Page 7 of His to Burn
“I will. Irv’s going to make his famous lemon and honey remedy and knock this right out. I’ll be back in a day or two,” she said.
“I’m not worried about you coming back,” the goddess says.
Bridget smiled brighter. “I know you’re not only worried about me coming back, but I know you, Asia, and I know you want to be working.”
Asia—I couldn’t stop myself from whispering the name in my head—smiled guilty. “You know how backed up we are,” she said with an annoyed huff. “And it doesn’t help that Anderson didn’t show up today. So many people are waiting, and if we keep canceling court, the backlog is only going to get bigger.”
Asia pressed her full lips into a thin line, her expression reflecting my own annoyance.
“I know, but we’ll get it done eventually. And if not—” Bridget’s words werecut off by a series of sharp little coughs that racked her thin body.
Asia looked at the older woman, concern clear on her features. “You’re right, and you need to get home.”
Bridget nodded. “I’m headed there now. These allergies are giving me hell, and I need to check on Irv.”
“Let me walk with you,” Asia said.
“Nope,” Bridget said.
Asia looked wounded, which had Bridget smiling and looking almost healthy. “Why not?”
“Because then you’ll have to come back and get your things, which will give you an excuse to stick around here and try to work more. You might even try to get over to the jail to meet with some clients.”
“Well, they haven’t let me visit for ten days,” Asia said, notably not denying Bridget’s words.
“You know they are short-staffed. Your clients can hold until you can visit.”
“It’s not like they have a choice.” Asia frowned.
Her displeasure gave me insight into her.
I knew the type.
Competitive, dedicated, interested in nothing but the victory, and maybe, just possibly, speaking truth to power or some other liberal do-gooder bullshit.
The worst kind of naive.
The kind that thought she could still make a difference.
A shame.
Bridget’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts. “They sure don’t, and your clients can look after themselves. So grab your things and head home. I’ll see you next week.”
Asia smiled, the luminous expression driving the air out of my lungs with its beauty. “See you next week. Get well soon.”
Her gaze met mine again, and I felt…exposed.
Realized I was standing there gawking. I broke her gaze and ducked into the men’s room, thrown off by my reaction to her, and eager to put it and this city behind me.
The DA wasn’t here, and I had a flight to catch.
The courtroom had emptied, and the formerly empty hallway had filled. I glanced atthe fire exit map on the wall and traced the alternate route. I was getting out of here as expeditiously as possible, and once I had a direction, I was off.
I walked down the hallway at my usual brisk pace, my boots marking a steady cadence. If anyone were to encounter me, I was sure I would look detached, inattentive, but I was anything but.
Old habits made me pay attention to everything, so I tried to pretend I wasn’t disappointed that Asia was nowhere in sight.
After that, I took in everything else like the marble floors that once had been and still were a thing of beauty even though they hadn’t been cleaned like I was sure they usually were.
