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Authors: Kristi Gold

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BOOK: The Law of Attraction
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Alisha would rather be anywhere else, doing anything else, than sitting in a courthouse holding room with the pretty boy from hell.

“Okay, Mr. Massey, we have two options. We can forgo any defense since the state is failing miserably at proving its case, at least where the assault charge is concerned. Or we can put you on the stand and you can tell your side of the story, which may or may not convince the jury to acquit you on all charges.”

Les didn't hesitate. “I want to tell my story. I want everyone to know that I didn't mean to hurt anyone.”

“As your attorney, I'd advise you to reconsider.”

“No way. I want to be on that stand tomorrow.”

Exactly what she'd expected. “Then it's time to go over what you need to say. First question, do you have any tattoos on your privates?”

Les folded his hands on the table and grinned. “Nope. Got one on my butt, though. Wanna see it?”

“God, no.” Her protest sounded like a gunshot in the empty room. “Any idea where Ms. Ramsey might have come up with the tattoo thing?”

“Yeah. The maracas. I was shaking them between my legs.”

“Fine. I'll also ask you about Mrs. O'Reilly.”

“Okay, but I don't know why we have to talk about that. You did real good today handling that old lady.”

The ageist pig. “Don't get your hopes up, Mr. Massey.
You have to face Mr. Fortune tomorrow. He's not going to go easy on you.”

“Piece of cake. I can take it.”

Alisha wanted to take her briefcase and cram it where the sun didn't shine. “You need to be direct with your answers. No going off on tangents. Try to stick with yes and no. I don't want any surprise revelations. And for heaven's sake, please do not flirt with the ladies while you're sitting on the stand.”

Massey leaned back and rubbed his chin. “When you got it, you got it. They're my public.
My girls.
” He sat forward again. “Which reminds me. A reporter wants to interview me. I told him no, but I can call him back. He says it would be best if he does it now, before the trial is over.”

She'd chalk that up to his common sense going on vacation, but he hadn't displayed any common sense to this point. “Not on your life. You keep your mouth closed. What you do after the trial is your business, but you can't say anything until then.”

Les slapped a hand on the table. “Not fair. They'll probably forget about me after the trial, unless I go to jail. And I'm pretty sure I won't.”

“Again, don't count your chickens before they're hatched.”

He looked as if she'd just fed him a mathematical equation. “What?”

Alisha gathered her notes and shoved them into her briefcase. “Never mind. Just remember, no talking to the press.”

“But that kind of ruins all my plans.”

“What plans?”

He made a sweeping gesture with one hand. “This whole thing. I've waited my whole life for the opportunity. If I didn't think I'd get some good press out of this, then I wouldn't have frozen my jewels off standing around pretending I cared about any cause.”

Alisha shook her head, hoping to clear the confusion. “Are
you saying that your whole reason behind these little performances had to do with news coverage?”

Now he looked at her as if she'd taken leave of her senses. “Well, yeah. I want to be an actor and I figure this is the way to get a break. I mean, I've got the looks and the body, but that doesn't matter if no one sees it.”

That proved it. He was everything she'd instinctively believed him to be and much more. “Why didn't you tell me this before?”

“I didn't think it mattered. Your job is to defend me, right or wrong.”

She was really starting to hate that part of her job. “Just out of curiosity, Mr. Massey, have you ever considered perhaps trying auditions and casting calls instead of going to such extremes?”

“Now you sound like Carol.”

“Who's Carol?”

“My ex-girlfriend. She always acted like it was so easy to get a job. Besides, I tried making a few auditions. Never made it past the first call. I even tried to sing on one of those reality shows, but they said I wasn't good enough. What do they know?” He let go a grating laugh. “Those people on the riverboat thought I sang ‘Jingle Bells' pretty well.”

Alisha really wanted to jingle his bells. “Mr. Massey, if you even hint at your reasons behind your little antics, then you're going to blow this entire case. I'm billing you as a man with a social conscience, not a guy with a desire to make the big time.”

“I don't want to start out big. Maybe do some B-movies, a little soft porn.”

Alisha had had enough. First Troy, now Mr. Porn Prospect. Could her day get any worse? “It's time for you to go back now. I'll see you in the morning.” She stood. “And remember, not a word about this on the stand tomorrow. As far as
everyone's concerned, you're an upstanding citizen.” She signaled the guard with a look. “He's all yours.”

Relieved to get away from Massey, Alisha left the courthouse at a fast clip and elbowed her way through members of the press shouting questions about her impending victory. She sprinted past the crowd of Massey supporters applauding her and chanting her name. They viewed her as Les's champion and had turned the egomaniac into some cult hero, when in reality he'd been playing them all for personal gain, including her.

When she reached the sidewalk across the street, another leading lecher waited for her for the second time that day. She tried to pass by Troy, but he clasped her arm to halt her progress. “Wait a minute, Alisha. I just want to congratulate you.”

She yanked out of his grasp. “Fine. Thank you. I have to go.”

“I think I deserve a little more from you than that.”

“You don't deserve anything from me, Troy, except a swift kick in the butt.”

He winked. “Aw, come on now. I taught you everything you know.”

Never before had she wanted to slap someone as badly as she wanted to slap him. “You didn't teach me a damn thing. I taught you. If not for me, you'd be working in a dry cleaner's right now.”

“And if you hadn't met me, you'd still be a virgin. That should count for something.”

She kept a tight grip on her briefcase and her self-control. “It only accounts for my stupidity. At that time I didn't have anything to compare you to, but I do now. Believe me, you've fallen far short.” She pushed past him. “Have a nice evening.”

Without giving him a chance to respond Alisha rushed to her car. Once there, she sat for a long moment, staring at the courthouse. She could use a long drive to cool off. She could use a stiff drink. She could definitely use some luck tomorrow when she had to question Les. More than that, she could
use a solid shoulder to lean on, a warm hand to hold, someone she could trust. And that someone was Daniel Fortune. Good judgment ordered she not even consider that. But when it came to the prosecutor, that hadn't entered into it from the moment she'd landed in his life.

 

When the buzzer sounded, Daniel checked the clock. He had no idea who would be stopping by his condo this time of night, although he could probably guess at a few possibilities. He didn't want to see any of those possibilities right now.

He depressed the intercom and said, “Yeah?”

“Sorry to disturb you, Mr. Fortune, but a lady named Lola is here to see you.”

In a million years he wouldn't have guessed that. He considered sending her away but instead said, “Send her up.”

He wanted to pace, but he waited by the door in anticipation of all the possibilities. He had no idea why she would have risked coming to see him, but he assumed it had to be something serious. Whatever it was, he had to admit he was damn glad she'd decided to stop by.

The minute he heard the knock, he opened the door to Alisha, her hair tucked beneath a floppy hat, her clothes covered by a full-length all-weather coat and her eyes concealed by sunglasses even though it was nearing ten o'clock.

She breezed past him, stripped off the hat and shook out her hair. “I know I shouldn't be here, but I went home and changed, then I had a drink at Leal's. I started walking and I ended up here.”

He had to agree; she shouldn't be there. But he didn't want her to leave, not until he found out why she looked so strung out. Not before he kissed her good-night, which was all he could settle for in light of their situation. “What's going on, Alisha?”

She pulled off her coat, revealing a pair of faded jeans and a baggy blue sweatshirt. Nothing fancy. Barely any flesh
showing. But she might as well have been wearing the black nightgown, considering Daniel's immediate reaction.

Alisha tossed her things onto the chair and walked the room before facing him again. “I'm having an awful day. I thought we could talk awhile.”

Now was not the time to invite her to continue the conversation in bed, even though he wanted that. Badly.

He took a few steps toward her, the sofa providing a solid barrier between them, at least for the moment. “I would've thought you might be celebrating your success.”

She frowned. “Success as in bullying an octogenarian? Or maybe you mean my lovely encounter with my former jerk of a lover who told me I'm way out of my league.”

“I heard him.”

She frowned. “What do you mean you heard him?”

“I stood outside the break room door to make sure he didn't hassle you.” Only a partial truth. He'd eavesdropped to make sure she didn't take Moreau up on any questionable offers, not that he had any reason to believe she would. But this wasn't about reason. This had to do with plain and simple possessiveness.

“Anyway, he's wrong,” Daniel said. “You proved that today in court.”

She sighed. “I can handle Troy. He doesn't bother me anymore.”

“Then why are you here?”

“I…” She balled her fists at her sides and looked away. “I guess I needed to talk to someone I could trust. Someone who would understand and just let me vent. I thought about calling my mother, but I didn't want to worry her. I considered my friends and realized how short that list is.” She turned her gaze on his, her heart in her eyes. “Then I realized you're at the top of that list.”

He wanted more than her friendship, but he recognized
she needed a friend more than a lover right now. “Okay. I'm listening.”

She strolled to the window, pushed the curtain out of the way and stared into the night. “I'm just sick of it. Everyone plays everyone else. Troy is a prime example. He only cares about what's in it for him. And Les Massey's cut from the same cloth. His only cause is Les Massey. He wants to be an actor.” She released a mirthless laugh. “A porn actor. Imagine that. I have to put him on the stand tomorrow and pretend he's an all-around great guy.”

She was heading into dangerous territory, and Daniel suspected she didn't even realize it. “Alisha—”

“He doesn't give a damn about animal rights or history. He wants publicity and he's determined to get it—”

“Alisha, listen to me.”

Daniel crossed the room, but before he could halt her she said, “And he's orchestrated this whole farce so he can gain media attention. He actually wants to grant an interview from jail. Imagine that. And when I said no, he compared me to his ex-girlfriend who didn't
understand
him—”

He took her shoulders and turned her around. “Alisha, stop.”

At first she looked confused, before awareness dawned in her expression and she clamped her hand over her mouth. “Oh, God. I can't believe—”

“Whatever's discussed tonight will remain between us. I promise.” But he couldn't promise that she wouldn't misinterpret what he planned to do tomorrow. He also couldn't tell her about it, and that presented one hell of a dilemma.

She shook off his grasp, walked past him and collapsed onto the sofa. “Joe told me this would happen.”

“Joe?”

“Yes. He said that when people are intimate, things somehow manage to slip out. Things that should never be discussed. I totally forgot for a minute who you are, which is exactly why this should never have happened between us.”

Daniel warred with revealing what he'd discovered earlier that day, verification of what she'd just told him. But he couldn't do it, as much for her protection as it was for his. Especially now. Instead he would blindside her tomorrow. And the resulting destruction could devastate their relationship if she didn't keep it all in perspective.

She was right about one thing—he should never have let this thing between them go so far. Yet he hadn't stopped it because he hadn't wanted to. She meant more to him than any woman ever had. She still did.

Daniel joined her on the sofa and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “You can trust me. I'm not going to tell anyone.”

She laid her head on his shoulder. “I know, but that doesn't excuse my behavior. I'm beginning to think I'm a lost cause.”

Daniel was beginning to think he was just plain lost—to her. “It's okay.” He turned her face to his and brushed a kiss across her lips. “Let's just forget it.”

“I want to forget it,” she said. “I want to forget about everything but us right now. Can we do that?”

“You're not going to get any argument from me.” And she wouldn't, even if his logical self argued against taking her to his bed. He refused to listen.

Daniel stood and pulled her to her feet, keeping her hand in his as he led her into the bedroom. Once there, he didn't bother to turn out the light, because he wanted to see her. All of her. They didn't say a word as they undressed each other. Didn't speak as he took her down onto his bed. Their only communication came through touches and kisses. Deep kisses, meticulous touches, but not thorough enough before the phone shrilled.

BOOK: The Law of Attraction
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