Page 85 of Theirs to Desire (Club M: Boxed Set)

AVERY

M onday morning, I wake up, as Maggie would put it, ready to kick ass and take names. I’ve helped my mother with her medical expenses. Even though she still hasn’t returned my call, I’ve done my duty toward my parents. Now, I’m ready to be done with Victor.

Ten years ago, I’d had to choose between the men I was starting to fall in love with and Victor Lowell, and I’d chosen poorly. This time, things are going to be very different.

My first call is to Garrett Breyman. “Dr. Welch,” he says, sounding harried and busy. “Thank you for calling me back.”

“I didn’t realize I had a choice in the matter,” I retort. “It sounded like you were threatening to arrest me.”

“Umm.” He sounds apologetic. “Listen, I’m going to be honest with you.

I think this whole case is stupid. A complete waste of time.

Out in the city, men are beating their wives.

People are being murdered by gangs. That’s what I should be working on.

Not refereeing some pissing match between two people who have been divorced for almost a decade. ”

“There’s a ‘but’ in that sentence.”

“Your ex-husband is kicking and screaming, and he’s well-connected,” he says frankly. “He wants you arrested.”

My blood runs cold. It’s one thing for Victor to threaten me. It’s another thing entirely for a cop to confirm that yes, there’s a real likelihood that I will face jail time for a crime I didn’t commit.

“My advice to you, Dr. Welch, is to sort this out privately with your ex-husband before things escalate and the police have to get involved.”

Things have already escalated. The police are already involved.

The moment I hang up on the detective, I reach for my handbag, looking for the business card that Nadya Zacharellis gave me on Saturday.

I have no idea how I’m going to afford her, but I’ll figure it out.

I’m not going down without a fight. What Victor is doing is absolutely outrageous, and I’m not going to let him get away with it. I won’t let Victor win.

Her assistant answers her phone. “Nadya Zacharellis’s office,” she says. “This is Gina. How may I help you?”

“My name is Avery Welch,” I reply, trying not to be intimidated. At the club, Nadya had been perfectly friendly. “I was wondering if I could talk to Ms. Zacharellis for five minutes?”

“I’m sorry, she’s in a meeting. Can I take a message?”

I leave one. To my surprise, Nadya Zacharellis calls me back in fifteen minutes. “Avery, Gina said you’re looking for representation?”

“I’m having a dispute with my ex-husband,” I reply. “I could use some legal advice.”

There’s a slight hesitation on the other end. “I’m trying to think of a tactful way of phrasing this,” she says at last. “I’m not cheap.”

“Fifteen hundred dollars an hour, according to Maddox.”

She laughs. “He’s exaggerating. I’m expensive, but it’s not as bad as he’s made it out to be. Can you make it to my office for a consultation and I can give you a more realistic estimate?”

“That sounds great.”

“Great. My schedule is a bit insane. How about seven tonight?” She chuckles. “You’ll have to talk fast. If I’m home later than eight, Jonathan will be exceedingly annoyed with me.”

“I’ll be quick. Thank you. I really appreciate it.”

“No problem, Avery. Any friend of Maddox is a friend of mine.”

“Your ex-husband sounds like a dick.” Nadya Zacharellis leans back in her leather chair. “No offense meant.”

“None taken.” I’m finding it difficult to reconcile the clearly successful lawyer with the woman who was suspended naked in the middle of Club M. “I don’t particularly care about the diamond. I just want Victor out of my life, once and for all.”

“The ring is with the MPDC right now?”

“Yes.”

She nods. “This is a bullshit case,” she says.

“There’s some dispute about who owns the engagement ring if the marriage is called off, but there’s absolutely no doubt that once the marriage takes place, the ring is the property of the woman.

However, there’s a wrinkle. You’re not American, and neither is your ex-husband.

You can’t afford to get arrested. You could be deported for this. ”

Shock courses through my body. “You can’t be serious.”

“I’m not going to let that happen,” she says. She appears to be lost in thought for a moment, and then her expression sharpens. “I think the MPDC had it right. Call your ex.”

“You want me to negotiate?” My heart sinks. I was hoping that Nadya would tell me that Victor had no case at all, and beating him would be trivial.

“Not at all.” Her smile turns feral, and I remember that Maddox called her a barracuda. “I just want to hear what he has to say.”

Her expression encourages me. I reach for the phone she hands me and dial the number Victor gave me when I had dinner with him last week. It rings a long time before he picks up. “Avery, I thought I might be hearing from you.”

Nadya rolls her eyes.

“You thought right. How far do you intend to take this?”

“Right to the point. How very American of you. I’m afraid I’m not quite as blunt as you, my dear. Why don’t we discuss the matter in a couple of weeks over dinner?”

He intends to drag this out. Have me sweating. I almost never lose my temper, but I’m fighting the urge to scream at him and tell him exactly what I think of him.

I look at Nadya for direction. Play along, she mouths.

“Fine. I’ll do this your way. For the moment. ”

“What now?” I slump in my chair. “This is going to drag on for another two weeks? I just want to get on with my life, Nadya. Go to the club with Kai and Maddox, see my clients, make sure my mother’s cancer is getting treated. I don’t want to play Victor’s games.”

“Your mother has cancer?”

“Yes. That’s how this all started. She needed money, and I took the engagement ring to a jeweler to see if I could sell it.”

“Hmm.” She scribbles something on a legal pad. “Look, don’t worry. Go ahead and live your life. Let me handle this.” She lifts her eyes up. “You have told Kai and Maddox about this, haven’t you?”

“No.”

She frowns in puzzlement. “Why not?”

“It was Maddox who gave me the money to pay for my mother’s treatment,” I murmur. “I can’t expect them to solve all my problems. You’re not going to tell him, are you?”

She shakes her head. “Our conversation is privileged. But Avery, can I give you some advice, even though this is none of my business? I’d reconsider if I were you.

I saw the three of you in the club this weekend.

What you have… it doesn’t look casual. It looks real.

You don’t have to let them solve your problems, but you have to let them into your life.

That’s what being in a relationship is about. ”

She’s right. I know she’s right. She’s telling me exactly what I tell my clients on a daily basis.

But this thing between us is fragile. Victor came between us once. I don’t want him to come between us again.

“I pay you a retainer, right?”

“Yes. It’ll be ten thousand dollars. Gina will take care of the details. We’ll bill to your account. I think we can settle this without things getting ugly, but if it goes to court, you’re looking at maybe another thirty or forty thousand dollars in legal fees. Maybe more.”

Bloody hell. It’s a good thing Victor isn’t here. Otherwise, I’d be tempted to strangle him.

I hope my new lawyer takes credit cards.