80 : On Saturday Afternoons
Stark woke up to the sound of "Faithfully" by Journey: the ringtone she'd assigned to Brian Steiner. Obviously, she'd forgotten her weekend habit of turning her phone off so she could manage to sleep in for once.
She rolled over in the bed and grabbed for the phone, clicking it open and pulling it to her ear. "Hey, Brian." She was still a little drowsy. "What's happening?"
The deep voice on the other end was more coherent and definitely cheerful. "I thought I'd just call you to tell you Duke sucks," Brian said glibly from the kitchen of his townhouse where he was watching afternoon football while making lunch. "Twenty-four to nothing."
Stark chuckled at that. "You're just happy because it's your team they're losing to."
"Well, yeah." He laughed. "You can still catch the last couple of minutes. It's on ESPNU right now and they look horrible."
"It's Duke," Stark reminded him. "Up until last week they had a twenty-five game losing streak. They never won a game last season."
These were the kinds of conversations that were normal between them. Both of them had graduated from Atlantic Coast Conference schools (she from Maryland, he from Georgia Tech before going on to Dartmouth Law), and both had a fair amount of collegiate pride. They'd spent a couple afternoons during their short-lived relationship, if one could call it that, sitting around watching college sports together. She didn't mind talking about it to him. Just not when she was enjoying not having to be at work by being face down in a pillow.
"I'll take my joy where I can get it," Brian continued, "Considering I nearly drowned in depositions this week." He paused. "So how are you?"
"I'm good. I'm fine." She ran a hand through her bed hair and smiled slightly even though she knew he couldn't see it. "Just the same stuff I always do, go to work and still pretend I have a career."
He snorted. "You have a career. You have the career you wanted."
"I wanted my partner back. Everything else was negotiable." A soft laugh. "Nah, I'm good, Brian. I'm going out shopping today...Kevin finally proposed to Kathleen so we're starting to plan for the wedding."
"What, no paintball match today?"
"Nah. It's our bye week. Next week. Today it's me pretending I know a damn thing about weddings."
Brian had known her long enough that he knew her brother and her brother's girlfriend. After all, they had worked in the same building and on a few cases well before they had ever started seeing each other. It wasn't as if she had to explain these things to him. That was one of the things she liked about him. He was a lawyer, yes, and a damned good one. But he was also an agent, somebody who could be counted on outside of a courtroom. He remembered little things about people.
He was just a good man and those were hard to find. Once she'd found hers, she'd hung by his side, and while it had cost her some things she had gained a wealth of others. Not to mention happiness.
"Congratulations," Brian said. "Well. I'll let you enjoy your day off. Call me sometime and we'll do lunch?"
"I'll call you later," she promised. "Enjoy your victory parade."
He laughed at that and she smiled, clicking the phone off and flopping back down into bed. She really had all the respect in the world, personally and professionally, for Brian Steiner. That was why she had been very careful to tell him that she wasn't alone in bed.
She rolled over in the bed and grabbed for the phone, clicking it open and pulling it to her ear. "Hey, Brian." She was still a little drowsy. "What's happening?"
The deep voice on the other end was more coherent and definitely cheerful. "I thought I'd just call you to tell you Duke sucks," Brian said glibly from the kitchen of his townhouse where he was watching afternoon football while making lunch. "Twenty-four to nothing."
Stark chuckled at that. "You're just happy because it's your team they're losing to."
"Well, yeah." He laughed. "You can still catch the last couple of minutes. It's on ESPNU right now and they look horrible."
"It's Duke," Stark reminded him. "Up until last week they had a twenty-five game losing streak. They never won a game last season."
These were the kinds of conversations that were normal between them. Both of them had graduated from Atlantic Coast Conference schools (she from Maryland, he from Georgia Tech before going on to Dartmouth Law), and both had a fair amount of collegiate pride. They'd spent a couple afternoons during their short-lived relationship, if one could call it that, sitting around watching college sports together. She didn't mind talking about it to him. Just not when she was enjoying not having to be at work by being face down in a pillow.
"I'll take my joy where I can get it," Brian continued, "Considering I nearly drowned in depositions this week." He paused. "So how are you?"
"I'm good. I'm fine." She ran a hand through her bed hair and smiled slightly even though she knew he couldn't see it. "Just the same stuff I always do, go to work and still pretend I have a career."
He snorted. "You have a career. You have the career you wanted."
"I wanted my partner back. Everything else was negotiable." A soft laugh. "Nah, I'm good, Brian. I'm going out shopping today...Kevin finally proposed to Kathleen so we're starting to plan for the wedding."
"What, no paintball match today?"
"Nah. It's our bye week. Next week. Today it's me pretending I know a damn thing about weddings."
Brian had known her long enough that he knew her brother and her brother's girlfriend. After all, they had worked in the same building and on a few cases well before they had ever started seeing each other. It wasn't as if she had to explain these things to him. That was one of the things she liked about him. He was a lawyer, yes, and a damned good one. But he was also an agent, somebody who could be counted on outside of a courtroom. He remembered little things about people.
He was just a good man and those were hard to find. Once she'd found hers, she'd hung by his side, and while it had cost her some things she had gained a wealth of others. Not to mention happiness.
"Congratulations," Brian said. "Well. I'll let you enjoy your day off. Call me sometime and we'll do lunch?"
"I'll call you later," she promised. "Enjoy your victory parade."
He laughed at that and she smiled, clicking the phone off and flopping back down into bed. She really had all the respect in the world, personally and professionally, for Brian Steiner. That was why she had been very careful to tell him that she wasn't alone in bed.