Free Bossy by Kim Linwood Page A

keep their mouths shut.”
    She gasps.
    My fist clenches and I think there’s a migraine forming behind my eye. I knew he was bad, but I’m starting to think that for once the complaint is actually underestimating the extent of the situation.
    I guide Claire with my hand at her back, pushing her ahead of me out into the hall. She stays quiet, but her lips are pressed tightly together like she’s just barely keeping it in. Knowing her, I’m surprised she’s made it this far. Dragging her outside hearing range, I pull her into Dad’s executive meeting room. No one’s going to disturb us here.
    The door closes, and she turns on me like a wild beast. “Did you hear that? That’s who we’re defending. You can’t seriously tell me that you’re just going to sit there and listen to the bullshit that lousy excuse for a man is spouting. He’s not even pretending to be innocent. He just wants to cover it up! And, feed me dick! ”
    “Claire. He’s our client. Assholes have the right to defend themselves too. You and I both know a settlement would be in his best interests, but he’s been clear from the start that he’d rather lose than negotiate. We’ll do our best, and hopefully figure something out to make everyone at least sort of happy. It’s how the system works.” I can’t believe I’m telling her to calm down when I want to beat his face in for what he just said about her.
    Being the mature one sucks.
    She growls in frustration. “I’ve tried to see your side of it, but I can’t. Fighting people like him is exactly why I wanted to become an attorney in the first place.”
    Now that she’s told me a little about her dad, her career choice seems obvious. Pissing her off enough to make her quit—and hopefully take mommy dearest with her—seems like it would be in my best interests, but I don’t actually want to do it. She’s smart, funny, and from what I’ve seen so far, will probably make a damn good lawyer.
    I love making her angry, but not like this. This is fucked up.
    “Listen, I can’t just kick him out. They’ve hired us, and as a company we’ve taken on the assignment. If you don’t get that, you’ll never make it far enough in the business to get to do what you want.” She’s got to understand that, right? That this isn’t about what I believe in, it’s a job.
    She plops into one of the black leather chairs, fuming. “This sucks.”
    I nod in agreement. “There are hundreds of these cases every year. You’re not going to be able to save all of them.” I want to stuff the words back in my mouth when I see the horrified look on her face. “I don’t mean we do hundreds of these, I mean the court system in general. No matter where you go, things like this are going to happen. See it as a chance to learn. How are you going to know how to fight back if you don’t know how these people operate under the hood? It’s an opportunity.”
    She looks at me strangely. “You sound like my mother.”
    “Jesus Christ.” I rub my face with my hands. “You can do this. And when you’ve got your own thing going, you’re going to be bringing these fuckers down left, right and center. They’ll crash and burn, and it’ll be all you. Claire ‘The Badass’ Anderson.”
    “That’s a really crappy nickname.” Her face softens for a moment. “But for being an asshole, you say some nice things sometimes.” She takes a deep breath and pulls herself back together. “Alright. Let’s do this.”
    “Good, but just for the record.” I open the door for her. “If he makes another comment about where I should stick my dick? I’m going to teach him a lesson about keeping his mouth shut.”
    Claire laughs. “My hero.”
    “I’ll find a way for you to thank me later.” I grin at the playful punch she lands on my arm.
    The first thing I notice when we get back to the room is the acrid smell of cigar smoke. Oh fucking hell. “Mr. Cooper, I’m afraid there’s no smoking in this