Chapter 9

JAYDA

^FOUR WEEKS LATER^

These past few weeks had been the busiest of Jayda’s life. Now that she was a full partner, she had so much more to do. She had several court cases to handle, consultations to give, and contracts to review.

She was grateful for the work. It kept her mind off…him. The man she’d given herself to. ~Sebastian~.

By the time she got home every night, she was usually exhausted, so she went straight to bed, too tired to think about him.

But there were times when she couldn’t stop his face from filling her mind. No matter how she tried, she couldn’t stop thinking of how good it had been when he touched her. Then she’d be furious with herself for going to bed with him.

She’d replay their passionate night, trying to stop and unable to. Sometimes, she could still feel him inside her. She hated how much she missed the feel of his body against hers and how he’d wrapped his arms around her possessively after they made love.

What surprised Jayda was that she never felt that way about Zach. Not even half of what she felt for Sebastian in one night.

She was also considering going for therapy sessions because the thought of Sebastian was making her go crazy.

Halfway through reviewing a contract, Jayda brought a mug of coffee to her lips and took a sip. She scrunched up her face.

“This tastes bad,” she called out to Debbie. The intern was somewhere in her office going over a file on Jayda’s instruction.

“But I made it just the way you like your coffee,” Debbie responded.

Jayda took another sip. It tasted more bitter than the first.

“I don’t like the taste.” She placed the mug of coffee on the table and poured herself a glass of water before going back to the contract she was reviewing.

DEBBIE

Debbie looked at Jayda strangely. She took a seat opposite Jayda’s desk.

Debbie was more than an intern. She was also Jayda’s cousin, and she’d always looked up to Jayda very much because she was a brilliant lawyer.

She’d been overjoyed when she got a call that she had been accepted to intern at her cousin’s firm. Saunders and Co. was a very reputable law firm, and every law student’s dream is to intern there.

Jayda had refused to give Debbie an upper hand despite the fact that she was a partner and could use her position to automatically give Debbie a slot.

She told Debbie to make sure she got good grades and to apply just like the others. If she was good enough, she would be picked. Jayda didn’t believe in favoritism.

Debbie did all that, and fortunately, she got accepted. She was happy to learn from the best firm and from her cousin who was one of the best lawyers in the city.

“Are you okay, Jayda?”

“What do you mean?” Jayda asked, confused.

“You said the same thing about your cheeseburger yesterday, and two days ago you left the cafeteria because you couldn’t stand the smell of meat. Mind you, I ate the burger you refused to eat, and it tasted perfectly fine. Same with this coffee.”

“Are you suggesting something is wrong with me?” Jayda concluded.

Debbie shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m just concerned.”

Jayda shook her head in disbelief and changed the topic. “Hurry up with what I asked you to do. We should be in court in two hours.”

Debbie wanted to say something else, but Jayda glared at her. Debbie swallowed her words. She went back to what Jayda asked her to do.

JAYDA

Soon enough, a call came in for Jayda. She looked at the caller ID and smiled when she saw it was Lilian.

“Hiii.” Lilian dragged out the word. “Are you sure you don’t want to come with me to the party? I’ll really appreciate it if you do.”

Jayda sighed. “I thought we talked about this, Lily. There’s no way I’m going with you to that party.”

“Trust me, Sebastian won’t do anything to you. You will be by my side, and I’ll protect you all through,” Lilian promised.

Jayda chuckled. “You must be kidding me, Lily. I’m not afraid of that jerk. I just don’t want to see him again in case I lose my temper and strangle him.”

“Well, he deserves it. You’re a lawyer. One of the best, in fact, and no doubt you will get away with it.”

Jada chuckled again. “It’s your uncle’s birthday party. You don’t need me there. Just go and catch up with your family members. I’m sure it won’t be as bad as the way you’ve envisioned it in your head.

“Apart from the fact that I’m avoiding that jerk, I can’t come with you because I’m going over to my parents’ place. And besides, the party is only for family members.”

“You’re my best friend, and that means you’re my family.” Lilian sounded upset.

“You’ll do just fine, hon. I have to go. I have a court session this afternoon. We’ll talk later.”

“Okay. Just let me know if you change your mind.” Lilian said before she ended the call.

That would never happen, Jayda thought. There would never be a good enough reason for her to see Sebastian Miller ever again.

For now, she sipped some water to take away the taste of the terrible coffee that was churning her stomach. She felt like she might be coming down with the flu.