Chapter 10

Jessibelle

I stared at myself in the bathroom mirror at the courthouse. I was terrified. Beyond terrified. My eyes were wide, and I was looking back at myself like I’d seen a ghost—though given the circumstances—I wouldn’t have minded an excuse to plead off this case.

Of course, my first time representing a client in court had to come about like this. I was just meant to be the second chair, but apparently, Mr. Rose had requested I lead the case for him. I couldn’t believe it. He had to have known I was inexperienced compared to the rest of the people who could have handled this case on for him. Or was this something more, about the night we’d spent together a couple of weeks before? I pushed the thought from my head. I couldn’t get hung up on that. I needed to keep my focus, stay in the game. I had a case to win.

His case. The case to prove his competency to lead the company.

I smoothed my hair into place and nodded at myself in the mirror, hoping I could pass for confident, though my nerves had me trembling from head to toe. I took a couple of deep breaths as I headed for the courtroom. I just had to get through this. I could do this. I was prepared. The firm was behind me, and so was Mr. Rose. It was ridiculous, since I’d only seen him a couple of weeks before when he came into the office, but I missed him. Which was ridiculous, and I needed to get him the hell out of my head.

I paused outside the courtroom door, rolled my shoulders back, and stepped inside. I could do this.

My eyes were drawn to Rose first, and I felt a little uptick in my chest when I saw him. He grinned at me, and I grinned back without thinking how unprofessional I’d seem and then glanced away to stop myself from gawking at him. He was dressed in an expensive suit, his long hair neatly pulled up into a man bun and a slight stubble on his chin. The man looked like a god. A god that made my knees weak every time I looked at him.

My gaze fell on the lawyer for the defense and my jaw dropped. Aston.

Aston fucking LaChase.

I couldn’t fucking believe it, not for one second. It felt as though someone had slapped me, the shock taking a second to settle in as I stared at the man I’d hoped to God I’d never lay eyes on again in my life. He was looking back at me steadily, a slow grin spreading out across his face. He must have known this was a win for him and his case because I was going to start out on the left foot. I knew who the defense was. The name of the firm and lead attorney was all over the court documents. How had he snuck in here without me noticing or figuring it out?

He strode toward me with a big, shit-eating grin. I glanced at Zach—Mr. Rose, I had to remind myself—and he was looking at Aston with distaste, watching the interaction between us carefully.

“Good to see you again,” Aston greeted me. “Didn’t realize you’d landed such a big case.”

“Same goes to you,” I replied tersely. “Just not the part about it being good to see you.”

“Hey, we can manage to be civil, can’t we?” He held his hands up, and then extended one to me. I took it, and he gripped my hand for just a second too long. The touch of his skin was familiar and disturbing all at once, and I pulled my hand away. I glanced over at Zach, who seemed to have noticed my discomfort at the interaction and scowled in Aston’s direction. I flicked my gaze back to Aston and pressed my lips together with resolve.

“Good luck out there,” he remarked cordially before heading back to his client. I went to mine, trying to keep myself steady, but I was shaking, my hands trembling as I went over the notes I’d laid out for the trial. I couldn’t believe I was letting him get to me like this. My emotions were a mess. Not only was I faced with my asshole ex for the first time since our break-up, but I was also seeing my current totally inappropriate crush only a couple of weeks after our crazy-hot hook-up that I tried to get out of my damn head. As worst-ever-court-appearances went—I was pretty sure I was about to set a world record.

I heaved in a deep breath and planted my hands on the desk in front of me, glancing at Aston out of the corner of my eye. I couldn’t let him get to me. That was precisely what he wanted, for me to fuck up this case by acting crazier than my client. Asshole.

All of this, the case we’d built challenging them to prove their own competency, had been constructed around the assumption that I had my feet on the ground. But right now, I struggled to catch my breath and tears pricked my eyes as I thought about everything that monstrous asshole had put me through—and I feared I wasn’t going to be able to hold myself together.

I shuffled through my trial binder, focusing on the arguments I’d so carefully laid out over the last few days, everything that worked in our favor, everything that made my client look good and his client look questionable. All of it felt pointless now as I struggled to regain my composure. I checked my watch. We’d start in a matter of minutes. How was I supposed to go up in front of the judge in the state I was in?

Suddenly, a touch landed at the small of my back. My first reaction was to jump, but I turned to see Zach. His hand was warm and gentle against my skin, his touch comforting, and he smiled at me as though he’d noticed I was in the middle of a grade-A freak-out in the middle of the courtroom.

“Hey, you’re all right,” he assured me, his voice low and a smile cracking across his face. “Really. Don’t panic.”

“I wasn’t,” I protested weakly, but his wryly raised eyebrows told me he didn’t buy it for a damn second. My shoulders sagged, and even though I was a little embarrassed at being found out, I was glad he at least wasn’t kicking me to the curb in horror because I didn’t have nerves of steel. I managed to return his smile, and he nodded, apparently satisfied at seeing me return to something close to normality.

“Now get out there and show them who’s in charge,” he ordered playfully. “I have a company to hold onto.”

“Will do,” I nodded, a little shaky, and stood up to head for the stand. I was as ready as I’d ever be, and even if it didn’t feel iron-clad, it would have to do for now. I turned my gaze to Aston, narrowed my eyes, and steeled myself for my first big case.