What's a Girl to Do? (Season 3)

Chapter Ten: Why Not Me?

The notion that I officially had to juggle my responsibility for Iana, a murder trial, and not one but two men in my life was the understatement of the century. The rest of the month of March continued, the trial having moved on from opening arguments to key people in Paul Farris's life testifying both for and against him as the trial continued. It seemed that money could buy you friends, but it also made you enemies, and it was clear to see where the lines in the sand were drawn as the trial went on.

In the first week of April, Nicholas and I were thrown when Paul Farris's lawyer requested to speak to the judge, and he and I immediately moved to follow him. As we clustered around the judges' pulpit, curiosity ebbing off of the two of us, we turned to look at the lawyer, Franklin Schmidt, who thought he was pretty slick, and had even implied more than once that I belonged in a kitchen and not a courtroom. I was pleased that Nicholas moved automatically between the two of us, not wanting him to smack me, as he'd attempted to do more than once to my ass when he was convinced I was merely an assistant to Nicholas and not a full-fledged attorney.

"Your Honor, I've just received word this morning that Pamela Farris would be very interested in testifying in this case," he said smartly.

Nicholas and I looked at each other, and I immediately nodded for him to speak. "Your Honor, as you well know, Miss Gallagher and I were unaware of this."

"Not to mention the controversy attached to it, Your Honor," I said quickly, "what with the notion that the proposed witness is married to the suspect."

The judge sighed; Judge Gresham, although excellent at his job, was not nearly as patient as Judge Whitmore was, and didn't seem to really like lawyers at all. "I am well aware of the fact that you and Miss Gallagher were unaware of the proposed witness, Mr. Blomqvist," he said, leaning forward then. "However, I enjoy a little controversy in my courtroom, and so, I shall throw in an incentive your way."

"Yes?" Nicholas asked.

"Should Mrs. Farris act belligerent in any way, I give you leave to question and treat her as a hostile witness," Judge Gresham replied, pulling his notes forward. "Now, when will Mrs. Farris be arriving?"

"She will be here after lunch, Your Honor," Schmidt replied.

"Excellent," he said, checking his golden pocket watch, which just made the entire situation seem all the more archaic. "It's nearly noon now, so we'll resume at one for the questioning of Mrs. Farris. Agreed?"

"Agreed," Schmidt, Nicholas, and I said.

"Court is adjourned for lunch," Judge Gresham said as we three retreated back to our tables, and he slammed his gavel down from within his pulpit before returning to chambers.

"Thirty minutes back to my place from here," Nicholas said quietly to me, and I looked over my shoulder at him, feeling like an idiot for grinning up at him. "It would take far too long, because the minute we got there, we'd have to turn around." Nicholas regarded me then as I bit my lower lip, in an attempt to provoke him. "The firm is only ten minutes away, and we could say that we were picking something up... That is, if you're not hungry..."

"I'm starved, I'll admit," I whispered back, putting the last of my belongings in my bag, "but not for food, I'm afraid."

As we walked towards the double doors to take us out of the courtroom, I saw through the window that the sun was shining, causing me to have a lightness in my step that hadn't been there in the weeks leading up to Nicholas and I resuming whatever it was we had. As we came to the entrance doors, however, and stepped outside, I felt the lightness inside me suddenly thundering to a halt, when I saw Josh pacing back and forth at the base of the stairs. I turned to Nicholas then, and he hesitated for a moment.