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“Hey now,” he protested. “You know I’m very selective about my clients. I don’t do image rehabilitation for true monsters.”
“I’m not saying you do,” she replied. “But you’re very good at presenting the human side of people, of making juries think about why your clients make the choices they do. I don’t think you try to make the truly guilty appear innocent. You just offer a nuanced perspective to ensure the jury doesn’t make a knee-jerk decision without first accepting the humanity of your client.”
He tilted his head to the side. “Are you saying that’s a bad thing?”
“Not at all.” She squeezed his arm and dropped her hand. “I admire that about you, the way you can see the good in people who, at first glance, don’t seem to have any inside. But I think in this instance, your empathy is misplaced.”
Santiago frowned. “What do you mean?”
Ainsley sighed softly. “When you’re working, you’re able to maintain a professional distance from your clients. It’s just a job. But this is personal. The Woodses hurt your sister, and who knows how many others. This isn’t just a case you can set aside at the end of the day. We’re going to be around them all week, watching them work up close, all the while knowing they’re lying and cheating and hurting people. It’s going to be hard to do that, to bear witness to their behavior without trying to stop them. But we have to.”
“I know,” he said quietly. In truth, he’d thought he’d be able to handle it. But after spending only a few minutes around Brody and Alva, he knew Ainsley was right. It was going to take all his self-control to keep his anger in check during the week.
“Hey.” Ainsley’s voice was soft in the otherwise silent cabin. She touched his arm again, this time laying her hand flat against the side of his biceps. When he met her eyes, he saw her gaze was filled with understanding. “We’re in this together, remember?”
Her words
warmed him from the inside, making him feel less alone. If only that were really true! Sure, she was here with him now, helping him as he sought to expose the Woodses for the frauds they were. But that was as far as their partnership went. After the week was up, they’d go their separate ways, back to their individual lives with their own problems.
It was fine. It’s what he’d wanted five years ago. Still wanted, come to that.
So why did the thought give him a twinge of regret?
He frowned, pushing aside his internal disquiet. He had one job this week: gather the evidence needed to tear down this sham of a marriage retreat and bring the Woodses to justice. His own emotional turmoil would have to wait.
Besides, once he got away from Ainsley, he would no longer feel that old familiar pull.
Right?
“We can do this,” Ainsley said, misinterpreting the cause of his frown. “You and me. No time for second thoughts now.”
He forced himself to smile. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your help.”
“Don’t mention it,” she replied. “I’ll admit, I was skeptical at first. But now that I’ve met them and they’ve already taken your bribe, I know we’re doing the right thing.” She slid her arms around him, squeezing tightly in a fierce hug.
The movement caused her breasts to flatten against his chest. Santiago sucked in a breath as a zing of lust shot through him, igniting a fire of need in his belly. Cool it, he thought. It was clear Ainsley wasn’t making a come-on; she was simply trying to offer him comfort. What kind of cad would he be if he responded to her innocent gesture with arousal?
After a few endless seconds, she pulled back, gazing up at him with a smile. It was the first truly unguarded look she’d given him since he’d stepped into her office earlier in the week, and the sight of it nearly took his breath away. This was the Ainsley he’d missed; full of life, a little mischievous, a lot passionate. He knew from experience that when she turned her focus on something or someone, she devoted herself entirely. It was a hell of a thing, to be on the receiving end of her attentions.
He cleared his throat, needing to shift his own mental focus before he let himself get carried away. “Are you hungry?”
She wrinkled her nose. “Kind of. But do you think we can trust the food they brought?”
“It’s probably fine,” he said. “I can’t imagine they’re in the business of poisoning their clients. Can’t get money out of dead people, right?”
She laughed. “True. That reminds me—why don’t you do another sweep of the place? Make sure they haven’t turned anything on now that they paid us a visit.”
“Good call.” Santiago collected the detector from his room and walked around the cabin, double-checking their privacy. Once again, the place came up clear.
“Still nothing,” he said, walking back into the kitchenette.
Ainsley nodded as she rummaged in the bag Alva had left behind. “Looks like sandwiches in here,” she said, pulling out a few plastic cartons. “Along with some chips.”
“Works for me,” Santiago said. He was still too keyed up to eat, his emotions suppressing his hunger.
She placed everything on the table and sat in one of the chairs. He took the seat opposite hers and pulled one of the sandwiches in front of him. “In a twisted way, I suppose we’re off to a good start,” he remarked.
Ainsley took a bite and eyed him over the top of her sandwich. “Because they took the bribe?” she asked around her mouthful of food.
