Exposed (Rosato & DiNunzio #5)(46)

“Of course, I get that she would do that.” Bennie hoped she hadn’t lost any advantage by not talking to Judy first. She’d just been too thrown for a loop, even an old warhorse like her.

“And you know Mary and I are super close and I love her, and we’ve always practiced together. But I really love working for you, Bennie, and I love your cases. I think your practice and her practice are really two different things.”

“That’s true.” Bennie took heart, straightening up in bed, and Declan took his smartphone from the night table and started tapping away.

“And like I told Mary, I really do love to work on your cases and I would lose that if I went to her. She totally understands that, too.”

“Right, she can’t give you that kind of work. And you and I have things worked out so well together, with me getting that work and bringing it in and you working on it, am I right?”

“Right, we do have it worked out but still, I feel really caught in the middle. Like that’s already happening with the Dumbarton cases. I love working on those cases. I’ve gotten really friendly with Suzanne and Tom from MetalLabs, and they’re a really great group. I never knew metal fabricators could be so nice, and they have really interesting issues. Now I’m in a tug-of-war, with Mary representing OpenSpace and you and me representing Dumbarton.”

Bennie cringed inwardly. She considered not telling Judy that they’d been fired by Dumbarton, but it would be a material omission, which was lawyer speak for dishonest. “Judy, I do have some bad news. We’re not going to be working on Dumbarton anymore.”

“What? What the hell is going on?”

“They fired us, and I sent back all my files. You will have to too, when you get a chance.”

“Just like that? But I’m in the middle of, like, five active matters.”

“I know, but it’s over.” Bennie worried the conversation wasn’t going the way she’d wanted.

“Why did they fire us? When did this happen?”

“This morning.” Bennie didn’t want to dwell on it. “Nate wanted me to represent OpenSpace against Mary, and I wouldn’t do that.”

“Oh no.” Judy groaned. “So he pulled all his work?”

“Yes, but I have plenty of other clients, as you well know, and I don’t want this blown out of proportion. And especially, you should not tell Mary.”

“Why not? You did such a nice thing for her. She should know. She’d feel terrible.”

“And that’s why.” Bennie switched tacks. “And besides, you and I both agree that there’s a conflict of interest, even if she disagrees. There can’t be any further talk to her about our relationship to Dumbarton. It’s divulging confidential client information, and we have to be a lot more observant of these boundaries, especially now.”

“Oh man.”

“It’s even in her best interest. If Nate really goes forward with those disciplinary charges, the less Mary knows about Dumbarton, the better. Understood?”

“Yes, but this sucks,” Judy said after a moment. “And I know she’ll feel even worse, leaving the firm after you did that.”

“Again, not a word.”

“Not a word.”

“Good.” Bennie wanted to return to the subject. “So I hope you’ll stay with the firm.”

“I just need to think about it and try to make a decision. You don’t mind if I take some time to think, do you?”

“No, of course not, you can take all the time you need to decide. You know the players and the practice, and you know what I have to offer you.” Bennie felt Declan tap her on the arm and looked over to see him holding up his phone. He had written on it: sweeten the deal. offer her something.

Judy was saying, “That’s really sweet of you, Bennie. I do appreciate it. I know this can’t be easy for you.”

“For you either.” Bennie took Declan’s suggestion. “But let me mention something else for you to consider. You know how you and I have talked in the past, and we decided that you would probably be making partner next year.”

“Yes, I remember.”

“Well, it occurred to me that we could accelerate that, if you wanted.” Bennie caught Declan’s eye again, and he grinned, shot her a thumbs-up, and went back to his ballgame.

“Really?” Judy said, sounding interested.

“Yes, to be perfectly transparent with you, I am probably going to have to downsize the offices if Mary goes. The overhead is too high for me to handle alone, given cash flow, but that’s not the end of the world.” Bennie put on a brave face, which was her version of makeup. “We’ll have to reconfigure everything about the firm. Start fresh. This might be the perfect time for you to become a partner.”

Judy fell silent a minute. “You don’t have to do that, Bennie.”

“I know, but I want to,” Bennie said, meaning it. There was no reason to delay Judy’s becoming a partner any longer, and Bennie knew it had been uncomfortable for Mary to become partner when her best friend had remained an associate.

“So what would that mean, financially?”

“It would mean that we split the profits. We’re fifty-fifty partners in the billings. Your name goes on the plaque and letterhead instead of Mary’s.”