Naomi froze for a second,pletely stunned.


    “Wait–you’re saying he actually agreed to dye his hair ck? And he’s going to start dressing formally at work?”


    Liz nodded. “Yeah. That’s why I agreed to take him on.”


    “Wow. Okay then.”


    Just a few days ago, when Liz was away on vacation, Naomi had watched Hunter and Warren practically tear the office apart with their arguments. Hunter had t-out refused to change his style. And now he was suddenly cooperating with Liz?


    Then she remembered something Warren had mentioned offhand. Hunter was apparently interested in handling divorce cases. And Liz just happened to be the only attorney at the firm who specialized in them. Thinking of it that way, his sudden change of heart made more sense.


    Naomi gave Liz a thumbs-up and said with a grin, “You really are something else.”


    As they were talking, Hunter returned. Naomi didn’t say anything else and slid her chair back to her desk.


    Hunter had a bit of a cleanliness obsession. He wiped down the desk and chair several times before sanitizing everything with rubbing alcohol. Only after everything was spotless did he start setting up his things.


    Once he was done, he turned to Liz.


    “Liz, what should I do next?”


    She nced at him, then handed him the file for Shannon’s case.


    “Start by going through this one. You’ll being with me to the second trial.”


    Hunter took the file and nodded. “Got it.”


    Satisfied, Liz turned back to her own work and left him alone.


    By the time she finished drafting her report, it was almost 7:00 p.m. The sky had already gone dark. It was winter, after all.


    She shut herptop and started packing up.


    Just as she stood up, she heard a voice beside her,ced with mock hurt.


    “Liz, did you forget you’ve got someone sitting next to you now?”


    She turned and saw Hunter looking up at her, his expression full of exaggerated hurt-like he had beenpletely overlooked.


    For some reason, it reminded her of the white Samoyed her neighbor used to walk.


    Every time she ran into them in the elevator, she had been tempted to reach out and pet its fluffy head, just to see if it was really as soft as it looked.


    “What’s wrong?” she asked. “It’s after hours. You’re free to head home. If you didn’t finish reading the case, you can always continue on Monday.”


    Hunter stared at her in disbelief.


    The case file was barely a few pages. He had finished it in under thirty minutes. Did she really think he needed until Monday?


    Was she underestimating him that much? He had aw degree, after all.


    “Liz, it’s my first day as your assistant. Shouldn’t we at least grab a meal together? You know, to break the ice?”


    Liz was caught off guard. Then she chuckled and nodded.


    “You’re right. What do you feel like eating? My treat tonight.”


    “Then I won’t hold back.”


    Knowing she could handle spicy food, Hunter picked a popr Thai restaurant nearby.


    She drove over and had just parked and stepped into the restaurant when she ran into Ethan.


    His eyes lit up the moment he saw her, clearly surprised and happy.


    Then his gaze shifted to the young man sitting across from Liz. The surprise in his expression deepened.


    Given what he knew of Liz, she didn’t seem like the type to hang out with someone who looked like a rebellious college dropout.


    Hunter noticed that flicker of surprise in Ethan’s eyes and raised an eyebrow with mild amusement.


    “Liz,” Ethan said, “what a coincidence. I didn’t expect to run into you here. And this is… your brother?”


    There was a slight pause in his tone, just enough to make it obvious he was fishing.


    Hunter instantly picked up on it. Three seconds was all he needed to size the guy up ande to a conclusion that this man was interested in Liz.


    After all, under normal circumstances, when you run into a friend having dinner with someone else, you wouldn’t ask about their rtionship.


    Liz shook her head. “No. He’s my assistant.”