No longer her friend, she wiggled out of my arms and stomped over to the couch, where she took her seat on the throne.
“We are all against her,” Tristan said, rolling his eyes.
I laughed, offering them something to drink. It didn’t take much longer for my parents to show up. After the Savannah Van Allen case was over, they invited Thea and I out for dinner where they both apologized. It didn’t need to be such a big deal, but it made them more comfortable to do so.
After them came Atticus and his boyfriend, along with Vivian who proclaimed last year at our dinner gathering that she never wanted to be asked about her relationship status.
Apparently it was something personal. I had no idea what that meant, but Thea seemed to get it. Over the years Atticus, Vivian and Thea had become close. As their former professor, and hopefully their future boss, I had a feeling they would be making waves soon.
“Sorry we’re late!” Selene rushed in with DeShawn. Three years later and they were both at Georgetown and going strong. Thea said Selene has smiled more in the last three years than she had ever seen her smile in her entire life. The funny thing was that Selene had said the same thing about Thea. Their father wheeled in her grandmother, and it pained me to think that she might not make it to next year’s get together.
The Ben Walton of now looked nothing like the Ben Walton that had left prison three years ago. He didn’t look much different, other than new clothes, a decent haircut and a smile, but he was simply a different person. He was no longer in denial. Saying it was hard for him to come back into society was a stretch.
When we brought him back with us, he refused to stay inside during the day. He said in jail they were given one hour in a room with a window, so they could see the sun. But for seventeen years, he had never seen the outside.
Odile’s confession had sparked wide range of backlash from every direction. Tristan had been able to keep her out of jail, but she moved to France with her son seeing as how my former business partner left her. He wasn’t too pleased with all the bad press. But then again, I didn’t think he ever loved her. I doubted that Odile would ever be back, but I wished her happiness. Her father had died of a heart attack, and her brother was in prison: the Van Allen family had been shattered by Cole’s actions, and on top of that, they had been ordered to pay a million dollars to Ben Walton for every year that he had been locked up.
“You okay?” Tristan asked, as he came up to where I was with a glass of whiskey.
“Just thinking.”
“That’s dangerous,” he joked.
Other than Thea and her family, the person who had been most affected by the case had been Tristan. The only way he would become my business partner was if we didn't only help the rich anymore. We had received so many letters and calls from people who wanted us to look into their loved ones cases, but they just couldn’t afford to get a decent lawyer. Being the numbers man that he was, he found a way to work out the cost so there was nothing left for me to do but agree. Black-Knox and Associates was thriving better than ever.
“You’re really out of it,” Tristan said as he waved his hand in front of my face.
“Are the hormones as bad as everyone says they are?” I asked him to change the subject.
He looked at up to me his brown eyes widened as he understood what I meant. Finally he grinned.
“That explains it.”
“So, is that yes?”
“That is… good luck.”
He kept snickering as he made his way over to his family.
“Professor Black?” Thea whispered, coming up behind me.
She was as beautiful as ever in her bright red dress. She took my arm and handed me my tie that I hadn’t gotten the chance to put on yet.
“You haven’t called me that in a long time,” I told her.
It sounded even sexier now.
“I know, I’ve just been thinking about stuff.”
“A penny for your thoughts?” I asked her.
“Only a penny, Mr. Black? What type of girl do you think I am?”
I grinned at her as I took her into my arms and kissed her soft lips.
“I don’t care who or what you are, as long as you’re mine.” I spun her around and held her hands for a moment as I stared at her.
“What?”