“She does family law. We need a criminal lawyer.”

“She’s smart and she cares about you. If you ask her for help I have no doubt she will find you the best criminal attorney in the state. You have to give her a chance, Rowdy. Just like you did for me. We both came here for you, you’re the one that has to open the door to let us in.”

I didn’t want to because once that door was open I would never be able to slam it closed again and the sexy brunette in the passenger seat was living proof of that. The more people that I let in, the more people I had to risk losing later on down the road, but for Ayden and for Jet I would just have to suck it up.

“Call her.” I gritted the words out between my teeth and raced toward D-town to try and pull Asa’s ass out of the fire.

CHAPTER 16

Salem

IT WAS HARD TO tell who was more anxious as we sat in Sayer’s office as brother and sister stared at each other across her fancy desk. Rowdy couldn’t sit still and Sayer kept clearing her throat and twisting her fingers together nervously.

“He didn’t do it. That punk kid set him up.” Rowdy was adamant and his tone was hard.

Sayer was trying to be impartial in a very lawyerly way, but I could see she wanted to fight this battle for him. “That may be, but Asa has an extensive record with some pretty nasty stuff on it, and with a corroborating witness the charges against him will be hard to refute.”

Rowdy raked his hands through his hair and cast pleading eyes in her direction.

“What about the surveillance tapes inside of the bar?” I asked the question hoping it would help calm him down.

“The owner, Rome, pulled them and is sending them over. I really think the best bet is to post Asa’s bond and hire him an attorney. The police report from the patrol unit that took him down to the station stated that it looked like he had indeed been in a fight. His hands were busted up and he had blood and scratches on his face.”

“Those little shits probably jumped him and set him up. I’m telling you I was there. This kid was a nightmare and just looking to start something. He was pissed right the hell off that Asa kicked him out of the bar.”

I reached out and grabbed Rowdy’s wildly flailing hand and pulled him over to my side. He was practically vibrating with the intensity of being this close to Sayer and the stress of the situation with Asa. Ayden was already at the precinct trying to bail her brother out and Jet had finally managed to get on a plane, but he was still four hours away from home. Rowdy had offered to go to the police station with Ayden, but she was more worried about getting him represented than she was about getting him out of lockup. She said getting him out eventually was the easy part, getting someone to represent him, someone that could prove he was innocent, was the tricky part, so she had tasked Rowdy with that chore. Personally I thought she wanted her brother to know that she was the one specifically bailing him. There was bad blood there and Ayden needed Asa to know she was standing by him even if she hadn’t always done that.

“I get that, and the fact you can attest to that, as well as the rest of the patrons in the bar during the event, is very helpful to Asa’s case, but it’s still an uphill battle. Asa’s record and the fact he didn’t defend himself, just went quietly with the police and never argued against the arrest makes him look bad—really bad. Innocent people don’t generally surrender to the police that easily. On top of that, the kid that lodged the complaint and pressed the charges is as squeaky-clean as they come. He doesn’t even have a speeding ticket.”

Rowdy growled and sat on the edge of his chair. Sayer’s blue eyes were sympathetic, and deep down I think Rowdy appreciated she wasn’t just throwing sunshine at him because it was what he wanted to hear.

“So what do we do now?”

She cocked her head to the side and considered the two of us thoughtfully. “There is this guy, Quaid Jackson, and I know firsthand that he’s a barracuda. I’ve never had to work with him directly since he’s a criminal attorney, but his reputation is vicious. No one wants to go up against him in court.” She smiled a little bit and reached for her phone. “One of the other partners represented him in his divorce a few months ago. The wife was a real piece of work. The firm saved Quaid from having to pay over three grand a month in maintenance payments to her. Let me give him a call and see if he can help your friend out.”

Rowdy let out a breath he must have been holding for a while and reached out his hand to wrap it around the back of my neck. I leaned into his touch and patted his thigh reassuringly. I was the one that had called Sayer to set up this meeting, but now that we were here I could see some of the reservations and coldness Rowdy had walked in with thawing around him. Sayer hadn’t judged, hadn’t assumed the worst based on what Asa looked like on paper. All she cared about was trying to help her brother’s friend out because he was in some serious trouble and she was in a position to try and fix it.

Her conversation with the other attorney was brief and cut right to the chase. She laid out what the other guy would be facing and then frowned at whatever his response was. They went back and forth for a few more minutes and then Sayer stated flatly, “The cost isn’t an issue, Quaid. Keeping an innocent man out of jail is.” I felt Rowdy’s fingers flex involuntarily around my neck and I looked up at him in concern. He looked back down at me and I was surprised to see a little grin pulling around his mouth.

“She’s tough.”

“And pretty. Just like you.” He rolled his eyes at me but bent so he could brush his lips across the crown of my head.

Sayer hung up the phone and grinned at us in a way that could only be described as victorious. “He’s in. I knew he couldn’t resist the challenge.”

Rowdy cleared his throat. “He sounds expensive.”

I knew everyone would pitch in and help out to cover the cost if need be but Sayer just shook her head. “He’s going to do it as a favor to the firm. All the client will have to cover is the typical retainer he charges, which is five grand.”

Five grand was still a lot of money but it was totally doable.

“Thank you so much, Sayer.” I wanted to hug her.

The blonde nodded at me and her attention shifted to Rowdy. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I know it’s not the reason you’re here but I feel like it would be remiss of me not to mention that you have a substantial inheritance at your fingertips if you need it.”