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Anna’s eyes widened. “What’s it?”
“You and I have been acting too perfect. My family has seen me in a relationship. They’ve seen my ideal woman. You and I need to have an argument, abigone. Then they’ll believe.”
She shook her head. “I can’t. I’m terrible at play-acting. I can’t pretend to fight with you.”
“Don’t sweat it. We won’t be pretending.”
He jumped up and rounded the bed to pull her to her feet. She protested mildly as he pushed clothes into her arms and told her to get dressed. Then they would have a fight that would convince even his grandmother they were a real couple.
“I will not fake a fight with you.”
“It won’t be fake.” He took her by the shoulders and asked her an important question. “What do I do that makes you mad enough to want to strangle me?”
“Nothing.”
“Oh come on. Everybody has quirks that make other people mad.”
She shrugged. “I don’t freak out over quirks.”
“What about bigger issues then?”
“Well... your comments in the car on the Jensen case made me want to push you out the door.”
“That’s it then.”
She left the room with her clothes in hand, and he prepared a plan while she was changing. It didn’t take her long. Once she returned he kept the bedroom door open. He wanted everyone in the house to hear what was about to happen.
“Jensen is guilty,” he said. “That’s why I didn’t take the stupid case, and I still can’t believe you did. The evidence may be circumstantial, but it’s pretty solid.”
She rolled her eyes. “I told you I can’t pretend to fight.”
“I’m not pretending. I am seriously telling you how I feel about you representing Jensen.” He raised his voice again. “Jensen is guilty, and you’re going to look like a fool when the prosecution proves it.”
Her jaw tightened. “I looked at the evidence, too, and I interviewed the kid in jail. He didn’t do it. I would stake my reputation on it.”
“Of course you would.” The volume of his voice shot up. “And you are. That kid is guilty, and you don’t want to see it for some reason. Open your eyes!”
She yelled, “I’m not an idiot! I did the research before I accepted the case. Just because you’re jaded and think everyone is guilty doesn’t mean the rest of us do.”
Anna stormed down the hallway with him a step behind her.
“And not everyone is a bleeding-heart tree-hugger!” he shouted.
She stopped halfway down the stairs and spun around to jab a finger at him. “You don’t have to worry about my case! It’s mine, and I don’t need your permission to do my job.”
She flew down the rest of the stairs and headed for the door. He moved between her and her escape, determined to get the last word. After all, he was right, and she was wrong. How could an otherwise intelligent woman be so naive when it came to criminals?
His mom and grandmother came in from the kitchen to watch their fight, and Becca emerged from the living room. The argument was for their sake, but that didn’t seem to matter anymore. Anna had pushed his hot button. She sounded just like Clare. “It doesn’t matter if they’re guilty. Everyone deserves the best defense.”
“You may not need my permission right now,” he said. “But you will soon enough. I am taking over the firm, and I’m making changes.”
“What is that supposed to mean? What sort of changes?”
“We are not defending scumbags that we know are guilty for one thing.”
“You can’t do that!”
“Watch me.”
