Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

L et’s do this.

He straightened his tie before opening the door. A woman in a stylish suit stood as Grey Bradford walked into the restaurant. She stepped forward with her hand outstretched to shake his.

“Mr. Bradford, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Likewise, Ms. Saunders.” He shook her hand and was pleased by his first impression of the applicant for a position in his law firm. “Let me check on our table.”

As he turned to chat with Virginia, the long-time hostess at Armando’s, he found her standing next to the podium with menus already in her hands. Smiling, he greeted the familiar woman.

“Hi, Virginia. It’s good to see you again.”

“Hi, Grey. Let me show you to your table.”

Grey sat in his normal chair after waiting for Simone Saunders to take a seat. Accepting his menu, he didn’t even open it. “Thank you, Virginia. Is Raymond here today?”

“You’ll have a new server today. He’s a great addition to Armando’s. His name is Mack.”

“Wonderful.”

“It sounds like you come here often,” Simone commented after Virginia left.

“It’s one of my favorite places in town. It’s a bonus that it’s right around the corner from the office. I’ve run over here often to refuel when I’m preparing after hours.”

“That is a lucky thing. I always seem to order a delivery to eat at my desk on those intense pretrial nights. I bet getting out of the office for an hour does recharge your batteries to go back and finish,” Simone commented.

Grey put a check in the positive column when she volunteered she understood long hours went along with the job sometimes. “I don’t encourage the associates to work eighty hours a week, but preparations get intense sometimes, don’t they?”

“It’s the nature of being a successful attorney,” she agreed. “I was a bit surprised you wished to meet here instead of in the office.”

“Thank you for indulging my idiosyncrasies. Hiring the right people is important to the future of my firm. Let’s look at the menu and see what sounds good to you. Lunch, of course, is on me.”

A few seconds after they’d opened the large leather menus, a young man approached. He was handsome and fit with hair pulled neatly from his face and secured in a thick man bun. Grey took a second look at his hairstyle. Was that a small brown face with whiskers peeking out of his gathered hair? Grey was instantly intrigued. He doubted people even noticed it hidden in the brown tresses.

“Hi, I’m Mack. It’s a pleasure to wait on you, Mr. Bradford. Armando threatened to throw me out on my ear if I don’t take good care of you and your guest today,” the server said with a careful blend of humor and respect.

Grey could tell immediately that Armando had found a winner. “Nice to meet you, Mack.”

“May I start you out with something to drink?” he asked, looking first at Simone.

“Water with several lemons, please.”

“I’ll have a club soda with lime, Mack,” Grey ordered his usual.

“Of course. Let me tell you about our specials so you can consider those while I get your drinks.”

A few minutes later, he returned with their drinks and a basket of delicious-smelling bread. Simone was in the middle of telling Grey about her litigation experience. She paused to wave away the bread.

“Please take those carb bombs away,” she said unpleasantly to Mack before turning back to Grey and finishing her story.

Grey maintained eye contact with her while watching the server. He set the basket on an empty table a short distance away before placing their drinks in front of them. Efficiently, he added a small bowl of lemons next to Simone’s table setting. When Simone didn’t stop talking again, Mack stepped back from the table to give them some privacy.

A few minutes later, Simone swept her arm in front of her to emphasize a point she was making. Unfortunately, the bowl of lemon wedges went flying and clattered to the floor. She instantly exclaimed, “What a stupid place to put that!”

Mack was instantly at the table. Grey could tell he’d overheard Simone but didn’t react other than a tightening of his features as he squatted down to collect the mess on the floor and wipe up the juice. Simone watched with a sour look on her formerly pleasant face.

As Mack stood, she leaned in and announced loudly to Grey, “It looks like Armando’s going to be throwing him out soon.”

“Mack, thank you for helping us with the unfortunate accident. Could you give us a few minutes?”

“Of course, sir. My apologies for placing the lemons in a dangerous spot.” The server reached toward his hair before he caught himself and lowered that hand.

“A few minutes, Mack,” Grey answered, cutting off Simone’s unpleasant answer to that apology.

“Of course.”

When he was gone, Grey looked at Simone and stood. He held out his hand. “Thank you for your time. I’m afraid you won’t be a good fit in my firm. I wish you great luck in finding a law practice that more closely aligns with your interests.”

She stood automatically, looking confused. “The interview is over?”

“Yes.”

“You’re not going to consider me for a position?”

“I am not. Thank you for your time.” Grey waited for her to reveal herself further.

After staring at him for a full second, Simone threw her cloth napkin on the table and spit, “You’re making a mistake. I’ll see you in court.”

“Thank you for your time,” he repeated for the third time, knowing that even in twenty years, she would not have the self-control to beat him at trial.

Grey did not watch her stalk out angrily from the restaurant. His attention was on the waiter, who rushed to his side.

“There’s no charge for your drinks, sir. I’d appreciate if you’d come back and give me another chance to impress you, sir.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Mack. And you’ve already made an impression on me. As well as saving me from a very costly mistake. Would you bring me a basket of bread and a plate of whatever the chef has on special today?”

“Of course. Could I bring you a fresh drink? Maybe one with a splash of vodka or gin this time?”

“That would be a good idea if I wasn’t headed to court in a couple of hours. Next time.”

“Understood. I’ll get your order in, Mr. Bradford.”

“Thank you, Mack.”

As always, the food was exquisite and the atmosphere serene and welcoming, erasing the bad vibes left by the unpleasant applicant. Grey set down his fork with regret that he couldn’t finish the last few bites. Before he could look up, Mack appeared at his side.

“Is there anything else I can get you, sir?”

“Call me Grey, Mack. Put my bill on this, please,” he requested, passing along his credit card.

“Of course, s… Of course, Grey.”

As the intriguing young man walked away, Grey steeled himself from checking out his body. This wasn’t the time or the place. Mack could call him Grey until he was ready to call him something else. That thought made the corners of his mouth curl up.

When Mack returned to get Grey’s signature, the server wished him a good day and good luck in court.

“Thank you, Mack. I hope my luck holds out.”

“You’ve been on a roll lately in court?” Mack asked with a smile.

“I’m referring to my luck in meeting you, Mack.” Grey reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card. “Call me if you ever need help or if you’d like to spend some time together. I’ve looked for my Little for years.”

A panicked look confirmed what Grey suspected. Mack started to reach toward his hair in a move that Grey now recognized as distress. Again, Mack stopped himself and forced words out of his mouth. “I appreciate the card, sir.”

“Grey, Mack. I don’t mean you any harm. Your secret is safe with me.”

The waiter nodded automatically and hurried away.

Grey watched him disappear, allowing himself to smile fully. He signed the bill, adding a hefty tip that wouldn’t seem offensive if Mack wasn’t wired the way Grey hoped he was.

Armando stuck his head out the door to the kitchen as Grey passed on his way to the door. “Did Mack treat you right?”

“He did. I’ll request to be in his section next time. Excellent special, Armando. You should put that on the menu permanently.”

“Perfect. He’s impressed everyone. And thank you, my friend. If I put everything you liked on the menu, it would be forty-five pages long,” Armando joked.

“And there’s something wrong with that?” Grey joked back before adding, “See you next time.”

Grey headed back to his office to review his next case. Somehow, he knew he was going to win this one. Luck was on his side.