Page 68 of Legal

I nodded. “Your roommate, Trevor. He’s… something.” I felt no need to get into it since I didn’t plan on seeing the dickhead again.

“By something, you mean a fuck-up?” I laughed. Yeah, pretty much. “He wasn’t always like that, but he’s moving out next month anyway. Now, Con? He’s cool. I’m glad he’s staying.”

We came to the front doors and stopped. “Can I take you somewhere,” he asked, “or do you need to get home?”

“No, I’m okay.”

Chase led me out and down the concrete path, wrapping around to the back of the building and into a wooded area. “It’s one of my favorite spots. I used to come here often when I was younger, but this is my first time coming with someone else.”

We went into a small clearing. There was a huge flat rock in the middle of it. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this. He wrapped his hands around my waist, the contact setting off the familiar zing, and picked me up as if I were nothing. He placed me on the rock before moving around to the other side to join me.

We lay back; it was large enough for us to stretch out, but small enough to keep us touching. I stared up at the sky through the parted treetops. It was twilight, and I could see the first hints of stars above me.

He took my hand in his once again. “Did you used to live around here?” I asked.

“Sometimes I felt like my mom did.” I turned my head toward him, and he smiled softly. “She had rheumatic fever, and it weakened her heart. She spent a lot of time in this hospital. My dad worked two jobs, so I was with her most of the time. Whenever I needed to get away, I’d come to this rock and practice my chords or just zone out and look at the sky.”

I realized that I had no clue about his parents. “Is your mom…?”

“She’s doing well now. Much better than before.” I exhaled slowly. I didn’t know her, but it would have saddened me to learn that something had happened. “I think that’s why I connected instantly with Hazel. She had something similar to my mom, but instead of damaging her heart, it attacked her kidneys.”

God, I couldn’t imagine going through something like that with Daniel. “So, her grandmother has full custody?”

“Yeah. Hazel’s mother died when she was just a baby. Heroin overdose.”

Fuck. My heart constricted. I wanted to do more for that girl than just give her a silly little key chain. “Daniel’s mom left too. He was about one and a half.” Chase shifted his body to the side and faced me. Watched me with irises the color of the softest grass in the summertime. He always made me feel like he was so interested in what I had to say, and that made me comfortable enough to say it. “Although, in her case, we don’t know if she’s dead or alive. She was messed up. Just decided she didn’t want to be a mother anymore and packed up and moved to Florida with some guy. Mike never heard from her again and never pursued it. They weren’t married, and he figured Daniel would have a better life without her.”

I caught my breath, studying his expression. I was revealing more than I normally would, and I didn’t know how he interpreted that. He smiled and gave me a light kiss, and I was encouraged to continue.

“I came into that little boy’s life when he was just shy of two and I was twenty. Mike and I married shortly after. Daniel doesn’t even remember her. I’m the only mom he’s ever known.”

Chase stroked my hair. “That was a lot for you to take on at that age.”

“He means the world to me, Chase. I have to believe that I changed his life. I know he changed mine.”

“And your ex? What happened there?”

A part of me wanted to tape my mouth shut; way too much was spilling free. But the part that needed to talk, that’s the part that won out. “I used to laugh and say it was a package deal. If I wanted to be with Daniel, then I had to accept Mike. We made good parents, but not the best marriage partners. Once Daniel was an adult, there didn’t seem to be any reason to stay together.”

Among other reasons. I wasn’t going to get into the alleged affair because honestly, I couldn’t put all the blame on my ex. Our relationship was over long before Candace came into his office. If it ever started in the first place. Even in the very beginning, my heart never sprouted legs and broke out into a happy dance when Mike put his lips or eyes on me.

I waited to see if Chase would ask more about it, but he didn’t. I guess it was pretty self-explanatory—I’d wanted Daniel in my life more than I’d wanted his father.

The stars were sharpening, painting a portrait across the inky sky. It was a breathtaking show, and we had the perfect seats. Chase gave my hand another pump, and I smiled. It was impossible to help. What was happening to me? I was probably leaking sap all over the rock.

“I’ve been crazy since I met you, Chase. Acting crazy. Thinking crazy.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

“It’s not amething. I’m not usually like this. Might as well tack on dressing crazy too. Last night, those clothes… I normally don’t wear stuff like that.”

He laughed. “I figured that, Jillian.”

“And the night we went for Cajun food? The reason my face resembled white crepe paper was because I overdid this cream that was supposed to make me look closer to your age. See? Crazy.”

“Just so I’m clear here, are you trying to be younger or older? Because I’m confused.”

“God, I don’t know.” I covered my face with one hand and shook my head. If he didn’t make me so crazy, I’d probably be able to answer that question.

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