The Tenth Justice - Brad Meltzer [125]
“Trust me, the facts have not changed,” Ben said as he strolled to the sofa. “You were the one who was begging for it. In fact, as I remember it, the quote was, ‘I’ve been waiting to jump your bones since the moment I met you.’ Does that ring any bells?”
“Oh, please,” Lisa said. “I just made that up to make you feel better. It was a lie and you know it.”
“Let me ask you one question,” Ben said. “If you were so reluctant to get into bed with me, how come you were the one who wasn’t wearing any underwear that night?”
Lisa flushed red. “I told you, I forgot to pack extra. I ran out on the first day. That was the only reason.”
“Sure it was,” Ben said, amused. “And if I were a complete moron, I might even believe that.”
“Good thing you’re only a partial moron, then.”
“Ha. And what else did you say that night?” Ben asked. “That whenever I wanted to go again, you’d be ready?” Stretching out on the sofa, he announced, “I’m ready.”
Lisa approached the sofa. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“I am.”
“Are you wearing your lucky underwear?”
“I most certainly am. Today was a big day for me.” As Lisa sat down on the sofa, Ben said, “You know you want to—it’s all over your face.”
“It is?” she asked as her face approached his.
“It definitely is. Besides, you heard what I said before: I’m ready.”
“You’re dreaming, is what you are,” Lisa laughed as she pulled away. “Do you really think that just because you had your macho victory, you can get your hormones worked up and talk me into bed?”
“Pretty much,” Ben said.
“Then you’re on some serious hallucinogens,” Lisa said, heading back to her desk. “You may’ve pulled off one miracle earlier today, but that doesn’t mean you can do two.”
Sitting up, Ben readjusted his tie. “Does this mean we’re not having sex on the sofa?”
“That was unbelievable,” Ober said as he and Eric stepped out of the elevator and into the Great Hall. “I can’t believe you guys pulled it off.”
“It was all Ben,” Eric said. “The moment I told him about Rick, he had the whole plan designed within a few hours.”
“The boy’s no dummy,” Ober said.
“All I can say is, thank God he’s no longer mad at me. He can be a devious bastard when it comes to revenge.”
“Do you think Nathan will forgive him?”
“Not a chance in hell,” Eric said as the two friends walked past the security guard station and out the front entrance of the Court.
“Are you sure that was him?” Lungen asked as Eric and Ober left the building.
“Are you kidding?” Fisk said. “Of course that’s him. I had my friend point him out last time I was at the Herald.”
“And he didn’t sign in under the name Eric Stroman?” Lungen asked the security guard who manned the main entrance.
“Nope,” the guard said, flipping through the pages of his clipboard. When he found what he was looking for, he pointed to the sign-in sheet. “See, he said his name was Nathan.”
“That’s the other roommate,” Fisk said. “Ben’s been blowing smoke since the beginning. I told you he’s a liar.”
“I want you to call our friend at the Herald,” Lungen said. “If Eric and Ben are on speaking terms, I want to know why.”
Returning home from work, Ben dreaded his inevitable confrontation with Nathan. Maybe he won’t be home until later, Ben thought, slowly walking up the never-shoveled, ice-covered front path. As he opened the door, he wondered how he would break the news to Nathan.
“So you set up the whole thing and trusted everyone but me and Ober?” Nathan asked before Ben could pull his key out of the lock.
“I guess you heard the good news,” Ben said.
“I have one question for you,” Nathan said, standing face-to-face with Ben in the middle of the living room. “Why did you trust Lisa over me?”
Ben stepped around Nathan and toward the kitchen, hoping to somehow defuse the situation. “I didn’t trust Lisa over you. In fact, I didn’t tell her about the plan until three days ago, when Rick finally invested his money in Grinnell. When I found out Rick bet on the wrong decision, I knew Lisa was innocent. If she was working with Rick, she would’ve told him that he had the wrong