. I’m heading home to meet him now. I’ll let you know how it goes though.”
“Okay, boo. Good luck. Get home safe.” Ava stood up to give me a hug
“You too, boo,” I said as I hugged her back.
We each hopped in our cars and pulled out of the garage. Whatever was on the radio played during my ride home. My mind was still on those flowers. It was hard figuring out who was behind them. When I turned onto my block, I was relieved. I desperately needed a glass of wine.
I parked the car, then headed upstairs. My first stop was my bar cart. I grabbed a glass and decided on a shot of bourbon. The wine wasn’t strong enough. My shoulders felt heavy from the stress of the day. I sat on my couch in complete silence, slowly sipping on my drink until the doorbell rang.
I stood up with my drink in hand to answer the door. After checking the peephole, I opened it to let Aasim in. He smiled widely when he saw me. As he pulled me in for a hug, I took in his woodsy vanilla scent. It felt so good being in his arms. I didn’t want him to let me go.
“You could’ve put the drink down before you answered the door,” he said.
“No, I couldn’t. I’ve had a horrible day, and this drink is exactly what I need.” I walked inside as Aasim followed me and closed the door behind him. When I sat on the couch, he sat right next to me.
“What’s going on that’s got you so stressed?” he asked.
“I didn’t like how we left things last night. Then something happened at work today, and my day went to hell.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. About last night, I won’t pretend to understand why you wanted to leave. I get your reservations about your job, but I won’t be a secret. We’re bound to run into people we know when we’re out. We gotta figure out how to handle this going forward.”
I listened to his words and tried to find an answer that would work for both of us. If I was being honest with myself, there wasn’t a right or wrong to me. I didn’t want him to be a secret, but everything with my career felt uncertain for the first time in my life.
“I panicked because of what I stand to lose. I’ve worked really hard to be where I am in my career. You’re not a secret. I want to be in public with you without worrying. I just don’t know if that’s possible.”
We sat in silence because there was no clear answer on how to move on from this. I liked Aasim, and I wanted to continue to see him.
“I wanted you to come by to talk about something I heard at work today.”
“Okay. What’s up?”
“Do you know a Kurt Lawerence? He’s supposed to be one of your prospects.”
“He is. How did his name come up at work today?” he asked.
“He’s an informant. According to the dude at my job, he got picked up with some coke. He’s agreed to give the police info on the club for his freedom,” I explained.
I watched Aasim’s expression change. His jaw clenched as he cracked his knuckles. I got up from the couch and poured him a shot of whiskey. He took the glass from me and threw the drink back.
“Do you know if they have anything on us?”
“It doesn’t sound like it yet. This must have all transpired over the last week. We get referrals every day for potential clients. I wanted you to know so you don’t get caught up in anything.”
“I appreciate that. That twenty I gave you came in clutch, huh?” he teased.
“I was serious when I said you could trust me. It wouldn’t benefit me to keep this information from you. Please take the info and do what you will. I’m risking a lot by telling you. There was no way I could keep this to myself. Just please be safe.”
Aasim leaned over and kissed my lips. “I’ll be safe. I promise. I appreciate you looking out. Whatever happens, it’ll never come back to you.”