Treachery

Luca

Three years have passed since I left Yale.

Three fucked up years I’ve given my life to a man who promised to be my world. For our entire marriage, my husband, Clayton, did everything he could to sneak around on me.

After holding me back, after convincing me it would be okay to leave law school to help take care of my mother, he is now leaving me for a younger model, his secretary, as if that isn’t cliché enough, while also attempting to renege on the prenuptial agreement that promised me several million dollars for his playboy ways.

Even worse, he chose to file for divorce six short months after my father died. I’m already broken to lose him so soon after my mom, and Clayton’s declaration that he was leaving me was like getting kicked in the belly when I was already down.

If that isn’t bad enough, I learned this morning that Clayton finally hired an attorney to represent him. Much to my surprise - and anger - he’s chosen the biggest bastard of them all, a bastard I’d hoped to never see again for the rest of my life.

Ta

No matter how hard I try, I can’t wrap my head around how Clayton convinced Ta

While I sit at a table in the front of the large courtroom, I watch Ta

“Don’t even look at him, Luca. Ta

Tearing my eyes away from Ta

A goddess among divorce lawyers, she’s represented every high-profile marital split where assets ranged in the millions and billions. Celebrities, politicians, CEOs, it doesn’t matter. If the asshole husband in the cases she works wants to keep so much as his dick in the divorce, he quickly learns how to bargain.

“I don’t even know why that jackass is in the courtroom. He handles corporate mergers when he actually deigns to work a file in his office. And never have I seen him take a divorce case.”

Platinum blond hair slipping over her shoulder, Marjorie sneaks a glance at the two men as they slip through the half door leading into the front portion of the courtroom.

Thankfully, Clayton was able to work a deal where media isn’t allowed in the room, and the only people sitting on the viewing benches are his father’s campaign manager and another man I assume is part of his father’s team. Clayton’s father is up for re-election in four months. For that reason, I know he needs to keep these proceedings quick and quiet.

“Marjorie.”

Softly rolling thunder shakes the air around us, a deep voice resonating over every cell in my body. The timber of Ta

Unable to look up from the gouged scar carved into the dark oak respondent’s table, I see Marjorie turn in my peripheral vision, her hand smoothing down her cream-colored skirt to find Ta

“Mr. Caine. How nice to see you’re still practicing law. I thought being a playboy was more your style. And in an area you have zero practice litigating. Does Mr. Hughes know you’ve never worked a domestic case before?”

I can’t decide if Marjorie is brave or stupid. There stands Ta

His calm laughter forces a chill down my spine, the cold spreading lower until my legs are overrun with pins and needles.

“Mr. Hughes is well aware of my abilities, Marjorie.” He pauses long enough for my gaze to slide his direction. “As is Mrs. Hughes, if I’m not mistaken.”

Asshole.

With his signature smirk, Ta

My eyes clench shut, and I can feel the indignant heat radiating from Marjorie.

Ta

Adjusting her posture, Marjorie taps a set of perfectly polished fingernails over the table.

“I’m glad to hear you’ve been forthcoming, especially when up against a woman of my caliber. The case speaks for itself. Mrs. Hughes has been nothing but the perfect wife. Your client, however…”

Her voice trails off before she grins and adds, “The prenuptial agreement is still valid due to his inability to keep it in his pants. I’m not sure why I’m even wasting my time here today. Have you taken a moment to review the facts of this matter?”

Before Ta

“All rise. The Ninth Circuit Court is now in session. The Honorable Franklin T. Mast presiding.”

On shaking legs, I stand from my seat, my eyes studiously glued to the top of the judge’s bald head. The last place I want to look is in Ta

Now standing behind the Petitioner’s table, he wears a black pinstriped suit with a white shirt and sapphire blue tie. Tapping a pen against the side of his leg, he appears relaxed in his environment, the king of this courtroom as much as he’d been the king on campus. I know exactly why Clayton ran to Ta

We have history, the three of us. A history that began with the mistake of climbing in Ta

Those two hated each other by the time I left Yale. Now they are standing side by side in their bid to destroy me.

“Be seated.”

The judge pulls a few papers from the desk in front of him, and I haven’t yet relaxed into my chair by the time Ta

In the split second our eyes lock, my heart climbs into my throat, the frantic beats a pulse beneath my chin that are visible from where Ta

Leaning back, I use Marjorie as a wall between us. I prefer the sight of her platinum hair to the black silk of Ta

“It looks to me we’re here today on the matter of Hughes vs. Hughes, Petitioner’s Motion to Enforce The Prenuptial Agreement due to Extramarital Affair.”

Marjorie’s expression twists, the red haze to her cheeks telling me something has already gone wrong. Standing from her seat, she casts a sharp glance at Ta

“Your Honor, we’re here today on Respondent’s Motion to Compel. I set this hearing myself.”

The judge confers with his court clerk briefly, but I already know Marjorie is in for an upsetting surprise.