I woke up late today, scrambling to find and put on my only clean suit so I can feed myself and get my ass to court in time for my trial.

It's not technically my trial, but I've put in a lot of damn work for this, and I will impress Mrs. Adelaide if it kills me. Studying under her for a couple of cases will build my experience and hopefully lead me to more cases in the future.

Either way, I cannot be fucking late.

I slept maybe two hours, one of which was plagued with nightmares, waking me up for an hour before I could fall back asleep.

I'm not doing well.

Not to mention all the time I couldn't sleep was consumed by the beauty with brown irises and matching chestnut hair.

I called her beautiful.

I didn't plan on it. It just happened. It's true, anyway, so who cares? She's beautiful.

I hop into my car and drive to court, my briefcase and random notes lingering on the seat and dashboard. I thought cleanliness was supposed to come with age, but I guess not.

A call rings through my speakers, nearly making me deaf as the loud shrill grabs my attention. "What?" I answer, ignoring the caller ID.

"Not very sunshiney of you, Mate," Rocky says through the line, chuckling in mock hurt.

I cheer slightly at the sound of my older brother's voice. "Mate? You go to Australia without inviting me?"

"Not yet, unfortunately. Calling to see how your trail went." He gets to the point as he always does, never having much time to talk.

"Starts today," I say, pressing the gas to pass the yellow light before it shines red. "On my way now."

"Good luck, man. Let me know how it goes," he answers. I hear a loud female voice in the background, shouting to me now. "Good luck, Z!"

"Thank you, Talia." I thank my brother's fiance and smile. I miss them. I miss Rocky every day. We used to be inseparable. Now I'm lucky if I see him once a year. We're busy now. Adult life and all.

"All right, Z, I gotta head to work. I'm proud of you, man."

"Thanks, Rock. Love you guys."

"Love you, too." He mutters shortly, always getting embarrassed by words of affection. "Love you!" Talia screams again. I chuckle lightly and end the call.

On the bright side, their wedding is coming in the next couple of months, if Talia can decide on a date.

I don't have time to appreciate the clear skies and beaming sun before I run into the courtroom, making it just on time.

"Good morning, Mrs. Adelaide." I greet my mentor, trying to give off the best morning energy I can.

"Morning," she grumbles, shuffling through the many papers sprawled on the counsel table. She is not a morning person, something I've learned over the past year of working with her.

Assisting Adelaide is easy. She's a kind woman and knows exactly what she wants, and isn't afraid to tell me when I am not completing her "vision" properly.

We consult our client together once he comes in. Adelaide gravitates towards cases where the client is clearly innocent or wrongly charged. She claims her intuition always leads her to the right cases, whatever that means.

I can hardly focus as Adelaide gives the opening statement. I am too busy thinking of the amateur skateboard lessons I gave a certain pale-skinned girl.

"Oh, fuck," I say, grabbing her arm tightly and pulling her to me before she can fall. Her eyes are much more than simple brown. They have brown, black, and green specs, all mixing to form one hypnotizing color. Nothing about her is simple.

"Um, thanks." She mumbles, stepping back from our proximity.

I smile to myself at the way she ducks her head when she starts to blush. She is so shy and delicate looking, and it is the most captivating thing.

I can't really understand my attraction to this woman. I usually go for the confident, could-kill-you type girl. I like the challenge. I like knowing they could kick my ass if needed. I like the spunk and feisty comebacks.

Scarlett is not like that at all. She is kind and gentle. She says "um" while thinking of what to say next, and she avoids eye contact at all costs.

Physically, I'd usually go for the long-legged blonde with curves to die for and hair so long you could mistake her for a mermaid, but Scarlett is a pale, short-haired brunette that hides her figure with the help of baggy clothes.

She's the opposite of what I'd usually go for, but the attraction I feel for her is unlike anything I've ever felt for another woman. I couldn't even stop myself as my feet carried me to her table. My favorite table.

Before I can even pay attention, our trial is adjourned for the day and will start up again tomorrow morning. We leave court around noon, leaving me starving.

I head to the nearest coffee shop and order a black coffee and a bagel. The atmosphere of the shop is nothing like 25 Hours. 25 Hours is warm and welcoming, the rustic cabin-vibe reminding me of a vacation home. This place is more modern. Not to mention the stressed students studying and adults on their twenty-minute break frantically ordering their caffeine fix for the day.

I head to the office and help Adelaide straighten a few things out for our case, ensuring that our defense is perfect and all our bases are covered for tomorrow.

"What was up with you in court today?" Adelaide asks, quirking a brow.

"Huh?" I respond, returning her questioning gaze.

"You were daydreaming the entire time. Don't try to deny it. I spend my whole life sussing out liars." I laugh at that.

I contemplate telling her the truth. Are we close enough for me to mention a woman I am interested in? I want to think so. She complains about her husband every chance she gets, to be fair. "It's nothing."

"A girl?" She raises her brows knowingly.

"What? No."

She rolls her eyes, waving her hand dismissively. "You forget who you're talking to, boy. What's her name?"

"Scarlett," I answer truthfully.

"Scarlett. That's a pretty name."

"She's a pretty girl," I say without thinking.

Really, Z? Really?

Adelaide's smirk only grows. "So what is it about her that's got you so distracted. I've never known you to daydream."

I sigh, shaking my head. "That's just the thing. I've known her hardly three days, and yet my mind is flooded with thoughts of her." Was that too honest? Shit.

"Don't sweat it. I was thinking about marrying my husband a week after meeting him. Sometimes people can do that to you."

"I don't think I'm cut out for the whole marriage thing," I cringe.

"You're young. You've got plenty of time," She speaks as if she has no doubt that she'll be attending my wedding in five years. "Now file these away, and you can head home for the day."

I nod and put the mountain of paperwork in their respective spots and clean up my desk, heading out shortly after Adelaide. It's nearly six at night by the time I get home.

My two energized bulldogs immediately tackle me as I step into my apartment.

"Hello, boys." I laugh, petting them and giving them all the love I can for abandoning them most of the day. I take them out and feed them, throwing their toys around the apartment and entertaining them as much as possible.

I found Buck and Bear in a shelter, the news of their horrible experiences practically forcing me into buying them. They've been together their whole lives, so I had to take them both.

In a way, they're the best thing to happen to me in my life in California. I've always been a little lonely. After I moved away for college, I didn't really have anyone. Rocky was always my best friend. I made some great friends in college, but we all went our separate ways after school. I stayed in California, stuck in law school.

Part of me likes the independence I've developed, but the other part of me craves some human interaction.

Almost as if she could sense my loneliness, the phone rings, Scarlett's name gracing the screen. "Hello?" I answer, trying not to sound too excited.

"Hi. Um, are you free tonight?" She asks quietly. Her voice is even softer on the phone if that's even possible.

"Depends on what crazy task you have in mind tonight," I exaggerate. Nothing on her list is really crazy.

"Meet me at 25 Hours in an hour, okay?"

"Okay," I say, about to ask a question, but she hangs up before I have the opportunity.

This next hour of waiting is going to be torture.