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o ce, but since Ari managed to make it on time, it must be something else.”

Arwyn had the decency to look mortified by his attempt to shame her. The other three found themselves suddenly very interested in the blank pages in front of them.

“Care to share with the rest of the class why you don’t value their time?” His permanently pinched face was too small for his head, and she wondered if that’s what made him desperate for authority over others.

“Oh sure.” Sloane smiled as she regarded her colleagues while taking the empty seat next to Arwyn. “I’m on the second day of my period. A particularly heavy flow day for me personally, I don’t know about you girls,” she added, looking to her right and then at the other woman across the conference table. “Wrestling with these excruciatingly tight pantyhose took a little longer than I expected since I’m retaining so much water, and then I realized I’d stained—”

“That’s enough,” he interrupted in a screech, a fierce blush spreading from his face to his ears and up his scalp where his wispy brown hair was thinning prematurely.

“Thank you,” he added after clearing his throat and lowering his voice.

“Anytime,” she replied, crossing one leg over the other as she reclined in her seat with her yellow pad in her lap, poised to write every word he said.

From his seat at the head of the table, Ralph looked through his things as if so thoroughly thrown o he couldn’t remember why he’d called the meeting in the first place.

As he struggled, Sloane watched Arwyn. Her shoulders were shaking, and her chin was digging into her chest, the

tell-tale signs of a person desperate to stop laughing. Sloane didn’t bother stifling her own amusement.

“Right.” He cleared his throat again as if the gesture would magically return his composure. “You all have cases we expect to go to trial. For your first time, I’ll be your trial partner. Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle.”

Sloane instantly disliked the way he looked at Arwyn when he said first time. It had a creepy undertone that made her skin crawl.

She doesn’t even play for your team, dickbag.

As he talked, he consistently made eye contact with Arwyn more than anybody else. Far more. And it wasn’t even because she was playing teacher’s pet like she usually did.

Half the time she was looking down writing notes.

Sloane’s inner lioness stirred. She leaned forward, drawing Ralph’s attention to herself. When their gazes connected, she made sure he realized she was watching him.

He stumbled over his words and lost his place. The sign of a guilty mind.

It wasn’t that she cared about Arwyn specifically. After all, despite looking younger than her, Arwyn was a month older than Sloane, but it was the principle. Ralph was in a supervisory roll and needed to keep his lecherous looks, and thoughts, in check.

“Reina is going to trial next week,” he said, still red-faced as he turned his body to the other side of the table, prompting Sloane to relax back into her seat. “She’s been kind enough to let me prep her witness with all of you as a teaching exercise.”

As they waited for the complaining witness to join them, Reina gave them the brief rundown of the case. Two middle-aged brothers living together got in a scu e on the Fourth of July over who was going to light the fireworks. When one got the better of the other in the fight, their mother called police and one was charged with domestic violence for throwing the first punch.

“Crime of the century,” Sloane muttered under her breath.

“No surprise, brother doesn’t want to testify against brother,” Ralph said as he stood with his hands in his trouser pockets.

“Can’t we prove the case without him?” Arwyn asked.

“Are there other witnesses? Maybe we can call someone else and spare him the trauma of testifying.”

“There’s only the mom,” Reina replied. “And despite the 911 call where she’s giving a play-by-play of the fight, she’s ready to perjure herself and say nothing happened or that she doesn’t remember.”

“How about a deal?” Sloane asked. “Have you o ered him probation in exchange for a plea?”

Reina nodded. “He wants to take his chances at trial. I think he thinks a jury will understand these things happen, no major damage was done, and acquit him of the charge.”

Sloane nodded. It was a decent strategy. If she was on the jury, she might be persuaded to use her pardon power if no one was hurt. Plus, he was going to end up convicted of a misdemeanor either way if he lost. Not a ton of incentive to plead guilty.

After more group analysis of Reina’s case, the brother finally arrived. He didn’t appear too keen on talking in front of the small group, prompting Sloane to wonder if they’d even warned him about the audience. Amateurs.

When they were finished, Arwyn was still jotting down notes as the others filed out of the room. Sloane hesitated.