Page 246 of The Monster and the Masochist

I slipped in the back, and he followed me in, which caused my scowl to deepen.

“Sure, come on in, I guess,” I grumbled as he settled back and did up his seatbelt.

“What about clients? Do you think they’re loyal to you, or the firm?”

This caught my attention. Less annoyed now and more curious, I glanced over at him.

“Are you asking me what I think you’re asking?” He beamed at me, flashing his straight, professionally whitened teeth. I could feel the excitement buzzing off him in waves, and I realized, yes, he was asking me exactly what I thought he was.

“Listen, I was thinking, maybe you and I could start our own thing? Fuck this place. They’re dicking us around over making partner, and frankly, I’m still not over the fact that they took that case on and forced us to work it without telling us they were essentially being coerced. That’s not why I became a lawyer.”

I smirked, cocking my head to the side.

“I thought you became a lawyer because your dad’s a big corporate attorney and you wanted an easy ride.”

He shrugged.

“I mean, that helps. But the goal was always to end up in a position where I could help defend people who needed it. I actually wanted to be a public defender, but my dad told me I would probably burn out in the first year.”

“Really? How did I not know that about you?”

He gave me an amused look.

“I don’t know. When the fuck would that have come up? We’re usually either working on something or you’re telling me to get out of your office. We don’t exactly braid each other’s hair and talk about our hopes and dreams, Cassandra.”

“Fair enough. So… I’m assuming you’re asking me if I want to leave Sinclair and Morrissy to start our own firm?”

He brightened, and I swear if he had a tail, it would have been thumping against the upholstery.

“Yeah! It would be great. We’ll start small so we can be more selective about the cases we take on, then once the overhead for the startup is covered and we’re feeling comfortable, we start a pro bono program for cases we feel super passionate about.”

I stared at him as I thought it over.

On the one hand, I loved the idea of doing something like that… but it was risky.

Running our own firm would be a shit ton more work than it would be if we stayed where we were. Not to mention, there was always a risk that the business wouldn’t be successful.

I had financial stability at Sinclair and Morrissy, which is something I couldn’t ever take for granted. Not the way I’d been brought up.

But…

Fuck, it was tempting.

“Let me think about it,” I said carefully, though I knew once I’d had time to sit down and crunch some numbers, I would probably say yes.

The thought of running my own firm and having absolute, one hundred percent control over every aspect of my life was extremely appealing.

“And just think! Then we’ll be besties forever! Attached at the hip. Walker and Cross, saving the world one case at a time!”

“That’s not the sales pitch you think it is,” I mumbled under my breath.

Nolan laughed easily and punched my arm.

“Shut up. You love me.”

I wrinkled my nose.

“I tolerate you.”