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Seeing the snow melting, she emptied the bag and put his sock back on, then just kept his foot in her lap, gently stroking and warming it.
He groaned with enjoyment. “Don’t ever stop.”
Smiling, she nodded. “Go on.”
“Right. Where was I? Okay, so once I got out of the Airforce, I got my law degree and moved to the Grove with intentions of settling down. In my mind, I envisioned a booming law practice, a roomy old house filled with a wife and two or three kids… oh,and maybe a small yappy dog.” He laughed but the humor wasn’t without self-derision.
“And…”
“Didn’t happen. I worked my buns off and got the practice but to my detriment, I never seemed to have enough time for romance… never mind the family. Well until that last debacle. Seems I’m having to settle with the non-yappy dog and a ready-made kid. But I’m not complaining. I love my job. Only now, I desperately need to hire more employees so I can spend time with Dillon. I refuse to let him grow up like I did with absentee parents.”
“Is that why you disliked the city?”
“Probably a good part of it. Both my parents were career minded and shouldn’t have had active twin boys. They were always on their way out the door. Rushing so much I don’t remember many times we spent all together as a family. Max and I grew up mostly in day cares, and then with after school babysitters who spent more time watching TV than hanging out with us. Thankfully, we had each other, but it soon became apparent that Max got off on being the center of attention, a joiner who liked all sports. Whereas I tended to hang back… a loner who loved books.”
“You didn’t play in any sports?”
“Yeah, well I wasn’t allowed to hang back all the time. My dad enrolled us into all kinds of practices. Jujitsu, karate, wrestling and then of course there was basketball, soccer, and baseball. We were expected to be involved in all those extra curricular activities. Max loved it all. Me… not so much.”
Jasmin heard the disparaging note he didn’t hide. “What? There’s something you’re not telling me.”
He lifted his eyes to let her see his truth. “Turns out, I had a natural talent for sports whereas Max… well, let’s just say he didn’t. For me, catching a ball and tossing it to home platecame easy… as did hitting and running the bases. Basketball and soccer also came easy though I didn’t particularly get the high everyone else talked about when we won our tournament championships. My sympathy for the losing team kind of overshadowed my joy which made me different from the others.”
“Did Max excel at any of the activities you’d joined?”
“Yep. Anything where he could release his frustration, like wrestling and the martial arts – he won trophy after trophy.”
“And you?”
“I quit those particular sports as soon as my dad gave me the go-ahead.” He caught her look and grinned. “Max liked being the winner.”
“And you didn’t want to take that away from him.”
“Kinda… yeah. My idea of fun is to head out on my own, find some peace and quiet, and read all the wonderful books I can get my hands on. Like my favorite bestselling authors.”
“And have you? Read them I mean?”
“Not near as many as I’d like. But I always have something to look forward to in my old age, don’t I?”
Jasmin laughed. “That you do. They aren’t going away. And with Dillon taking up your free time, it’s probably a good thing. You do intend to be a hand’s-on dad, right?”
“Can’t wait. It’s why I need help at my law firm. We’re growing every day and turning away clients is just not good business.”
Jasmin began to laugh.
“What?”
“You’re looking for lawyers, and I’m looking for a job, both me and my friend who’s a top-notch litigator and was my immediate supervisor in my old firm. Maybe we should apply for those openings you have?”
Dex wrestled to sit upright, his face beaming. “Who did you work for in Seattle?”
“Deputy district attorney for the county of LA. Seven years.”
“Seriously? You had to be driven to last that long. They have a good reputation.”
“It’s true. Bet they won’t be keeping those credentials with two of their best lawyers leaving. I’m not bragging, but between Mandy and me, we took on a lot of their top cases. Meredith, our new boss, will bring them down – you just watch. Without us there to pick up the slack and clean up the work she liked to pass on and then take credit for, it’s going to start showing. Makes me feel sad. I took pride in knowing we helped build their reputation.”
Dex’s gleaming expression warned her that he would be coming out with something she needed to listen to, and she was right. With his head held in a playful sideways angle, and a begging grin on his face, he let her have it.
