A Very Hero Christmas - Chapter 1

Two months later…


“The Crimson Commando?” Harri said. She’d lost track of how many suggestions she’d thrown out during this latest brainstorming session. She was also ready to throw a kolache at her law partner when Aisha shook her head.

Again.

And they’d been in the law office conference room for less than ten minutes.

“Too militaristic. Rey wants more of a pacifistic name,” Aisha said around a mouthful of breakfast burrito. “Something that won’t make the parents afraid. He’d like to do volunteer work like Cobblestone.”

“Pacifistic?” Harri threw up her hands. “He’s a freakin’ demigod!”

“Scream that a little louder the next time,” Susan Kennedy said. Their law school classmate, now new associate, deliberately slurped her tea before she added, “Only those with superhearing on this block heard you.”

Harri clenched her fists on her lap to keep from pulling out Susan’s ponytail by the roots. Or Aisha’s henna’d dreds. “Then why isn’t he in here giving us some suggestions?”

Aisha chewed and swallowed her eggs and tortilla. “Who are you really pissed at, Harri?”

She propped her elbows on the maple veneer conference table. It was bad enough they’d had to go to a used office furniture warehouse. She always thought if she’s opened her own firm, it would be classy. But no, Daddy Dearest managed to blow through the entire Winters fortune.

Or rather snort it.

Harri took a cleansing breath. The firm couldn’t continue riding the fumes of Rey’s licensing deals. “You came up with Captain Justice on the fly after I was arrested earlier this year. Why can’t we go back to that if you’re going to negate every name I propose?”

“Because you had to bury him along with the Ghost Owl after the Professor Paranoia fiasco this summer.” Susan picked at her banana muffin.

“Jatz’om Kuh was never registered,” Aisha muttered.

Harri sat back in her chair. Aisha using the Ghost Owl’s Mayan name meant something deeper was going on in her brain. “Is this about Tim? Is he pressuring Rey to take his place? I’ll talk with Tim is that’s what he’s doing.”

“No, this isn’t about Tim.” Aisha laid down her breakfast burrito and shrugged. “Since we learned about Steve, Rey’s been…adamant about establishing his own identity.”

“What do you mean his own identity?” Harri leaned back in her chair and glared at her partner. “Steve doesn’t even want to be a superhero.”

“Is that the real reason why Rey’s been hiding down at Marta’s restaurant the last two months?” Susan asked. “He’s avoiding Steve?”

“No, Rueben’s showing Rey the ropes so he can cover the kitchen while Rueben’s in Paris.” Aisha took a sip of her pixie barf. Harri didn’t understand how anyone could handle that much sugar in their coffee.

“Being a short order cook isn’t conducive to being a superhero,” she blurted. For a split second, it looked like Aisha would throw the rest of her burrito at Harri.

“Rey’s sticking with his original plan,” Aisha growled. “He’s investing in this neighborhood. Getting people working again. Providing them a chance to build real homes for their children rather than squatting in the old Canyon Hotel. I thought you of all people would get behind giving the poor folks a hand-out.”

Fury rushed through Harri at the words her father often threw in her grandmother’s face. She stood and slammed her palms on the tabletop. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“Okay, ladies.” Susan raised her hands. “Let’s calm down here. We’re all looking out for our client.” She eyed Aisha before she turned to Harri. “Right?”

Harri slowly sat down, but she waited for Aisha to make the first move.

Her partner cleared her throat. “Maybe we should table this discussion until Rey, Steve, and I get back from Atlanta.”

“After Christmas?” Harri tilted her head. “Why?”

“Because I have a meeting about the new Blue Racer shoe line, and I need to get ready for it.” Aisha rose and tossed the rest of her breakfast in the trash before she stomped out of the conference room. At least, she’d stopped wearing her damn stilettos now she was in her seventh month of her pregnancy. The office carpet was the smoothest it had ever been.

Susan exhaled gustily. “For being one of the smartest people in our law school class, you can sure be a dumbass at times.”

Harri glared at her. “Excuse me?”

“Has it occurred to you the reason Aisha’s shooting down every moniker is because she’s scared of losing Rey again?” Susan tucked an errant auburn lock behind her ear.

Harri opened her mouth for a retort, then closed it. She sagged in her chair. “Crap. I hate it when someone else is more right than me.”

“She’s leaving for her parents’ place tomorrow,” Susan pointed out. “You and I can work on some names while she’s gone. And it’ll be a lot harder to shoot down every single one if the client is in here the next time we meet.”

“You are truly evil, Susan Kennedy.” Harri laughed. “You keep this up, and you may make partner.”

Susan pushed to her feet. “How about I survive my first year here before we talk permanent?” She gathered breakfast trash scattered across the conference table and dumped it in the waste receptacle before she turned back to Harri. “One more thing. You and I made the choice not to have kids, but even I can see Aisha’s scared something could go wrong with this pregnancy. Especially, since she developed HRSP. Try to take it a little easier on her.”

Harri nodded. “I will.”

Once Susan left, Harri stared through the window at the massive gray stone blocks that formed the wall of the building next door to theirs. Aisha wasn’t the only one scared something could go wrong with this pregnancy. She sighed. Tim was right. She needed to pull up her big girl panties and quit taking her fear out on everyone else around her.

Maybe it was a good thing she wasn’t going down to Atlanta this Christmas. If Aisha was a pain now, she’d be even worse when her family fussed over her and the new additions to the family.