Page 116 of Dial L for Lawyer
"Can you not say 'sausage fest' in front of my daughter?" David winces.
"Sorry."
"You're not sorry."
"Hardly ever."
Michaela grins at me. "Tell Serena I won my butterfly! And that she has to come to my next meet!"
She runs off, leaving us in silence.
"So, where is Serena, anyway?" Dominic asks. “I thought you were keeping her locked down until the smoke clears.”
“I’m not her jailer. She’s just avoiding her apartment because of the press.”
“So you have her tied up at yours?”
“No. She’s having brunch with Audrey and Layla.”
"Oh. She's getting debriefed by the enemy," Dominic says, a small smile playing on his lips.
"Layla and Audrey are not the enemy."
"They're her best friends," he clarifies. "Which means they're currently conducting a deep-dive analysis of your every move, character flaw, and long-term viability. They'll advise her accordingly."
"I'm not worried." I glare at Dominic and he holds up his hands before pretending to zip his lips.
The truth is, a small part of me is worried. I know how protective Serena's friends are, and I know my methods havebeen… aggressive. But I also know what I feel, and I trust that Serena feels it too.
Down on the pool deck, the whistle blows for the next heat. Michaela bounces on her toes, a tiny warrior ready for battle. My friends fall silent, their attention shifting to the pool. I know what they’re doing, and I appreciate that they care enough to call me on my shit. But where they see risk, I see reward. And from where I’m sitting, Serena’s worth every goddamn bit of it.
CHAPTER 28
Serena
"You're glowing," Layla announces, sliding into the booth across from me at The Velvet Spoon. "Like, actually glowing. It's disgusting."
"I am not glowing." I hide behind my menu even though I already know what I'm ordering. Their french toast is legendary and I deserve carbs after this week.
"You're definitely glowing," Audrey confirms, pulling a notebook from her purse.
"Why do you have a notebook?"
"To track the progression of your relationship. Between you and Layla, I might be able to collect enough data to figure out how long it'll take for Logan to make his move." She clicks her pen. "Now, tell us everything. Start from when you left Bennett's office after finding out Maya was the backstabbing bitch I always thought she was."
"This isn't a science experiment, Audrey. It's my life."
"All life is a science experiment," she retorts, not looking up from her page. "Hypothesis: sustained exposure to emotionallyavailable alpha male leads to increased serotonin levels, evidenced by dermal radiance."
Layla sips her mimosa. "She means the glow."
"OK, fine," I concede, because there's no point arguing when they're in interrogation mode. "We left Bennett's office, and then Caleb had to go babysit his niece, so I went with him."
Layla's eyebrows shoot into her hairline. "He introduced you to family? Already? This man isserious."
"It was a nanny emergency," I clarify, trying to make it sound less significant than it felt. "And she's seven. It's not like I met his parents."
Audrey scribbles furiously. "Note: male subject is integrating female subject into familial unit. Acceleration of bonding confirmed."
