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And...he’d done her a solid, talking to her grandmother. She had yet to tell him that, with or
without him, she planned to visit the prison sometime that day. “I was just wondering... When you said that about the DA being able to recommend, say, Gram not having to do jail time, and just being on house arrest, and maybe paying a fine and that a judge could accept that... Is there anyone you could speak to, personally? Could we get some kind of verbal promise that that’s how it would go?” She wanted a guarantee, in writing, not just a promise.
Promises didn’t mean the same to everyone. To some they meant nothing.
She was learning.
And she knew enough to know that the DA couldn’t guarantee anything. The justice system didn’t work that way. For good reason.
Her trust level might be in the red, but she still had hope. And an ultimate faith that life in general held more good than bad.
The night before had shown her something amazing she hadn’t even thought to hope for.
What other joys might life have to offer her that she didn’t know about yet?
She had to use her intelligence, her experience, to make the best choices she could make, and then hope for the best...
Clarke was looking at her.
“What?”
“I was just...” He shook his head. “Nothing.”
“What?” Was he offended she’d asked for a favor? Like...she’d slept with him in order to get a favor? Or thought, since she’d slept with him, she’d earned one?
“The expressions on your face... They’re fascinating to watch.”
Oh.
What in the hell did she do with that?
“In answer to your question, you know I know someone who could talk to DA Parks. I know several someones. I have reason to believe someone has already spoken to her, and the information I gave you, and your grandmother, was a result of that. But this is all just talk. She’d need her lawyer to approach the DA to make the deal.”
Her lawyer—the same court-appointed newbie who’d tried to represent Everleigh. And until Tuesday, Everleigh wouldn’t have the funds to hire a more experienced defense attorney.
“I think the deal is there waiting,” Clarke said softly. “I think any attorney could get it for her. She just needs to ask for it.”
He’d already talked to whomever he needed to talk to. He’d already done her the favor.
Before she’d slept with him.
Did he have to be so darn...everything? Kind. Protective. Honest. Sexy. Fabulous in bed. The man was going to steal her heart whether it was good for her or not.
But she wouldn’t let him keep it.
Unlike Fritz, Clarke had been honest with her about what he did and didn’t want.
He’d told her from the beginning of their acquaintance that he was a man who didn’t want monogamous commitment.
One time down the relationship road with a man who wasn’t interested in lifelong fidelity was enough for her.
Chapter 18
Clarke finished checking the bottoms of all the furniture. He’d seen them used to stash drugs, mostly, but hidden space was hidden space. Especially pieces like the small leather couch in Fritz’s study—the kind with lining stapled across the bottom, hiding the under workings of wood and screws. He was careful about removing staples; he wasn’t out to ruin what had become Everleigh’s property, but he carefully checked the full underside of the couch.
And found nothing.
Until he righted the heavy piece of furniture, dislodging a cushion in the process, and an empty condom wrapper fell to the floor. His first instinct was to snap it up and out of sight before Everleigh noticed. Which was ridiculous. They were there with the express purpose of finding the identity of any of Fritz’s unknown mistresses. Evidence that he’d had sex on a couch in a room she didn’t frequent should be good news, from an investigative standpoint. If any of the man’s lovers had been there...it made his theory stronger.
