Royal Cocktail by J. Kenner

Chapter Three

Two Years Ago

Antitrust law was the worst.Or maybe it was just her professor who was the worst.

Either way, it didn’t matter. Because unless Skye Porter managed to wrap her head around his nonsensically meandering lectures, she was going to fail and ruin her straight-A average right as she was heading into her last year of law school. Which would be fine if she wanted to go straight into practicing. Her GPA would still be plenty high. But she wanted to clerk for a year on an appellate court, then return to work at Porter, Jenson & Kaye, the firm her great-grandfather had co-founded in New York over a century before. And appellate clerkships were incredibly competitive.

She sighed, the thick, blue-bound antitrust treatise sitting open in front of her on the Tarlton Law Library table. She scowled at it, then went back to taking notes. If the adjunct professor teaching the class couldn’t bother to organize his thoughts and actually teach, then she’d just have to huddle down with her casebook and a treatise and teach herself.

No matter what, she intended to ace this final. She drew a breath, flipped the page, and started taking more notes.

“Hey!”

Skye jumped a mile, then collapsed with a groan. “Hannah! You scared … me to death.”

“Sorry about that.” Her friend pulled out a chair and sat opposite Skye. She was older than Skye’s twenty-four years, with an athletic build and blond hair that framed her face and brushed her shoulders. They’d met when Hannah did a summer clerkship at Porter, Jenson & Kaye while Skye was working as a lowly file clerk. Despite the fact that Skye had barely been out of high school, they’d had lunch a few times and stayed in touch. Now Hannah had her own firm, and Skye could think of only one reason why she’d be back in these hallowed halls.

“What are you researching?” Most law firms had their own basic libraries and online database access, but for obscure case law or scholarly articles that weren’t easily found online, local attorneys often braved the parking situation and came to the University of Texas campus.

“No research,” Hannah said. “I’ve been mentoring some 2Ls in the mock trial program. I saw you, and figured it was fate.”

“Fate?”

“Absolutely. It’s Friday. We should go get a drink at The Fix.”

Skye cocked her head and stared down her friend. “We did that last night.” She tried not to sigh with the memory. Because last night, he had been there.

Hewas the cute guy that Skye had caught looking at her for most of last night. Except cute wasn’t the right word at all. For that matter, cute was an insult for this guy. He was magazine cover spectacular. Broad shoulders, a tight ass. Dark, thick hair with just a hint of wave to it. And his eyes...

Eyes so blue that she could see their color from all the way across the room. They were deep set and sexy, and every time his eyes caught hers, she felt hypnotized, and not in a bad way.

He had the face of a god, too, which made her want to keep looking. High cheekbones and an angular jaw line that inspired her to sketch him, and she didn’t even know how to draw. As for his lips, well, they looked positively kissable.

All in all, looking at him had been like eating a sumptuous meal. And every time she’d taken a bite, he was looking right back at her, devouring her with his eyes.

The whole night had been weirdly sensual, and she wasn’t sure if she was the only one who felt it, or if he did too. Either way, it was one of the sexier experiences in her life. And she couldn’t deny that the possibility of seeing him again intrigued her more than it should.

“Come on, Skye. Why not? Are you saying we can’t go two nights in a row?”

Skye shook off the memory. “I’m saying that Matthew must be out of town if you’re looking to hang with me on a Friday night.” Matthew and Hannah hadn’t been together that long, but Skye had a feeling they’d be married soon. They fit together perfectly. She sighed, wondering if she’d ever find a guy she connected to like that.

Hisimage popped into her mind, and she chastised herself. The guy was cute, and she’d felt a tug, but the odds of her ever seeing him again were slim, so…

“— in Dallas. He’ll be back tomorrow afternoon.”

Skye straightened, realizing she’d lost the thread of the conversation. “I’m sorry. What? Matthew’s in Dallas?”

Hannah nodded. “I could have gone with him, but I had a hearing this morning and the mock trial thing just now.” She sighed dramatically. “I’m so damn proud of how fast his business is expanding, but he’s gone and now you’re making me spend the evening alone, wallowing with Oreos and bad television.”

“Can’t have that. I guess we can … go to The Fix, and you can wallow … with fried food and tempting libations.” And, bonus, maybe she really would see him again. A girl could hope.

She sighed as her mind conjured him … then caught the way Hannah was studying her. “What?”

“Nothing,” Hannah said, her voice rising with mock innocence. “Just thinking what you’re thinking.”

Skye shook her head. “You are so not reading my mind.”

“You mean you’re not thinking that he might be there again, and that he’s ridiculously cute, and this time, maybe you’ll work up the nerve to talk to him?”

Skye shook her head, her heart pounding so hard she knew better than to even try talking.

“Careful,” Hannah said. “You wouldn’t want to ruin your profile.”

Skye cocked her head, confused.

“Your nose is growing,” Hannah said, then pushed back from the table. “I’ll see you there at eight.” Then she wiggled her fingers, turned, and walked away without waiting for Skye to answer.