Page 5 of Pleading Innocence

As I waited for the food to be done, I reached for my tablet that was sitting on the countertop and started to search through the job listings to see if any law firms were hiring. My finger scrolled through the list of job offerings in the classifieds but there were no companies looking to hire lawyers. I was trying to convince myself that everything was going to be okay when I heard my phone ringing in the living room.

I wasn’t sure why I thought it could’ve been a job, but I ran toward it only to find that it was my mother on the line.

“What is this I hear about you quitting your job?!” my mother almost shrieked, though she was far too put together to raise her voice in what she would consider an undignified way.

“Hi, honey.” I heard my father in the background. “Did something happen for you to quit your job?”

“Did you hear your father? He’s asking—” my mother started.

“Yes, Mom. I heard,” I said calmly, though behind my chest my organs clunked about like the noise of objects knocking against each other on a construction site. Had they heard something about Jared and me?

“Honey, what happened? Tell us what happened. I’m sure that no matter what happened, we will be able to make sure that whoever is responsible for you quitting will regret it,” Mother said.

I felt the urgent need to run to the bathroom as nerves twisted up the organs in my belly. “Happened? Happened? Why would you think something happened?” I asked. I tried to sound as calm as possible, but I was sure I was not succeeding.

“Well, because, dear. You don’t quit. You’ve never quit anything in your life. I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t just give up, so something terrible must have happened,” she said.

“No, no. Nothing terrible happened at all.” I hoped my voice sounded reassuring. I didn’t want them to go investigating and find out about the sexual harassment misunderstanding, because if that got back to Chris, he’d kill Jared. He wouldn’t believe that the potential case got dropped because nothing happened. He’d kill his best friend, or the news would kill Chris. I couldn’t let that happen.

I rushed to give them a reason that would keep them from snooping.

“I just could not stand that Jared Crawford. Our personalities clashed so much, and we couldn’t get along. He drives me up a wall and he’s not the most sensible man in the world. I couldn’t continue to work for that man,” I told her.

There was a pause before my mother responded. “Well, I find that hard to believe. I’ve met the man and he’s made quite a name for himself. In fact, I wish Chris were more like him. He’s the furthest thing from ‘not sensible,’” she said.

“Well, geez, Mom,” I said in response to her defense of Jared. I might have almost even been jealous. She sounded like she had a crush on the man and that would be gross and uncomfortable. “Don’t let Dad hear you.” I grimaced.

“Oh, don’t be silly, dear. He’s my son’s best friend. I just meant that he’s an impressive young man. Oh, get your head out of the gutter.” My mother sounded offended.

Okay, I felt a bit more relieved. “Well, I’m sorry for saying it, Mom, but I could not bear working for him for another second. I would’ve probably torn his head off with how much we clashed on repeat, every single day. He’d have driven me crazy. Trust me, Mom, I’m better off for leaving. Plus, it shouldn’t be hard to find a job elsewhere,” I said.

“But, honey, surely we raised you to have thicker skin than that and tougher—” My mother was cut off by a knock on my front door.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Mom. I’ve got to go. There’s someone at the door,” I said, cutting her off.

“Well, then go answer it and come back, I want to—” she attempted.

“Again, I’m sorry, Mom, but I was actually waiting for someone to show up. We’re going out and I’m running late. I’ll talk to you when I get back,” I said.

“Well, all right then. Be safe. Love you,” she said.

“Love you too, Mom,” I said before hanging up as fast as possible.

I breathed a sigh of desperate relief when the phone cut off. I was not in the mood for one of Mom’s lectures. The scent of burning chicken drew my attention to the oven.

“Just a second,” I yelled to whoever was at the door, since I was not actually expecting company.

I switched the oven off and opened it to find that the chicken was smoking and charred. “Aw, man,” I muttered to myself, grabbing the oven mitts to remove the hot tray, dropping it on the counter.

I’d only attempted cooking once in the dorms at law school and it was such a disaster that I’d just resorted to buying food on campus. I looked at it in disappointment and tossed the gloves off before running toward the door.

When I opened it, a smile immediately crept up on my face at the sight of Mario standing in the doorway with wine and takeout. I was so glad that he’d found some of that free time he talked about earlier.

“You made it,” I said, grinning up at him, tugging on his shirt to pull him inside.

He bent to take my lips with his before grinning back at me. “And by the smell and looks of it, I’m guessing that I’m saving you from a night of starvation,” he said.

“In more than one way,” I responded, undoing his shirt buttons as he backed me up toward the counter to put down the food and wine.