Chapter Text
It was the third rainy day in a row. He could no longer stare at the wet glasses on his office huge windows. Sometimes he would just let his mind dream of a different life, while he stared at stormy clouds, admiring the lightning, as it formed from one cloud to the other. He could have chosen a simpler life while growing up, he could have chosen the easier way to keep things peaceful. But she was the reason why he had chosen law. He could have been an officer, at the military academy, but then it would have kept them apart.
When she first told him about her plans he was doubtful, still young and stupid enough to follow her every instruction. He agreed with her and started to plan things so that he would be in the legal area, working in the family business. Following her, he went to college, then to university, and then started working at his father’s company. Jaime and Cersei had been lovers, a secret for a good part of his life, the only man who knew it happened to be his younger brother. Having a love affair with your own stepsister might be inconvenient when you belong to one the wealthiest families in society. Mostly inconvenient when your stepsister gets married to a congressman and when you're so not willing to face a scandal. But now it was all over. His disappointments and the pain in his heart had taught him to let her go, slowly, he lost interest and they distanced themselves. Their encounters, which once had been held almost every week, became rare. And after the accident with his motorcycle, she refused to touch him again.
Stark & Associates is one of the most prestigious companies in the country, its top member, Catelyn Stark is ruthless when it comes to business. High executives trust her judgment on creating the perfect terms in agreements and contracts, and her office is known for handling criminal cases as well. There is a grey wolf stamping the firm logo, the Stark coat of arms, in case anyone accidentally forgets how mighty and strong their style is. And Jaime Lannister is one of her most trusted employees, he handles difficult cases involving politicians and businessmen. He joined her team years ago, after leaving Lannister Law Associates inexplicably. No one ever understood why he had chosen to leave his father’s law firm, right in the climax of his success as a lawyer. Getting Aerys Targaryen charged guilty of fraud during his term on the capital administration was Jaime’s biggest triumph. In a corrupted city, it is difficult to send white-collar criminals to prison, especially when they happen to be the most powerful men in the country.
Tyrion Lannister, Jaime’s brother, escaped the perfect life his father had planned for all his heirs to follow. He is a famous producer in show business, known for his clever words and sarcasm. He also owns a night club at the capital; ‘Wildfire’ is the trendiest place at the bohemian neighborhood where musicians, actors and artists gather to have fun.
Jaime is a workaholic. Though his father had alerted him with his concerns about his permanent state of loneliness and the need to settle down to form a family, he never paid attention to those things. He had wished to marry Cersei before she got married, but as time passed and he grew older and colder, he stopped thinking about it. So he leads his life the numbest way possible, without a lover in his bed, or someone special to call on a cold Friday night. It is safe to go on with his life when there is no one to break his heart the way she broke once.
It all changed on a Tuesday morning.
Catelyn had scheduled a meeting the day before, telling everyone on her team she had news about a new junior associate attorney she had found. It was a rainy Tuesday, a lot wetter than Monday had been. Jaime, hypnotized by the rain drops forming drawings on the windows, could not foretell how his life was about to change.
His assistant calls him. “Mr. Lannister, Mrs. Stark awaits you in the meeting room.” Podrick Payne has been working with Jaime for more than a year. He learns fast and speaks only when necessary, Jaime appreciated his style and discretion. Still looking at the window Jaime gets up and walks slowly towards the door. “Don’t you just wish to leap off the building on Tuesdays, Podrick?” Jaime looks crazy, but Podrick knows it is only his sarcasm complaining about his boss’ formalities and social obligations. “You’ll have to take the elevator, Sir. She booked the blue meeting room upstairs.”
“Oh! That means trouble. The last time she booked the blue room, there was the Castamere scandal, and a crappy month was that one.”
Jaime entered the elevator and pressed the button. His finger played with the led lights coming from the numbers, it was like he did not want to face another stupid meeting to get to know whatever asshole Catelyn had hired.
“Hold it, please!” A feminine voice called out rushing towards the elevator. Jaime pressed another button and kept the doors open for her. When he turned his face upwards to look at her, there was only a blue sparkle in front of him. She had the most beautiful blue eyes he had ever seen, and that was what saved her, for everything else about the woman was just too simple to make her blend in a room, and not stand out from the other ladies.
“Thank you, Mr. Lannister.”
He stood behind her, checking her back and deciding if she was really so not-pretty like that. She wore a grey suit and a black silk blouse under her jacket. There was very little skin showing, but Jaime could tell she had freckles all over the exposed places.
“You’re welcome, Miss…?”
“Tarth, Sir. Brienne Tarth.”
“What’s your floor?”
“Twenty-seventh, please.”
They were going to the same floor, one of the five floors owned by the Starks in that building. He almost felt like asking her why she was going there, but he thought it would denote interest, and interest was not what he wished someone saw in his face. When the doors opened, Lady Stark was already standing by it.
“There you are!” She looked at them, arching her eyebrow as she showed a tiny smile through her lips. Jaime was sure she was talking to him, so he grinned and stepped forward, but then he noticed Catelyn had her hand hanging on the air.
“Miss Tarth, I see you’ve met my senior associate. Jaime, I want you to meet Brienne Tarth, our new junior.”
Fuck!
It was all Jaime could think of, when he glanced at her once again, watching her smile as she shook hands with Catelyn. She had such a confident glint in her eyes, it irritated Jaime. He noticed how young she was and that bothered him, as much as her smile bothered him. Everything about her was, through his eyes, dull and plain, everything could go overlooked, if it were not for those pretty blue eyes. But everything else was not enough to hold a man’s attention, anyone’s attention. Jaime shook hands with Brienne, not letting go of her hand as he narrowed his eyes.
“Nice to meet you, Miss Tarth. And congratulations on impressing the boss, for I can tell Catelyn is already much satisfied with your references as she has given you junior position, without the trainee experience.” He sounded just as bitter as he looked.
“Thank you, Mr. Lannister, but I see no reason why I would be a trainee in the company, for I’ve already graduated and I hold a master’s degree in international law.” She smiled as someone who secretly said ‘Fuck you!’.
“Master’s degree? But how old are you, really, Miss Tarth, nineteen?” He held her hand in a tight grip.
“Twenty-six, Mr. Lannister. But I understand why you made that mistake, I think it’s much difficult to see properly at your age, you know, without any glasses on.” She was trying to get her hand back, but he kept it in his, she was doubtful, but there might have even a pulling motion attracting her towards him, as if he would challenge her at that very moment.
“For God’s sake, the two of you sound hostile. That’s a pure fire!” Catelyn interrupted them, causing both to let go of each other’s hand. Brienne was blushing, and Jaime frowned to show disapproval over Catelyn’s words.
They walked towards the meeting room and took their seats next to Catelyn. Jaime would look at Brienne once in a while, trying to guess what she was thinking, trying to forget how angry he was with her for playing the age card.
‘Difficult to see properly at your age’… bloody snobbish brat. Lannister, control yourself, she’s young, inexperienced and arrogant. Will definitely be gone in a week or two! You just have to let her make mistakes and prove she’s not half as good as you are. With that silly smile on her face, thinking she’s worth a thousand of me, stupid bitch. And what’s with all that fabric, for God’s sake, she is the only woman in the room who’s not wearing a skirt or showing some cleavage. Puritan missy…
Catelyn began her talk, “As some of you may be aware of, the Bolton case will demand us a lot of teamwork, extra hours and talented minds. I happened to meet Miss Tarth two months ago, at Baratheon Inc. and since then I’ve been attempting to steal her from Renly Baratheon.” People chuckled when Catelyn said the word ‘steal’, but all Jaime could think about was how close Brienne had been from Renly, and his brother Robert, Cersei’s husband.
“So I introduce you to our new gifted mind in international law, the woman who managed to make a wonderful first impression on Renly Baratheon, and on myself. Brienne Tarth, our new junior associate attorney.”
Brienne stood up, as most people in the room gave her warm looks and amicable smiles. She looked embarrassed, Jaime could tell by the color of her cheeks, but nevertheless, she felt forced to thank Catelyn’s kind words and her colleagues welcoming looks. “Thank you, Mrs. Stark for your words, and thank you for trusting me with this challenge. I’m sure there’ll be much hard work involved, and I’m also sure this will be one of the highlight moments of our careers, but I know it’ll be worth it all, once we manage to send that bastard to jail!” People applauded, some whistles were heard, and Jaime just looked into her eyes, not a smile on his face, not a single expression to reveal kindness or excitement, just bitterness and jealousy.
Oh, the popular kid… You’re dead, girl.
“Brienne, I’m sure we’ll succeed. But for now you’re all dismissed, I’m sure you’ve got plenty to do with all the cases around the office. As for the two of you, Tarth and Lannister, I wish to have a word with you in my office. I’ll be there in a minute, I just need to make a phone call. Daughters demand attention, you know.” Catelyn excused herself. Jaime stood in his chair, staring at Brienne.
“Impolite.” Brienne sounded serious.
“What?”
“Staring, you know, it’s much impolite to stare at a woman like you’re doing.” She felt a wave of blood pumping from her chest to her neck and cheeks, she knew she was blushing, but she kept the fierce look, trying to bluff her way out of the room.
“Oh, I thought you appreciated attention, isn’t that why you promptly gave them your energized motto, you know, the ‘manage to send that bastard to jail’ thing?”
“I believe in motivation as a tool for teamwork, what do you believe in, Mr. Lannister?”
“Oh, I believe plenty of shit, none of them I’ll be sharing with you, though. But I can tell you’re not comfortable with my attention, is that why your face color resembles that of a lobster?”
Brienne was angry, why could she never seem to stop blushing whenever people gave her a difficult time like Jaime was giving her now?
“No, Mr. Lannister, perhaps my face color resembles that of the wrath inside my mind as I speak to you.”
“Oh, have I made you lose your temper, child?”
“My name is Brienne, not child.”
“Oh, but that’s what you are, really. One motivated teamwork-bullshit-motto child!” Jaime grinned at her, trying to make her even angrier.
“And how should I call you, Sir? Should I call you old man, or old lion, perhaps? But I’m not sure you still keep the lion as a symbol, after you left your father’s safe site.” Brienne could play his game, sarcasm and insults where almost her native languages, as much as they were Jaime’s.
He laughed throwing his head backwards and putting his feet up on the table. He comfortably crossed his arms and rested his neck on the chair backboard. Brienne had a serious look on her face, but she felt disturbed as she noticed him biting his lower lips.
“Brienne, Brienne… my dear Brienne, let’s forget about lions, lobsters, wolves or any other animals in our little argument. Let’s be honest towards each other and things will be fine. We won’t be working together, for I’ve already got two major cases to work on, so, as long as you stay out of my way and don’t disturb me, everything will be fine. Is that alright, my dearest reddest tallest child?”
Brienne did not know exactly what made her so bold, if it was his insults or his body language that irritated her so much, but she felt powerful enough to lean over him and stare at him directly in his eyes, the greenest eyes she had ever seen. As she got closer to his face, he suddenly felt weak. He was strangely stirring inside, from feeling her breath on his face, it smelled of mint.
“Mr. Lannister, I would appreciate it if you stopped calling me child! As much as I would appreciate you never spoke to me in that tone again, is that clear?”
He nodded agreeing with her as he stood up. He was surprised she had been confident enough to call his bluff, but there was something uncomfortable about the way she had approached him, invading his personal space, proving he was not as tough as he liked people to think he was. As they walked towards Catelyn’s office, Jaime glanced at her a few times, still processing her words and her courage. She could feel him looking at her, it worries her to imagine someone observing her frames, her figure. She was scared to believe that anyone, by accident or not, could feel attempted to watch her moves as she tried not to draw any attentions to her appearance.
They entered Catelyn’s office. Brienne sat on a chair, in front of Catelyn’s desk as Jaime walked to the window. He put his hands on his pockets and sighed as he once again observed the rain outside. It would be almost a private experience if it were not for Brienne’s face reflected on the window, bothering his thoughts. He noticed was not aware he could see her on the glass, so he kept on watching her. She seemed distracted as she crossed her arms, she was looking at a picture hanging on the wall, behind Catelyn’s chair. It was a photo of a beach, with blue waters and some seashells on the sand, the sun was partly covered by some clouds.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Jaime sounded friendly and honest.
“What?”
“The picture on the wall, it’s very beautiful landscape, don’t you agree?”
“Oh, yes, for sure. It reminds me of… well, it’s very pretty, indeed.”
“What does it remind you of?”
“Nothing.”
“Come on, it’s not like I’m going to start a discussion because of it… What does it remind you of?”
“My homeland.”
“Are you from the coast?”
“I’m from an island; it’s a very beautiful place. And I love the ocean, I think it’s because I grew up almost entirely inside it. Before I learned to walk, I could already swim.” She smiled involuntarily, as she remembered her childhood. To her surprise, Jaime was smiling when he turned to face her. And just like that, it was like they had made peace with each other.
“I gave it to her. That picture… I gave it to Catelyn when she hired me.”
Brienne was embarrassed. She did not know if it had been wise to praise something he had chosen, it was like praising his taste, praising him. And she would not want him to feel like she approved his choices. After all, they were almost enemies, and she would not want them to be anything more than that.
“Where did you buy it?”
“I didn’t buy it.”
“Ok, who did you steal it from?” She smiled as her joke was well received. He chuckled and she got worried. Oh, God, I’m flirting with him!
“Oh, I stole it from a very old lady, after making sure she could not outrun me in a possible chase.” He stepped closer to her, as he spoke. He could notice her blushing again, as she tried to sound neutral.
“Poor old lady, but she had good taste, though, the photo is breathtaking.”
“I took it, many years ago, in a trip to Dorne. Then I had it framed and gave it to Catelyn in my very first day here.”
“Oh, I was not aware of that tradition. I didn’t bring any gifts.”
“Well, judging by her words when she introduced you, I think you’re a gift yourself.” Jaime spoke before he gave some thought to his words. After having said them, he noticed they could be quite inappropriate for someone trying to keep distance from an enemy. What the fuck, am I flirting with missy brat?
Catelyn opens the door quickly and walks to her chair. “Good, I see you’re getting along. That’s so much better than your early behavior, Jaime.”
“Oh, I think Miss Tarth and I will manage to stay out of each other’s way.” Jaime smiled, as Brienne narrowed her eyes in an attempt to disguise her sarcasm.
“Yes, Mr. Lannister and I have just agreed to keep a peaceful environment for the sake of this company, while each one of us keeps their own cases.” Brienne sounded diplomatic.
“And that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” Catelyn lifted one eyebrow as she glanced at Jaime, and then at Brienne. “You see, I happen to know that you are the best in this company handling the politics vampires, Lannister. And that’s why I’ve brought an expert to our team. I want you both to work together!”
Brienne and Jaime just looked at each other, as Catelyn continued her explanation. “The Bolton issue is much important to be handled by someone who’s just arrived, no offence Brienne. I trust you and your work, but I feel Jaime can only add up to your talents with his sharp senses. You know, Bolton has hired some top lawyers to defend him, I think someone more experienced can make a difference in this case.”
Jaime swallowed his sarcastic smile and arched an eyebrow. He knew the last thing he needed was Brienne to feel like they were competing against each other. After all, they would be a team.
“Is there a problem, Miss Tarth?” Catelyn noticed Brienne’s discomfort.
“No, there is not. Of course not, I can work with anyone you choose, Catelyn.”
“Fine, then you’ll be placed at Mr. Lannister’s room, and the files will be sent so you can start working on the case.”
“My room?” Jaime was baffled.
“His room?” Brienne was almost synchronized with him.
“Oh, please, you two, stop acting like children who are not willing to share their toys. You’ll be working together, it’s natural you share the same workspace. After all, you room is very large, Jaime, I’m sure it’ll comfortably fit the two of you for a couple of months.”
“Fine!” Jaime took a deep breath.
“Fine.” Brienne ran her fingers through her hair.
to be continued...