Page 62 of Take the Bait

“We’ll want copies of those,” Whitney snapped.

She dropped the blonde bimbo façade abruptly. “Get your own damned affidavits, Whitney.”

She looked around the room accusingly. “We all know what’s in those statements anyway, don’t we, gentlemen?” She emphasized the last syllable. “Did you know WMP is the only major law firm of its size and scope in the entire state of New York without a single senior female associate?”

A few of the more cowardly souls at the table squirmed. The others merely stared at her, stone-faced.

“What do you want, Miss Wellford?” Pinter demanded baldly

“I don’t want anything. My job is to seek the truth and defend the innocent, is it not?”

Marcos, silent up till now, spoke up abruptly. “She’s got nothing. I personally reviewed every firing we’ve made of female associates, and we’re clean in every case.”

Rats. She’d just wanted a stalemate to come out of this confrontation. A promise that they wouldn’t destroy her reputation if she wouldn’t destroy theirs. But if Marcos successfully called her bluff, she was toast.

The little voice in her head chose this inconvenient moment to pipe up. Now’s no time to lose your nerve.

For once, she agreed with the little voice.

She looked over at Marcos coolly. “Worried enough to check, were you? Fascinating. May I quote you on that at trial?”

“No, you may not,” he snapped.

“It goes without saying that your services will no longer be required at this firm, Miss Wellford.” Whitney stated.

She shot him a laser look. “Are you firing me?”

“Let’s just call this an amicable parting of the ways?—“

She cut him off briskly. “Let’s not.”

“She’s got nothing. I’m telling you. Throw the bitch out on her ear.” Marcos’s voice rose, taking on a raspy quality.

Was it him? Was he the one she’d overheard? Did she dare accuse Marcos and risk being wrong? That would be disastrous. They would go after her for slander and ruin her. She would never practice law again.

Worse, Marcos would throw Cam under the bus on the assumption that Cam had named Marcos as the raspy voiced partner. She clenched her teeth to stop herself from saying something she would regret. She was not dragging Cam down with her.

Whitney looked down the long conference table at her coldly. “If this afternoon’s little drama was designed to wrangle some sort of severance settlement out of Whitney, Marcos & Pinter, you are sadly mistaken, Miss Wellford.”

He pushed the intercom button in front of him. “Joanne. Call security to escort Miss Wellford out of the building.”

Pinter piped up, “You should seriously consider moving far, far from New York if you intend to continue in the practice of law, Miss Wellford.”

This was it. She either made an accusation or she slunk out of here with her tail between her legs.

She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t hurt Cam. Despair washed over her as the door opened behind her. She braced herself for security guards to grab her arms and drag her out.

“What the—“ Whitney exclaimed.

“Townsend?” Marcos demanded. “What are you doing here?”

Dani whipped around to face Cam, who stood in the doorway glaring down the conference table at the senior partners. “Don’t get involved in this, Cam. I’m not letting you wreck your career for mine.”

“This isn’t about your career or mine, Dani,” he said low and fierce. “It’s about right and wrong.”

Something cracked wide open in her heart right then and there. He was willing to throw himself on his sword for her? She officially loved him.

Pinter spoke to Cam smoothly. “We’re in the middle of some internal business at the moment. If you’d give us a minute, Mr. Townsend, we’ll wrap this up and be delighted to speak with you. Your name’s been discussed around this table on more than one occasion, and I think it’s safe to say WMP is ready to make you an offer you can’t refuse.”

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