“Your client did request a bench trial.” Jaime jutted her chin.
“Again, I had nothing to do with any of it, and believe me, defending Weber is the last thing I want.”
“Why? Isn’t he on par for your firm?”
Olivia sighed.This again.“I know him from before.”
“Isee.”
“I doubt it.” Olivia shook her head. “Look, I just wanted to make sure you knew this isn’t some game, but I see you don’t believe a word I’m saying.”
“It is all rather suspicious.”
Olivia rolled her eyes. “You really think I go around sleeping with judges to help me win cases?” She tried to brush it off, but the accusation affected her more than it should have, settling heavy in her chest.
“Again, I don’t know you.”
Olivia gritted her teeth. She had expected Jaime to keep things impersonal, but facing her indifference still stung. “That didn’t stop you from fucking me.”
Jaime’s eyes flickered with something—uncertainty, maybe?
Olivia couldn’t quite place it, but the heat in Jaime’s gaze didn’t match her clipped words.
Jaime straightened, and her voice tightened. “I think you should leave.” It was more controlled now, but the tension remained, simmering just beneath the surface.
Olivia held her gaze, and amidst a drum concert in her chest, she nodded and left the room.
As the door fell shut behind her, her breath hitched, and frustration twisted into something heavier—disappointment. She hadn’t expected much from this encounter, but she certainly hadn’t planned for it to play out in such a disastrous way.
It couldn’t have gone worse if she’d tried.
lies you keep telling yourself
Thememoryoftheirstolen moment at the hotel clung to Jaime like a shadow, unwelcome and unshakable. Olivia Gray had already thrown her world into disarray with that unannounced visit to Jaime’s chambers last week—her first days as co-counsel on the Lanx trial.
Jaime had thought she’d locked away her feelings after the conference, but Olivia’s presence was a constant reminder of what shouldn’t have happened.
She prided herself on keeping her private and professional lives separate, but Olivia’s presence blurred those lines. Seeing her at the defense table every day wasn’t helping, though Jaime had regained her courtroom poise quickly enough. If anything, it only made the brief moments when her thoughts wandered to Olivia all the more infuriating.
A knock at the door pulled Jaime from her spiraling thoughts. She straightened, masking her irritation at the interruption.
“Judge Lachlan?” Judge Rivera leaned into the doorway, his tone thoughtful. “I won’t take up much of your time—I just wanted to say your analysis inWellscame up in this morning’s circuit meeting. Really insightful work.”
Jaime nodded. “Thank you, Rivera. I appreciate it.”
“Always keeping us on our toes,” he said with a smile before retreating.
Jaime felt a flicker of satisfaction at the acknowledgment, but it did little to quiet the unease lurking beneath. She returned to her work, but her focus faltered, her thoughts circling back to Olivia with maddening persistence.
By the end of Olivia’s second week on the Lanx trial, Jaime found herself standing in her chambers, staring at the door. At first, confusion froze her on the spot. Then disgust followed when she realized a small part of her hoped Olivia might reappear.
She wouldn’t, of course. Jaime had made sure of that. She needed to shove the thought out of her mind and move on. Once the Lanx trial ended, she’d finally be free of this ridiculous distraction.
For three weeks, Olivia’s presence had grated on her nerves, from the defense table to that one ill-advised appearance in Jaime’s chambers. But as the trial marched toward its fifth and final week, Jaime felt an odd mix of relief and emptiness. Seeing Olivia every day had been exhausting, but now that it was over, Jaime wasn’t sure what to make of the strange void it left behind.
Still, she had little time to dwell on it. With the trial concluded, the upcoming Social Justice Gala loomed ahead. Jaime had no interest in attending, but being nominated for her work meant she couldn’t skip it. She sighed at the thought of enduring another evening of insipid small talk, wishing, not for the first time, that her solitary nature didn’t make such events so unbearable.
Most people brought a plus-one, but Jaime never bothered. She had no interest in romance, and most of her friendships were things of the past. Her mind wandered briefly to Olivia, imagining her at Jaime’s side—a fleeting, foolish thought. She banished it immediately. The idea of showing up with Olivia was somehowworse than hiring an escort, and Jaime wasn’t desperate enough for that.
