Justice for All Read Online Free Page A

here.”
    “Yeah, I get it,” he nodded, stretching his mouth out into a forced smile. “It’s no problem. I’ll just give these to Dana. So what time is this shindig? It won’t take me long to get ready. Black tie?”
    “Oh, Thomas,” she groaned, rubbing the heels of her hands into her eyes. “You can’t come.”
    “You have a date?”
    “Pfft,” she hissed derisively. “With who?”
    Thomas stood up from the couch and began texting on his iPhone. “How would I know? So why can’t I come with you to this party? You know I can behave.”
    She wasn’t entirely sure of that, actually. Thomas didn’t mix well with liquor, and with an open bar, he’d be sure to drink and heavily. Still, that wasn’t why she couldn’t take him to the firm party. “My boss has an extreme dislike for you. Taking you to this party would not improve my chances of getting hired by this firm.”
    “Aw, Kay. C’mon. It’ll look better for you to have a date. Going solo makes them think you can’t commit.”
    Her blonde head dropped to the side and she gave him a hard glare.
    Thomas chuckled nervously and shoved his phone into his back pocket. “All right, all right. I gotta get rid of these tickets while I still can. I’ll talk to you later.”
    He let himself out of the apartment, and she listened to his clodhopping feet as he made his way down the hall and to his own place. When she heard his door open and close, she breathed a sigh of relief and then let her head thump back onto the sofa for a quick nap.
    ~oOo~
    “He chews with his mouth open,” Tamara noted, taking a sip of her wine and then waggling one eyebrow at Kay. She paused to swallow, then giggled. “I’m not kidding. He does.”
    “I believe you. But that still begs the question. Why the hell would I care?”
    The brunette shrugged. “You should care because Kyle’s going to ask you out. He’s been working up the nerve for two weeks now.”
    “Oh, hell.” Kay rolled her neck and poured back the last of her bourbon. “Why me?”
    Tamara snorted and snagged a carrot from Kay’s plate. “Hey, you’re new blood, and you’re smokin’ hot blood.”
    Kay gazed down at her attire, a snug pair of silver slacks that fell just at her ankles, topped with a blue sweater. The shoes were what set off the ensemble. A silver, studded pair of Christian Louboutin heels. Still, she shrugged when her eyes returned to Tamara. “I’ve been here almost six months. That’s not new. Katie’s new blood.”
    Said newbie walked past them, sporting about a size ten green dress on her bone-thin size three body. She waved at Kay and Tamara before approaching the bar for a drink.
    “Yeah, but Kyle might break her if he went out with her.”
    Kay opened her mouth to scold her friend for being so catty but stopped cold when she heard her name called. A glance at her glass confirmed that it was empty, and she wished with all her might that it would be magically refilled to the top with bourbon. Despite her mental pleading, it remained empty.
    She exhaled and set the glass and her plate on a passing tray, then turned to face Thomas. “What are you doing here?”
    He grinned, lifting his sport coat at the lapels, then letting it drop back as he displayed his party clothes. “Told you I could clean up. Eh? Eh? And you look ah-mazing. Blue is your color.”
    “Damn it, Thomas,” she hissed, grabbing his elbow and dragging him towards the party room exit. “You aren’t supposed to be here.”
    “Hey, don’t be pushy,” he whined, stumbling.
    Kay drew back and glared at him with narrowed eyes. “You’ve been drinking already.”
    “I had a few bars … I mean beers before I got here. What’s the big deal? I took a taxi.”
    She leaned in close to him, “You’re a shitty drunk, that’s what the big deal is. And you aren’t supposed to be here. I told you I didn’t want you here.”
    Thomas’ eyes went black, and he yanked his arm away so hard that she lost her hold