Chapter4
1624 Words
Olivia's POV
I could not stop thinking about him.
Which was completely insane. I was supposed to be thinking about legal strategies and leverage.
I was supposed to be saving my career.
But I was doing anything but that.
I was sitting at my desk at eleven PM, searching "Jax Iron Wolves MC Brooklyn" for the fifteenth time and finding absolutely nothing useful.
The man had no criminal record. No jail time.
Not even a social media presence, except for a few mentions in local newspaper articles.
How was that even possible?
It was like the man didn't exist outside that clubhouse.
"You're still here?”
I jumped and rushed to close the browser window. When I looked up, Chloe was standing in the doorway with two coffees and a sympathetic smile.
“I'm just finishing up some research,” I said as I accepted the coffee she offered, “Thanks,”
“On the biker case? You didn't tell me how the meeting went,” She said as she dropped into the seat across from me, “Harlord's been asking around,”
Why was I not surprised?
“As expected, they're resistant,”
“And what's he like? The leader, Jax? Is he as scary as they say?” Chloe asked.
Scary was not the word I'd use. I liked intense better.
“He’s…difficult,” I said slowly.
“In what way?”
“He won't negotiate. And it's stressing me out,” I rubbed my temples, “It's going to be a fight,”
“Well, I know if anyone can win a fight, it's you. Just don't let him get in your head. Guys like that, they're good at manipulation.” Chloe said.
“You sound like you know the type.”
She raised her hand up in mock surrender, “I have dealt with my share of bad boys. They're all the same once you figure out what they want.”
A few minutes after she left, Ethan walked into my office like he owned it.
I mean, it made sense, given that his company was currently paying Sterling & Associates a fortune.
“Liv,” He gave me a smile that was all teeth, “Damn, you look incredible,”
In the past, my heart would have raced as a result of the compliment.
Now, I felt only pure, unadulterated disgust.
Also, I looked like I'd slept three hours and mainlined coffee. But Ethan had always been a good liar.
“What are you doing here?” My voice was cold.
“Visiting my favorite lawyer,” He stepped closer to me, and I stepped back.
“I'm busy, Ethan,”
“Too busy for lunch. Come on, we should collaborate on the Iron Wolves situation. I heard you met with them yesterday. How'd it go?”
I pulled away from him, pretending that I needed something from my desk,
“It went fine,”
“Oh come on, you have to do better than that,” Ethan said, “What about Jax? Is he going to be a problem?”
"Why are you so interested in him?"
"Because he's standing between me and thirty million dollars in profit.” Ethan said with a smirk, “So tell me, smart or aggressive?”
He's everything you can never be Ethan, "I said inwardly.
“He's protective of his property, but that's normal,” I said simply,
“Protective in what way?”
“Ethan, I'm not giving you intel to blindside my negotiation. Let me do my job,”
“Our job? You seem to forget we're partners on this,” Ethan said.
How exciting, I thought. We used to be partners in everything in the past.
"No. You're the client. I'm the lawyer. There's a difference.”
“You're right, I'm sorry. Forgive me for being too eager. The sooner we close, the sooner we can all move on.”
When he left, I collapsed into my chair with a loud sigh.
I was grateful he was finally out of my way.
Through my office window, I could see Chloe at her desk. She'd been watching the entire interaction, her expression unreadable.
Great. Just great.
By the time I got to the clubhouse with a revised offer, it was 2 pm, and I had a splitting headache.
Tank answered the door. And he looked quite unhappy to see me, “He’s not here,”
I blinked, sure I had caught a faint whiff of Jax's cologne.
“Where is he?” I asked, not allowing the big man to intimidate me.
“Next door. Bar.” He pointed towards a building positioned beside the garage, “Probably doesn't want to be disturbed.”
“Too bad,”
Reaper’s Haven was where I found Jax. He was busy wiping down glasses.
He'd traded his leather jacket for a plain black tee that looked wonderful on him.
And his hair looked wet, like he'd just showered.
He looked up when I walked in, and I could have sworn I saw something flicker in his eyes. Surprise or amusement, I couldn't tell, but it was gone too fast; I was not able to catch it.
"Counsellor. Couldn't stay away?"
"I have a revised offer,” I said, opening my briefcase.
“Of course you do,” He set down the clean glasses, “Bar’s closed for cleaning, but I can make an exception for persistent lawyers. You drink?”
“It's two in the afternoon,” I said
“And that's not a no,” He smirked and pulled out two glasses, “Besides, if we're going to have another round of you trying to buy my soul and me telling you to f**k off, we might as well do it over decent alcohol.”
The sensible thing to do was to say no. I should have handed him the contract and left.
But instead, I found myself sitting on a barstool.
“Thought as much. What do you want?” Jax asked.
“Whiskey. Neat,”
He groaned, and I felt the vibration of it in my core, “Boring. Try this instead,”
He ignored my request and started mixing something with vodka, lime, and herbs I didn't recognize.
"You're in my bar, counselor. You get what I give you." He slid the drink across. "Trust me.”
With that face, it was definitely easy to trust him.
I took a sip, and oh – it was perfect. Crisp but slightly sweet.
"Fine. It's good.”
“You don't have to tell me,” He said as he fixed up something darker for himself. "So what's the revised offer? Sterling sends you back with threats?”
"Double the original amount. Eighty million.” I replied.
He looked at me for a moment, then laughed. Hard, “Are you serious? You think money's going to change my mind? What's next, ninety? A hundred?”
“Well,” I said, “Most people have a price,”
"I'm not most people.” He leaned against the bar, his eyes searching my face, “But I have a feeling you know that already. So why are you really here, Olivia?”
The use of my first name startled me. I cleared my throat, “To do my job,”
"Bullshit." His eyes pinned me in place. "You hate this case. I saw it on your face yesterday. You don't want to be here any more than I want you here.”
“What I want does not matter,” I said.
“Feels good when you lie to yourself, huh?” He asked, his eyebrow slightly c****d, “Because from where I'm standing, you look like someone who's fighting a war they don't believe in.”
"You don't know anything about me.”
"I know you're smart. I know you're ambitious. And I know Ethan Caldwell is using you now, sending you to clean up his mess. Must make you feel great.”
I froze for a moment, then my fingers tightened around the glass, “How do you –”
“I pay attention, Olivia,” Jax said. That's it, I could listen to him say my name all day long.
"Look, I don't know what hold Sterling has on you,” He continued, running a hand through his hair, “Don't know why you're really pushing this deal. But I can see you're drowning, Olivia. And nobody wins when you're fighting for the wrong side.”
"The wrong side?" I stood, anger flooding through me. "You think you're the good guy here? You're a biker running a garage. Ethan's building something that will bring jobs, revenue –”
"Ethan's destroying a community so rich people can have a nice view." Jax said, "Don't insult my intelligence by pretending this is about economics.”
We glared at each other for a while.
"Why do you care?" I finally asked. "About me, I mean. Why warn me?”
“Because someone's gotta tell you,”
His words were like a punch to my gut. How could he talk to me like I was some child?
“And I'm not a terrible person even though you're trying to destroy my life,”
My heart was pounding at this point. I toyed with my pendant.
"I should go," I whispered.
"Yeah. You should."
Neither of us moved.
"Olivia –”
My phone rang at that moment. It was Harlord shattering the moment.
Reality crashed back.
I grabbed my briefcase and the unread contract. "I'll send the revised offer by email."
"Don't bother.”
I turned and headed towards the door, but just before I walked out, a strong hand grabbed me,
“Olivia,”
- Writer
