"Possibilities"

"You were not kidding... this is fucked up." Gregory frowned as he went through Noland's notes monday morning. "We can't show up in court like this, I will ask for a continuance to get a few more days..." He was drinking his coffee and going through the papers while he focused on everything in front of him. Gregory was easy going and fun, and generally joking around, but when Noland brought something he considered important to his attention, he would become someone else entirely and think of possible solutions.

"If my hunch is right, they are trying to cover up something, which will explain why we have only 5 witnesses in an open area in front of a very famous hotel. I am telling you, we need to modify our client's contract as soon as possible, we need to add a clause where we only commit to defend them if they give us the full information, and if something comes up after we are walking out of it. It might sound harsh but the firm has earned its reputation already..." Noland stopped as Gregory raised his hand, his eyes not parting from the notes yet.

"I already did."

"Wha.... what do you mean?" Noland perked a brow.

"I added that clause in Crown's contract, it's in the fine prints..." Gregory's eyes remaining on the reports he was reading.

Noland took a deep breath. "You did?" He shook his head incredulous.

Gregory finally lifted his gaze from the papers and smirked. "I know I don't seem to be paying attention often but I do, and you had a very good point on the subject, so I did the corrections and added the clause. Whatever happens we are coming clean from this thanks to me being so brilliant and all that. You can thank me later."

Noland laughed and shook his head, just as Romina Hart knocked on the door. She was their assistant now, and used to be Byron's; she was stunning in her short red skirt, red jacket and white blouse. She leaned against the door and smiled at them. "Hi boys, do you need anything before your meeting? Also, the younglings are waiting in the meeting room."

They let her be casual while they were not around others, and it made her feel comfortable. She used to be always serious and a little frustrated while she worked for the previous boss. They quickly got along and saw she was extremely efficient.

Gregory nodded as he stood up and handed Noland back his folder. "Thanks Ro, we are heading over there. Will your cute butt be kind enough to get some refreshments over there at ten? We are going to have a long morning."

She giggled and winked back at him. "You got it boss" Then turned around and left.

Noland shook his head and chuckled. "You have to stop flirting with her and take her out."

Gregory grinned. "Wow, never thought you, of all people, would be advising me to break company policy on dating a co-worker."

Noland rolled his eyes and shook his head. "As if you ever listen to me." And both laughed.

They both headed to their meeting and on the way, they bumped to a wall of muscles dressed in black. Both men looked at the tall and suited person who stared down at them.

"Hold on Curt, they work here too and are allowed to roam freely through the floor." Felix's voice sounded frustrated, and seconds later he was between them. "I am sorry, he is new and is adjusting to the place."

"No problems Mister Slocum, everything ok?" Gregory asked while looking at the tall stranger.

Felix nodded. "Curt, these are Gregory Olsen and Noland Hillhouse. They are both the new head litigators of the firm and work in this floor. In other words, safe to be around. Gentleman, this is Curt Bocamp, he is Catherine's new security guard, and he will be keeping an eye around the place as well while she works here."

Noland frowned slightly, the fact that they had a security guard might indicate that something else happened to her during the weekend. He wondered if Felix was going to let him know.

Felix exchanged a nod with him and that calmed his curiosity for the moment, as it was a sign that there would be answers in the near future, and just as he resumed his way Felix cleared his throat. "Noland, Gregory, meet me after office, would you?"

Gregory exchanged looks with Noland first, then both nodded.

They finally headed to the meeting room, where their "Nerds Team", at least that is how they called them, was waiting for them. Maxwell, Eleonore and Heather were three brilliant but young lawyers who were sharp and smart. They worked tirelessly on over 20 cases with Gregory and Noland, putting heads together in every major case that required investigation and different perspectives, and all of them resulted in pure success.

"So far, I have ran background checks on both door boys listed and they are clean, but the concierge seems to have a bit of a dark past. Got some complains from him on his previous job." Maxwell began.

"It would explain why he has 3 ex wives and all 3 of them hate his guts, but refuse to talk about him. I suspect some violence there." Eleonore spoke next.

"Suspect? Is that your gut again talking baby?" Maxwell smirked and Eleonore blew him a kiss.

"My guts never fail. Ok, almost..." She giggled.

"If you are ok with it, I will proceed to 'bug' them." Heather, the quiet one, intervened.

Gregory and Noland exchanged looks, and Eleonore sat down next to Maxwell. It was an extreme action which they had only taken twice; both resulted in great aid for their cases, but they knew that they were playing with fire. Heather was an ace with computers, she could easily set tracks on almost any mobile device and also hack into bank accounts.

"Let's wait a little longer before we go there, Heather. But I wouldn't discard that option just yet. This seems to be one of those important exceptions." Gregory answered before Noland could dismiss the idea.

Noland sighed. "Ok, so what we have so far is a bad concierge and people who seem 'too clean'. Am I correct?"

The trio nodded and Gregory laid back on his chair.

"Maxwell; get in touch with your contacts at the police department, try to find out if there was anything else surrounding the case, any gossips or the slightest rumor. I get a feeling that, if there was anything off concerning this case, others will talk about it. Eleonore; I want you to go see the concierge ex wives and try to get more information. Do it the honest and right way, not even a hint that we will offer them money or any favors in return. I want this case to be as clean as possible and ex wives are wild cards I don't want to leave behind." Noland frowned as he sat on his chair, looking at the papers in front of him.

"Ok ladies and gent, you heard him. Let's get this into motion, we will meet tomorrow again at the same time." Gregory dismissed them and waited until they were gone. "You know that Heather's skills might come to use here."

"I don't want to risk anything here... Crown is coming today?"

"Yes, I asked him to come before we got into the room. He is not happy about the way things are going."

"He won't be happy after I give him a few words, either." Noland said still frowning.

When noon arrived, most people had left for lunch. Noland stayed at his office even after Gregory insisted in him paying for everything. He decided to go and get himself some coffee instead.

As he reached the break area, he heard Catherine's unmistakable voice complain. "I don't need you to follow me to the bathroom, no matter what Felix has said to you. If you insist one more time, I am going to fire you."

"Madame, please... Let me at least..." An apologetic male voice followed.

"I said no... let me have some privacy!" She sounded tired.

He walked towards the end of the hall and knocked on her door, pushing it slightly open. "Is everything ok here?"

Catherine's eyes widened and for a moment he thought he saw her blush, then it might just be his imagination as she seemed angry.

"Hello... Hillhouse..." Her voice a little shy.

"Sir, there is no problem. I am just doing my job." Curt, the security man, replied with an annoyed huff.

Noland perked a brow at him then looked at her. "I would think there is..."

Catherine sighed. "I agreed to have him around, but I don't need to be followed to the bathroom too..."

Noland chuckled, and this time, he saw her blush evidently. "Ok, I know he is only trying to do his job, so why don't you let him go inspect first? Then once he has secured the area, you can enter alone."

The answer seemed so simple, it surprised both Catherine and Curt. She simply nodded and Curt silently walked to the private and luxurious bathroom. While he did, Noland stood next to her and saw her lower her head. She was wearing reading glasses, and he thought she looked beautiful with them.

Finally Curt walked out of the room, and Catherine gave a small step back. It was not a voluntary movement, but rather a natural reaction for her to step away from a person. She slightly moved behind Noland and Curt frowned.

"Madame, I am not going to harm you. I am here to protect you. I am sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable. I will wait here."

She bit her lower lip as she took a deep breath and then walked forward. Once she reached the door, she turned around blushing. "I am sorry for the trouble, Hillhouse. Thank you for your help."

He could see the effort put into making eye contact, she was not in her comfort zone. He simply smiled at her and nodded, then turned around and left the room. For a moment, he stood outside her office trying to think what was he doing before he came in here, then he resumed his tasks as he went to get himself a well earned coffee cup.

She stood in front of the mirror; eyes wide as she gazed at her reflection. Her cheeks deeply blushed as she thought of him. Why was she so affected by him? She couldn't understand what it was, but she felt good around him. Good and, confused.

A gentle knock on the door pulled her back from her thoughts. "Madame? Are you ok?"

She grunted lowly, a small irritation in her voice. "I am ok, give me some time to breath please."

"Miss Galloway?" This time, a female voice interrupted. She knew it was her assistant Layla.

"Yes?" She replied harshly.

"You have a conference call waiting for you... Shall I postpone it?"

She frowned, her call was supposedly scheduled by One in the afternoon. She washed her hands and face quickly for the 3rd time then opened the door. "Did they called earlier?" She said as she finished drying her hands.

Both Layla and Curt exchanged looks and finally looked at her. "Miss, you have been there for over half an hour."

Her cheeks flamed and she rushed through them to her desk, opening her laptop and waiting impatiently for the conference application to open. "Please leave the room, this call is private." She managed to say as she struggled to compose herself. How did she lost track of time so much? Her head filled of different pictures, some of Noland, some of Byron. She needed a break, the stress of work and latest events were starting to mess with her head.

An hour later she sighed after finally ending the conference call; her father and uncle never prepared her for such a tedious job. She picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"Felix... I don't think I can do this... I studied public relationships, I can't deal with lawyers and argue with them about things they know more than me!"

"Sweetie... have you eaten lunch?" He was going to say something but changed his mind quickly.

"Lunch? No... I guess I haven't..." She sighed again and closed her eyes.

"I will pick you up in five minutes and we are going to get some food into your system, then we can talk..."

"Five minutes? Where are you?"

"I am already here, on the fifth floor. I was just talking to Elizabeth. I'll be there soon."

"Ok... see you soon..." She cut the call and sat in silence; this was not typical of herself, she never gave up and she had to keep the firm together, show a strong lead, until her father was healthy enough to return.

Not long after, a gentle knock on the door pulled her out from her daydreams. She got up and headed to the door ready with her purse and coat. As she opened the door she smiled at the sight of her uncle. She leaned to him and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek, then together left the office.

They didn't go too far, she sat at the Cafe and ordered a panini sandwich with a glass of juice. He ordered a macchiato and relaxed on his chair.

"Cat... I know this is not easy... trust me, both your father and I are aware of the tremendous effort you are putting into this. Dealing with lawyers is never easy, and this comes from an old lawyer!"

She smiled and shook her head. "I know is not supposed to be easy, but I thought..." She sighed and held silent as the waiter rested her drink and sandwich. "I thought I would understand it better, considering I had you and dad all my life... well, you two are legends."

He chuckled. "Legends? Far from it darling, we are two old..." He stopped as soon as she perked a brow at him. "Ok, we are good and we had a little fun making our names known. But it was not an easy road. We had many cases that were almost impossible to win, and only our combined heads and stubborn personalities made them successful. You will only get as far as you set yourself to. And know you are not alone sweetie... All the board is going to help. Your father has made sure of that... we only put our most trusted people there, people who have worked with us for a long time and with whom we feel comfortable." He smirked and she laughed.

"I really do need more help on how to deal with the investors and the other lawyers at the firm..." She sighed.

"Cat, would you like to go back to England?" He asked. Any trace of joke missing from his face.

"What...? What do you mean?" She stumbled on her words.

"If this is too hard, you can go back to England and I will stay here... I know it is not what we had planned... but I understand and don't mind at all staying. I just need you to be sure."

She held silent, his words replaying in her mind over and over again. She didn't have anything here to hold her, her life could return to the relaxed state it was before she came here. But no matter how many turns she gave to the subject, something inside her was denying to leave. She couldn't put her finger on what exactly, but she was convinced it was telling her what it was best.

"No, uncle... you need to go back there... I will make it work, I will trust in your friends and their judgement, I will be fine..." She finally said with a small smile.

He chuckled and drank all his coffee in one long sip. "Good, because your aunt was going to throw a fit if I told her I was staying here..."

Catherine laughed and shook her head. "Too bad she didn't accompanied you."

Once they finished, Catherine felt different; she had left all her worries out and her uncle made sure to encourage her and offer here different options for possible solutions. On their way back, he knew she was better.

"If you want, I can ask someone to be with you when you talk to the other associates of the firm. Someone who has experience and is very trustworthy."

"I think I can do it on my own..." She replied and then hesitated. "Maybe as an advisor?"

He nodded and pulled into the parking lot. "I think that is a great idea. I will talk to him today."

She perked a brow. "Who are you going to talk to?" She said as she stepped out of the car, Curt already standing vigilant and ready waiting for her.

"Don't worry, you know him. I will talk to Noland Hillhouse about this and I know he will be happy to help."

Her heart pounded fast, she blushed with just the thought and started to feel nervous. It was too late to back out from it now.