Heart Vs. Humbug

“No, Mr. Merlin. By attacking my grandmother you have made it mine.”

His eyes were drawn back to her face. The liquid richness of her voice had not altered. But both the toss of her fiery hair and the sudden blue sparks in her eyes conveyed pure threat. So far this conversation had been full of confrontation and totally lacking in the kind of feminine cajoling he had expected.

Octavia Osborne had a strong will, and it was that will on which she relied. He found himself as stunned by her inner core as he had been by her outer packaging.

Far too stunned.

In a move that he knew to be both prudent and absolutely necessary, he got to his feet and started toward the door.

“Let me show you out, Ms. Osborne. I’m certain your time is valuable and you don’t want to waste it here in a futile attempt to get me to drop my client.”

She joined him at the door a moment later, hurtling her cape expertly across her shoulders and fitting her gloves to her fingers in quick, competent clasps.

“You are making a very grave error representing that man, Mr. Merlin. You will be sorry.”

“The law is on Mr. Scroogen’s side, and I am never sorry to represent the law. Nothing personal, Ms. Osborne.”

She moved closer and looked him straight in the eye, a bold body position reserved only for the fiercest of fighters—or lovers. Her warmth and scent struck him like a blow below the belt, leaving him momentarily both mentally and physically winded.

“If you do not leave my grandmother alone, I will go after your Scrooge of a client and grind him down until the size of his wallet makes even his heart look huge.”

She leaned closer, her sweet breath blowing tantalizingly against his lips. “And everything about it will be personal, believe me.”

She turned then and swept out of his hotel room on that subtle, sophisticated scent that swam in his head until his senses started to spin.

By the time the blaring telephone registered in his ears, Brett realized it had probably gone through several ringing cycles.

He forced himself out of his mental and physical fog, enormously irritated that he had let the woman affect him so strongly. He closed the hotel room door on the now empty hallway. Then he strode toward the phone, grabbed the receiver and said hello.

“It’s Dole,” Scroogen announced on the other end of the line. “I just hung up on a damn irate anonymous caller on my home telephone number!”

“Settle down, Dole. What did the caller say?”

“That they were going to get me. I’m sure it was Mab Osborne’s voice, although she was trying to disguise it. I tell you, Merlin, this morals charge thing is not threatening enough. I want Mab Osborne off the air. She has to be silenced. Forever.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You heard me. I’m going to do whatever it takes to put an end to that woman. Whatever it takes.”

Chapter Two

Octavia strode down the dark hallway of the Seattle law offices of Justice Inc., heading for the one door under which the light still burned. She knocked.

The voice on the other side responded instantly, crisply. She opened the door and stepped inside.

Octavia’s senior partner, Adam Justice, sat behind his desk, his black hair still scrupulously in place, his white shirt unwrinkled, despite the fact that it was nearly midnight and Octavia knew he’d been here since dawn.

“What brings you by so late?” Adam asked, putting down his pen and shifting his paperwork aside.

Octavia had always liked that about Adam. No matter how busy or involved he was on a case, he never failed to stop what he was doing and give her his complete attention.

She swung into a utilitarian steel-and-leather chair in front of his black metal desk. Like the man who inhabited it, this office had been stripped of all but necessary business essentials.

“An attorney is causing some legal problems for my grandmother, and I need to spend time across the Sound in Bremerton to straighten it out.”

“This attorney anyone we know?”

“Brett Merlin. He’s representing a real Scrooge of a small businessman who has it in for my grandmother.”

Adam was silent for a moment before responding.

“Taking on the Magician won’t be easy,” he said.

“I know,” Octavia agreed, thinking about her earlier meeting with Brett in his hotel room. She had hoped to reach him, but he had shown neither compassion nor compromise—a real letter-of-the-law kind of attorney.

The law has no room for a heart. What a perfectly imbecilic thing to say!

Octavia lifted her chin. “He’s about to find out that taking me on won’t be easy, either.”

Her senior partner almost smiled. Almost.

“I...see. But what I don’t see is why Brett Merlin would represent a small businessman against your grandmother. Not more than three weeks ago he was responsible for getting a record 55.5 million jury verdict favoring one of his big corporate clients here in Seattle.”

“It’s a question that’s been on my mind, too, Adam. I’m going to have to rely on A.J. and her detective team to sleuth out the answer.”

“I’m sure she’ll be happy to oblige. If you need my legal assistance or that of any of your fellow partners, you know you only have to ask.”

“I appreciate that. But this is family and that makes it a very personal fight for me.”

“You know how long you’ll be away?”

“Probably through Christmas.”

“Any cases you’re working on that need to be picked up by someone else?”

“Just one. My associate can handle it. I’ve written a few notes to her and left the complete case file on her desk, along with a request to keep you informed of the progress.”

Adam leaned back in his chair as she paused. Octavia knew he was waiting for her to tell him why she was here in person. They both knew there was more, that Octavia could have settled all this with a few telephone calls. She took a deep breath, knowing there was never going to be a “right” moment to broach the subject.

“I want to retain you as my personal counsel, Adam.”

A small frown creased Adam’s brow. “You want me to become your attorney? Officially?”

“As of this moment.” Octavia pulled out a standard Justice Inc. office contract she had already signed and had notarized and passed it across the desk to him along with a check.

Adam scanned the paperwork and check and leaned his forearms on his desk. His light eyes stared into hers.

“This is a bit formal, isn’t it? What’s the story?”