Free Tempted (A Player Brother Romance Book) (A Standalone Novel) (Player Brothers Book 1) by Claire Adams

learned so much from the senior partners.
    Finally the judge came and collected us from the
waiting area. The jury pool was seated and it was our time to begin the
selection process.
    I watched in fascination as Mr. Mahoney and his
partners asked various questions, and took notes. Across from us on the other
side of the courtroom the victim's family sat stoically watching the
proceedings.
    It hadn’t occurred to me that behind what we were
doing held very real consequences.
    The family of the victim wanted justice, but we had
built a strong case to defend the man accused of that murder. My feelings of
confidence began to wane and the butterflies returned. I didn’t want to show my
nervousness, so I sat up straight and took a deep breath, trying to pay attention
to the proceedings.
    I turned slightly to try and catch Aiden's eye, but he
remained still, looking straight ahead and watching the primary lawyers. Even
having him ignore me made me feel small and nervous. I didn’t understand why
Aiden was ignoring me, and I was beginning to feel the pressure of the
implications if our case was wrong. If the man were truly guilty then we had
been working all this time to defend him. If he is innocent, as our case
indicates then the family across the way would not have closure on the death of
their loved one.
    "You guys doing okay?" Mr. Mahoney asked
under his breath during a lull in the proceedings.
    "Yes, fine," I whispered, though the truth
felt very different.
    Aiden also answered in the affirmative, still not
showing any indication of attention towards me.
    The jury pool had started out with a large group of
about fifty people. As the lawyers had asked various questions, they had
decided one by one which jurors could go and which would remain. Most of the
day had been spent dedicated to this process, but the judge interrupted and
asked both sets of lawyers to the bench. They talked for a few minutes and I
could see the look of concern on all of their faces.
    When Mr. Mahoney returned to their table his eyebrows
were drawn together.
    "It looks like we are going to have to delay the
proceedings," he said.
    "What do you mean?" I asked. "What's
happened?"
    "The remaining jurors are too few," he said.
"Several of them had to be released because of various reasons. You witnessed
the questions we asked throughout the day. This helps us to select the most
impartial panel of jurors. This happens sometimes that those randomly selected
fall into a category that makes them ineligible. They'll have to gather another
jury pool."
    "How long will that take?" Aiden asked.
    "At least two weeks,” Mr. Mahoney explained.
"The judge will have to contact us with a new court date."
    Aiden nodded and I could see the wheels turning behind
his eyes.
    What was he up to?
    I found out, later that night, when Aiden called me on
my cell phone. After being dismissed from the jury selection we had all gone
our separate ways. I returned home, leaving the courtroom without so much as a second glance from Aiden. I felt more confused
than ever, then when I looked at my phone I saw his name.
    "Hello," I answered in a cool tone, trying
to sound like I had been in the middle of something important.
    "I'll have to change our reservation,” he
explained. "The new court date falls on the night we were going to go out.
I'd like for us to be able to relax and enjoy ourselves. Even if we are just
going out as friends."
    This was a new angle, I noticed. I also noticed the
slight twinge of disappointment I felt at the implication that the date was
just as friends.
    "Okay," I said.
    "How about Friday,” he suggested. "We'll
make it a more casual event. Maybe go for pizza or something."
    "Friday," I said. "Actually, I'm going
to the movies with Kelsey on Friday night."
    That part was true.
    "Hmm,” he considered. "Assuming that that's
true, then it's not a big deal at all. Logan and Travis are going to be in town
then."
    "Really?" I asked. I hadn’t seen any of