Page 55 of Heist

“I don’t want to talk about my job right now, please.”

“OK, baby girl. I’m calling Jack back, but I want you in the meeting with us. What time is best for you?”

“I have a pre-trial hearing just after lunch. I’m heading to the courthouse now. I should be out by four.”

“I’ll call you when I have something on the books then.”

After they said their goodbyes, Austin grabbed her files and stuffed them into her briefcase before heading downstairs to get a car to the courthouse.

The hearings didn’t take long, and Austin had two of her motions granted and one thrown out. Fairly typical of pre-trial motions. Back in her office, she read the text that said Patrick and Jack would be in her office at four-thirty. Mike was unavailable. The e-mail from Jack was terse. He was not happy about meeting on her territory, but Patrick insisted.

She hit reply and started to say they could meet in the conference room instead but decided against it. If Patrick wanted a to meet in her office, she would take it and enjoy making Jack uncomfortable.

Patrick arrived just after four, looking fucking hot in another one of his bespoke suits. God, she wanted to gobble him up. But Jack walked in five minutes after Patrick did, and she didn’t get the chance.

“Mr. Sutton, you’re early,” Jack said. He’d clearly intended to arrive before the client in hopes of gaining control of the room.

Patrick gave him a cold smile and offered his hand. “Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Desmond. I wanted a few minutes to speak with my attorney before you arrived. I’m still not sure I understand the need for this meeting.”

Jack gave a stiff smile of his own. “We take all our clients seriously at Thorley and associates and wanted to make sure you saw that by allowing you to meet with those leading your case. Miss Yeats is simply assisting us, though she’s a competent lawyer in her own right.”

CompetentAustin squared her shoulders and did her best not to be a smart ass. Before she could speak, Patrick stood.

“I’m afraid there’s been a misunderstanding. I hired Miss Yates, not you, and I won’t have anyone else at this firm taking the lead on my case. If I need to, I will take my business elsewhere.”

Jack frowned. “I assure you, your case is in good hands, Mr. Sutton. We just want you to have the best.”

“And Miss Yates is the best. I’ve worked with her on a number of projects. I’ve also done my research, Mr. Desmond, and Miss Yates has double the experience you do and has a higher win rate. She’s taking the lead. Perhaps you can assist and learn a thing or two.”

Jack’s mouth opened and closed again. It was rare for a client to do that much research into an attorney at a firm like Thorley and associates.

Austin cleared her throat. “Was there anything specific you wanted to talk about today, Jack? You are the one who asked for this meeting after all.”

Jack shook his head. “It appears you have things under control, so I’ll just let you two continue. Mike would like daily updates on the progress of the case though.”

“Oh, I’ll be sending those directly to Mr. Thorley. I know how Mike likes to summarize reports for him. I would rather he gets the full picture.

Austin gave him a sugary sweet smile and stood to shake his hand. I’ll see you at the next staff meeting. So sorry about you not getting that promotion, by the way.”

When Jack left, Austin burst into laughter. “Thank you for that. I didn’t think I could get under his skin so easily.”

Patrick’s expression remained stern. “Your coworkers are assholes.”

Austin smirked. “Believe me, I know.”

“So why stay here? You’re brilliant, Austin. You could work anywhere you wanted.”

Austin cringed. That wasn’t exactly true. There were a number of places she knew she would never be good enough for. “I plan to open my own firm someday. The time just isn’t right.”

“When will the time be right?”

Austin shrugged. “Can we talk about something else please?”

Patrick sighed. “Fine. What’s our plan for the next few days?”

“We monitor the police investigation and we wait. It may not be a bad idea to get out in front of the media speculation by giving a press conference. It might satisfy them enough to quit stalking you.”

Patrick shook his head. “I’m not interested in talking to the press again. They’re rabid dogs.”

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