Free Legally Yours by Manda Collins Page B

have been such a dumbass?
"I don't blame you, but it has nothing to do with us. As soon as we
started seeing each other...”
    “Seeing each other? Great use of euphemism
there, Matt. Why don't we just call it what it is. Fucking. Because
that's what we've been doing. Well, you were fucking me over . And fucking me. Isn't that ironic?”
    She started to laugh, and could hear the
strident tone in her voice, but could do nothing to stop
herself.
    “Don't say that!” Matt grabbed her by the
arms. “Don't talk about us that way. You make it sound tawdry. Like
I was sleeping with you to get information. And you know that's not
true.”
    “Isn't it? I thought that's what you and old
Mitchell were just talking about. I can just imagine what you guys
said before I got here. Did he give you an 'atta boy? Did you tell
him how you offered to let me practice on you? God, I must be the
only woman on earth to fall for that one. You must have called him
up that first night and told him you'd hit the jackpot.”
    When she wrenched back to remove herself from
his grip, Matt threw up his hands and let her go.
    “I can't believe you're saying all this. Are
you really that pissed off at me because of this afternoon?”
    “This has nothing to do with this
afternoon.”
    “Doesn't it?” he countered, pacing back and
forth in the narrow hallway like a caged tiger. “I knew you were
going to be tough to convince that we could turn this thing between
us into something real. But I thought if I was patient, and if I
didn't press you too hard, you might be persuaded to try a long
distance relationship.”
    “Oh right. Like I'm going to fall for that,”
she snorted. “You don't respect me. If you respected me, you
wouldn't have made me feel like shit this afternoon for not
finishing law school.”
    “I wasn't trying to make you feel bad for not
finishing school. I was trying to make you see that you could do it
now. That you're just too afraid to take the leap and do it.”
    “I am not afraid. I am being practical. Law
school costs money. And some of us don't have family money to pay
our way everywhere.”
    “Ah, now we're getting somewhere. This isn't
about you being pissed that I kept my real purpose for being here a
secret. You're pissed because of some oversized chip on your
shoulder about being a paralegal who grew up poor. Well, I'm sorry.
Do you want me to go back in time and give up my family? Cause I
can't do that! And I can't do anything to take back the fact that
your parents died leaving you with so much responsibility. My god,
Julie! Do you think I don't appreciate how hard it must have been
for you to give up your whole life to take care of your sister? Do
you think I don't admire the hell out of you for what you did?
You're the strongest fucking person I've ever met.”
    “But I'm not!” she almost yelled. “I'm not
strong at all. I did what I did because I had no choice. And this
isn't about me. It's about you and your choice. You didn't have to
sleep with me to get information. You didn't have to use your looks
and your prowess to convince me to tell you about the firm. I would
have told you without all of that. But no, Matt Ellis has to be the
stud. Hell, you probably thought you were killing two birds with
one stone. Get the information about who was leaking secrets to
Albright and at the same time do your good deed for the year by
pity-fucking poor little Julie Streeter.”
    “For the last time, that's not what it was
like. At all.”
    “No, then how was it, stud? Why don't you
tell me.” Her voice broke. The first burst of her rage replaced now
by a deadness that she felt spreading through her body. Like a
virus that numbed her to everything but her profound disappointment
in the man standing before her.
    Finally given the opportunity to have his
say, Matt ran his hands through his hair, as if struggling to come
up with the perfect line. Typical manipulative asshole, Julie
thought.
    “Look, I know what this