“Why do you think he became a public defender?” Jack asked with all the trap-laying of a seasoned lawyer. She couldn’t begin to guess what he thought of her, but Mary knew that in the last few minutes, she’d sealed the coffin on her first impression with Jack. There was nothing she could say now that would change his opinion of her. She also knew that with just the asking of that question he was implying to her that she didn’t actually know the answer. That he knew better than she.

She straightened her back and set her coffee down, her eyes on John’s for a long beat before she turned back to Jack and answered his question.

“Well, I don’t know John well enough to really answer that question in full. Decisions like that are generally layered. But come on, what the heck else was he supposed to do with that huge, bleeding heart of his?”

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Mary understood the full truth of what she’d said. Jack’s eyes widened just a touch, and she felt her heart mirror his surprise. Because she was realizing—almost in real time—that John, who’d once seemed so cruel and hard-hearted to her, actually had the biggest heart of anyone she knew.

She thought of the cuddles he gave Ruth, the patient game he’d played with Jewel. The man was a reluctant vegan because animal cruelty trumped bacon in his playbook. He worked endless hours defending the lives of people who couldn’t afford fancy lawyers. He truly believed in the system. He believed in the innocence of his clients. He saw the good in people. He’d dashed across town to hug her in her kitchen; he’d slept on his neighbor’s couch for her. He’d held her hand on the train and called his friend to fix her door. She wasn’t sure how she hadn’t seen it before. But frowny, scowly, grumpy, foot-in-mouth John was actually dangerously sweet.

She turned to look at him and wasn’t surprised to see his eyebrows in a downward V as he looked back at her, the tips of his ears a rosy pink. He opened his mouth and closed it.

Jack started laughing and drew Mary’s attention back to him. “I do believe you’ve struck John dumb. Not sure I’ve ever seen that happen before.”

Mary cleared her throat, a little unsure of what to say next, off-kilter from her own realizations.

Jack smiled that smarmy smile as their waitress finally brought their food. He waited until she’d left to toss out his next topic of conversation.

“My son insists that the two of you are not involved,” Jack said quasi-casually. “So, tell me, Mary. Why are you single?”