Page 105 of Dial L for Lawyer
The front door opens.
"Caleb, I forgot to tell you about—JESUS CHRIST."
We spring apart like teenagers caught by their parents. David stands in the doorway, keys in hand, looking like he wants to bleach his eyeballs.
"David," I say, trying to sound dignified while Serena fixes her shirt. "You're back early."
"I never said when I'd be back." He hasn't moved from the doorway, like he's afraid to come closer. "I forgot to mention Michaela has her swim meet tomorrow at nine. Can you be there?"
"Swimming. Absolutely. I'll bring pom-poms."
"You don't own pom-poms," David says, voice equal parts exhaustion and older-brother judgment. "And probably forget it's indoor pool season. Last time you wore shorts to a swim meet, someone complained you were showing too much leg."
Serena is trying very hard not to laugh, while I'm trying not to murder my brother.
"Noted," I say.
David peers over my shoulder, apparently noticing Serena's rumpled hair and recently ravished appearance. He softens slightly, probably because he's already written me off as the family disappointment and sees Serena as a possible redeeming factor.
"Glad to see you're keeping him in line, Serena."
She shrugs, arms still around my waist, half-defiant, half-mortified. "He keeps himself in line mostly. Some days I just let the leash go slack."
David blinks, like he's processing new evidence. "Huh. Well, it's good to see you. I'm also glad this idiot managed to find the evidence you needed to clear your name. But I'm even more glad I interrupted whatever was about to happen." He gestures at the couch. "Were you two just..."
"No," I say at the same time Serena says, "Kind of."
David pinches the bridge of his nose. "Seriously, Caleb? On my couch?"
"We were fully clothed," I point out.
"That's not much better! That's my couch! Where Michaela watches cartoons!"
"We didn't—nothing actually—" Serena's stumbling over words, mortified.
"I need brain bleach," David mutters. "And a new couch."
"Don't be dramatic," I say.
"I'm not being—" He stops, takes a breath, and his professional mask slides into place. "You know what? I'm too tired for this." He looks at Serena, and something in his expression shifts from horrified older brother to Luminous's in-house counsel. "Serena, It’s good you're here actually."
"You are?" She's still mortified, trying to smooth down her hair.
"I can't discuss specifics—attorney-client privilege and all that." He sets his briefcase down carefully. "But I spent the last three hours walking Wong and Sterling through everything your boyfriend uncovered."
"And?" I prompt.
"And I can't say." But he's looking directly at Serena. "What I can say is that Luminous takes care of its people. The real ones. The ones who built their success through actual talent, not manipulation."
"David—"
"Monday's meeting is going to go very differently than certain people expect," he continues, still focused on Serena. "That's all I can say."
"Thank you," she says softly.
"Don't thank me. Thank my brother for being relentless about finding real evidence. Though apparently that's not the only thing he's being relentless about tonight."
"The couch thing again?" I ask.
