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I turn, and head for the door. Rensberger seems like a nice enough guy. He’s no Smoke though and I can’t wait to get back to the office and tell him how my first case before the family law master went.
***
I walk out of the building and am a few yards down the sidewalk when Dominique pops up out of nowhere, blocking my path. I can tell by the look on his face he’s still angry about losing custody of his child.
“What do you want, Mr. Gobel?” I ask calmly.
“I want you to unfuck what you just fucked up,” he growls. “My family is my whole world, and you took them from me.”
“To be fair, your wife divorced you long before I came along.”
His face turns into a mask of fury. “Don’t play games with me, you fucking bitch. In the courtroom you have all the power. On the street, I do.”
I’m not completely certain what he’s talking about, but it sounds vaguely threatening.
“That’s where you’re wrong. I don’t have the power to change anything that happened in the courtroom today. Only the judge can change it. If you roll up on her like you did me just now, you’re liable to end up in the county jail.”
“Don’t threaten me,” he shouts. “I know my damn rights.”
“Look, I’ll be really honest with you right now. If you want things to change, you need to get into rehab, kick the drug habit and get your life together. If you do that, I can’t imagine anyone who would object to you seeing your child.”
“Wouldn’t you just like that, making me jump through hoops to see my own kid.”
“I can’t talk to you anymore. If you have something to say to me, go through your attorney. If you approach me again, I’ll file charges for harassment.
Dominique reaches out as though he is going to grab me, but I take a step back. When he stumbles toward me, someone jerks him back and spins him around to face them.
Dominique growls, “Who the fuck do you think you are putting your hands on me?”
Smoke replies almost casually, “I’m the man who’s going to kick your dumb ass all over this sidewalk for messing with my partner.”
Dominique’s head spins around to glance over his shoulder at me before turning back to Smoke. “Yeah, that sounds about right. Two people in fancy suits messing up everyone else’s fucking life.”
“So, this is related to a case she’s working on? You should know better than to approach the opposing counsel without your attorney. It’s one of the first things attorneys explain to their clients. Who’s your attorney?”
I provide the information when Dominique suddenly clams up. “His attorney is Mark Rensberger. This is Barbara Bailey-Gobel’s ex-husband, Dominique.”
Smoke’s eyes narrowed. “Dominique Gobel.” He takes a step closer to the belligerent man. “Look, I know you’re not used to playing by the rules, so let me explain the situation to you. If I find you threatening my partner again, I will come for you with every legal consequence I can dream up, both criminal and civil. You’ll either wind up in prison or poor as a church mouse. Everyone knows you don’t blame members of the legal team when court cases don’t go your way, much less the legal team of the opposing counsel.”
Smoke can be intimidating when he wants to be. Even when he’s threatening legal consequences instead of bodily harm. He’s strong and confident. His dark brown hair, green eyes, neatly trimmed beard surrounding those kissable lips, and muscular physique has constantly had me thinking dirty thoughts over the last few weeks.
“Don’t you have something better to do with your time than commit crimes that could generate real jail time for you, Dominique?”
“You don’t scare me, Smoke.”
How interesting. No one had mentioned Smoke’s name. Somehow Dominique already knows my illustrious partner.
“That’s because you’re not half smart. If I were you, I’d tuck tail and run because you’re pissing me off.”
“Fucking bikers,” Dominique mumbled under his breath, before stepping around Smoke and walking off.
Smoke steps forward and looks me over with a critical eye. “Are you okay? He didn’t scare you, did he?”
I snort a laugh, “No. Regardless of what his ex-wife has to say, he’s a creeper. But it’s not like he can attack me on the street and hope to get away with it.”
He’s still frowning. “I guess not, but better safe than sorry.”
I take a deep breath and lift my chin. “Thanks for the save, handsome.”
