Nick Basanelli was something to look at, and I wouldn’t mind if he and my sister got together. They’d make the most beautiful babies. His dark hair was a little ruffled from the snow, since he’d probably walked back to his office after trial. He was long and lean, and his brown eyes made women twitter from the jury box.
I angled my head to see five jewelry boxes behind him on his credenza. “How many women do you buy presents for during the holidays?” Maybe he wasn’t a good fit for Tessa.
He rolled his eyes and reached for the five boxes, slapping them on his desk in front of me and opening all five. “They’re on loan from Duke’s. From my Grandma Basanelli.”
I covered my mouth and tried really hard not to laugh. I failed. When I’d recovered, I leaned over to look at the selection, which ranged from a delicate St. Christopher medallion to a simple diamond heart. “None of those look like Tessa.” Although, the emerald and sapphire necklace in the Celtic Knot kind of looked like Donna. “Your grandmother just borrowed these?”
“Yep. I’m supposed to choose and return the others by end of day tomorrow.” He shook his head. “Your sister and I haven’t even gone on a date.”
“Do you want to date her?” I asked straight out.
He flipped the boxes closed, one at a time. “No.”
My jaw nearly dropped. “Then you’re nuts. She’s amazing.”
He finished and leaned back in his chair, making the expensive leather protest. “The Albertini women are a pain in the ass and way too much work.”
Yeah, he probably had a point. Well, about the pain in the ass part—not about the too much work part. “Fine. If you don’t have the balls to go out with Tessa, I’m not wasting time with you on that.” Then I remembered why I’d sought him out and tried to plant a smile on my face. “However, it’s the season to be charitable, and I need you to do your job.”
He just watched me. “What?”
I told him about Violet and the boy with the expensive lawyer out of Spokane. Nick wouldn’t like that last part. Then I wound down, hoping he’d do the right thing.
“I don’t like the part about the Spokane lawyer, but it’s Boxer’s case, and you need to talk to him.” His jaw was set.
“Who is this Boxer, anyway?”
“Smart lawyer out of Los Angeles, and I don’t want to lose him over his first case,” Nick said.
I sighed. We’d been through this before. “Well, he’s off to a bad start by going after an innocent girl. Violet is a good kid, and now she has a chance with Yara and Buddy. Make it easy on everyone and just dismiss that case. It’s stupid, anyway.” I looked at the jewelry boxes. “It’s Christmas, Nick.”
His eyes narrowed.
I squirmed in my chair, having seen that look before when he was about to strike in the courtroom. “What?”
“I can’t dismiss, but I can plea it down to a petty charge that is taken off her record the second she completes fifty hours of community service.”
I brightened. “That’s a good deal. For Violet and the boy?”
“Of course,” Nick said smoothly.
“Can the community service be conducted in Silverville?” It’d be easy to find Violet somewhere to volunteer over there, probably at the animal shelter.
Nick smiled. “Sure.”
I eyed him, my instincts pricking wide awake. “What’s the catch?”
“Well, I’ll have to pass a good case to Boxer to get him to agree and not quit on me, and then I’ll have to do the paperwork, which I don’t have time to do. So it’ll cause me more than a little bit of irritation,” he said.
“It’s the same result that we’d get if we went to trial, probably,” I muttered.
He nodded. “If that. But this is a sure thing, and it’ll go away. I just need you to do one little favor for me.”
I frowned. “You want me to do you a favor because you’re doing your job?”
“No. I’m doing Boxer’s job. Favor or not?”
“Fine.” I blew out air. “What is it?”
