“Or my father, family, or friends.”
I took a step deeper into her office and perched on the edge of her desk. Reaching out and tilting her chin up slightly, I replied, “I’m not trying to be in any of those categories. Not yet. All I’m trying to do is get to know you better and then be your man.”
She scoffed. “First of all, I don’t know what that ‘not yet’ meant in relation to the other categories. Second, I don’t want to get to know you. Third, I don’t want you to be my man. In fact, I don’t want a man at all.”
“You switch hitting?”
“No. Why do men assume when a woman doesn’t want them, or any man for that matter, that she’s either gay or bisexual? I’mjust not interested in relationships after what was done to me. Not that I need to explain that to you. You had a front row seat and a helping hand in making sure that it happened.”
I angled my head and stroked my beard.
“What?” she asked, narrowing her gaze at me.
“I never apologized to you for the role that I played in your divorce.”
She frowned. “Why would you? You did everything that you did with a purpose and intent. Now that you have been paid, you want to apologize?”
“It was never about the payment to me. Clayton could barely afford me at the time. It was about what I learned about the marriage, and what I thought had been done to him.”
“Which was?”
“The allegations of abuse.”
“I was the abused one. Not physically, but mental and emotional abuse can be just as damaging, especially psychologically.”
“That is why I apologized. I’m not easy to fool, but your husband had all his ducks in a row. When my team did our research, it wasn’t easy for us to see anything other than the picture that he had painted.”
“And now?”
“Now I see the full picture clearly, and it’s the original done by the real artist, not a scam.”
She bit down on her bottom lip and chewed thoughtfully. “You know, in another lifetime, I think that I might have liked you.”
“Give it a shot in this one.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because when I see you, I see nothing but the embodiment of evil. You and Clayton Settles are one in the same, in my mind.”
“I’m nothing like him. I was simply the unfortunate simp who had the bad luck to represent him. Katina Monroe is a brilliant attorney and strategist. But I’ve had the privilege of going against her on multiple occasions, and I have never lost a battle. But just like she represented you, but she’s nothing like you, it’s the same in this case. Honestly, Katina wasn’t properly equipped for that one. We all got played in the end.”
“I keep hearing you claim that, but without any details, it’s just another story.”
I pushed off her desk and shoved my hands in my pants to keep them to myself. “And one day, you’ll have the full story. One day, sweetheart.”
I turned and walked out of her office and headed home, already plotting out my next plan of attack.
7
DELANEY
“Hold on, D. Someone’s at the door,” I stated, hopping up from my couch and making my way to the door.
I had come straight home after Naijhel’s impromptu little visit. If he were any other man, I swear that I would have been wooed by his actions, but it did not make sense for him to pursue me. Couldn’t he face some type of actions against his license for dating me? What would Clayton think if he found out?
Not that I cared about what he thought, but it did make me wonder if he would report it to the bar or someone that could get Naijhel in trouble. My face twisted again. Or maybe Clayton was behind this whole ruse anyway. What else could he possibly want from me?
