rest?" she asked.
He shook his head. "Not while the jury's out."
"What do you do while a jury's out?"
"Pace," he said, closing the briefcase and getting to his feet. "Run. Lift weights. Hit a punching bag, if I can find one. Go over my notes from the trial. Things I wish I'd done better. Things I might have tried but didn't. Things I might use on appeal, if it comes to that."
"You have to rest sometimes, Zach."
"Not in trial," he said. "Why are you here? Another fight with Stevie Boy?"
"No. He's out of town."
Zach nodded. "So you thought it was safe to see me, since he's gone?"
"No... Well... I guess. I really wasn't thinking about him. I was thinking you need a keeper almost as much as I do." She walked over to him and let herself slip her hand through the crook in his arm. If she didn't lead him out of here, he might not go. "Come on. Let's get out of here and have a decent lunch, at least. You'll breathe some fresh air for a change. Have you seen anyplace else since you've been here?"
He shrugged. "The jail?"
"Doesn't count."
He stared at her. "You still didn't tell me why you're here."
"I was worried about you." She stayed by his side, her arm linked with his, refusing to think about how welcome a feeling it was, to touch him.
"Me?" He found the energy to summon a grin at that. He really was a gorgeous man, even dead tired and drained.
"What? No one's allowed to worry about you?"
"I'm fine, Julie," he insisted.
Which was odd, because had she been in his position, exhausted and dreading the next minute, she would have smiled and lied through her teeth. Just like that.
She didn't expect anyone to take care of her, didn't let herself lean on anyone. Not really. She'd tried with Steve, but she'd never really shown him the deepest, darkest parts of herself. She didn't show those to anyone, and she wondered now if Zach did the same thing. If maybe they had this one thing in common.
"Humor me," she said. "I came all the way down here to see you. Come have lunch with me."
"I can't. Really. I have to confer with Alan, the public defender, the other guy you saw at the defense table. He'll be back any minute. We're still working on exactly what we want to ask for, for the charge to the jury."
"How about you sit here and work, and I'll go get us some lunch. We can sit outside and eat. There's a park half a block away. Great shade, lots of benches. It won't take fifteen minutes."
"Julie, really—"
"Let me do this one thing for you." Because she hadn't ever taken care of him, not that she could remember, not in all the time she'd known him.
"Okay. Fifteen minutes. That's it."
"I'll be right back. Any requests?"
"I'll eat anything," he said.
Julie smiled for what felt like the first time in a month. It wasn't much, but at least she could feed the man.
* * *
She was back too quickly, Zach claimed, and she practically had to drag him out of the courtroom and across the street.
"See?" She pointed to an elm. "It's called a tree. See how green it is? And that blue stuff up there? That's the sky. Those puffy things—aren't those nice?—they're clouds."
"I think I have some vague memory of them," he said as they settled themselves on a bench and she presented him with two huge roast-beef sandwiches and some potato salad. "Thanks. How are things going with Steve?"
"They're not," she admitted. "We argued after the party, then hardly spoke until he left for Birmingham, and he hasn't come back yet."
"Sorry. I shouldn't have come there that night."
"It's not your fault. I made this mess all by myself."
"What are you going to do?"
"I don't know. Just try to make it through the day. That's the sum total of my plan right now."
"So you didn't come down here to ask me about your parents or Peter?"
"No." She'd picked up her own sandwich, turkey and avocado on a French roll, but now she put it back down without taking a bite. "Could we not argue about this, Zach? I know you think I'm... Well, I know what you think,
He shook his head. "Not while the jury's out."
"What do you do while a jury's out?"
"Pace," he said, closing the briefcase and getting to his feet. "Run. Lift weights. Hit a punching bag, if I can find one. Go over my notes from the trial. Things I wish I'd done better. Things I might have tried but didn't. Things I might use on appeal, if it comes to that."
"You have to rest sometimes, Zach."
"Not in trial," he said. "Why are you here? Another fight with Stevie Boy?"
"No. He's out of town."
Zach nodded. "So you thought it was safe to see me, since he's gone?"
"No... Well... I guess. I really wasn't thinking about him. I was thinking you need a keeper almost as much as I do." She walked over to him and let herself slip her hand through the crook in his arm. If she didn't lead him out of here, he might not go. "Come on. Let's get out of here and have a decent lunch, at least. You'll breathe some fresh air for a change. Have you seen anyplace else since you've been here?"
He shrugged. "The jail?"
"Doesn't count."
He stared at her. "You still didn't tell me why you're here."
"I was worried about you." She stayed by his side, her arm linked with his, refusing to think about how welcome a feeling it was, to touch him.
"Me?" He found the energy to summon a grin at that. He really was a gorgeous man, even dead tired and drained.
"What? No one's allowed to worry about you?"
"I'm fine, Julie," he insisted.
Which was odd, because had she been in his position, exhausted and dreading the next minute, she would have smiled and lied through her teeth. Just like that.
She didn't expect anyone to take care of her, didn't let herself lean on anyone. Not really. She'd tried with Steve, but she'd never really shown him the deepest, darkest parts of herself. She didn't show those to anyone, and she wondered now if Zach did the same thing. If maybe they had this one thing in common.
"Humor me," she said. "I came all the way down here to see you. Come have lunch with me."
"I can't. Really. I have to confer with Alan, the public defender, the other guy you saw at the defense table. He'll be back any minute. We're still working on exactly what we want to ask for, for the charge to the jury."
"How about you sit here and work, and I'll go get us some lunch. We can sit outside and eat. There's a park half a block away. Great shade, lots of benches. It won't take fifteen minutes."
"Julie, really—"
"Let me do this one thing for you." Because she hadn't ever taken care of him, not that she could remember, not in all the time she'd known him.
"Okay. Fifteen minutes. That's it."
"I'll be right back. Any requests?"
"I'll eat anything," he said.
Julie smiled for what felt like the first time in a month. It wasn't much, but at least she could feed the man.
* * *
She was back too quickly, Zach claimed, and she practically had to drag him out of the courtroom and across the street.
"See?" She pointed to an elm. "It's called a tree. See how green it is? And that blue stuff up there? That's the sky. Those puffy things—aren't those nice?—they're clouds."
"I think I have some vague memory of them," he said as they settled themselves on a bench and she presented him with two huge roast-beef sandwiches and some potato salad. "Thanks. How are things going with Steve?"
"They're not," she admitted. "We argued after the party, then hardly spoke until he left for Birmingham, and he hasn't come back yet."
"Sorry. I shouldn't have come there that night."
"It's not your fault. I made this mess all by myself."
"What are you going to do?"
"I don't know. Just try to make it through the day. That's the sum total of my plan right now."
"So you didn't come down here to ask me about your parents or Peter?"
"No." She'd picked up her own sandwich, turkey and avocado on a French roll, but now she put it back down without taking a bite. "Could we not argue about this, Zach? I know you think I'm... Well, I know what you think,
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