"Hey Grace!" Her youngest brother looked up from the ice chest as she came around the patio on the side of the house. "Can I get you a beer?"

"You just like saying that now that you're finally legal."

JJ twisted off the top and took a long drink, then pulled out another one, opened it and handed it to his sister with a flourish. "Twenty-one years, three weeks and counting," he laughed.

One thing about Jimmy, Grace had to admit, he'd laid the law down when her brothers were teenagers. There'd been no drinking beer and driving around in cars during their high school years, no drunken parties when parents were out of town, and no beers by the pool even when they came home on breaks from college. Not until they were 21.

Of course, considering that much of Jimmy's career was built on personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits on behalf of the victims of drunk drivers – including her own father who had died when a drunken boater rammed his cigarette boat into Theodore Wallace's 21-foot Boston Whaler – it wasn't surprising he took such a strong stand, or that her brothers got with the program without too many adolescent complaints. As for Grace, she'd never needed any lectures. She'd been on the boat with her father when he died, and the memory was every bit as vivid as it had been on that day almost fifteen years ago.

"Hey, Slick!" Her drink sloshed in the bottle as her stepfather enveloped her in a bear hug, as usual seeming oblivious to the fact that she stood there stiffly, tolerating but never welcoming his boisterous affection. As soon as she was around him she felt like the sulky teenager she'd been at fourteen, resenting her new stepfather while she struggled to come to grips with her father's death. She didn't want to be that person.

"Hi Jimmy," she said, when he released her.

"So I hear you have a case with my buddy Jack – I told him he's damn lucky you're sitting on the same side of the counsel table."

"Thanks." She smiled.

"He's going to try to stop by this afternoon. But promise me you won't spend the whole time talking shop, okay? Your mother wants a chance to hang out a little."

"Sure, Jimmy."

"Alright." He gave her an appraising look. "See if you can fit me in for lunch while you're here this week. Stop by the office. Tell me how they're treating you in that fancy Philadelphia firm."

"I'll try," she said, but they both knew she probably wouldn't.

"Your mom's in the kitchen finishing up the potato salad."

"I'll go give her a hand," Grace said, grateful for the excuse to escape. It wasn't that her stepfather was a bad guy, she thought as she made her way toward the house. He just had a way of filling up a room until you felt sometimes like you couldn't even breathe. Just like he'd filled up her mother's life, and her brothers', filled up their hearts until it seemed to Grace that all their memories of Theodore Wallace, husband and father, had just drifted away on a warm Florida breeze.

But Grace hadn't forgotten. Grace would never forget.

* * *

Her mom's welcoming smile had made Grace feel bad again that she'd chosen to stay at the hotel rather than set up a work area here at the house. But if Ellen didn't completely understand her explanations about how much easier it was just to spread out her files and get her work done in the quiet of her hotel room, she didn't let on, and Grace relaxed. By the time she finished slicing hard-boiled eggs and arranging them on top of the large bowl of potato salad with sprigs of fresh parsley and a dash of paprika, she was feeling like she might even enjoy the afternoon. Just because she hadn't been here for awhile didn't mean it had to be awkward, she told herself as she walked back outside and felt the warmth of the Florida sun soak through her skin.

The one thing she'd always appreciated about Jimmy's house was the long dock, stretching out over the water so far that you felt you were in a different place, disconnected from everything that was going on in the world behind it. She wandered out to the end of it and sat down, leaning back and bracing her hands on smooth wood warmed by the sun. She inhaled slowly and let out a long breath. There had always been something calming about looking up at the bluest of skies, while she listened to the sound of the water slapping gently against the sides of the boat and the pilings. Something about it tugged at her, and she appreciated the irony of it since this was the very place she'd sat day after day when she planned her escape from Florida, and the new life she'd yearned for someplace else.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even sense anyone approaching on the dock, until he was practically standing over her. She looked up, squinting her eyes against the glare.

"So I've got strict orders not to discuss the case today." Jack sat down on the dock beside her, where Grace was dangling her feet over the water. "You want to go bug Jimmy to take the boat out? Great afternoon for a sail."

She shook her head. "Maybe later."

Not only had her moment of solitude been interrupted, but now she had to sit around making small talk with her new co-counsel who apparently not only knew her stepfather, but knew him well enough to be invited over for a family dinner on a Sunday afternoon. Which he hadn't bothered to mention when she'd introduced herself, or during the entire day they'd spent together on Thursday going over the case. She stared back out at the water, hoping he would get the hint and just go away.

"Something bothering you?"

Or maybe not. Grace turned and looked at him. "When you picked me up, you must have known who I was – who my stepfather is," she corrected. "I'm trying to figure out why you didn't mention it."

"I didn't know who you were. Wallace isn't that unusual a name, and it's not like I hang out here all the time." He gave her a quick smile other women probably found irresistible, but fortunately she considered herself immune.

"Jimbo and I just go back a ways, that's all."

"Jimbo? Oh, great."

"You know, you haven't spent that much time around here since you left for college."

"What, the two of you were discussing me?" Wasn't that just lovely. She imagined Jimmy telling him how disappointing it was that Ellen's daughter rarely found the time to come for a visit. At least Jack should be able to appreciate the pressure she was under at a major law firm to work harder and bill more hours, since he'd started his own career on the fast track before giving it up for the more relaxed pace of running his own practice.

"Not at all," Jack said, and there was just the hint of that smile again. "He's mentioned his stepdaughter from time to time, but he just called you 'Slick.' Mostly bragging about the awards you racked up in law school. I didn't even remember Ellen's name used to be Wallace. Your brothers use Marlin."

"Yeah. He adopted them."

"But not you."

"Jimmy's not my father."

"Yeah, I think I got that." A seagull landed on the railing and watched them hopefully for a few moments, then, apparently realizing there were no handouts coming, flew off again over the water. Grace's curiosity won out and she decided she might as well take this chance to get to know her co-counsel a little better. After all, there was no point in being hostile toward someone she'd be working so closely with over the coming months.

"So how'd the two of you get to be such good friends? You're a lot younger, earlier in your career, single – what's the connection? I don't remember you hanging around here when I was in high school or anything." She smiled. "You're kinda' cute, Jack, I think I'd remember you."

He grinned at that one. "Right back at you. That cap and gown photo Jimmy's got of you in his office doesn't do you justice."

Jimmy had a picture of her in his office? She'd scrupulously avoided all the "family" portraits over the years. She tuned back into what Jack was saying.

"Jimmy and I had a case together, oh, about six or seven years ago. So you were long gone from here by the time I even met him. I was a fourth year associate at Graham, Spalding and I thought I was a real hot shot. Had some solid wins under my belt by then.

"That was until I had an insurance defense case, products liability suit, should have been a slam dunk for me. Law was on my side, facts were on my side, and the plaintiff's lawyer turned down what I thought was a perfectly reasonable settlement offer. I waltzed into court ready to kick some ass."

"And came up against Jimmy."

"Let's just say it wasn't me giving the ass-kicking. Jimmy cleaned my clock, and he made it look easy. The jury came back with a verdict in the mid-six figures, and I took a good long look at myself. Seems I didn't know everything there was to know about being a trial lawyer after all."

"Ouch."

"Yeah. Jimmy took me out and got me drunk afterward. Told me I had 'potential.' Me, with all my amazing credentials." He laughed.

"So that's when you left Graham, Spalding?"

"Nah. Insurance defense work, you win some you lose some. It's not like it was a career ending defeat or anything. It all averages out in that business. I hung around the firm for another year or so, but the more time I spent with Jimmy, the more tight-assed I thought everybody was at Graham, Spalding. Taking themselves and their big firm practice a little too seriously. What Jimmy does changes people's lives. What I was doing pushes numbers into different columns on a spreadsheet. When they offered me a partnership, I said no thanks, and I haven't looked back."

"So now I've met another member of the Jimmy Marlin fan club."

He glanced over at her and she couldn't read his expression. "Maybe you should think about joining."

"Yeah. My family is already duly represented." She looked back on the lawn where her brother Ted – a first year medical student at the University of Florida, was tossing a frisbee back and forth with her stepfather while their golden retriever ran between them frantically, barking, until Jimmy finally tipped it into the water and the dog dove in after it. She watched him throw his arm around Ted's shoulders and the two of them walk back up to toward the house, talking animatedly.

Both her brothers had opted to stay in Florida to be close to home – Ted at UF, and JJ even closer, living in the dorms at the University of South Florida in downtown St. Pete. Grace, on the other hand, had left the state before the ink on her high school diploma was even dry, settling into the summer session as a freshman at Bryn Mawr College without ever a backward glance. She took a fast track, graduated early, and at twenty-one was already a first year law student at University of Pennsylvania Law School. By then, Philadelphia was home.

"Why do you hate Jimmy so much?"

She looked at him in surprise. "I don't hate Jimmy. Is that what he told you?"

"No, just my own observation."

"That's ridiculous." Just because she wasn't her stepfather's number one fan didn't mean she hated him.

"If you say so."

"Look, it's just that my life is in Philadelphia now. Whatever issues I might have had with Jimmy, it really doesn't matter anymore."

Jack just looked at her for a few moments, and then shrugged.

"What?"

"I'm just not sure if it's me you're trying to convince about that, or yourself."

He'd known her for a few days and he was ready to pass judgment on her personal life?

"I think," Grace said, as she stood up, "that it would be a much better use of your talents to figure out what's going on between Morrie and Shelley, than to waste your time trying to analyze my relationship with my family. Because trust me, it's just not an issue."

"Whatever you say." He gave her that grin that made it really hard to stay annoyed at him.

"Come on," she said, relenting and offering a hand to him. "Let's go get some food before my brothers eat it all."

He surprised her by not letting go of her hand once he stood up. And as they walked across the yard toward the terrace and the mouth-watering smell of steak and shrimp on the grill, she couldn't figure out a way to pull her hand away without seeming really awkward. Walking along casually holding hands wasn't something she ordinarily did, but she had to admit it felt . . . nice. Even though it did make her feel a little shiver of attraction that she really shouldn't be feeling for an attorney she was working with on a case.

They all crowded around the long travertine table top that was covered with, in Grace's opinion, enough food for a small army, the platters vying for space with the brightly colored sprays of gladiolas that served as a centerpiece. Jimmy told a funny story about one of his recent lawsuits that was so outrageous Grace found herself laughing along with everyone else. She hadn't felt this relaxed with her family in a long time. It probably had something to do with Jack, who seemed to be completely at ease, winking at Ellen as he reached for his third helping of potato salad. And having Jack trading stories with Jimmy kept the focus away from the usual stream of questions that would have been directed at Grace about her job, whether she was working too many hours, when she thought she might take a vacation, and her mother's favorite - whether she was dating anyone.

She didn't realize how late it was getting until she noticed the sun setting over the water. It had always amazed her that when you looked out over the Gulf you could actually see the sun drop so quickly from the sky down beneath the horizon, the red and gold glow spreading like spilled paint until the water swallowed it.

Jack walked her out to her car and they spent a few minutes discussing her plans to spend the next few days going through documents at Morrie's office, then sit in on Shelley's deposition in the state court marital dissolution action later that week. After all, the same issue was at the heart of both legal matters – whether Morrie had the right to fire his ex-wife.

"I think it will help a lot for me to hear what she says in that case," Grace explained. "And it wouldn't make sense for me to fly back to Philadelphia and then turn around and fly back here the next day or so."

Jack was leaning against her car, and the corners of his eyes crinkled as he smiled at her. Damn. Why was she explaining herself to him? If it was more convenient for her to spend most of this week in Florida working on the case, well, then that was what she'd do.

And why was she suddenly feeling so . . . nervous?

"Makes sense," he said.

She heard herself keep talking. "The hotel is almost as convenient as an office, so I –"

"Grace," he interrupted, "do you honestly think anyone's going to accuse you of slacking off and coming up with excuses to spend more time in Florida?"

She had to laugh. "Ok, ok. I always feel guilty if I'm out of the office for more than a week."

"Even though you're working."

"Right." She shifted from one foot to the other. She should open the car door, drive away, but he was leaning against it. "Well. I'm looking forward to Shelley's deposition."

"Me too."

Finally he took a step to the side, and she moved forward, her body brushing up against his as he reached to open the car door for her. She froze for a moment and all she could think about was how close he was, how the clean male scent of him was going to her head, and the weird feeling that he was about to lean in even closer and kiss her. And that maybe she wanted him to. Then the moment dissolved and she was sliding into the seat of her rental car, feeling foolish, and Jack was closing the door and telling her to have a good night and drive safely, and she was pulling out of the driveway and onto the road. It wasn't until she exhaled in a long sigh that she realized she'd been holding her breath.

I'll be adding a new chapter every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Hope you like this story! It's being published exclusively here on Wattpad!