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“I hate to say this, but I think you might be right.” She paused. “I mean, it sounds insane. I’ve never heard of any other associate being forced to share an office or being told they wouldn’t make partner just because there’s some petty warfare between them. Gerald probably loves that you’re at each others’ throats. It keeps the billable hours high.” Her eye roll was slow and dramatic.
“They were so serious, though. I’ve never seen Gerald that angry, honestly.” Just the memory of it made my palms sweat.
“Well then, not only do you need to coexist but you need to shine. Don’t just get through, show Gerald you’ve turned over a new leaf. I think you might actually need to…don’t hate me, become friends with Andrew.” I started to protest and she held up a hand. “Just until partner decisions are made, and then you can go back to plotting his demise or whatever you do in your free time. Blast metal music right outside his office, steal his mail, whatever you need to do, but for the next few months, you gotta fake it.” She punctuated her words with little stabs of her pen in my direction.
I groaned. “I know you’re right. This is going to suck.”
* * *
I grabbedanother coffee and slumped back to my office, head buried in my tablet. I groaned slightly. Another email had come in from opposing counsel, demanding to know when we would be ready to send comments on the Langford deal docs. “Just wait two fucking seconds, Melanie. You’ll get your comments,” I muttered, stabbing at the screen and shouldering open my office door.
“Melanie better watch what’s coming for her.”
I whirled, reddening. Andrew was leaning against the hallway wall, watching me with a slight smirk on his face. He raised an eyebrow. “Did she murder a family member?”
“Like you’ve never cursed out your computer before.”
He tapped his chin with pretend thoughtfulness. “Mm don’t think so. I’m extremely calm.”
I rolled my eyes. “Give me a break. I heard you go to town on that Sherman associate last year. Did you have to keep your door open?”
He grinned as he moved into my office, looming over my computer. “Makes all my juniors wonder what happens if they really piss me off.”
I laughed despite myself. “You’re horrible.”
He shrugged. “Gotta keep ‘em in line somehow.” He eyed me, taking in the four empty coffee cups, the empty snack wrappers filling up my garbage, and finally my Uggs, buried under my desk for late nights when I needed to feel cozy.
“MC, I would think you live here, except I ran into you in the elevator this morning.”
I could feel my face getting even redder.Why do you want me so badly?His words hung in the air between us. I looked away.
“You know how I just fall into my work,” I said airily. He did know, having been my sole companion on at least a hundred late nights.
“I do,” he acknowledged. Why was he here? I perused him. Hard eyes, olive green suit, silk tie, perfect hair. Nothing out of the usual.
“Are you here to gloat about the email?”
“No, because it landed us in a shared office.” He raised a brow. “I wanted to check in on the Langford deal.” His eyes lit with an unholy light.
“It’s going swimmingly, no thanks to you.” It was going horribly, actually. I had gone to bed at two am and gotten up at six, after spending four hours doing junior-level work.
“You do look a little tired, though.” He leaned against the wall.
“You do know how to flatter a woman, Andrew.” I stayed standing, refusing to look up at him more than I already had to. “Now, go away. I’m not giving you any more ammo.”
“Ammo?” He pretended to be confused.
“Don’t play dumb,” I hissed. “Yes, ammo. Anything I say can be used against me. Remember when you told Candace how I missed that deadline for filing in the Brockman deal and she toldthe entire firm?” He smirked. Of course he remembered. I had been in deep shit for weeks over that incident.
“Remember whenyoustole my best junior associate and took them off on every one of my matters?” He fired back. I smiled without humor. Yes, I remembered that.
“Amy was fantastic and wasted you.” Andrew’s eyes glittered at my response. He leaned in, hands on my desk, presumably so he could intimidate me.
“Wasted on me? I’m next in line. Or have you forgotten?” I just stared at him in disbelief. He held my gaze, full mouth turned up slightly at the side, green eyes sparking.Arguing with us lesser souls probably turned him on.
“God, you are such a prick. Not after yesterday, you aren’t. And who even talks like that? Next in line. Please spare me.”
I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest as if it could protect me from his eyes boring into mine.
