[Legal 01.0] Legal Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Quote

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Epilogue

  Chase

  Lyrical

  Bree’s Happy Endings

  About the Author

  Copyright Notice

  Music is what feelings sound like.

  ~Author Unknown

  “Hurry up! I think my nipples are melting off.”

  “Your nipples are fine.” I turned my backside toward the full-length mirror and did another inspection. There was no doubt the dress was definitely shorter than anything I’d worn in a long time. Maybe ever. The thought of wearing it out in public made my stomach flip.

  Perry’s footsteps echoed down the hallway as she made her way closer to my bedroom. “Seriously, Jills, it’s like a hundred degrees in here.”

  I lifted my hair off my shoulders, debating whether or not I should clip it up. It was a scorcher out there, the hottest day of the year. Maybe not in the triple digits, but close enough to lust after a shower every five minutes.

  “I don’t understand why you don’t just get the damn air conditioner fixed once and for all. It’s not like you can’t afford it. Do you want that hot barista to sweat his balls off when you bring him back here after your date?”

  “I don’t have to worry about that because I’m not going to date him. You know very well he’s too young for me.”

  “God, you are so—”

  Her sentence cut short when she rounded the doorway. “Up or down?” I asked, bunching a handful on top of my head.

  “Down.” I dropped my hand. Yeah, that way did look better with the dress. It could sometimes be ten degrees cooler by the lake, and that’s what I’d have to bet on. “Holy fuck, you pull off that dress better than me. How am I ever supposed to wear it again now? You’ve ruined it.”

  I glanced over at Perry, chuckling at her pouty expression. Exaggeration or not, it was sweet of her to say. “It’s my project for tomorrow.” I grabbed my purse off the bed and ruffled through it, making sure I had enough cash for the night. “There’s a little piece that Mike would tweak whenever it went out. It always seemed easy enough, so I’m sure I can learn to do it myself. I don’t need to hire anyone.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” She snatched one of my magazines from the dresser and turned it into a makeshift fan.

  I got down on my knees and started rifling through the closet, looking for shoes. “The air conditioner, remember? The thing you were just complaining about a minute ago?” I tossed aside my cute sandals, which would have complemented my outfit perfectly, in favor of a well-worn pair of flip-flops. I knew better than to torture my poor feet in the name of fashion. I was so done with that.

  “Forget the sweat box—that’s old news. What’s trending now is you in that dress. You look fucking hot, Jills. I wish I had your legs. I’m so jealous.”

  Said the woman who looked flawless wearing nothing more than short shorts and a teeny camisole. In all the time I’d known her, I don’t think I’d ever seen her anything less than perky.

  Me, on the other hand….

  I stood and smoothed down the flimsy material, adjusting myself. “Yeah, are you jealous of these too?” I flattened my hands over my breasts, turning sideways toward the mirror. I swore they’d fallen since the night before. Hmm… maybe Perry was onto something with this melting thing. Once I had the cold air blasting again, they’d pop back up, and I could freeze them into place. It was a nice fantasy.

  “You’re crazy. There’s nothing wrong with your tits.”

  “My neighbor told me it happens overnight. You go to bed with them pointing north, and in the morning, you’re tripping over them. Same thing with your ass. I’m waiting for that to go next. She said one day, out of the blue, she put on her jeans, and it looked like she had flat metal bars in the back pockets. Her butt was sagging down to her thighs.”

  “She probably shit in her pants. Isn’t she like eighty?”

  “She’s forty-nine!”

  “Huh. Well, she looks a lot older.” Perry grabbed my arm. “Come on. I don’t want to be late for the show. You look perfect. There’s nothing more to do here.”

  My mile-long to-do list rolled through my head. “Do I have a second to—”

  “No. Do not even think about it, Jills. All work and no play, and… you know the rest.”

  “I play.” I slipped my feet into the shoes, thinking my polish could use a touch-up. Even with my sight focused downward, I could sense Perry’s eyes rolling.

  “Whatever. Your computer’s off-limits. It can wait until tomorrow.”

  I slung my purse over my shoulder. “I just need to turn off all the fans before we go.”

  Perry headed toward the door adjoining my bedroom and home office. “Fine, but I’m checking this room.”

  I sighed. She knew me so well. If I went in there, I wouldn’t be able to resist peeking at the screen. I exited through the opposite door and flip-flopped to the kitchen.

  “Hey, what’s with all the boxes? You moving and didn’t tell me?”

  I switched off a window fan, then flicked it back on. Maybe it was an electrical hazard, but I needed some kind of circulation in the house, or I’d stick to the floor when I came home.

  I walked over and poked my head into the office, careful not to step over the threshold. Perry’s face was buried in a box of board games. She pulled out Bunked from the top of the pile, then tossed it back down before moving on to the next.

  “Not moving, just cleaning house. Doing a little decluttering. I’ve put it off too long, but now that Daniel’s gone, there’s no need to continue holding on to all this stuff.”

  Perry looked up and nodded. Then she came over and took my hand. “Come on, Jills. I’ll drive. It’s time to get you the hell out of this house.”

  The closer we got to the lakefront, the further my nerves unraveled. For the most part, I was pretty comfortable with myself, but who was I fooling? Having a decent figure from the waist down didn’t mean I should traipse around in an outfit meant for someone in their first couple decades of life. I felt like an imposter.

  “Will you chill out already?” Perry glanced over, watching me fidget to cover up parts of myself I didn’t want flopping out. “You look amazing, so start acting like it.”

  As soon as she pulled onto Jackson, I decided she was right. Not about the amazing part, but the need to relax. I didn’t have a spare set of clothes in my purse, so I might as well enjoy myself. Hell, there’d probably be great-grandmothers flaunting bikini tops, so I didn’t know w
hy I was getting so worked up about a pushing-forty-year-old in a skimpy sundress.

  The attendant waved Perry into the parking lot, and she swung into a spot, pulling next to a pack of teenagers getting out of their Jeep. When she opened her door, a blast of sticky heat tumbled in, coating me and turning the fifteen minutes of icy air I had into a distant memory.

  I flipped down my visor and dabbed away the sweat collecting on my brow before throwing open my door. So much for it being cooler down here. If anything, it was hotter, and there were still a good couple hours to go before the sun went down. I stepped out, but not before grabbing a wad of Starbucks napkins she had stashed in her console and swiping it over the back of my neck.

  “You do know that’s like toweling yourself off while still in the pool, right? It’s a thousand percent humidity out here, so you just have to deal with it and not worry about dripping all over the place.”

  “Weren’t you the one making a big deal about my broken air conditioner?” The mental image of hoards of fairgoers bumping their drenched bodies against each other suddenly made me question coming out for the night. It was actually quite comfortable in my little office with the fans blasting away. And I did have lots of work to finish….

  “Yes, when we were stuck inside, but now that we’re in the open air, it’s a whole new game.” Perry raised my arm high, no doubt flashing everyone behind us. “How can you not be psyched right now? We’re at a huge fucking outdoor music fest. Bands, food, beer. Fun, fun, fun. All you have to do is venture a few steps forward, and it can all be yours today.”

  I laughed and lowered my arm. “You sound like an infomercial.”

  “Seriously, Jills. You’re in your element here. How long’s it been?”

  “I don’t even know. They still had rides here, though. I remember bringing Daniel during the day.” God, that had to be over ten years ago. She raised her eyebrows. “Do not even say anything.”

  “I was only going to say I’m happy you’re here.” She smiled sweetly. “That’s all.”

  I nodded. Perry had tried to bring me back for years, but I always had some reason to decline. I stared at the large white gates leading into the fairground and felt a little giddy. She was so right. I deserved this night. My life needed to consist of more than sitting behind a desk, and this was the perfect place to start.

  “Okay,” I said, smiling in response to her tugging me off the lot. “I’m going. You don’t need to reveal my panties again.”

  I stepped around a man selling giant balloon animals and almost collided with another. “Tickets?” he asked, holding out a stack.

  Perry pursed her lips and dug through her bag frantically. I held it open wider for her. “Do not tell me you forgot the tickets.” She was supposed to be in charge of them. My legs started bouncing. Suddenly, I wanted nothing more than to be inside the park, sipping a cold one and swaying my hips.

  “Ha! Got you.” She closed her purse and grinned widely. “See, you really do want to be here.”

  I shook my head at the scalper, and we moved on down the sidewalk. It only took a few seconds before I busted out laughing, and Perry soon followed. “Yes, you’ve made your point. I’m ready to go have some fun. Honest.”

  “That’s the spirit. Now, repeat after me: I look fucking gorgeous tonight.”

  “I look gorgeous tonight.” Perry, my biggest cheerleader.

  “Good, close enough. And I’m not going to fill my head with marketing pitches or asset reports or whatever other boring thing I do twenty-four seven.”

  “I am not going to think about work.” A weak breeze wafted over us, and it felt wonderful. I was starting to get even more excited.

  “And I’m going to get laid tonight.”

  “Perry!”

  “Just thought I’d slip that one in there. A night out isn’t all you’re due for.”

  I opened my mouth to deny it but shut it just as quickly. Dammit. She was probably right about that too. If I weren’t careful, my vagina would revert back to virgin status.

  We came to the entrance and Perry pulled out the tickets, frowning at her phone. “What’s up?”

  She sighed loudly. “Stephen’s stuck at work. A sev one issue or some shit like that. All I know is that he probably won’t be meeting us tonight.” I nodded, knowing that when my brother had major problems at the company, he couldn’t leave until they were resolved. “Oh well, more fun for us.”

  Perry smiled, but it wasn’t very convincing. She handed me my ticket for the attendant to scan, then did the same with hers. She received a grin from him in return; not a polite thank you one, but an I’d like to hook up with you later smile that garnered no attention from her. Foolish boy; couldn’t he see he was wasting his charms on the wrong girl?

  “Any special acts you came for this evening?” he asked.

  I refrained from responding with, ‘Just browsing.’ I got the impression he was just feeling her out since the gate workers usually didn’t make small talk. He was backing up the line, but Perry had that effect on men.

  “Hallowed Realm,” she replied quickly as we pushed our way through, nearly mowing down a bachelorette party. The bride-to-be wore a princess crown and little else.

  “And you were freaking out about a tasteful little dress.”

  “She looks half my age, Perry. It’s hardly the same.” She shrugged, but then her face grew pained as she watched the drunken group twirl away through the crowd. Most of the time, her amount of patience blew me away, but certain things like that would come along and trigger her.

  “You know,” she said, “with Stephen not around to slobber all over me, I’ll have more time to spend with the hot lead singer.”

  We headed over to the information desk to grab a program, the smell of chlorine from the cooling fountains making my eyes water.

  “Your friend, Stu? I thought you said he’s gay.” And even if he weren’t, it didn’t matter how hot he was; I knew her well enough to know she’d never consider doing anything to hurt my brother.

  “He is, but what the fuck, Jills? It’ll be six years next week.”

  I felt for her; I really did. “Just give it a little more time, okay? There’s no question how much he loves you. You two are perfect for each other.”

  Perry waved her hand. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Of course, I’ll give it more time.” She sighed. “I always do. But he’d better get his ass in gear soon.”

  I agreed, chomping down on my tongue to keep the words contained. What was taking him so long? He already had the ring. He didn’t need to assemble the perfect proposal. Perry didn’t care about that; she just needed him. I was keeping the secret because he’d asked me to, and I wanted it to be special for her, but it was killing me. I didn’t know how much longer I could hold it in.

  “So, how much time until they play?”

  Perry double-checked the schedule. “Not for another hour, but I want to get there early so we can be right up front. They’ll be down at the north end.”

  “Okay, how about we go down there and walk around a bit? We can grab a beer and check out some other music.”

  “Sounds good.”

  We aimed for the nearest stand and waited in line, my body buzzing with all the energy of the place. I couldn’t believe I’d stayed away so long. Before all the responsibilities set in, I used to save up my vacation time so I could spend the full eleven days down here every summer.

  Perry held up two fingers when it was our turn at the counter, pointing once to the wine tapper, then to the beer. The man gave her a good looking over before tapping his finger on the We Card sign. She turned to me with a huge grin and whipped out her ID. Braggart.

  I downed half of mine in one gulp. I’d make sure to get some food in my stomach before too long, but it was hard not to be parched when I could literally fry up a breakfast sandwich on the pavement below me.

  We weaved in and out of the people, making our way to the far end of the park. If I remembered correctly, a lot of ne
w and upcoming bands played that stage. I was really looking forward to checking them out.

  “Hallowed Realm, right?” I’d never heard of them, but Perry said they’d only been around for a few years and mainly performed local gigs.

  “Yep, you’ll love ‘em.” Perry tugged sharply on my arm, almost knocking my cup to the ground as she pulled me in a different direction. She pointed upward to the Sky Glider. “Sorry, I don’t want to be spit on.”

  I laughed. “That’s one of those things they always say happens, but I’ve never seen it.”

  “Well, I’m not taking the chance. The only secretions I want on me are Stephen’s. If he’s going down on me, he can cover me in as much spit as he wants.”

  “I’m going to act like I never heard that.” Having a future sister-in-law as a best friend had many advantages. Hearing about my brother’s sex life wasn’t one of them. “Oh, my God. Is that a tattoo parlor?”

  “Yeah, you interested? Someday I’d love to get another one.”

  I shook my head. When I was younger, I always wanted one but couldn’t decide on the right design. Something sexy could turn downright scary when body parts started to shift. “Just look at that line.”

  “It’s like that every year. They must make a killing here.”

  “I imagine.” Set up shop in a place of lowered inhibitions? It’s a recipe for success.

  We spent some time browsing the outdoor shops before Perry wanted to go secure her spot. To my surprise, there were already quite a few people guarding their space on the bench. It was one of the smaller stages without a huge amount of seating. We plunked down on the first row next to a woman with so many piercings in her face she looked like a disgruntled porcupine. My head ached looking at her.

  “Excuse us,” I said. “My friend knows the band.” The woman rolled her eyes and turned her back on us.

  I fanned myself with the program, lifting the hair off my neck. I’d resigned to the fact that I probably looked like a drowned rat by this point, but so did everyone else. It wouldn’t be dark for a good forty-five minutes, and the space was filling up quickly. Comfort was no longer a priority; I just wanted to get lost in some music. Except….

  “Do your best to save my spot, okay? I need to run to the bathroom.”