David’s gaze met hers. He didn’t look for a smile or a greeting. He looked for an anchor.
He looked like a man tired of being the only person in the room expected to prove he hadn’t used a shovel.
“Ms. Harper,” he said.
Her phone buzzed again in her pocket.
April, probably.
But when she glanced down, it wasn’t April.
A local news alert had already posted a photo of David Mercer walking into the Cotton Exchange Building. Someone had circled him in red. Someone else had circled her office door.
DAVID MERCER LAWYERS UP
The comments underneath were brutal.
of course he hired Eleanor Harper
she got one murderer off in Charleston and now she’s doing it again
#MercerMurderer
Wait, I thought the District Attorney was shagging the redhead? judge gentry’s daughter? Is this a love triangle or a cover-up?
#JusticeForCaroline
wonder what the district attorney thinks about his girlfriend defending David Mercer
One comment sat at the top, liked more than a thousand times.
Funny how Eleanor Harper always seems to end up defending men, women disappear around.
Eleanor locked the screen.
And just like that, the air in the reception area went cold. The gossip died. The podcast disappeared. There was only the lawyer, the client, and eight years of silence between them.
23
The Mercer Meeting
Eleanor led David Mercer down the short hallway toward the conference room.
Behind them, she could practically feel Lucy vibrating with curiosity and Deck pretending not to listen.
Frannie’s voice floated from the reception desk.
“Lucy Patel, if you eavesdrop, I will revoke your coffee privileges.”
Lucy muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, “Worth it.”
Eleanor closed the conference room door and gestured toward a chair.
“Mr. Mercer.”
“David,” he said.
She nodded once. “David.”
