Page 60 of The Scent of Happiness

Brooke didn’t want to settle and she shouldn’t have to. And she shouldn’t have to start over with a new firm. Not because of him. He wouldn’t do that to her. “I can’t abandon her like that,” he said.

“You’re determined to ride this all the way to the bottom, aren’t you?”

“I have a plan.”

“You’d better. And give me that.” Stephen snatched the pack of Camels out of Theo’s grip. He smacked one out of the pack and put it between his lips. He patted his pockets for a lighter, but Theo was already there, holding the flame under the end of the cigarette. He waited until Stephen took in the smoke and exhaled a few times.

When he was sure Stephen had enough nicotine in him to calm down, he tried to reorient his stacked arguments, holding the blade of his right hand near his stomach again. “What if you took this over for me? Just on paper.”

Stephen held his cigarette between them and silently regarded it as he rolled it between his fingers and thumb. He seemed to be waiting for a punchline.

Theo moved his left hand near his chest. “I’ll do the legwork, prep everything, meet with the client. I promise you won’t have to do anything except put your name on it. I’ll be your eyes, your ears, your legs on this. I swear, I will make this seamless. You will have zero effort. I’ll make sure of it. It’s a minor civil case. And they’re arguing about money. You love arguing about money.”

Stephen dropped the cigarette and ground it under his heel. He finally met Theo’s eyes. “I have concerns. A lot of them. Too many to go into here. The main one being the reputation of this firm.”

Theo ducked his head. “And when Mr. Blue finds out—”

“He’s not going to. My God, it would kill the man. Looks like I’m going to have to save you from yourself.”

Theo rocked back on his heels. “So you’ll take over the case?”

“On paper. Only on paper. And only because you haven’t given me much choice, kid.”

“Thank you, Stephen. I owe you.” Theo had spent the morning feeling like a thousand gnats were biting his skin. Now, they left in a rush. His shoulders were no longer up by his ears and his spine loosened. “I will owe you for the rest of my life.”

“Yes, you will.”

“You won’t see this case,” Theo promised. “You won’t even know it’s happening.”

Stephen kept his eyes on Theo, ignoring everyone streaming past them into the building. His feet pointed toward the door, but he didn’t move in that direction. “It was supposed to be two months,” he said. “That’s all I signed up for. I’ve been carrying you on my back for two years. It’s time you start pulling your weight.”

“I have been pulling my weight.” Theo knew Stephen was pissed off, but that wasn’t fair. He’d been putting in seventy-hour weeks without complaint.

“Not like you’re going to.” Stephen reached for the pack of Camels again with the ghost of a smile on his lips. But instead of putting a cigarette in his mouth, he handed one to Theo. “First one’s rough. It goes easier after that.”

“You want me to smoke this?”

“Here.” Stephen held the lighter and waited.

It was a test. One he’d already failed. Theo hesitated, then put the cigarette in his mouth. He took the lighter from Stephen and held it to the end. As the tobacco caught fire, he felt like he was torching the bridge he’d just crossed.

Embers seemed to smolder under his feet as the smoke filled his lungs. Theo’s chest burned from the inside out as a harsh bitterness crept into his throat. He held it in. He held Stephen’s gaze. He didn’t cough.

Stephen nodded his approval and patted Theo on the back. “Let’s get to work.”

Theo nodded. He dropped the cigarette and crushed it. His mouth tasted like death and the smoke seemed to cling to him. But his steps were light, nearly bouncing as he followed Stephen. This would soon be over. They would bring all the force of Walker Blue and shut Dixie down for good.

As Stephen walked toward the building, he tossed one last comment over his shoulder. “This girl had better be worth it.”

Chapter Nineteen

Brooke’s phone alert reminded her to go to the store after work, so she walked the mile to Whole Foods and then got the bus home. As she hauled in bags and unpacked them, she took a deep breath of the scents that mingled in her kitchen—the soap she’d made with Theo plus the two other soaps he’d cut into bars. The combination intrigued her nose, but it was the vivid yellow soap that stood out. She wasn’t going to sell it, so it didn’t need a name, but she couldn’t help herself. Naming her soaps was part of the fun. Botanical Bliss? Garden Sunshine?

Forbidden Kisses?

Maybe it was better not to give it a name. Or to think about what she and Theo had done, or what they were going to do next.

Food smells would clash with the botanical scents, but she had to eat, so she microwaved a box of frozen mac and cheese. As she ate, she opened The Creative Business Professional. Her impulse was to flip to the sections she was most interested in—the ones about making more money. But she forced herself to start at page one. She was going to do this right.