Overruled(99)

“Hey, Sofia.” I hook my thumb toward the sullen girl behind me. “This is Smiley McQuaid—her aunt is a new client and we have to head downtown for a few hours. Is it okay if she hangs with you?”

Stanton’s daughter, Presley, is almost twelve. I figure if anyone is adept at dealing with a preteen female, it’s Sofia.

“Sure. I’ll be here all afternoon.”

Riley moves to my side. “My name is Riley.”

Sofia smiles. “Hi, Riley.” Then she points to a chair in the corner, next to a wall outlet. “The phone charger’s over there.”

Riley almost cracks a grin. Almost. “Swag.”

I turn to Sofia’s office companion, who’s staring at images on his laptop. And I hope to God it’s not porn. “Brent, this is Raymond. Raymond, Brent. Can you keep him out of trouble for a few hours?”

Brent nods. Then, with the excitement of a boy allowed to watch his first R-rated horror movie, he asks Raymond, “You want to see pictures of blood splatter?”

The boy steps forward. “Is it as cool as it sounds?”

“Waaay cooler.”

“Sure!”

And my work here is done.

I pop my head back in my office and crook my finger at Rosaline. She looks up at her aunt, who nods her permission, and Rosaline steps out to join me in front of Mrs. Higgens’s desk.

“Mrs. Higgens, this is Rosaline. Can you mind her for a bit while her aunt and I head to the courthouse?”

Rosaline looks down shyly, and Mrs. Higgens pulls up a chair beside her. “Of course. I have a granddaughter about your age, Rosaline. I keep coloring books here for when she visits. Do you like to color?”

Rosaline nods eagerly, climbing into the chair.

“And what’s your favorite color?”

She doesn’t even think about it. “Rainbow.”

Mrs. Higgens pulls out said coloring books and crayons. “Wonderful choice, dearie.”

I stride back into my office, where Chelsea and the two youngest rug rats await. I point at them. “You both look like the real troublemakers in the group, so you’re coming with us.”

“Hi!” the two-year-old replies with a deceptively sweet smile.

I just shake my head. “Oh no, you’re not roping me into that again.”

I take the baby carrier from Chelsea’s hands—and almost drop the thing. “Wow,” I say, glancing down. “You’re heavier than you look.” He gurgles back with a drool.

I turn to Chelsea. “You grab Thing One. Let’s go.”

Her voice stops me. It’s a whisper, quiet and inquisitive.

“Jake?”

It’s the first time she’s said my name. One small syllable that makes my gut tighten. That makes me want to hear her say it again—in a moan, a gasp. A pleasure-spiked scream.

“Can I ask you something before we go?”

I swallow, my mouth suddenly dry. “Sure.”

“If it’s not the money . . . why are you helping us?”

It’s an interesting question. Noble isn’t my style. I’m the more of an “every man for himself” kind of guy. So why the hell am I helping them?

Because I want in her pants, of course. Doing Chelsea a favor is the most direct route to doing her. Really not that complicated.

But I can’t say that.

So I shrug. “I’m a sucker for a lost cause.”

And because I just can’t hold back any longer, I reach out and gently stroke the ivory skin of her cheek. It’s softer than I ever could’ve imagined.

“And for a pretty face.”


WE WALK OUT to the parking garage, and as Chelsea buckles the kids into their seats, I check out her truck. Her gigantically large dark blue truck. She notices and remarks, “It’s my brother’s truck.”

I lift an eyebrow. “Your brother—the environmental lobbyist—drove a gas-guzzling Yukon XL?”

She climbs up into the driver’s seat. “He had six kids. A bicycle wasn’t gonna cut it.”

I give her directions to the Moultrie Courthouse, where she was notified by phone that Rory was taken after his arrest this morning. I don’t have a lot of experience in family court, but I’m familiar enough with the process to fill her in.

“Rory will be assigned a probation officer who’ll review the charges, his history, and make a recommendation to the OAG. The probation officer decides whether he’s released to you today, or has to remain at the Youth Services Center until trial. They’re also the ones I’ll talk plea deal with.”