started to change. Let’s forget it ever happened. And like you said, you didn’t really see anything anyway. Now someone change the subject please,” Piper said, looking expectantly at Jules.
“Oh, all right, well why are you here, Piper? Did you need something or was it a friendly visit? I’ve got to get back up front to help out, so I can’t stay back here too long,” Jules said, amused by Bobby’s red face.
“Actually, I need some time down in the courthouse archives. An attorney friend of mine needs a hand with some research, and I told him I’d help out. I need you to point me in the right direction.” Piper stood, and was ready to get back on course, the one she had been on before Judge Lions physically knocked her off it.
A page rang out over the old intercom system calling Jules to the front to assist. She rolled her eyes and headed for the door. “I swear they can’t last five minutes without me up there. If you want to hang on for a bit, I can come back and help you out. It’s a little confusing down there. It takes a while to find what you’re looking for unless you’ve already used our system.” The static and cracking of the intercom rang out again, calling for Jules to come to the front.
Bobby, looking for a way to make this situation right, cut in with an offer.“I can give you a hand. I know my way around the system pretty well, and we can probably figure out the rest together until Jules gets a free couple of minutes.” Bobby was still not looking directly at Piper for fear his eyes would be drawn back to her chest out of some uncontrollable magnetic curiosity.
“Great,” Jules called as she headed out of the office. “When I get a few minutes I’ll join you guys.” She walked swiftly toward the front of the building as the intercom rang out a third time.
“Bobby, I know you’re busy. I appreciate the offer, but I don’t want to put you out.” Piper was confident that she could have researched the cases she needed with the help of Jules without raising any suspicion, but Bobby was a different story. In the last few weeks that they had spent time together she had found him to be very perceptive. He, in true police officer fashion, asked piercing questions and seemed to retain information exceptionally well.
That troubled Piper. Most people preferred to talk about themselves and rarely remembered details she shared with them about her past. This was helpful as the particulars were all fabricated and, at times, difficult for her to keep straight. It was why, whenever possible, she redirected the conversation away from herself. But this had stopped working with Bobby.
“I know that was kind of awkward, me walking in and seeing you without a shirt, but I don’t want it to make things weird for us. I’ve really enjoyed hanging out over the last few weeks, and I hope this doesn’t mess that up. Before you came along, Jules and I were on a pretty destructive path. You’ve helped offset that dynamic a little, and I don’t want what happened today to wreck things.” Bobby finally found the courage to look back in Piper’s direction as he spoke.
It amazed Piper how much he had changed in the last month compared to the first day she saw him in the diner. It wasn’t limited to the fact that he was much more considerate and soft-spoken than he had been during their first few meetings, but he actually looked different now, too. In the diner he was pale, unshaven, and thin. During the past month he seemed to have gained a much-needed ten pounds, and the color had returned to his cheeks. With his shy smile and his face clean-shaven, Piper found him almost unrecognizable from her first impression.
He was not the same kind of handsome as Michael. He and Michael were polar opposites in many ways. Michael kept his fingernails perfectly groomed and shining, whereas Bobby tended to have painfully short nails often imbedded with grease from the work he had been doing on his truck. Michael had piercing green eyes and Bobby’s were a swirling espresso flecked with gold. Michael was like a performer; he walked with an air of confidence, almost a stage presence. Bobby stood like a soldier, back straight and arms by his side. They were both tall, but Michael