Falling for the Lawyer - By Anna Clifton Page 0,58
time later she began to wonder why, given the turmoil of the last few days, she was feeling a very new and very strange sense of lightness, as though someone had lifted a hundred kilos of weight from her shoulders. And despite her apprehension about facing JP that day the feeling of lightness was growing steadily with every passing minute. And only then did Alex understand what it was.
She wasn’t worrying about disappointing anyone anymore.
She remembered that feeling of long ago when her life had been simple and anxiety free. But at some point over the last few years she’d taken on the enormous burden of trying to be too many things to too many people—no more.
Sophie was right. Simon would be okay; she knew that. The only person she had to make sure she didn’t let down now was herself, and she was determined that would never happen.
JP had summed it up two nights before when he’d told her he wanted to see her fight for what she wanted. Well, from this day onwards she would do just that. She would seize her dreams and make them a reality, no matter how impossible the odds. In her own quiet way, she knew her life was going to be very different.
Now all she had to do was bottle that feeling and radiate it around herself. And she’d start that very morning with JP because she knew she wanted him to be a part of her life more than anything else in the world.
There was just one problem—a small chink in her new armour of optimism. Sure, she may have decided she wanted JP but that didn’t mean he was there for the taking. After all, two nights ago they’d mutually banished one another from their personal lives for good. And yesterday he was disappearing in cabs to mystery destinations with his all too recent ex-girlfriend.
Well too bad. When she walked into that office today it would be as though she were meeting him again for the first time. She would hold her head high and be utterly professional. Being with JP on any level was the only thing that mattered, even if the only relationship he would offer her was as her boss, and probably only briefly at that.
Cathy, the firm receptionist, beamed at the two girls as they walked into Griffen Murphy Lawyers half an hour later.
“They’ve all gone!” she announced before the girls had time to speak. “Everyone from commercial and litigation has headed over to the rugby field already. You’ll have to hurry up,” she advised, calling out good luck as they disappeared back into the lift.
Less than ten minutes later, as she and Sophie made their way down through the Domain parkland beyond the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Alex could see a crowd had already gathered beside the rugby field. Small groups of staff from the firm were lazing about on the hill next to it and enjoying the warm, soon to be blistering, summer sun. However, there were two other groups kitted out in sports gear who were milling about next to the sidelines. Even from a distance Alex could tell they were swapping tactics and pep talks.
She saw JP almost immediately in the middle of one of the groups. He was wearing a footy singlet and shorts, and although not the tallest man in the litigation team his sheer size seemed to dwarf them all. He emanated power from the bulk of his shoulders, chest and arms, soon to be called into impenetrable rigidity when the game began. Alex remembered what his protective motives were for first developing that build and wished she could return to that night in his car when he’d shared them with her, especially now that she might never share an intimate moment like that with him again.
Alex approached the group. A couple of the team members stood back to let her join in and at that moment Michael Porter, often short on office etiquette, let out a long, cool wolf whistle for her benefit.
“It’s okay!” Alex announced as she took up a position in the circle and rubbed her hands together before continuing with a grin, “You can all relax. Your star player has arrived.”
She beamed at everyone and then drove her gaze at JP. He was already busy checking out her outfit: lightweight black shorts, singlet top and running shoes.
But JP sensed instantly there was something else that was different about Alex Farrer that morning. For