His Darkest Secrets Exposed

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

After Philip left Lina’s office utterly defeated, he let out a deep and disappointed sigh. This was the first interview he had landed after graduating from law school, and it was an utter failure.

“Dammit, dammit, dammit! Phil, you stupid i***t!” he grumbled to himself as he hit his head in self-humiliation. He had prepared for this interview so hard, and yet, one look at Lina Yoo made his mind go blank. Philip furrowed his brows and looked up at Lina’s building. “How can she be thirty-seven? She looks like she’s my age,” he mumbled.

Philip didn’t want to dwell any longer. He shook his head in resignation and went back to his apartment to apply to other law firms in the city. What he didn’t know was that Lina was watching him from her window. Four stories up, the sun prevented Philip from seeing her, but she could see him as clear as day. Something about this young new law school graduate spiked

Lina’s interest. Although she had never been into younger men before, there was always a first for everything.

“Lina, what are you staring at?” her secretary asked her.

“Shelly, do me a favor,” Lina said.

“What’s up?”

“Do a background check on him.”

“Who?”

“The boy who just left. The one that fumbled his pants when walking in here,” Lina replied calmly.

“That McAdams guy?” Shelly asked to make sure. Lina nodded. “But why?”

“Because I said so,” Lina said sternly, whipping around to face her now terrified secretary. “Are you questioning my authority? Need I remind you I sign your paychecks?”

“No, ma’am, I apologize. I’ll get right on that.”

“Good.” Shelly nodded and turned to walk out, but Lina’s voice stopped her dead in her tracks. “One more thing.”

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Block him from landing a job at any other of the firms here in the city.”

“But ma’am…”

“No buts! Just do it! Put the word out, Philip McAdams is off limits.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

After Shelly left Lina’s office, Lina began to go over her caseload. Many people hired her as a defense attorney; however, the city was looking to make her the new Bexar County Criminal District Attorney. Lina had turned down the job several times because she didn’t want to work for the city. Being constantly scrutinized and judged by the public was a drama that Lina wanted to steer off. So, when she saw the offer letter for what felt like the hundredth time, she put it directly into the shredder. Even if she couldn’t stop them from constantly begging her, she would continue to pretend she never saw it.

Lina’s way of practicing law was very different from others. She would only take on cases where she knew it would be a slam dunk to prove her client’s innocence and then counter-sue for an even heftier price. That was Lina had a name for herself. She made double whenever she took on a case, sometimes even triple her hourly rate. Lina hated the Bexar County Justice Department. Lawyers nowadays do whatever they can to make a dollar, even if it means throwing their clients under the bus. Or they even dropped their clients halfway through court proceedings to avoid having a loss on their track record.

After sorting through the cases from potential clients, Lina had a mountain of rejections, and there were only two she was willing to look into further. She looked at the clock and saw that it was past lunchtime. She grabbed her purse, locked her door, and left the office, telling Shelly she’d be back in two hours. Shelly nodded and left for her lunch break as well. Even though Shelly was terrified of Lina’s aggressive personality, she couldn’t deny that Lina was a fantastic boss. She didn’t micro-manage, and as long Shelly did her job correctly, Lina left her alone. And she was only on the clock when Lina was. This meant that Shelly was also permitted to take as long as Lina did during lunch. But the con to that pro was that Shelly would also have to stay as late as Lina did or get in as early as Lina did.

Lina got into her car and went to her favorite sushi restaurant for lunch. The moment she walked in, the staff greeted her warmly and led her to her usual spot in the facility. Lina was a regular and cherished client. Lina was also the only customer who ate and drank for free. The owner provided exceptional service after she had helped him win a slander case when someone tried to sue for the sushi having a shard of glass in it. Lina was quickly able to shut that down and then counter-sued for everything that they had. She came to find out that the couple was a pair of grifters who made their living off of similar schemes. They’re now spending fifteen years in a Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) penitentiary, and she gets to enjoy free sushi to her heart's desire.

“Miss Lina, welcome back. The usual drink and sushi platter?” the manager asked.

“Yes. That would be great, thank you,” Lina genuinely smiled. Despite her hard exterior, Lina was kind-hearted and loving. She was friendly when she wanted to be and cold and calculated when she had to be. While she was waiting for her meal, the server brought her drink and her favorite appetizers. Lina picked up the tempura shrimp, dipped in the sauce, and enjoyed it. As she was reaching for the second shrimp on her plate, she saw a familiar figure in her peripheral. She looked up to see Philip walking in and being seated at the bar.

From her table, Lina had a perfect vantage point of the entire restaurant, but she was in a blind spot to everyone else. She watched him as she slowly munched on her shrimp. She could tell by his body language that he was out of his element. Her food was eventually delivered, and she enjoyed lunch in peace. When she was about halfway through her first plate, she noticed that Philip was only eating a few items at a time. But he didn’t seem to be enjoying himself.

“Miss Lina, would you like your second plate?” the manager asked, seeing that she was almost finished with her first.

“Not just yet. Give me a moment. I will be right back,” Lina replied. The manager nodded and watched as she went to the bar.

Philip was slowly eating his meal, not really enjoying what he ordered. He hadn’t had sushi in a while, and he was craving it. But when he sat down and stared at the menu, he wasn’t sure what he should order. So, he asked the bartender for some recommendations, but they weren’t that great. As he was picking at his sushi, trying his best to eat everything on his plate, he felt a powerful aura sit next to him. The bartender’s eyes bulged out of his head when he saw this phenomenon. Philip saw the shock on the bartender’s face and followed his line of sight. That’s when he saw Lina staring at him.

“Miss … Yoo?” Philip questioned, blinking several times and shaking his head to make sure he wasn’t hallucinating.

“You don’t seem to be enjoying your lunch, Mr. McAdams. Are you not a fan of sushi?”

“Um, no, it’s not that. I do like sushi, but it’s been a few years since I’ve had it, and I don’t really know what to order,” Philip meekly replied. Lina nodded and turned her head to look at her table as she watched the manager place her second plate of sushi down. In that split second, Lina made a bold decision. She nodded to the bartender to grab their attention.

“Miss Lina, what can I get for you?”

“Take his plate away. I’ll pay for the leftovers.”

“Um…” the bartender, more than a little shocked at what Lina had instructed him to do. But without giving him room to reply, she turned her attention back to Philip.

“Come with me,” she demanded, leaving no room for him to argue. Philip, a little more than shocked, felt compelled to follow her, and so he did. When they arrived at her table, he was surprised to see a plate filled with so much.

“Miss. Yoo, what is all of this?” Philip couldn’t help but ask.

“My lunch. Do you have a problem with that?”

“No. Not at all. It’s just—It’s a lot of food.”

“I have an insatiable appetite when it comes to sushi,” Lina said. “Sit,” Lina stated when she saw that he was still standing admiring the spread on the table. Philip nodded and sat down.

“Miss Yoo, can you tell me what all of this is?”

“This is nigiri. Fish over rice. I get salmon, tuna, white tuna, Hamachi, aka yellowtail, unagi, aka grilled eel, and tamago.”

“What’s tamago?”

“Sweetened egg.” Philip scrunched up his face in disgust. “Don’t knock ‘til you try it.” Lina picked up her chopsticks and started to eat. She had a few bites and noticed that Philip wasn’t eating. “Why aren’t you eating?” she asked him.

“Huh?”

“Why aren’t you eating?” she asked him again.

“Oh, I didn’t realize—”

“Eat,” Lina demanded, using her chopsticks to point down at the food. Philip nodded and watched Lina as she dipped her sushi pieces into the soy sauce mixed with the wasabi. While they were eating in silence, a few more items arrived at Lina’s table. Philip was slightly overwhelmed but even more shocked at how much food Lina could pack away in her tiny frame. While they were eating, Lina explained what each item was and told Philip to take mental notes. Poor Philip had yet to realize that Lina had her sights set on him.