AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“No. I can’t even remember how we heard about it. Someone in our class had been consulting on the side. Nothing illegal. They made it known to their clients that they were only law students. They hadn’t passed the bar yet. But what they knew was still valuable for that particular client who happened to need some advice. I think it was a local politician. They wanted to revamp their image and try to figure out how to make any previous stories about them go away essentially. This was before the internet or at the very early days of it, so it was different, but that idea just stuck with me.”
“That there was money in helping people restore their reputations?”
“Yeah. It was certainly a lot easier back then, but at the same time, in those days, it was really only politicians and high-profile people who were worried about their image. So, while it’s harder now to make things go away. You can’t really. It’s more about pushing them onto the seventh page of the search results. But now, just about anyone can see the value in maintaining a good image, especially online, where one post or one comment can really damage you.”
They were back to a main road, and Madison hadn’t felt the last half hour go by, but at least she felt better about this morning. She’d just been surprised. That’s all. Nothing more and definitely nothing to worry about.
17
Payton slid her shades onto her head as they entered the busy hotel lobby. It had been quiet this morning, but now more people were probably checking out, others arriving. It was almost one o’clock, and although Payton never napped, she was seriously considering testing out that couch as soon as they got back to the room.
Payton looked down when she felt Madison’s hand on her arm, and when she lifted her eyes to meet Madison’s, there was a hint of fear or shock in them, her eyes darting towards the other end of the huge lobby and back to her again.
“Jen’s here,” Madison said, keeping her voice low.
They were just inside the door, standing beside a potted plant, almost hiding behind it. They could leave.
“Okay,” Payton said, ignoring the tingling feeling that swept up her arm as the heat from Madison’s hand permeated her skin. “Do you want to go?”
Madison inhaled a deep breath and swore as she exhaled. “She just saw me. Fuck.”
Payton kept her gaze locked on Madison. “Okay. We should probably stop standing here. Is it okay if I take your hand?”
Madison bit her lip for a second before her own hand slid down Payton’s arm and found hers, their wrists turning as they interlaced their fingers, and Payton felt that touch in every cell in her body.
God, this was going to be a long week.
“I’ll let you take the lead, okay?” Payton said as they moved through the lobby, trying to keep Madison calm, because she’d never seen her this on edge before. “I don’t even know what she looks like, so let’s just walk towards the elevators, and you can lead us over to her or keep going? Yeah?”
“Yeah. Okay.”
Payton wanted to pick Jen out, but she didn’t want to look suspicious, so she kept looking straight ahead, a confidence coming over her, because right now, she was holding Madison Dunne’s hand, and that felt pretty fucking good.
“Madison?”
Their steps slowed as they turned towards the voice, and there was a woman about Madison’s age, standing by the entrance to the restaurant, her blond hair falling just above her shoulders, straight and sleek.
Payton hadn’t really thought much about what Madison’s ex-wife would be like, but she certainly fit the bill. She was in her mid to late forties, stylish, and beautiful.
“Jen,” Madison said in what Payton had realized in her first few weeks working together was her fake, cheerful voice reserved for meeting difficult clients again months later, doing her best to smile and pretending to be happy to see them.
Payton let Madison’s hand fall away when Jen stepped forward with an outstretched arm, pulling Madison into a hug, and wrapping both arms around her.
Payton felt a little sick to her stomach watching the exchange. Almost like it was a private moment that she shouldn’t be witnessing, but she also couldn’t deny that it stirred up a hint of jealousy inside her.
“Sorry,” Jen said as she stepped back. “I knew you had a plus one, but I didn’t know you were seeing someone.”
“Jen, this is Payton.”
Payton tuned out the rest of Madison’s introductions, very aware of the way Jen was looking her over, almost certainly judging her for something. Whether it was her age or her clothing, Payton didn’t know.
“Nice to meet you,” Payton said, pushing down her nerves and tapping into that confidence that seemed to be so readily available now that they were actually doing this, pretending to be together. She never expected to feel so… Proud. That was it.
Even though this was entirely fake, Payton was proud to be with Madison, or at least have Jen think she was, because it was like stepping out into that warm sunshine. It made her feel like she was actually glowing.
A ghost of a smile appeared on Jen’s lips, but Payton couldn’t decipher its meaning.
“I’m surprised to see you here a week ahead,” Jen said, her gaze returning to Madison.
