Page 14 of Ask for Moore

“Do you need any cream or sugar?”

Waverly lifted the coffee and breathed in the scent. “Nope, I like mine black.”

“You have that in common with Ryland. That’s how he takes his coffee, too,” Ivy announced as she whirled around to stride out of my office, closing the door behind her.

“We’re both lawyers who like black coffee. Imagine that,” Waverly murmured before she took a sip of the rich brew.

There was a thread of dry humor in her tone, but I still felt as though I should apologize. “Sorry, being subtle isn’t one of Ivy’s strong suits.”

“She seems sweet, though.” She tilted her head toward the mug she was holding. “I don’t think I’ve ever shared coffee with opposing counsel before.”

“Practicing law in a small town is very different from the big city. One of the judges babysat my brothers and me, I have faced off against lawyers I went to school with since kindergarten, who live down the street from me. There’s a husband and wife who are a prosecutor and defense attorney respectively,” I explained.

She met my gaze over the rim of her mug. “I bet dinners at their house are interesting.”

I shrugged. “I always figured that not being able to bring their work home with them was part of why their relationship was so strong.”

“Ah, yeah, I guess they’d have to put a firewall between their personal and professional lives to make it work.” She took a gulp of her coffee. “I imagine it would be a difficult tightrope to navigate.”

“Probably.” Not that I was in the best position to judge. It had been years since I had been in a relationship, and I’d never been tempted to date a colleague. Until now. I sure as fuck was wondering what it would be like to date Waverly, though.

“At least they’re making it work.” She flashed me a sheepish grin. “Being an associate at a big law firm isn’t exactly conducive to dating, let alone building a relationship. I think all but one of us four-years are perpetually single.”

A deep sense of relief surged through my system. Based on what Mike had told me about her, I had assumed that she wasn’t in a relationship. But there had still been the possibility that she just kept her personal life completely separate from the professional. I was inordinately pleased to learn that wasn’t the case.

“The same could be said for opening your own practice in a small town.”

Her head tilted slightly to the side as a faint blush pinkened her pale cheeks. “I suppose it would keep you busy.”

I leaned back in my seat with a smile. “You don’t sound convinced, but you still managed to say that with a straight face.”

“My poker face is part of what makes me an excellent lawyer.” She took another gulp of her coffee. “And I don’t know enough about small-town law firms to know how busy you might be.”

I lifted a shoulder. “My caseload is heavier than you probably think, but I don’t have billable hours requirements insomuch that I need enough to cover my expenses each week. But I still need to catch up on work at night and on weekends when I’m in court, and client service takes on a whole new meaning when everyone in town knows where you live and has no problem calling your mom if they can’t reach you when they need you.”

Her eyes widened, and she gasped, “Do they really?”

“It’s happened a few times, actually,” I confirmed with a deep chuckle.

“Wow, that’s wild.” She took a final sip of her coffee and set the empty mug on my desk. Then she got to her feet. “I guess I’d better let you get on with your day so none of your clients need to tattle to your mother.”

“Gee, thanks.” I tapped the file I’d been working on. “I don’t think Marty will need to call her since I’ll be ready to file my answer to your complaint on Monday.”

Her brows drew together. “So soon?”

I nodded, getting to my feet so I could walk her to the door. “That advance copy of your complaint came in handy. Marty doesn’t want to use the full forty days to respond. He wants this taken care of as soon as possible, so I already started to work on my answer last night.”

“Then I guess I’ll see you in court soon,” she murmured.

“You definitely will,” I confirmed as I rounded my desk. “The courts tend to move quickly here, and I’m filing a motion to dismiss. We should have an appearance scheduled sometime next week.”

“I expected you would.” Her attention shifted to Ivy as we walked past her desk. “Thank you for the coffee. It was just what I needed.”

“You’re welcome. Feel free to stop in for a cup whenever you want,” my assistant offered with a smile.

“Thank you.” A wrinkle popped up in the middle of Waverly’s brow. “But I don’t believe that my client would appreciate me socializing with opposing counsel.”

“Coffee in the office is hardly socializing,” Ivy scoffed, shaking her head.

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