Everly makes me laugh, a sensation rippling through me that is welcomely strange. I haven’t done much laughing this past year.
Sighing, she draws inward. “I hate to shatter the image, Knox, but the only courtroom experience I have was moot court in law school. I am not a trial attorney and have zero desire to be. My last job was with an oil and gas company in Dallas. I worked in-house drafting contracts and such. Worked a lot with the landmen who were in the field buying up mineral rights from landowners.”
I knew she was smart, but I didn’t see this coming. The image of her running from table to table was so deeply imprinted on my brain. “Did you enjoy your job?”
She pulses a shoulder. “The work itself was okay. Tedious sometimes, but then, I guess most jobs are to some degree, and I have a surprisingly high tolerance for minutia.”
“But?” There’s definitely abutlingering in her tone.
Her gaze drifts to the chocolatey mix in her cup.. “But…the ethics of the firm’s upper management were questionable.”
“That’s why you left?”
Everly nods. “I didn’t feel right about some of the things they asked me to slip into contracts. The way they treated the little guys who could only see the signing bonuses they were about to receive for selling away their mineral rights.” She shrugs. “I know that’s how the world works…but I just couldn’t do it.”
I run my thumb over the dips and valleys on the back of her hand.
A small smile slips through her lips. “I don’t mean to sound self-righteous.”
“You don’t. You sound like a principled woman who lives her faith. I like it.” I deliberately wield the dimple. “A lot.”
Her cheeks turn a rich pink. Had I met this version of Everly first, I might have struggled with picturing her holding her ground in dog-eat-dog corporate America. I dislike that world myself, one of the reasons I leave the wheeling and dealing to Rand. He’s ethical but hardnosed, and in possession of a generally stronger stomach for the ugly stuff than I am. “So, what I hear you saying is that Uncle Charlie’s is your new future?”
She fake gags. “I’ll throw myself off a bridge before that happens.”
Now, there’s the lady I met. I dance my fingertips along the back of her hand. “Aw, don’t put those kinds of images in my head.”
“You look tough enough to handle it. I start a new job at the end of January. The firm specializes in real estate law.”
Thoughts tumble around like socks in the clothes dryer, musings mostly about how lucky I am to have scored such a beautiful and intelligent date. Not to mention principled, and with just the right balance of sweetness and snark.
Her fingers flex on the cup. “I know what you’re thinking. That my new job will be just as bad as the old. Frying pan into the fire and all.”
I blink away the earlier, interrupting imagination of tweaking whipped cream from her cheek. “That’s not at all what I was thinking. It’s always a possibility, I suppose, but I don’t doubt for a minute you’ve thought things through and know exactly what you’re doing.”
Warm gratitude infuses the curve of her mouth. “Thank you for saying so. Boy, my parents grilled me for hours about mydecision to leave agoodjob.” Her long fingers sketch quotes in the air.
“Parents are always gonna be parents.”
“I guess. In this case, I got a good feel off the partners I interviewed with, and I did tons of research and asking around. The firm’s reputation is stellar.”
“See there? You’ve got everything under control.”
She winces. “Let’s just say I prayed a bunch, so I figureGod’sgot it under control.”
I click my tongue. “Now you’re talking.” The more I learn about Everly, the more my respect for her grows. I take a sip of my hot chocolate.
Under the table, a playful nudge to my foot startles a grin out of me. “Okay. Now I want to hear about Knox.”
“What about me?”
“Have you always liked to play in the dirt?”
“Um…” My thumb presses into the mug’s handle. My fingernail whitens.
She lays her hand atop mine, eyes darting back and forth across my face. “What? Did I say something wrong?”
There’s no reason to doubt her sincerity. Her intent—and nobody likes a touchy person.Don’t let Becca mess this up for you.
