Not who loved whom.
“I’m on my way to the jail now,” she told Marie. While Gabrielle would have liked to hang up to concentrate on the hour ahead of her and the legalities involved in getting her client out of jail before dinner, Marie, who was understandably wound up, needed to talk.
Gabrielle told Marie about her morning screwup. Asked Marie if she’d seen anything on the news about it. She hadn’t. Which meant it hadn’t yet made national news.
With any luck, it wouldn’t.
“Grace has been fretting most of the day,” Marie said next. “She’s bothered by all of the reporters. Several of them are.”
“I’ll bet Janice thinks the whole thing’s exciting,” Gabrielle said, calming as she pictured the residents who were depending on the three of them to keep them securely in their homes. “Maybe you should call a meeting after you close the s
hop,” she suggested. “Just let everyone know what’s going on and about the security company we’ve hired to ensure that they can come and go without hassle or fear.”
“I had Sam hand deliver memos to every single tenant first thing this morning,” Marie told her. And Gabrielle knew she should have thought of it.
Marie counted on her to be Threefold’s legal advisor. And that morning she’d been too busy thinking about how she was going to look as she represented Liam when she walked out the door to think about anything else.
Like keeping her head about her as she took on media representatives who were out to use the Connelly misfortune to their own benefit.
Liam was consuming her. Not just her mind, but her emotions. And those emotions were clouding her thoughts.
That had to stop.
* * *
HE SAW THE gorgeous woman standing in the lobby of the police station first. The two-inch heels clicked prettily as she walked, drawing his attention. His gaze traveled from there up over slim ankles, long, perfectly shaped legs, a black skirt and a tailored jacket with bow-shaped silk buttons at the waist, and the police station, the afternoon faded away for that split second. He was himself again. Taking interest in a woman he’d yet to meet...
“I’m sorry it took me so long to get here.”
At first he recognized the voice as if he was in a fog. Recognized the heels walking toward him. It was as though he’d known already.
And didn’t want to know.
“Are you okay?” The heels were toe to toe with his smudged dress shoes. “Your pants, they’re stained. Were you in a fight?”
The beautiful woman was his attorney. He’d been ready to flirt with Gabrielle.
“Don’t worry about the time,” he said, infusing so much cheer in his voice he convinced himself that he was fine. “I could have called your office phone, but I thought it would do my father some good to spend the afternoon knowing that his son was in jail. Until now it’s been the one place he forbade me to go that I didn’t.”
“I apologize that you had to make the trip down here,” Tanner said from just behind Liam.
“What happened?” Gabrielle asked as they walked with the officer who’d escorted them from the holding cell toward the window where they could sign to have their things returned to them.
“I insisted on seeing my father.” Liam could do his own talking. “I stood outside and called his phones, cell and office, more than once, leaving a message on his office recorder, letting him know that I wasn’t going anywhere, so he might as well pick up. When none of that worked, I went inside.”
“Liam told his father he wanted to help him,” Tanner butted in. “Next thing you know there’s three squad cars pulling up and we’re both in handcuffs being carted away.”
Liam was shown to the window and signed for his wallet, briefcase, belt and cell phone. Tanner did the same.
“It’s all over the news,” Gabrielle said softly as, with officers watching them, they headed out into the cold.
Liam wasn’t sure he cared at the moment.
More pressing was the woman walking with him to her car. She looked so...feminine. And it felt so good, having her there rescuing him. As if he was hers to rescue...
Suddenly this moment, not the one when he’d been cuffed and pushed down into a squad car, was the scariest part of the day.
It shamed him, this inexplicable need to be tied to her. She was there to help him. As his attorney. She was one of his very best friends. She trusted him.