More Than Meets the Eye - Page 129

The creases on Erika’s forehead carved deeper and deeper into her skin with each allegation.Only when Sami ran out of words, when his pleading eyes connected with Baz’s, Baz tagged in.

“The problem is, Ian set Sami up to be his fall guy.He will try and pin all of this on him once he finds out this conversation happened, so we need to strike a deal with the state to get him immunity.Please ask your husband to see us today.”

Erika stared at the email from Captain Green expressing their wish for a settlement.She dropped the paper, slowly shaking her head.

“Your boyfriend just admitted to forging evidence.Who’s to say he didn’t manufacture this to save your butt and scapegoat Ian?”

“I didn’t!”Sami protested.“Ian made me help him with some things, but I’m not even supposed to know about the rest—”

“Made you,” Erika echoed in a tone so dry it was a sucker punch to the throat.“You couldn’t have walked away and reported this years ago?”

“I tried, but they didn’t believe me!I…” The quiver of his lips tightened Baz’s chest.“This was a mistake.”

“No!”Baz caught his arm before Sami could run away.They had come this far, they couldn’t give up.Not when Sami’s future was at stake.

“Erika, please.You know Ian is more than capable of committing fraud to win.This all went on long before he met Sami, and the prosecutor will find evidence of that when they check Ian’s private communication.Please.Have you never had a lapse in judgment when you were in your twenties?”

Her stoic mask gave nothing away.The lack of outright denial had to be a good thing, though, so Baz kept pushing.

“Look, this will help you too.I’ll take the blame should Ian be proven innocent, and you can take all the credit for having gotten a dirty lawyer out of the game when heisfound guilty.Plus, we can get the Captain Green case back on track for the settlement.”

“There it is,” Erika huffed.“If you seriously expect me to make you partner after all this—”

“I don’t.”The conviction in his words took even Baz by surprise, but he meant it.A stupid title didn’t matter, not anymore.He’d make partner one day, or perhaps he wouldn’t, but he would—hopefully—have Sami.

“All I’m asking is that you help me protect Sami, and then you can fire me, or bury me in paperwork, or whatever you deem right.”

Sami’s eyes darted to him.“Baz—”

“I mean it.”He glided his fingers between Sami’s, squeezed his hand tightly so he too would stop doubting Baz’s sincerity, and he didn’t give a damn about who saw it.So what if people knew he was gay?If they wanted to shove him into a box for it and use it as an excuse to diminish his success, that was their load to carry.Baz was done hiding away.He just wanted to be himself for once.

The soft knock on the door made him spin on his heel.

He had never been happier to see Aya’s face.

“Excuse my interruption,” she said, holding up a piece of paper.“Captain Green’s rep faxed over a signed affidavit confirming they were never informed about a new settlement offer.We have a meeting with him and Henry Arden from Hoffman & Cobb tomorrow to settle the case.”

Yes!Oh, he could kiss Aya and her impeccable timing.There was no denying now that this was all Ian’s doing.He was the attorney on the case, it had been his duty to pass on the settlement, not Sami’s.Please let Erika’s sense of justice outweigh whatever grudge she harbored against Baz.

With a sigh, Erika lodged the phone between her cheek and shoulder and started dialing.

“Hi, sweetheart.I’ve come across a situation that requires your attention.”

A shaky laugh escaped Sami.He clutched his mouth.Keeping all of his own happy noises on the inside devoured Baz’s restraint; none was left to stop him from bundling Sami up in his arm and kissing his temple.

Much as he strained his ears trying to hear Erika’s husband’s replies, he caught barely more than a murmur before she hung up.

“Well.”She folded her hands on her desk.The pause lasted an eternity.Sami bounced on the balls of his feet, vibrating in Baz’s arm.“He’s on lunch in fifteen minutes and in meetings for the rest of the day.You better run if you want to catch him before.”

Fifteen minutes?For what, twenty blocks?Oh, Chicago’s tourists better keep a tight hold on their coffees.

Baz scrambled the papers back into the envelope and snatched the affidavit from Aya’s hands.He just about remembered to shout a “thank you” over his shoulder before dragging Sami out.His ears were burning with the comments he knew Aya and Erika were making about them right now, but for the first time in his life, he couldn’t care less what his superiors thought of him.

He hit the ground running, keeping a tight hold on Sami’s hand as he pulled him up Grand Avenue.

“Do you even know where we’re going?”Sami laughed, loud and exhilarated and Baz loved it, so much.

“Yes!”He had spent hours memorizing the Chicago train system when he first moved here.He could find his way around this city in his sleep.