“Probably not. Judge Newland Harris was assigned to the case. He’s a fair judge, but I discovered he was at the club recently for a retirement party, and let’s just say he partook in some caviar.”
Ivy couldn’t help but laugh at that. “This is a bogus misdemeanor, at best.”
“Exactly. In order not to have to recuse himself from the entire case, he’ll probably rule it as that—a misdemeanor with a small fine. I’m hoping he’ll rule in our favor on the second part of the motion, which is to preclude this charge into evidence on the money laundering charge. If this trial turns into a shit show, I don’t need a misdemeanor to give credibility.”
Ivy was impressed. Theo’s reputation for being one of the best defense lawyers preceded him. Even in her small, secluded part of the world, Ivy had heard of him in the past few years. He’d even set a precedent with one of his verdicts. It was nice to put a face to the name.
A very nice face.
Focus!
“I’ll get started on this right away,” she said.
Theo suddenly looked angry, making Ivy wonder what she could have possibly said when she heard it, too. Her hearing was nowhere near as good as a shifter’s, yet far better than a human’s. The whisperings of three of her new co-workers were less than flattering. They seemed to have already labeled her as a judgmental separatist with an air of superiority without having a single conversation with her. She wondered if they had ever actually known any witches.
The whispering ceased when Theo said, “I’ll deal with you three later.” He didn’t bother whispering.
Ivy wished he hadn’t done that. It made her uncomfortable to have the boss fighting her battles for her, which she would just ignore.
“It’s fine,” she told him.
“It’s not fine.”
“I can fight my own battles.”
“You shouldn’t have to.” This time, he raised his voice, then gritted his teeth. “I will not tolerate bigotry at my firm.” He got up, walked to his door, and slammed it shut, and the room quaked a little.
She knew his anger wasn’t directed at her but on her behalf and was touched. God help those poor bastards when he “talked” to them. Kim may be the Alpha of the Pride, but it wasn’t hard to tell Theo was very much an Alpha himself. As charming and animated as he had been just moments ago when they were discussing the case, she could tell this man was not a tiger to be crossed. Her kind wasn’t susceptible to an Alpha’s command, but even she could hear the power that resonated in his voice.
There was an awkward stretch of silence when he sat back down, neither of them knowing what to say to change the subject. Then he tilted his head and stared at her for a beat.
“Have we met before?”
She’d had that same feeling of familiarity but didn’t say that aloud.
“You mean other than this morning?” she replied instead.
“About that…” His tone wasn’t accusatory. She’d dare say it was even playful, lightening the tension.
“He was going to hurt people. I couldn’t let that happen.”
Theo nodded, seemingly empathetic. “You’re a psychic witch?”
Ivy shook her head. “Not really, not a full one, anyway.” She didn’t blame him for asking. Witches came in different flavors. Shifters and even other witches wouldn’t know a witch’s power unless they were told or it was displayed. Some, like Ivy, had more than one ability, and all witches cast spells, harnessing whatever element they were born with as the power behind their words. The strength and talent of each witch’s element varied with what was passed down to them through their ancestral line, and Ivy’s line was powerful.
“Sometimes, I get premonitions, a small glimpse of the immediate future.” They were mostly random, although if she was near her ancestral tree, she could draw on its power to force one. Regardless of how a premonition came to her, she would never ignore it. “If I wasn’t meant to help, I wouldn’t have seen it.”
Theo smiled at her, a genuine, non-devilish smile that made her heart stutter. She only hoped he hadn’t taken notice.
Their conversation ended, and she went back to her office, putting extra effort into stomping on butterflies that dared to flutter.
CHAPTER 3
The arraignment went as Theo predicted. The wiretap was enough for the case to go to trial, but Theo got Petrov out on bail, and a speedy date was set for trial one week later. When he got back to the office after the arraignment, he praised Ivy on a job well done with her motion. Ivy made the bogus charge look like a purposeful add-on to strengthen a very weak case, making Theo confident the motion would end up serving its purpose. The girl knew her stuff.
I’m going to enjoy knocking Cletus on his ass!
What he would enjoy even more right now is for his goddamn tiger to settle his ass down. He’d been pacing in Theo’s mind since the gorgeous platinum-blonde, blue-eyed witch sat down with him in his office on Monday, her heady scent driving both man and tiger crazy. She smelled like wildflowers, cinnamon, and something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on… something familiar. Her breathtaking smile and dimpled cheeks alone were enough to set his soul on fire.
