She leaned in and kissed me. “Just be with me,” she repeated.
I didn’t know it was possible to love someone as much as I loved her. “Yes, ma’am,” I said, grinning.
I heard the oven door open, and then Thomas came around the counter again. “It’ll be ready in about forty-five minutes or so.”
Alex leaned against him. “Thank you for cooking.”
“I enjoy it,” Thomas assured her. “I can’t tell you for certain that it’s going to beedible, but—”
“You knew what a ratatouille was and had a recipe that you didn’t pull up on your phone,” she said. “I think we’ll be just fine.”
Thomas kissed the top of her hair. “Of course, we will.” We all knew he wasn’t talking about dinner.
Before dinner came out of the oven, Jake arrived at the condo, and I buzzed him up. Alex was ready and waiting to throw herself into his arms when he opened the door, and they stood in the entrance way for a long time, just holding one another. I could tell by the hitch in her shoulders that she was crying, and he was doing his best to calm her down.
“What’s the word?” Thomas asked when they separated.
Jake had a grim look on his face, and for a second, I feared the worst. My stomach dropped into my knees. “They aren’t going to take my license. The bar has agreed to let me keep it.”
Alex let out a shriek of joy and looped her arms around his neck... but he still had that look on his face that wasn’t happy. “What’s going on, Jake?” I asked.
“The Board wants either Alex or me to resign,” he said. “They don’t want to force hands by firing us outright, but they made it clear that one of us shouldn’t come back on Monday.”
Well, shit. They couldn’t outright fire Alex because as the subordinate in the situation, she could sue for retaliation, and to lose Jake entirely would be financially ruinous. Besides Thomas and me, he had the best record in the entire firm. He had been primed to win Hunter Bailey’s case before the media downfall.
“I’ll resign,” Alex said with a little shrug, as if that was the most obvious choice.
Jake disagreed. “I can’t let you do that, baby.”
Her face was calm, but her warm eyes turned molten, and not in a good way. “What makes the most sense? The paralegal who has been working there for less than a year walking away, or the man with the twenty-year career? It’s obvious.”
“It’s unfair.”
Alex shrugged. “You kept your license,” she said. “That’s all the fair I need. What isn’t fair is that you’re the only one facing consequences for something I readily got involved in.” She held up her hand when Thomas tried to argue. “I completely understand why that precedent is the way that it is. Employers cannot be allowed to hit on employees and then threaten them using their place of power. But that’s not what this is.” She looked like she was going to cry, and as much as I wanted to hold her, I knew Alex well enough by now to know that it wouldn’t be a good idea. “You aren’t some sleazy boss hitting on his assistant. You’re one of the loves of my life, and it’s not fair that no one can see that.” She rubbed at her eyes with the heels of her hands, clearing the tears. “Besides, everyone at the office thinks I’m just sleeping around to gain favors, anyway.”
My hands curled into fists. They think what now? “What?” Jake asked. His voice was low and angry.
Alex stared at her hands. Her fingers twisted together. “No one has said anything to my face,” she said. “I didn’t even know that anyone was talking about it until today, and I saw an IM thread that I don’t think was meant for me.” She looked back at us. Her mouth was set in a determined line. “I’m never going to get away from that reputation if I stay there, and I don’t want it following me into my career after law school.” She made Jake look at her. “Let me resign, and let’s move on with our lives.”
There was such a tenderness between them that I almost dragged Thomas back into the kitchen to let them finish up, but it was impossible to look away. He took her face in both of his hands. “You’ll focus on school?” he asked. “And the baby?”
Alex snorted. “I’ll have to get another job eventually. My savings will only last for so long.”
“Eventually,” he conceded because we all knew that she wasn’t the type of woman to stay at home. “But I’ve got it covered for now.”
Thomas and I moved in. “We’vegot it covered,” I corrected Jake softly. “We want to take care of you and the baby. Please let us.”
Money was a sore spot for her, and we all knew it. She felt lesser than us because she wasn’t in the same financial bracket, and although we’d done our best to convince her otherwise, Alex still had trouble with letting that mindset go.
“It’s one thing to take me to dinner or come with me to a doctor’s appointment,” she said, “but you can’t pay my rent. I’m not going to let you pay my light bill or buy my groceries.”Why not?I wanted to shout it, but I knew it wouldn’t get me anywhere.
“So move in with me.”
The room went silent. We hadn’t discussed living arrangements before, and maybe we should have... because the idea of Jake getting to live with Alex full-time, without Thomas or me, twisted my stomach. “I can’t do that,” Alex said, and my chest relaxed a little.
“Why not?”
“Jake... it just wouldn’t work out,” she said, glancing my way. Her eyes flicked to where Thomas and I stood. She didn’t want to hurt us... and that helped me let go of that jealousy. It wasn’t about me. This was about taking care of our girl.