Page 35 of Honorable Convictions
Mitchell sighed. It was impossible to discuss his matebond; he’d made a promise in good faith while he was in training to the man who twisted him into knots daily, and breaking it would infuriate Pierson. But he might be able to explain his troubles without mentioning the Juris Knight, who was currently in Atlanta, building a set of requirements that’d be used in every office. “It’s personal shit.”
“And what, I’m a total stranger?”
A dark head popped through the doorway. “What’s going on, guys?” Juris Knight Peter Malcolmson asked, strolling in and planting himself opposite Noah. “I don’t know why I bothered with that question. Mitchell has the separation agreement face.”
“First of all, I don’t have a ‘separation agreement face,’ and I didn’t do one of those today,” Mitchell growled. The way he’d poked fun at Pierson’s lack of expression came to mind, and it made him furious at himself for making his mate feel like shit, because he’d never figured out how to penetrate the walls surrounding him. For too long he’d gone with the idea that if Pierson was hurting him by staying away, then he needed to strike back with words. All it did was build up a thick wall of resentment that could tear them apart if Mitchell was unable to stay on the offensive.
“Mitchell has personal problems,” Noah informed Peter as if Mitchell hadn’t said a word.
Peter’s blue eyes went wide. “How can you have personal problems? You’ve never done more than a one-night rodeo, and goodness knows you’ve got a massive list of women that would no doubt line up for a second time with you.”
“Plenty of men on that list too,” Noah tacked on. “He doesn’t flirt as outrageously with them, but I’ve caught him checking out Murphy’s ass.”
“Gentlemen, let’s be honest. He might be deader than the rest of us and have about as much emotion as a machine, but Murphy’s assisa beautiful sight.”
Mitchell wasn’t sure whether to be pissed about the insults referring to Pierson’s ability to lock his emotions in ice or knowing that Peter had admired his perfect derriere. “What makes you assholes think I’ve had that many people parading through my bedroom?”
“Please. People throw themselves at you, and you’re the biggest flirt I know,” Peter remarked. “Why get pissed off about it? I wish I could pick up someone as quick as you do. I’d spend fewer nights alone with my hand.”
“As interesting as your masturbation habits are, I do need to get some work done this afternoon.”
Noah and Peter exchanged looks, then stared at Mitchell. “He really is in a bad mood,” Noah commented. “We’re your closest friends. Tell us what’s going on.”
“Nothing.”
Peter crossed his arms. “I’ve got a stack of cases on my desk, but I’m not going anywhere until you spill it. You haven’t been yourself for weeks. You’re suddenly too busy to meet us at the bar, and now you’re angry at work. You love your job and yeah, we’re insanely busy since Machine Murphy decided he couldn’t take a vacation like everyone else and instead asked for a transfer, but that’s not what has that nasty look on your face.”
“He didn’t want a vacation. Murphy’s gone for a couple of weeks and suddenly has a binder full of statistics and arguments on why we need a liaison to smooth out our process with FKs. It’s amazingly convenient that he suddenly has the time to handle it by himself instead of building a team or something along those lines. I bet you they bring him back, and suddenly he’s the expert because he’s the one who put it in place. Murphy will use that to boss us around…especially you, Mitchell. No way will he pass up the opportunity to have an edge in your feud.”
The animosity in Noah’s voice made Mitchell’s heart ache for the bridges Pierson didn’t understand he’d burned by separating himself from the other Vegas Juris Knights. Noah was several centuries older, and had already been at headquarters when Mitchell’s rookie mate had landed such a posh assignment immediately out of training. Although the veterans insisted that they’d welcomed Pierson with open arms, he’d stuck his nose in the air at the very idea of friending them.
Within a short couple of years, it was Pierson who’d become lauded in every Juris Knight circle, and no one that had predated him had forgotten it. Pierson’s penchant for isolation had nothing to do with superiority and likely came from a place of fear, but there was no way to explain that to Noah and Peter without letting on how much he’d learned about his mate since he’d left Vegas.
“Ugh, he doesn’t work here anymore. We shouldn’t even be speaking the Ice King’s name,” Peter complained.
“He’s still a Juris Knight, and we should treat our peers with respect,” Mitchell snarled.
“I don’t know why they don’t make you liaison. You’re always trying to keep us together,” Peter responded. “If it wasn’t for Murphy’s freakishly long case list, I swear you’d be the one picked for a superior position.”
“Oh man, is that why you’re pissed? I know Murphy ruffles your feathers, but you should keep in mind that he’ll have the same impact on Juris Knights around the country. He makes himself impossible to like.”
Peter shook his head. “Untrue statement, Cavendish. His clients say his name with reverence. It’s when he’s with other Juris Knights that he acts like we’re not good enough to lick the soles of his immaculate shoes.”
“Didn’t I just say that Murphy was going to have that same effect on Juris Knights, Malcolmson?” Noah demanded.
“Can we stop talking about Murphy? I’m not pissed that he’s the liaison. If he applies himself to it the way he does one of his cases, he’ll excel,” Mitchell argued.
“Good point. I checked his newly posted cases. He barely has any. That may be why he wanted to do this liaison thing. Probably regretting his decision to leave Vegas already,” Peter remarked. “If he makes the other Juris Knights feel like clients, he could really make a cataclysmic shift in our issues with the fallen knights. We might get to a point where there’s full cooperation and they stop treating us like giant nerds who strive to complicate their lives however possible.”
“I still say it should be Mitchell doing that and not Frozen Face,” Noah responded.
“He’s working with every city except Vegas. If they keep it like that permanently, we’ll never have to deal with his beautiful ass again.”
“Beautiful ass is a bit of a stretch,” Noah said. “I’d fuck him if I could put a bag over his head so I didn’t have to see that expressionless mask while I’m trying to get my rocks off, but it’s by no means in my top ten.”
“Expressionless he may be, but that face is killer. You gotta admit, he’s gorgeous, Cavendish.”
“What do they call that color green again?” Noah asked.
