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Sebastian
“You stood me up again, Sebastian.” Darrell Carver pats me on the back as we exit the courtroom. “It’s the third time in two months. I’m beginning to wonder if you’re just not that into me.”
I huff out a laugh as I look back over my shoulder at him. “You can blame work for the missed beers.”
I slow as we near the elevators in the corridor. “I’m done here, right? I can head back to the squad room?”
“I won’t be calling you back to the stand.” He glances over at the attorney representing the defendant in the attempted murder case he’s currently prosecuting.
I was on Darrell’s witness list. It’s part of the job. I stopped by his office for a brief visit before court was in session to go over my testimony.
I recalled the facts of the night of the attack and the investigation as I remembered them when I took the stand. The defendant’s attorney tried her best to poke holes in my statements. She failed.
“How’s work treating you?” he asks as we wait side-by-side for the elevator.
“The same as always.” I shrug.
He turns on his heel, so he’s facing me. “Listen, Sebastian. I’ve got this buddy. He’s a friend-of-a-friend of the Dean of Admissions at NYU Law School.”
I raise my hand in the air. “Stop right there, Darrell. We’ve gone over this.”
“Hear me out.” He looks at the two men standing next to us before he lowers his voice. “I can put in a good word for you if you apply again. I’m not saying I’d have any pull as to whether you’re accepted or not, but it wouldn’t hurt for me to reach out to sing your praises.”
My jaw tightens. “There’s no need.”
“You owe it to yourself to at least consider it. We both know you’d make a hell of a prosecutor.”
The elevator dings its arrival just in time. I turn to the doors waiting for them to open. “I had my chance. That’s a part of my past.”
“Fair enough.” He raises his hands in the air. “I should warn you that I’m going to push you on this the next time we meet for beers.”
I take a step back as two women exit the elevator once it opens. “Thanks for the heads-up.”
He smiles. “I’m just looking out for a friend.”
I don’t tell him I appreciate it, although I do. I’m a cop. There has always been a Wolf on the force. That duty fell on my shoulders. I can’t walk away from it now.
***
I press my palms against my eyes, desperately trying to will away the image of Matilda dancing on the table last night in her lingerie. It’s been a constant in my mind all day, even during court this morning.
“A migraine?” Liam asks from across the table in the diner he asked me to meet him at for lunch.
I drop my hands. “No. I’m fine.”
“You’re far from fine.” He looks over the menu. “You’ve got something on your mind. Spill it, Sebastian.”
I’m not about to tell my youngest brother what happened last night. He’ll ask me how I feel about it and I have no fucking clue.
“Have you heard from Nicholas recently?” I resort to a question about one of the few things we have in common, our brother, Nicholas.
Nicholas is older than Liam but younger than me.
He’s also one of the world’s premier novelists. His series of detective mysteries has sent his star into the stratosphere.
He’s currently on a book tour in Europe with his wife, Sophia, and his daughter, Winter Rose.
“Yesterday,” he admits. “They’re having a blast. He asked about you.”
Of course, he did. Nicholas has always had a sixth sense when it comes to me. He can look at me and tell when something is off. I’ve been avoiding his calls recently only because the last conversation we had before he boarded the flight to Paris was a rough one.
Nicholas is convinced that I’m sacrificing too much for the job.
Since he married Sophia and became a dad, he’s been on a crusade to enlist Liam and me in the happily-married-family-man club.
Liam is sure as hell not ready for that.
Marriage and kids don’t go with my career choice.
“How’s it going with your new roommate?” He sets the large menu down in front of him on the table. “Did you apologize for flashing your dick in her direction?”
“I did.” I pat my hand on the wooden table. “She accepted my apology and we’ve moved on.”
He narrows his eyes. “Moved on? What exactly does that mean?”
I tell the truth as Matilda and I established it last night. “We’re friends.”
“Friends?” He draws the word out. “With benefits?”
I shake my head. “Just friends.”
“You’re good with that?” He looks over at the blonde server who hasn’t taken her eyes off of him since we walked in.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I doubt like hell I could live with a beautiful woman and not let my mind drift to all the what-ifs.” He drinks from the water glass in front of him.
“I didn’t say my mind hasn’t wandered.” I laugh. “The dynamic is complicated. She’s Julian’s family. I’m his best friend. There’s a line there that’s becoming blurrier by the day.”
“You’re all adults, Sebastian. You don’t need Julian’s approval to do anything. If you’re interested in this woman, tell her.”
I would if it wasn’t for the guilt that gnaws at my gut when I think about the inevitable conversation between Julian and me when Matilda realizes I’m not the Prince Charming she’s looking for.
I know I’m a great fuck, but beyond that, I can’t offer her what Julian’s giving to Maya.
She deserves better than a man who is married to his job.
He steals another glance at the server. “I’m about to order. You ready?”
“You’re about to ask for her number.”
He laughs as he shakes his head. “I have it. Our relationship is professional.”
“I take it she’s not a colleague, so she’s a patient?”
“I can’t answer that.”
I look over at the young woman. She must be a patient. I sense the sadness that’s surrounding her.
“I’m proud of you,” I say in a low voice. “You’re making a difference in the world, Wolf.”
He smiles at the nickname I gifted him with when he was a kid. “I’m proud of you too. Don’t tell Nicholas but you’re my favorite brother.”
I shake my head. “When’s the last time you said the same thing to him?”
“Yesterday,” he says as he raises his hand to beckon the server to our table.
I chuckle under my breath. “Why am I not surprised?”
