Page 22 of All I Want for Christmas

He shrugged. “What did you need to see me about?”

I’d planned to sugar coat it and work my way to my big ask, but I didn’t feel like playing any games right now. “I need to see Skeeter.”

He stared at me like he hadn’t understood.

“Can you—” I shook my head. “Scratch that, I’m not asking. Make the arrangements.”

He stared at me for a moment longer. “Well, you do have lady balls, I’ll give you that.”

“I want to see him tomorrow.”

He sat back in his seat, his eyes narrowing. “Why in the hell do you want to see Skeeter?”

“That’s my business.”

“He’s not gonna help you.”

“Who said I was gonna ask for his help?”

He made a face that suggested he thought I was a fool. “It doesn’t take a genius to figure it out.”

Okay, he had a point.

He shook his head. “You need to do as I said and find an attorney. What did Deveraux say? Did he give you any recommendations?”

“I haven’t called Mason yet,” I said, glancing down at my lap, then I lifted my gaze. “Other than Rose, I haven’t told anyone.”

His brow rose. “What do you mean you haven’t told anyone? Not even your husband?”

“No.”

He let out a sigh, then pinched the bridge of his nose for several seconds before dropping his hand and sitting back inhis seat. Pity covered his face. “Going over to see Skeeter is a fool’s errand, Neely Kate. First of all, I doubt he’d even see you. Second, I don’t know what you expect him to do.”

Tears stung my eyes. “Do you think he could tell them that Jed doesn’t have anything to do with the Hardshaw Group?”

He pushed out a sigh. “That’s a loaded question. We don’t know that Skeeter will even be willing to talk to them. He sees Jed picking you over him as a betrayal.”

My chest tightened. “I know.”

“And even if he did tell them Jed was innocent, I’m not sure they’d believe him.”

I drew in a deep breath, trying to push down my rising panic. “I have to try, Carter. I can’t lose him.”

Sympathy filled his eyes. “Neely Kate, your time would be better served by finding a good attorney who can advise Jed on what to say, and what not to say, when they question him.”

“They want information on Skeeter, right?” I asked. “What if Jed promises not to tell them anything?”

His face turned to stone. “I cannot advise either you or your husband on how to answer questions posed by any law-enforcement agency,” he said, his voice full of authority that I wasn’t used to hearing. “That’s why I told you to find him a hot shot attorney.”

“But surely?—”

His brow furrowed. “You know, I didn’t have to warn you about the FBI, especially after Jed so callously turned his back on Skeeter.”

That stoked my anger. “Jed didn’t turn on him! Skeeter was the one who turned his back on Jed. Skeeter made Jed choose between the two of us. Why couldn’t he have both?”

Carter pushed out a heavy sigh. “I think we both know that having someone you care about doesn’t work very well in this line of business. They’re a liability.”

Rose was proof enough of that. Look at where Skeeter was now.

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