Matt and C.J. left the courthouse going for lunch before getting back to work. They hadn't talked much on the ride over. C.J. sat almost amused as she could see clearly the wheels in Matt's head turning. He would furrow his brow and then take a deep breath and look over at her, clearly about to say something, and then just turn back and stare at the road in front of him.
C.J. broke the silence, "If he's innocent then you don't have anything to worry about."
Matt looked over at her and said sarcastically, "Don't all defenders say their clients are innocent?"
"Well, yes, at least in public we do…Matt what's got you so worried? He's in jail right now," she asked.
Matt knew he had to tread carefully here. He didn't want to come across as overprotective, she hates that. He certainly didn't want to tell her what cases she could and couldn't take, no he liked her sleeping in the same bed with him at night and knew things could get quite chilly if he started making demands like that. However, this was a case about a man who attacks women and she's a woman. He just needed to find a more polite way of putting that.
"I'm not worried, exactly. I just….well….you know you just had surgery not that long ago…" he started but he knew that argument was weak, especially given the look on her face.
"Surgery? Really? Matt, you have been working me out these last couple of weeks like I'm training for a marathon or something. In fact, I'd wager I'm fit enough to outrun you on the trail at Boardwalk Park. It's not the surgery that has you worried. I know you. You're worried that this guy might be guilty and that means he has issues with women and since I happen to be a woman, he might try to hurt me," C.J. said as she read his mind.
'Ok' he thought to himself, 'let's think of something real quick to change the direction of this conversation before I get myself in real trouble.' "Now, look I didn't say that" he started and thought to himself, 'good, she knows where I'm coming from but I don't have to take the heat for it because she said it, not me.' "I understand your commitment to your values. You believe every person deserves his day in court. I get that. You can't blame me, as your husband, for being a little concerned that you are potentially defending a rapist though." He said as they pulled into the parking lot at one of her favorite restaurants. He drove there specifically so he could soften her up when they had this conversation, although he was hoping it would come after lunch not before.
She did soften and took his hand, "I know you are just trying to look out for me, you have been doing that for as long as I can remember. But you have to trust me here. Yes, I may be alone with him in an interrogation room, just like I was with Roy Turner in Lake Etah, but Matt there are guards right outside the door. If I so much as cough they look in the room. If he is guilty then the prosecutor can prove that. I don't mind losing if the guy truly is guilty."
Matt rubbed her hand, "I know that in my head, my heart though is having a more difficult time. I remember that case in Lake Etah. I hated the thought of you in a room with that man and I noticed you didn't seem to mind my stepping between you two when he tried to confess." He looked down, "I know people can do really ugly things C.J., I just wanted to spare you. What's so wrong with that?"
C.J. reached up and kissed Matt on the lips, slow and sweet. "There is nothing wrong with that. I love you, Matt and I can handle this. I do not plan on going anywhere for a very long time. You're stuck with me."
They both smiled at each other and he said, "I've never been happier." Then he pulled her back to him and kissed her the same way she kissed him. "Come on, let's get some barbeque, but I'm not riding that mechanical bull again." They both laughed and went inside.
In between bites Matt asked only a couple of questions about the course of the trial and offered to help. She accepted and reassured him again that she would be fine. They didn't notice the man in the corner drinking ice tea watching her every move.
They got back to the office and asked Chris if a courier had stopped by. Sure enough, Chris had put two boxes, one labeled Files and one labeled Evidence on the table by the hot tub. She also told them that a Mr. Flanders had called and said to tell C.J. that Ricardo Gonzales was indicted by the grand jury.
They took the boxes and decided to divide and conquer. She took the files to her office and he kept evidence box on that table and they began going through everything. C.J. fired up Baby and set Chris to work pulling biographical information on Ricardo and the victim, Sheryl Marx. Matt hadn't seen Chris work on Baby before but was impressed whenever he would look up. She was putting together another amazingly organized file. In fact she had printed out typed labels for the dividers when he walked by to get a cup of coffee and said, "I think I'm gonna have to give you a raise."
She smiled back and said, "I like helping out like this. Doing something to help others feels good."
He bent down and patted her shoulder and said, "It does, doesn't it. You know I'm not sure what we would do without you." She smiled and he went back to the evidence.
It took the rest of the afternoon and at about 5pm both had gone through them and were meeting back at the couch. Chris asked if they needed her to stick around after handing off the folder.
C.J. asked, "I thought you had some serious plans with the other administrative assistants. Something about celebrating Bernadette's first paycheck? There is a rumor that you take each assistant out when they get paid the first time, telling them they are buying drinks and then you pay the tab before the bartender ever presents a bill."
Matt looked at Chris who was blushing just a little bit, "You do that?"
Chris looked back and just said, "Well, maybe I've done it once or twice. Its part of making everybody feel at home, that's just how ya'll have made me feel, that's all. It's no big deal really. There usually aren't more than 5 of us together at any one time."
Matt and C.J. looked at each other and smiled. He got up and walked over to Chris as he pulled out his wallet and handed her $100. "I don't pay you enough to take all this on yourself. Take this and let me cover tonight alright? You have a good time." He took her hand and squeezed it.
She smiled and left. Matt and C.J. started to pull together what she learned about the case and what Matt found in the evidence box.
As Chris walked out to her car, she didn't notice a man in a sedan watching her. He was parked in the mall parking spaces across the street. He had her picture and as he watched her walk, he looked at it and then started up that sedan.