"More, I need more, please," the blonde demanded, keeping her voice strong despite the fact that she was obviously begging. Nothing is working, Alexandra growled to herself. Reaching her right arm up to wrap around the slender neck of the dark-haired woman on top of her, she hooked her grip tighter, hopelessly trying to pull the brunette's body closer. No matter how much of her own weight the brunette let fall into the blonde, how hard or fast her hips were thrusting, how close their bodies were – it wasn't enough for the attorney. She needed more contact, more friction, just a little bit more pain. Alexandra's body was on fire. No matter what Sienna did, it wasn't enough to quell that heat. She just wasn't what Alexandra wanted. The brunette was getting tired, sweat starting to drip down her chest, falling in tiny droplets onto Alexandra's exposed breasts. The blonde was naked, writhing uncontrollably underneath the brunette, desperately working to increase the friction – anywhere.
"Fuck Alex," the brunette growled, dropping her right hand to the expanse of bed beside Alexandra's left shoulder. She shifted her weight onto her right arm, lifting her hips and grasping the blonde's opposite hip with her left hand. Having given herself a bit more space and control, the brunette gripped the blonde's impossibly tight and slammed her hips harder into her. The force sent Alexandra's head flying back against the pillow with a loud moan. Yes, yes, Alexandra repeated over and over again in her head, just like that. It took Sienna a moment to find a rhythm, but within seconds she had set her pace and was thrusting her hips roughly, quickly, into the blonde. Alexandra could sense, from the sheer force of her thrusts, that Sienna was getting frustrated with her. Her mind kept rotating back and forth between thoughts of her beautiful new client gliding her tongue along the expanse of her plump lower lip, and the sensations of Sienna taking her over and over again roughly. God yes, but fuck no, stop thinking about her.
The brunette had shown up in her bedroom at least an hour and a half prior. Alex had made the first move, pulling Sienna's fully clothed body down onto hers the second she'd gotten close enough to her bed. They'd barely said two words to each other before the blonde had slipped her hand below the waistband of the brunette's loose jeans and straight to her core. Sienna had been ready for her, and before the brunette knew it, she was coming undone against Alex's skilled hand – pants barely tugged down far enough to give Alex unfettered access. She'd stripped herself of her remaining clothes, tugged Alexandra's black Calvin Klein's down her long slender legs, and pounced.
Alexandra had known, before Sienna even came over, that it likely wasn't going to happen for her tonight. She had way too much on her mind. That fact had become even more evident to Alexandra once Sienna had slid the large purple strap on inside of her – every single time she closed her eyes and laid back to enjoy it, the image of Olivia's smiling face would dance across her closed eyelids. She absolutely could not get off while thinking of the woman she was trying to ignore.
The blonde was ripped from her inappropriate thoughts when Sienna withdrew the phallus from inside her, gripped both of her hips, and threw her upside down on the bed beside them.
"Jesus," Alex exclaimed, throwing her hands out in front of her to stop herself from being thrown face first into the bed.
Sienna ignored her, gripped her hips and pulled the blonde's lower body upwards so that her ass was in the air. She ran her strong hands softly across the expanse of the blonde's raised, ivory skin before gripping each cheek in her hands, hard. Without warning, Sienna positioned the phallus of the strap on around her hips at Alex's entrance and thrust fully into her with one quick push. The force of the brunette's attack sent Alex's upper body flying into the bed.
"Mm," Sienna moaned, the sight of Alex being completely at her mercy clearly turning her on, "I got you now, you want it like that huh?"
Alex groaned in response as Sienna established a quick pace inside of her, "I… don't… want to… think," Alex panted out.
"Put your head down and enjoy it," Sienna groaned, somehow thrusting harder into the attorney below her.
Alex dropped her head, forcing herself to keep her eyes open, letting her body adjust to the new position. This wasn't going to help her focus, but at least it felt incredible. Sienna had started thrusting faster, one hand holding the blonde's hips up in the air, the other intermittently rising and falling hard against her ass with a loud slap. Her eyes rolled back at the feeling, but it still wasn't quite enough to keep Alexandra focused, or satisfied.
"More," Alex groaned, gripping the sheets underneath her with both hands. Her mind was drifting again, this time to images of Olivia's bright mahogany eyes looking up at her – locked on her, watching her grind her hips backwards in pleasure. The thought caused Alexandra to convulse uncontrollably, God – those eyes… That smile. NO! Alex shouted at herself internally.
"Fuck Alex, get out of your head," Sienna growled finally in frustration, clearly incapable of giving much more to the insatiable blonde below her. She'd been trying to bring Alex to a release for over an hour at this point, and the brunette had basically given up – resigning to at least pulling Alex out of whatever thoughts she was being distracted by.
That did it. Alex gave up, too. She growled – no – practically screamed, out her frustration and lifted herself up on her arms again, turning to shove Sienna off of her. The brunette got the hint and slowly withdrew the strap on from within Alex and made quick work of pulling it off her body.
"I'm sorry," Sienna offered, tossing the toy off the bed and to the floor of Alex's bedroom. She crawled upwards from the foot of the bed and laid her spent body down on the bed beside Alex who had turned over and was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling.
"It's not your fault," Alex offered, throwing her hands up to cover her face. It truly wasn't – Sienna was usually incredibly skilled at getting her off – never having had a problem before. It was Alex, she couldn't stop thinking about Olivia long enough to enjoy anything Sienna's hands, mouth, or hips were doing to her. What the hell was that anyway? Alex had seen plenty of attractive women in her life, but none had affected her quite like Olivia. She was breathtakingly beautiful, strong, but also someone Alex could protect. With just a few interactions, Alex was already intrigued by the attractive English professor. Fuck.
"Rough case?" Sienna asked her, leaning up onto her side to look at Alexandra.
"Like you wouldn't believe," Alex answered simply, dropping her hands and turning to face the brunette, "I hate to give you the whole it's not you, it's me speech… but… I'm sorry – I just can't get out of my own head…"
"It's all good lawyer girl," Sienna answered, "Can't say I didn't have fun trying."
Alex groaned and playfully slapped the brunette's chest, "No one said it wasn't fun."
"Maybe next time?" Sienna asked.
"You should probably head home," Alex told her, looking over at the clock on her nightstand. It was almost midnight and the snow would probably be starting to pick up heavily. Alex was never one for promising another interaction – that just wasn't how she and Sienna worked. Besides, this seemed like a thirst Sienna wasn't capable of quenching.
"Damn, you're somehow getting quicker at shoving me out the door," Sienna said with a smile. Alex knew she didn't mean anything by it – Sienna was well aware of their arrangement… and last Alex had checked, Sienna had just started dating some new girl – she was on Wall Street.
"I'm a few minutes from peak emotional exhaustion," Alex offered as the brunette stood up from the bed and started picking up her discarded clothing, "Nothing you need to be around for."
"Loud and clear," Sienna said with a smile as she slipped her oversized black Vans t-shirt over her head, "Wouldn't want the Ice Princess herself going soft on me."
"Feel free to use the downstairs bathroom to clean up," Alex told her, "Can you lock the door on your way out?"
Sienna laughed and finished buttoning up her jeans, "You're so fucking hot when you're direct…"
The brunette took a few steps closer to the blonde, leaned down over the bed, and placed a few soft kisses to her forehead, "Chill out lawyer girl… whatever's bothering that overworked head of yours will pass."
"I know," Alex answered simply, smiling at the gentleness of her friend's gesture and words. She had absolutely no desire to take their benefits only situation-ship to friendship and divulge any information about the issue taking over her psyche.
"I'll let you know when I get home, wouldn't want you to worry," Sienna told her as she headed out of Alexandra's bedroom and shut the door behind her.
It wasn't for another five minutes that Alexandra finally heard the tell-tale sound of her front door opening, shutting, then the lock clicking closed. She let out a long breath she didn't realize she was holding and growled in frustration.
She had to get this woman off of her mind. This CLIENT, Alexandra scolded herself, correcting her previous thoughts. She flicked the lock on her iPhone beside her and glanced quickly through her text messages and e-mails, checking if anything important had come through while she was otherwise occupied – a before-bed habit Alexandra had picked up during law school. There were a few new e-mails from Marla, two from Abby, and another from an attorney she'd worked with a few times before trying to give her a referral. Ugh, not another, Alex groaned to herself. She was always grateful for her friends finding her work so stellar that they'd refer their friends to her, but she had so many cases stacked up she'd been pushing them off to Abby and Rafael for the better half of the last 6 months.
Alex put the phone down beside her, curled up in her bed sheets and rolled over. She closed her eyes, willing herself to fall asleep. Tomorrow would be a long day. It took Alex about fifteen minutes to rid herself of thoughts of her beautiful new client – the sadness, the pain, her smile, the way she interacted with her son, those intoxicating coffee-colored eyes, the way her voice sounded when she flirted with her. Despite the attempt, Alex found herself drifting off to sleep, images of Olivia clouding her every dream.
Alexandra had woken up in a sweat just three hours after falling asleep. It was barely three in the morning, and the attorney was wide awake. She'd gotten up, grabbed herself a water bottle, and headed off to the gym in her building early that morning. Sure, Alexandra typically preferred the Equinox down the street, but at this ungodly hour, Equinox was closed. Resolving to run out her frustrations, the blonde hit a new personal record, running an entire 10k in just under 46 minutes. She'd never been able to complete a 10k in under 50 minutes before, no less 46. By the time she was done, her body was exhausted. By 5:00, Alex was sitting at her desk in her makeshift at-home office, fully dressed for the day. She'd put on a pair of deep burgundy, ankle length dress pants, a form fitting white tank top, and the matching solid lapel collared blazer. Her hair was still a little damp but tied up in a tight bun at the base of her neck.
She'd contemplated going into the office early, but the snow outside was still coming down pretty harshly. Instead, she opted to wait it out after catching a quick update from the news channel that the snow would slow around 9 for a bit, before picking back up around noon.
To: acabot
Cc: alowell ; mgoldstein
From: ron
Subject: Client 53509 – Change of Plans and Updates – December 8, 2021
Ms. Cabot,
Per your instruction, a car was reserved to pick up a client at 7 Kennedy Lane, Cold Spring Harbor, New York at 8 PM.
Due to the snowstorm, we have made the difficult decision to pull our drivers off the road. There will be no cancellation fees assessed to the Goldstein & Park account for this cancellation.
We are terribly sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, but I am sure you understand that the safety of our employees must remain our paramount concern.
Thank you in advance for your understanding. Please let us know if we can reschedule, we would be glad to accommodate this request at a later date.
Ronald Beckley
Black Car Travel
CEO
Alexandra groaned, but wasn't all that surprised that the car service the firm utilized on a regular basis would be closing shop for the day. The snow had really come down over the last few hours – it would be dangerous to drive in these conditions, especially all the way out east to Long Island. Regardless, the pickup needed to happen today. Adrienne had sent over some options for Olivia and Noah the night before, with times already set up for Olivia to view the residences without a realtor present. They needed to make a decision on a place today so that everything was set up to ensure Olivia would be able to move in on Saturday.
She opened a new email and began drafting.
To: mgoldstein
Cc: alowell ; 53509client2021
From: acabot
Subject: Client 53509 – Change of Plans and Updates – December 8, 2021
Marla,
Ron just let me know he's shutting down operations for the day. Based on my *very incompetent* attempt at being a meteorologist this morning, between 9 and 12 will be the best time to move the client. If at all possible, I'd like to effectuate this as soon as possible.
For now, I will operate as if I am personally picking up the client from her home at 9:30 AM. I will be driving a black Cayenne. Due to the presence of surveillance equipment on the property – there will be no license plates on the vehicle. We'll get the client to the City residence and proceed as normal from there.
Adrienne has completed the attached Entry of Appearance, Petition, Summons, and Information Sheet. These are ready to go. Please begin preparing the packet for Gail – this needs to be done by noon.
Attached is a draft proposal letter to the husband, the completed Emergency Motion regarding rule 1.8, Emergency Motion Restricting Parenting Time, Motion for Temporary Protection Order, Motion for Emergency Status Conference, Address Protection Paperwork, Direct Deposit Paperwork, Completed Police Report, and a drafted letter to Child Protective Services.
The initial packet will contain the following: the Petition for Dissolution, the Summons, the Entry of Appearance, the Information Sheet, and the completed settlement offer letter. This will be served upon the husband the moment he steps off his plane on Sunday. I will update Gail with the flight information once the client confirms the husband's itinerary.
In the event husband does not accept the offer, or makes any moves contrary to the contents of the letter, we will move immediately to Plan B. I have updated the rolling memo accordingly (also attached), but Plan B is, essentially, as follows:
If Husband makes any hostile moves, the following must be ready for immediate execution:
1. Immediate filing of the following documents through NYSCEF: Petition, Entry, Summons, Info Sheet, Emergency Motion re 1.8, Emergency Motion re Parenting Time, Motion for TPO, Motion re Emergency Status Conference.
2. Immediate filing of the following to their respective offices: Address Protection Paperwork, Direct Deposit Paperwork, Completed Police Report, letter to Child Protective Services.
3. Increased security on client through NYPD must be negotiated immediately.
Tonight is going to be a long night. We need to make sure every single one of these documents are flawless – if anyone needs a ride into the office, let me know and I will pick you up. Dad – always prepared – put my snow tires on last weekend and we get plowed over here anyway.
I'll see you all at 1:30 in the east conference room.
Respectfully,
Alexandra Cabot, Esq.
She opened up the memorandum and quickly made some edits into the same document.
Goldstein & Park, P.A
A Professional Corporation.
Attorneys at Law
Memorandum #02
To: Client No. 53509; A. Lowell; M. Goldstein; Files
From: Alexandra Cabot, Esq.
Date: December 8, 2021
Re: Updates and Plan B
Black Car Travel can no longer pick client up from residence in Cold Spring Harbor at 8 PM, Wednesday, December 8, 2021. Alexandra will pick up the client at 9:30 AM, instead in her personal vehicle. Due to dangerous nature of Husband and surveillance cameras outside of home, Alexandra will remove and/or cover her front and rear license plates before arriving in the home's proximity.
Alexandra will take the client and her minor child to their home in Gramercy. The home will be secured by a private security company – already confirmed. Adrienne, please update the commencement time to noon, rather than 9.
Once the client is secure, Adrienne will take the client to the private tours of the various apartments she found. Client must select an apartment today in order to be ready for Saturday move to new residence. Please complete this by 5 PM.
Proceed as planned.
Plan B in the event of hostility from Husband on Sunday:
Alexandra:
- Immediately file Petition, Entry, Summons, Info Sheet, Emergency Motion re 1.8, Emergency Motion re Parenting Time, Motion for TPO, Motion re Emergency Status Conference.
Adrienne:
- Get in contact with clients friend Fin and immediately file the Police Report, provide a copy of the CPS letter, and request protection for client from NYPD
- File the Address Protection paperwork and Direct Deposit paperwork electronically
- Call CPS and send the letter to the appropriate place – we like Melinda Warner over there, she's good.
Marla:
- Figure out who he's hired as opposing counsel – immediately – and get us in contact, we need to get ahead of any moves he plans to make.
- Get in front of the press – does anyone have any connections with any news outlets? We'll need to get in front of Husband in the event of any retaliation – client's story must come out first.
E-mail me with any questions.
Alexandra had prepared majority of the other documents on Tuesday, including the settlement letter to Brad. Adrienne had spent most of her free time on Tuesday completing her tasks, and Alex had approved them quickly that evening before Olivia arrived for their meeting. While talking to Olivia that night, she and Marla had helped Olivia comprise a settlement offer to Brad that would hopefully end things on a good note. All Alexandra had left to do was turn the offer into a letter.
Goldstein & Park, P.A
A Professional Corporation.
Attorneys at Law
Alexandra Cabot, Esq. 7421 Madison Ave, 14th Floor
(718) 920-8886, ext. 112 New York, New York 10021
acabot Phone: (718) 920-8886
December 8, 2021
VIA HAND DELIVERY [CONFIDENTIAL SETTLEMENT COMMUNICATION RULE 4547]
Mr. Bradley Holter
7 Kennedy Lane
Cold Spring Harbor, New York 11724
Re: In re the Marriage of Olivia Grace Benson Holter and Bradley Thomas Holter; New York Supreme Court Index No. TBD
Mr. Holter,
My name is Alexandra Cabot. I am an attorney at Goldstein & Park, P.C. I represent your wife in the above referenced action. I am writing to you today in hopes of providing you both with a "pre-packaged" divorce so as to protect you, your son, and our client. We do understand the publicity that will be inevitably tied to this action, and we will take the utmost care in ensuring this remains as under wraps as possible. As I'm sure you anticipate, alarming facts have come to light during our representation of your wife that make this dissolution a publicity nightmare. Rather than go into detail, we'd like to make one, and only one, offer for a clean split.
Offer for Settlement of Assets and Debts:
7 Kennedy Lane, Cold Spring Harbor: As you know, this property is not encumbered by any debts or mortgages. Without the benefit of an appraisal, the relevant comparable homes for sale in the neighborhood show that the value of this home would be approximately $1,499,000. All equity, as well as responsibility for the payment of utilities, taxes, insurance, and other fees would be allocated to you. Ms. Benson will sign a quit claim deed providing you with this residence within seven days of signing a complete agreement.
121 East 22nd Street #501, Gramcery Park: This condominium is encumbered by a HELOC with a remaining balance due and owing of approximately $1,250,000. Comparable available units place the value of this condo at approximately $2,865,000, exclusive of the HELOC encumbering the property. While this property was gifted to you during the marriage by your parents, the appreciation in value, coupled with the HELOC, and subsequent payment of said HELOC, the property is marital. Our client is willing to forego the marital aspects of this property. All equity, the HELOC, as well as responsibility for the payment of utilities, taxes, insurance, and other fees would be allocated to you. Ms. Benson will sign any documentation necessary to provide you with this residence within seven days of signing a complete agreement.
Wells Fargo Investment Account #4902: Your investment account value is currently unknown. Our client will waive any discovery on this and will not seek any distributions from this account.
Wells Fargo Checking and Savings Accounts #4982 and #4984: The joint checking account currently has approximately $11,000 in it. The joint savings account currently has approximately $74,000 in it. Both of these accounts shall be allocated to Ms. Benson in compensation for her turning over any right she may have to the two marital residences, and your investment portfolio. You will agree to sign any and all documents required to take your name off this account and/or close it, with all proceeds being transferred to an account of Ms. Benson's choosing.
Noah's Wells Fargo 529 Account: This account shall be allocated to Noah. Ms. Benson shall maintain full control over this account but will agree to permit your depositing of funds into the account. She will cooperate with providing you a full accounting of this account yearly. You will relinquish any and all control over the account and sign any required documents to effectuate this.
2021 Audi A8: Your vehicle is not encumbered by any debt. It has a value of approximately $80,000. You will be allocated this vehicle, as well as any associated costs and fees of ownership, including but not limited to insurance and registration fees.
2019 Grand Cherokee: Ms. Benson's vehicle is not encumbered by any debt. It has a value of approximately $38,000. Ms. Benson will be allocated this vehicle, as well as any associated costs and fees of ownership, including but not limited to insurance and registration fees.
Retirement and/or Pensions: Neither party's accounts have been valued. Each party will keep their respective accounts without need for valuation.
The New York Angel Outreach Foundation: Given the nature of this foundation's work, we believe Ms. Benson is better suited to continue the work of this incredible charity. The business shall retain its assets, including but not limited to, all bank accounts, real estate, employees, and real property. You will sign any paperwork necessary for you to step down from your position, and will publicly announce your departure within seven days of signing an agreement with our client.
Debts: The joint credit card shall be paid off by you and closed. Your credit cards and their balances shall remain your sole and separate property.
Catch All: Any unknown separate debts and or separate assets in the name of either party shall remain the sole property of the party named on the debt and or asset.
Spousal Support: Although entitled to support, Ms. Benson will agree to waive her right to seek support from you. In lieu of a monthly payment, Ms. Benson requests that the sum of $200,000 be deposited into this law firms IOLA account, to be distributed in full to Ms. Benson as and for the settlement of any support.
Offer for Settlement Regarding the Custody of Noah Holter:
- Ms. Benson shall have sole and exclusive custody of the minor child.
- Ms. Benson shall have sole decision-making rights in regard to any and all major or minor decision for the minor child.
- You will be permitted supervised visits with the minor child every other weekend for eight hours on the day of your choosing. These visits must be attended by a licensed professional counselor who must be agreed upon in advance.
- In the event no issues are discovered during these supervised visits for a period of one year, Ms. Benson will permit you to have overnight visits with Noah every other weekend from Friday after school to Sunday night at 6 PM.
- You will agree to a confidential protection order. You will not contact Ms. Benson, nor cause Ms. Benson to be contacted by any individual at your direction. You will remain within 500 yards of her at all times, restrict your communication with her to the Talking Parents platform and ensure contact is only made in regard to Noah, you will avoid any place where Ms. Benson could reasonably be found, and participate in parenting exchanges at the 16th Precinct located in Lower Manhattan.
- You will provide Noah with a cell phone so that you may contact him at your leisure. In the event you abuse this right, Ms. Benson will reserve the right to revoke the contact at any time.
In exchange for your agreement, Ms. Benson will refrain from filing domestic violence charges against you. Ms. Benson will agree to sign a non-disclosure agreement, with a penalty of $10,000 per violation of said agreement. Ms. Benson will agree not to slander your name in any fashion. We have placed a timer on this offer.
You have until Monday, December 13, 2021 at 9:00 AM to decide if this offer will be acceptable to you. If we do not hear from you at that time, we will assume you've chosen to pursue a contested divorce and will proceed accordingly. In addition, if any hostile moves are made by you or any of your agents prior to, or after the time runs out, we will assume you have denied this offer and proceed accordingly. We look forward to your response, and a quick resolution of this case.
Sincerely,
Alexandra Cabot, Esq.
Satisfied with her work, Alexandra finally attached the last few documents to the email, and sent it off to Marla, Adrienne, and Olivia. It was 6:05 AM by the time she'd finished her first tasks for the day, and she still had plenty of time to kill before making the trek out to Long Island. She stood up from her spot at her desk and headed into the livingroom, looking out her large windows. Central Park was white – covered in snow, lit up only by the streetlamps since the sun had only just started to peek out over the horizon. Thankfully, the roads weren't too bad, having already been plowed once. At least she'd still be able to get out.
On a typical day, she'd have Olivia and Noah hop on the Port Jeff line into Penn, like they had been doing, but the LIRR had already shut down to start shoveling tracks clear in anticipation of Thursday's commute. Alexandra was used to driving out east though, doing so every so often to visit her family. Without the snow, a drive out to Cold Spring Harbor would only take about an hour – so long as the Long Island Expressway, or the LIE, as the locals affectionately called it, cooperated. But, with snow, Alexandra anticipated the drive taking twice as long, especially if the city closed the tunnel. If the tunnel was closed, she'd have to take one of the bridges, only adding to her time. Alexandra planned to leave in an hour, just in case. So far, according to the traffic report, the Midtown Tunnel was still open.
Alexandra was brought from her thoughts by the sound of her phone ringing on her desk. Walking back over to her desk, and without looking, Alexandra picked up the phone.
"Cabot," she said smoothly into the receiver.
"Alexandra," the voice said on the other end of the line.
"Marla," Alex responded with a smile.
"You've been busy… this was some really great work you put forth," Marla said encouragingly, "I can't guarantee the Court will believe it all, but I think we've got a shot."
"Thank you," Alex answered, "I worked hard on this."
"Have you slept?" Marla asked, concern evident in her voice.
"As much as my body would allow," Alexandra responded, moving toward the small espresso machine situated on the kitchen counter, in the corner beside the refrigerator.
"Alex, burn out is real," Marla scolded, "We need you in good shape for this case."
"I know," Alex answered, prepping her coffee and pressing the auto start button, "I know… it's just a tough case… I've got a horrible feeling that this isn't going to go our way… Forget plan b, we're going to need plans c through z."
"Don't get too involved Alex, there's only so much we can do," Marla told her.
"I will protect this woman," Alex said quickly.
"I know you will, but you need to remain focused," Marla told her, a hint of something extra in her tone.
"I'm fine Marla, I promise… already ran over 6 miles today, knocked some stuff off my to-do list, and I'm prepping to go get the client – very focused over here," Alex answered, waiting impatiently for her coffee to be ready. She didn't mind Marla's concern, she had become a very important person in her life, but she also needed to keep her mind off the predicament that was Olivia at least anything non-work related.
"What are you doing for you Alex?"
"I'll have you know I had a visitor last night," Alex answered, willing to divulge just enough to get Marla off her back. It didn't matter that their interaction hadn't gone exactly as she'd hoped. Bottom line was, she'd still taken the edge off.
"Serves you right, I couldn't have cut the tension between you and Olivia last night with a steak knife," Marla answered with a laugh. The older attorney wasn't wrong. She and Olivia had shared more than a few longing stares, and at least one accidental/intentional brush of their hands when exchanging notes on the settlement offers for Brad. At one point, unbeknownst to the blonde, Marla had even caught Olivia with her eyes glued to the blonde's backside as she leaned over the desk to point out changes to Marla on the forms they'd needed to finalize for Olivia's escape. When Olivia divulged the existence of her few affairs with women to Marla, she'd fallen right back into her habit of staring only at Alex while she talked – ignoring Marla's presence in the room entirely – except to answer questions. The attraction between the two women was obvious.
"Marla," Alex warned, "Our relationship is strictly professional… she trusts me."
"If that's what the kids are calling it these days," Marla retorted, "Just remember Alex… even something as simple as what you and Miss. Lowell were doing in the bathroom on the 4th of July could land you… and the rest of us… before the disciplinary board."
"Oh – um," Alex mumbled. She wasn't aware that Marla had known what was going on between the two of them that afternoon, "I – We didn't…"
"I'm not that old," Marla opined.
"There's nothing there, with either of them… Adrienne and I are just friends, and Olivia – she… she just trusts me, that's all…" Alex answered, finally hearing her coffee finish dripping. "I'm not so naïve as to think you'd ever believe the lie that I didn't find her attractive – but, in case you hadn't noticed over the years – I'm quite capable of restricting and controlling myself, Marla – she's our client."
"You'll be safe driving out to Long Island?" Marla asked, satisfied with her protégé's response.
"Yes, I'll be fine… I grew up here – I've been driving on these roads since I was a kid… and besides, I spent three years in Massachusetts, I was born for this weather," Alex answered, confident she'd be just fine driving her car out to Long Island in the snow. Sure, her Cayenne wasn't lifted, but she had the top-of-the-line sport model, and thick snow tires that would get her easily up a snow-covered mountain, if she had to.
"Okay Alex, just be careful, and call me when you get there," Marla answered, "The roads don't look too horrible yet… but I expect they'll only get worse."
"Are you able to get into the office?" Alex asked.
"Yes, I'll be in around noon," Marla answered, "Order Luke's for lunch, I'm craving a lobster roll."
"What an odd craving for mid-Winter," Alex commented, "But, alright. I'll circulate the order e-mail later… and call when I get out east…. Have a good morning."
"Be safe Alexandra," Marla answered, hanging up the phone.
Alexandra spent the rest of the morning sitting on her couch, enjoying her morning coffee, looking out over Central Park from her livingroom. She'd turned on her in home sound system, letting the soft sounds of her "every morning" playlist on Spotify – the gentle beats of, currently, Rüfüs du Sol permeating the room. While she was trying to think about anything but Olivia –Hawthorn – she was mediating with Trevor tomorrow and still hadn't reviewed his positions – Plackard – opposing counsel had sent back another counteroffer, and she still needed to clear that up if she wanted to take on the new discrimination case with Preston – or even Palomo – who was still waiting for her signature on the settlement agreement. If she didn't get over this stupid crush, she'd need to withdraw from representing Olivia. Maybe that's not such a bad idea? No matter what she did, how many snowflakes she tried to count, or how many songs she tried to lose herself in, Alexandra spent the next hour of her morning wondering if Noah and Olivia were okay. They were leaving their home today. Granted, they were just going to their Gramercy Park home, where the family spent most of their time, but Noah was about to be ripped from everything he knew. That had to be hard for a little boy to understand, even if he knew how hard things had been for his mom and how bad his dad treated them both.
By the time 7:15 rolled around, Alexandra was pulling out of the underground garage below her building. Camel colored peacoat and her signature heels on, she'd tossed a set of tire chains in her trunk – just in case – and Alex was completely confident that one plan mishaps was to be expected, but two would just be a sick joke.
Before leaving, Alex had learned that the City hadn't closed down the tunnel yet, but that the roads were starting to get pretty bad. Driving was strong advised against, but Alexandra didn't have much choice. She headed carefully down 80th, made a right onto Park Ave, traveled down one block to 79th, and made a left. There were very few cars on the roads, save for the ones parked along the side streets. She hadn't met any red lights yet, and her car was handling nicely on the snow slicked roads of the Upper East Side. She made a right onto FDR Drive and was suddenly met with other travelers. Despite the snow, and FDR typically being backed up with traffic on a normal day, the roads were still rather empty – five or six others braving the snow with Alexandra.
She kept her eyes forward, ignoring the other cars as they stupidly sped up around her. Even living in New York her whole life, Alexandra never took chances in the snow, preferring to travel slightly under the speed limit, even on empty streets. She hung a right and took the ramp towards the tunnel. Naturally, it was backed up with people trying to escape the City before they were trapped until the snow melted down a bit. It was another thirty minutes before she was safely on the LIE, travelling toward the off ramp for the Jericho Turnpike toward Syosset. She took the turnpike for the remainder of her trip, the roads being much better out on the Island. It hadn't snowed nearly as much out east as it had dumped on the City. She turned on Underhill Blvd. and followed the directions to merge on Cold Spring Road. A few more turns and she was approaching the Holter's Long Island home. She pulled over on Lawrence Hill Road and put her car in park.
Before getting out of the car, Alexandra sent a text to Marla that she was a few minutes away and had stopped to cover her license plates. She hopped out of the car, taking two large black pieces of cardboard with her. She stuck the pieces over her license plates, front and back, securing them with a few small binder-clips she'd brought with her. A few minutes later, she was rounding the last few side streets, and pulling up in front of Olivia's house. She glanced at the clock, the ever-punctual Alexandra was ten minutes early.
She took her phone out of her pocket and sent Olivia a text letting her know that she was outside whenever she was ready. In the amount of time it took for Alexandra to switch the song playing on her Spotify, Olivia and Noah were exiting the large two story home – estate really, the place was huge. Olivia had a large black duffel bag slung across her chest, looped over her left shoulder, and what looked like a backpack on her back. The little boy beside her was more fluff than anything else. He had a beanie on his head, taming those wild, beautiful curls, his usual large puffy green jacket, and what looked like black jeans stuffed into a pair of snow boots. Noah had a backpack on his back, a stuffed animal tucked into the nook of his left arm, and what looked like a baby blanket in his right hand. Alexandra smiled at the sight, they both looked like they were extremely grateful to be getting out of there.
"Hi Miss. Alex!" Noah said cheerfully from outside the car as they approached Alex's car. Alex waved, and smiled at the boy, but opted not to get out of the car, trying to maintain the anonymity of the person picking up Olivia and Noah. Olivia smiled gratefully at the blonde and opened the back door of the vehicle. Alexandra didn't have a booster seat for Noah, but Olivia was in no position to complain.
"Is it worth it to go back for the booster seat?" Olivia asked, gesturing over her head toward the house. Her Grand Cherokee was parked in the driveway, "I didn't take my keys… and…"
"It's okay Olivia. He'll be okay, we can get him a new one," Alex told her. She, once again, read between the lines, understanding that Olivia didn't ever want to go back inside that house again. Alexandra was becoming good at that, reading what Olivia was trying to say without her having to say anything at all. Stop it, Alex scolded herself for the hundredth time that morning.
"Okay," Olivia told her, tossing the large duffle onto the left side of the backseat. She took the backpack off her back and placed it on the floor on the left side, and then did the same with Noah's backpack. "Come on kiddo, let's get you in the car."
"But Mommy, there's no car seat," Noah complained, looking at the empty seat in front of him. He looked up to Olivia, concern evident on his small features.
"It's okay baby, Miss. Alexandra is going to drive nice and slow, we'll get you a new one soon, okay?" Olivia asked him, "Can you be a big boy for Mommy and sit in the backseat like a big kid?"
"Okay Mommy," Noah said wearily, climbing up into the car and sitting on the seat. Olivia helped him buckle his seatbelt, and then pulled it tight to lock it against him. She walked around the Cayenne and got into the passenger's seat.
"Thank you for coming to get us," Olivia told Alex as she shut the car door and buckled herself in. Alex wasted no time, driving away from the home.
"Of course," Alex answered, glancing over at Olivia and smiling, "We promised we'd get you out of here and we meant it – no matter the cost."
Alex continued driving, following her same loop back toward Cold Spring Road. Alex once again pulled off to the side of the road on Lawrence Hill Road and moved to get out of the vehicle to remove the black placard's she'd placed over her license plates.
"Is this where you stopped earlier?" Olivia asked Alexandra, suddenly nervous.
"Just up there," Alex said, pointing toward a large grey house on the opposite side of the road, just ahead of them.
"Can you pull out onto Cold Spring?" Olivia asked, her voice still a little off.
Alex didn't hesitate, putting the car back in drive and pulling back out onto Lawrence Hill. She made a left on Cold Spring, drove up a little further, and pulled over outside of a gas station.
"Are you okay, Olivia?" Alex asked, unbuckling her seat belt to get out of the car.
"Brad's partner lives on Lawrence Hill, just down the block from where you stopped," Olivia finally told her, "I'm sure it's fine… I'm just being paranoid, but…"
"You're not, I understand… If it makes you feel any better, I didn't see anyone at all when I was pulled over," Alex told her. She got out of the vehicle and walked from the front to the back of her car removing the cardboard covers.
"Was it rough getting out here?" Olivia asked Alex once she got back into the car and pulled back onto Cold Spring Road, lopped onto Underhill, and started back toward the Jericho Turnpike.
"No, the tunnel wasn't closed yet, thankfully. The roads weren't too bad either," Alex answered, remembering back to how easy the ride had been once she got on the LIE.
"Have you checked the closures yet?" Olivia asked, looking into the backseat at Noah. The little boy had made himself comfortable, cuddling up against the door with his bear and blanket.
"No," Alex answered, keying Olivia's Gramercy Park address into the GPS on her vehicle. "Still wants me to take the tunnel," she added, once the route had populated.
"If you pass me your phone, I can check," Olivia told her as Alex merged onto the Jericho Turnpike, heading back toward the LIE.
Alex picked her phone up off the center console and handed it to Olivia, "The password is 1004."
Olivia took the phone from the attorney and keyed in her password. She opened the Safari icon and quickly typed in the traffic updates for the Midtown tunnel.
"Still open," Olivia told her, closing the phone and putting it back down on the console between them.
"Mommy, I'm hungry," Noah complained softly from the back seat.
"Shit, I forgot to bring him snacks," Olivia said with a frustrated sigh. She'd been in such a rush to get out of the house on time that she'd likely forgotten more than just snacks for Noah.
"Don't worry about it," Alex said with a smile, "I have some snacks in my briefcase." Alex leaned over and slid her hand toward the floor at Olivia's feet where Alex's briefcase had been placed earlier that morning. In Olivia's attempt to move out of Alex's way, she inadvertently caused Alex's hand to brush gently across her thigh. Alex withdrew her hand quickly, like a kid who'd just gotten caught with their hand reaching for the cookie platter before eating Christmas dinner.
"Sorry," Alex said softly, panicked.
"It's okay," Olivia smiled, "You wouldn't be the first to try and cop a feel," she joked. Olivia's eyes darted to Alex's hand that had resumed its former positions in at 2 o'clock on the steering wheel. Alexandra had beautiful hands – long slender fingers, smooth skin that looked entirely too soft.
"I – I wasn't – " Alex stammered, a deep red blush creeping up from her chest, filling her cheeks within seconds.
"The red spreads fast, huh? A full-body thing, or just your whole face?" Olivia commented, a wide grin spread across her face. Olivia kept her eyes locked on Alex, who had turned her full attention back to the road in front of her. Despite her feigned concentration, Alex could feel the brunette's eyes on her, and it was having an effect that she wouldn't dare acknowledge. And when Olivia licked her lips ever so slightly, Alex had caught it in the corner of her eye. Fuck.
"Cursed with fair skin," Alex offered, trying to cool herself down. She was being ridiculous, touching Olivia's leg on accident wasn't a big deal at all – it happened all the time.
"I don't see anything curse worthy," Olivia flirted, leaning back in her seat, "More like blessed," Olivia added softly under her breath.
Alex shot Olivia a shocked, yet playful smile, "The blush is – something to not be desired."
"It's cute," Olivia replied, "Shows your innocence…"
"Oh, is that right? You think you've got me figured out, huh?" Alex flirted with another bright grin before she could stop herself. Fuck, stop it Alex! You're literally in the fucking middle of helping her escape a shitty husband! The blonde immediately bit her lip in frustration, aggravated that she'd let herself slip.
"Mm, not yet" Olivia sighed, causing goosebumps to sprout across Alex's lower neck. God that sound, "But I'm sure I'll learn soon enough, Alexandra." Fuck. The blonde truly could not handle the way the brunette said her name.
Olivia observed Alex's reaction with pride, leaning back in her chair and watching the woman squirm for a moment. Olivia was positively smitten with the blonde attorney, and teasing her only added to that.
"Mommy, snacks please," Noah interrupted again.
Olivia snapped out of whatever trance-like state she'd been in, and looked back at her son, "Sorry baby, one second." She looked back over to Alex, "Snacks have been demanded, Miss. Alexandra," Olivia said playfully.
"My briefcase, right there on the floor, there's some snack bars in there," Alex answered, gesturing to the bag on the floor at Olivia's feet, "In the large zippered pocket."
"Not going to risk it again?" Olivia teased, leaning over and taking a snack bar out of Alex's bag. She opened it, broke off a small piece and handed it to Noah.
"Now that would just be sloppy," Alexandra answered, winking at the brunette beside her as they got onto the LIE.
"Mommy where are we going?" Noah asked.
"Home baby, that's all. To the City," Olivia answered.
About 40 minutes later, they were approaching the Midtown tunnel. Flashing road signs informed them that the tunnel would be closing, essentially right behind them. The snow had gotten too heavy to keep any of the bridges, or tunnels open any longer. There was no turning back now.
"We just made it," Alex told Olivia as they traveled through the Midtown tunnel back into the City. Olivia's condo in Gramercy Park was just off the freeway off Lexington and 22nd. They'd be at the condo in less than five minutes. At least there, Olivia had more protection. She could deadbolt her condo door, the building had a doorman, and 24/7 security. Just as they were nearing the end of the tunnel, Alexandra's phone began to ring, booming throughout the car. It was Adrienne. Alexandra answered from her steering wheel.
"Hey Adrienne," Alex said into the speaker above her head.
"Alex? Where are you?" Adrienne asked. The usual husky voice of her law clerk was gone, replaced with a high pitched, rushed tone that caused Alexandra alarm.
"What's wrong?"
"Alex, where are you?"
"We just got through the Midtown Tunnel, they're closing it down now. I'm like five minutes from Olivia's," Alex answered as she headed toward the Lexington Ave exit.
"You need to divert your path," Adrienne said, the fear in her voice remaining.
"What? Why?" Alex asked, opting to take the Lexington exit, cut across to Park Ave, and start heading toward uptown.
"Brad Holter landed at JFK an hour ago," Adrienne said, "I put an alert on his name with a friend of mine who works for United… We can trust her… She let me know as soon as she landed in Boston that his name was on the flight roster for United Flight 198 landing at JFK at 9:30. I just confirmed that the flight did land, right before they shut down the airports… Brad's home… and now that he's stuck in the city, we can only assume he'll go to the Gramercy Park home… You can't take her there Alex," Adrienne finished.
"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?!"
"Marla said not to worry you before we knew," she answered. "We've got everything ready to go. Plan C?"
"You know very well we didn't have a Plan C yet," Alex answered, clearly annoyed. She came to a stop at a red light. They'd made it just past the Empire State Building at this point.
"Well, let's make it," Adrienne answered, "I'll go get Marla… come to the office for now."
There was silence for a minute as Adrienne clearly ran off down the hallway of Goldstein & Park toward Marla's office in the eastern corner of the floor. Alex looked over to Olivia. Her face had gone white, and she was barely breathing.
"It's gonna be okay, you'll be safe at the office, I've already got a plan," Alex said, offering Olivia a soft smile of reassurance. She wanted to badly to reach her hand out and touch Olivia's thigh, grab her hand, cup her face, anything to show her that she wasn't alone, and she was safe, but Alex knew deep down that any sort of touch could be misconstrued as inappropriate – leaving her and the firm open to liability.
Olivia smiled weakly back, turning and checking on Noah. The little boy had fallen asleep somewhere in Nassau County, and thankfully still hadn't woken up yet. Instinctively, Olivia reached her hand over and placed it over the hand Alex had resting on the gear shift between them. She laced her fingers through Alex's and gripped, tightly – needing some level of reassurance.
Alex looked down at their joined hands, fuck. She glanced over to the brunette and offered a smile, letting the woman's fingers wrap between her own and returning the squeeze, "It's going to all be just fine, Olivia."
"Alex?" She heard her bosses voice over the speaker in her car. Alex jumped, shaken from her thoughts, unlinking her hand from Olivia's. She didn't miss the look of sadness that fell over the brunette's face at her abrupt action.
"Marla," Alex affirmed, shaking off the feeling – she had to put her attorney hat on right now, "I've got a plan." This must be why they don't allow sexual relationships between attorney's and their divorce clients, Alexandra thought to herself.
"Let's hear it, Adrienne, get a pen," Marla said, commanding their law clerk to move with just the tone of her voice.
"I'll bring Olivia and Noah to the office now. I want Gail at the Gramercy Park residence now. Pay her whatever she asks for. Have her deliver the initial package – Adrienne – edit the letter to Holter giving him a deadline of this afternoon at 4 PM. We want enough time to get our filings in before the Court closes. The system may shut down, but the judges will keep working from home… Get all Plan B aspects ready to execute. I do not want one single move out of order. I want this guy served the second he steps foot in that building," Alex demanded. "Adrienne, go… now… make it happen."
Alex could hear the sound of Adrienne grabbing her papers and scurrying away from Marla's office.
"Has Olivia had any contact with Brad?" Marla asked.
Alex looked to Olivia.
"No," Olivia answered for her. "I haven't talked to him since yesterday."
"Do you have any way of finding out his whereabouts?" Marla asked.
"I can check the Ring cameras on Alexandra's phone," Olivia answered.
"Won't that reveal your location?" Alex asked, "If he were to look at the last login?"
"Yes," Olivia answered.
"We're not taking the risk," Marla said. "Adrienne, have Gail verify with the front desk whether or not Client 53509's husband has gone upstairs yet or not," Marla yelled across the office to the law clerk who was already on the phone with Gail.
"How far are you from the office?" Marla asked.
"These roads are pretty bad," Alex responded, "Park and 47th." They had another 21 blocks to go, and the roads were so bad Alex was one of two cars on the road.
"Drive safe," Marla told her, hanging up the phone.
"We've only got 21 blocks to go," Alex told Olivia, trying to comfort her in any way possible, "It'll be okay. We'll park out front, let security know that the firm is not accepting any visitors at this time, including staff, and we'll go upstairs... Marla and Adrienne are there, working on taking care of moving up our timeline, you'll be safe there. That I can promise you. You're not doing anything wrong… We'll lock the door, and you can sit in my office until we figure out where you'll stay today during the storm."
"Okay," Olivia said simply, keeping her eyes locked on her sleeping little boy in the back seat.
"This is ridiculous!" Alexandra exclaimed, dropping her iPhone down onto the conference room table in front of her.
Alexandra, Marla, and Adrienne had been sitting in the east conference room for an hour, trying to come up with a viable living situation for Olivia for the time being. Gail had confirmed that she'd served Brad Holter directly, at the Gramercy Park condo, with the packet thirty minutes prior. Olivia was a virtual wreck, lying on the couch in Marla's office with Noah, watching some minion's movie Noah had asked to watch. They'd run down multiple avenues, from domestic violence shelters, to hotels, to Airbnb's. Nothing seemed like a good idea. Shelters weren't actually safe, and Olivia had specifically said she didn't want to go to one. Hotels were a decent idea, until they'd remembered that the chances of Olivia and Noah being recognized by someone were a bit too high for comfort. An Airbnb wasn't a horrible idea, but with the price of them, there was no way the firm would ever be able to justify that as humanitarian aid – and, on top of that, the likelihood of the accommodations being safe enough were slim to none.
"Alex," Marla gasped, never having seen Alexandra Cabot lose her temper like that before. "Calm down, we'll figure this out."
"What about staying with one of us?" Adrienne asked, looking up from the laptop she had positioned in front of her. "There's nothing in the rules that prohibits us from being friends with our clients – and there's nothing that prohibits us from allowing them to spend the night when they're in need, or not in need."
"Let me see that," Marla said, pulling the computer out from in front of Adrienne and scanning through the rule Adrienne had been reading.
"I don't believe it would violate any ethical rules," Alex answered.
"I agree," Marla decided after a few minutes, shoving the computer back over to Adrienne, "He knows we represent her now," Marla said, "We're all on the radar… the only one he wouldn't be able to find easily is Adrienne, since she's not on our firm's website."
"I live in a three-bedroom apartment with two roommates," Adrienne answered, "And we're not in the best building. The security isn't all that great… I don't think I'm the safest option… especially since yeah, I love my roommates, but they can't shut up when they're drunk."
"I appreciate the honest, and we clearly need to pay you better," Marla answered, jotting down a note in her phone to review Adrienne's pay scale.
"She can stay with me," Alex answered, "I might be the best bet anyway... I'm the attorney who contacted him. To come after me would be sheer stupidity… Besides, I have 24/7 security, and he'd need a key card to get in the building. Even if he managed to con the front desk into letting him in, he'd never get past the double doors to the elevators without permission."
"Fancy," Marla commented.
"My parents had good taste," Alex responded with a smile.
"She could stay with me, but I don't want to inadvertently preclude my husband's firm from representing Holter… I know Harvey would never take the case, but his partners would," Marla said simply.
"That's settled then. Olivia will stay in my guest room for the time being," Alex said. "Adrienne, have we gotten anything from Holter, or an attorney on his behalf?" She turned and faced the redhead who was still staring at the computer in front of her.
"Adrienne?" Alex asked again, snapping the redhead from her fog.
"Alex… I think we've got a problem," Adrienne said simply. She turned the computer around so that Alexandra could see. Adrienne had logged herself into Alex's email on her laptop and had opened it to a new e-mail received two minutes prior.
To: acabot
From: bradleyholter79
Subject: Olivia Holter
Ms. Cabot,
Game on.
Bradley Holter
New York City Mayor
