“It’s not easy. I thought all this studying was behind me, but I guess I’m just having to start from scratch.”

“You can do it,” he encouraged her.

“You sure?”

“You’re good at what you do. You know that yourself. You don’t need me to tell you that.” His arm slid around her waist, pulling her against him. “God, I missed you. If I didn’t have to get up at the crack of dawn, I’d make love to you all night.”

“It doesn’t have to last all night,” Sabrina answered.

“You’re a very wicked woman, tempting me like that. But you know as well as I do that once I start, I won’t be able to stop. Because, you, my love, are the most exciting woman I’ve ever been with.”

He slanted his mouth over hers and kissed her tenderly.

***

Dressed in a conservative navy blue suit, Sabrina left the apartment and hailed a cab, giving the driver directions to the law firm. Then she sat back and mentally practiced what she would say during the interview.

The law offices of Yellin, Vogel, and Winslow were located in midtown Manhattan in a large office tower.

After signing in with the security desk, Sabrina took a deep breath and stepped into the elevator to ride up to the 20th floor. She was greeted by a secretary who looked like she was fresh out of high school.

“Hello,” the woman beamed. “How may I help you?”

“I have an interview with the partners this morning. I’m Sabrina Palmer.”

The secretary looked at her monitor, then nodded. “Yes, they’re expecting you. This way please.”

Sabrina followed the woman down the hallway and into a conference room that was stocked with coffee, tea, bottled water, and assorted pastries and donuts.

“Help yourself to anything you’d like. They’ll be with you shortly.” Then she left, closing the door softly behind her.

Sabrina was too nervous to eat anything, but she took a bottle of water and moistened her parched throat with it. She didn’t have to wait long, until the door opened and three people entered: two men and one woman.

Sabrina had done her research and knew that Vogel was a woman, the only full partner in the firm. That fact had made her very excited about the prospect of getting a job with this firm. It was refreshing to know that at Yellin, Vogel, and Winslow, women were viewed as equals.

“Good afternoon, Ms. Palmer. I’m Mr. Yellin. These are my associates Mrs. Vogel and Mr. Winslow.”

Sabrina stood and shook each of their hands in turn. “Nice to meet you.”

She gave them a vibrant, confident smile.

“Please, let’s sit.” Mr. Yellin pulled out a chair across the table from where Sabrina sat.

“So, Ms. Palmer, your résumé is very impressive,” Mrs. Vogel said. “It states that your last firm was Brand, Freeman & Merriweather, correct?”

“Yes, Mrs. Vogel,” Sabrina replied.

“That’s one of the top firms in San Francisco. Tell us a bit about what you did there,” Mr. Winslow said.

Under no circumstances could Sabrina tell them that she’d been relegated to menial jobs there, because her supervising attorney was a horny slime ball. Thankfully, she’d practiced a response to this question.

“I worked closely with the senior partners on several large and very lucrative business accounts. My specialty is mergers and acquisitions.”

The three partners nodded their heads in unison, reminding Sabrina of a bunch of bobble heads lined up on a car dashboard. She refrained from smiling at the mental image.

“And why did you leave the firm?” Mr. Yellin asked.

Sabrina took a deep breath. She knew this question was coming and it was one she’d struggled with. Telling them she’d been fired would reflect poorly on her, even though Mr. Merriweather had offered her the job back after finding out that Hannigan had fired her essentially because she wouldn’t spread her legs for him.

Telling them she’d left to move here to be with her boyfriend would make her look like a woman who chased the man she was dating across the country.

“Well,” Sabrina began, “the potential to move up within the firm was almost non-existent. I felt as though my skills were being under-utilized and I knew it was time to move on.” None of what she’d said was a lie.

“Yes, we’ve spoken to Mr. Merriweather,” Mrs. Vogel said, looking directly at Sabrina as if she’d caught her in a lie.

Sabrina fought to keep her expression calm and didn’t allow any of the apprehension to show on her face. It was perfectly normal for a potential employer to call previous employers for a reference. She only hoped her previous employer had been kind and not revealed too much about the real circumstances of her leaving.