“No worries. I was so entrenched in this file, I almost lost track of my surroundings.”
He grinned as he entered my office. “I’ve been there. Or, you look at a file so long you feel like your eyes are crossing.”
“Oh, I’ve done that at least twice just today.”
He chuckled, sitting down.
“Can I ask you something?”
When he frowned, I thought he was going to say no or was annoyed.
“You don’t have to preface every question withcan I ask you something?”
“I know, I’m just still getting used to working with you, you know?”
He inclined his head.
“Anyway, I had a mishap in court today. My client lied, or at least failed to inform me, of the last time he was, uh, physically intimate with his wife. Now she’s pregnant, so the divorce has to be postponed…” I trailed off.
“And you’re nervous about looking foolish in front of the judge.”
“Yes,” I answered, grateful he understood where I was going.
“Yeah, that sucks. Which judge was it?”
“Um, Hernandez.”
“Oh, she’s a doozy. This your first time in front of her?”
I nodded.
“Okay, this is what you do…” He began giving me vital information on how to handle Judge Hernandez the next time I was in front of her. I soaked up every word like a sponge. By the time he’d finished, almost an hour later, I had three full pages of notes in front of me.
“I almost forgot my meeting,” he said, looking at his wristwatch as he stood.
I stood as well. “Thanks, Dad. This was helpful. I’m feeling better.”
He placed a comforting hand on my shoulder as we stood in my doorway. “That’s what I’m here for. You’re a great attorney, Chanel. Don’t ever doubt that.”
I was so glad when he gave me one last look before he turned to head down the hall to his office. I think if he would’ve waited for my reply I wouldn’t have been able to hold back the tears. For maybe the first time in my life, it felt like everything was firing on all cylinders, even despite my weepiness, which had been occurring more and more for some reason lately. I’d been at my father’s firm for more than a month and it was going well. And after keeping up his end of our agreement to seek counseling, I’d moved into Xavier’s house, now our home, and though it was early, it feltright.
As I stood in my office, contemplating my life, my cell phone buzzed on my desk.
Hungry? Want to join me at Grant’s for dinner?
I smiled down at my phone, ready to respond to Xavier’s text, but remembered I’d agreed to meet Gabby for dinner.
I would, but I’m supposed to meet Gabby for dinner.
Invite her then, came his immediate reply. I didn’t need to ask if he was joking.
All right, I’ll ask if she doesn’t mind.
I sent a text to Gabby asking if she wanted to have dinner with us atGrant’s.I crossed my fingers that she wouldn’t mind eating with Xavier too. Yes, he and I lived together, which meant we spent more time together, but sometimes I felt like it wasn’t enough. We’d grown closer than ever since our therapy session with Dr. Winston. I felt like I understood him on a deeper level, and waking up every morning with his big, long arms curled around me just reminded me that with him was where I belonged.
I placed my phone down and rolled my eyes at how cheesy I sounded, even to myself. A few seconds later, Gabby responded that she was cool meeting us atGrant’s.I peered at the time on my phone. It was close to four thirty. I texted Xavier and told him we could meet him at six for dinner, then sent the time to Gabby. That gave me enough time to sit and get some more work done before I left for the evening. By the time I shut my computer off and packed up my things, it was after five thirty.
“Hey, don’t work too hard,” I teased Jason as I passed his office. He was still perched over his desk, and it didn’t look like he was planning on leaving anytime soon. I frowned, wondering how often he was there until well after five, while he had a wife and two toddlers at home. I hoped history wasn’t repeating itself with him picking up some of the same workaholic traits as our father.
