Page 39 of Apparently, I’m A B!tch

Chapter22

Nikki

Thursday afternoon

Tristan kissed me.It wasn’t one of my daydreams; it really happened. And I wanted to stay there with him, with his lips on mine. I wanted to pull him closer, tell him he could do more, so much more to me if he wanted. But I had a meeting to get to, and despite the effect that kiss had on me, I had to try my best to concentrate.

It wasn’t easy. His kiss was a drug that put me into an edgy haze. My body was tense and my mind constantly wandered back to what happened inside my office. Small throbs and buzzes were thrumming under my skin, making it difficult to reign in my thoughts and concentrate on what my client was trying to say.

But I got the gist of the meeting. My client was a tall and broad-shouldered man in his forties who spoke with obvious affection for his wife and children. He was so sure he didn’t say any of what had been recorded, and again, I believed it was the truth. But he still wouldn’t offer an alibi.

“I know you want me to spill the beans and confess where I was on that night, but I can’t, Miss Gataki. I may not be a cheater, but I’ve got secrets of my own–legally sound secrets, mind you–and my family doesn’t need to know about them.”

Kelly stiffened at my side and I leaned across the boardroom table, eyeing him. “Be that as it may, it’d do your family no good to protect them from whatever secret you have if you’re serving jail time for sexual harassment. If you share your alibi with us, we’ll have a chance to do your case justice.”

My elbows braced against the surface and I hardened my gaze. “If I’m to represent you, I need to know everything. I need the whole truth.”

He looked at me squarely and said, “I love my wife too much to tell the truth.”

I couldn’t hold back my scoff. “I’m not sure she’d agree with that. I don’t know of any woman who wants to be lied to.”

He clamped his jaw tight and sat back, still refusing to give his alibi.

After the meeting, Kelly followed me back to my office with a smug surety that had nothing to do with the case.

She shut the door, rounded on me, and said, “Well, well. You got through that okay after all. And look at you! The Cutter sank her hooks into the poor, sexy barista. Who knew you had a pulse?” She let out a laugh as I shot her a glare.

“You wish it were you and Harvey, don’t you? But maybe you two are too smart to have someone walk in on you guys making out. Next time I’ll remember to lock my door.”

She huffed and crossed her arms; something I said had stuck. “Harvey and I respect each other. He’s never kissed me.”

“Oh, but you want him to, don’t you, Kelly? You want it so bad I can practically see the drool on your chin while you take his dictation notes.”

Her eyes flew open, and I knew I went too far. I held my hands up.

“I’m sorry. I am. I’m just so tired of all this.”

I ran a hand through my hair and leaned on my desk. “I’m tired of us being at odds all the time. It’s exhausting. I swear Kel, I’m not trying to get you fired. I’m trying to help you.”

She straightened and crossed her arms on her chest, but I plowed through. “Harvey knows you have feelings for him. He uses that to get you to work as hard as you do. You shouldn’t be staying up late and working weekends, it isn’t fair. You don’t get paid to do that and–”

“Why do you care, Nik?” Her question cut through my frustration, and I slumped my shoulders.

“Because I’ve seen it before and I can see it happening to you. It isn’t right. You’re an amazing paralegal, Kelly. You could be great at anything you tried; I see that in you. Harvey probably sees that too and uses it to his advantage. I know you think I’m a bitch–”

“No question there, Cutter.”

“Right, and I deserve that, I get it, but I’m trying to help you out here. You don’t have to work as hard as you do, and you don’t have to give Harvey the satisfaction of being his horned-up lackey.”

It was a poor choice of words; I shouldn’t have said “horned-up lackey”. Whatever momentum I built by apologizing and explaining had gone out the window as she tightened her grip on her elbows and lowered her narrowed glance to my desk.

“I don’t need your help and I didn’t ask for it. Whatever happens between Harvey and me is none of your business.” She took a breath and turned to walk out of my office. “I’ll have the meeting notes to you before the end of the day.”

She shut the door with more care than I thought she’d take, and I let out a breath and lifted my glance to stare at the two guest chairs Tristan and I sat in only an hour earlier.

The lurch and flutter in my stomach was a sharp contrast compared to the frustration I felt with Kelly, but I was glad to have it. Nerves danced in my stomach as I imagined what he and I would do and say to each other once I walked into Extra Shot tomorrow.