“I don’t have a sister, but if I did, I wouldn’t want Logan to even look in her direction.”

Andrew didn’t respond and took a long drink of water.

“How’s it going at the DA’s office?” Dan asked, taking the hint and changing the subject.

“It’s great. They’ve assigned me to a new domestic violence case, and right now I’m helping with the preliminary legal research and paperwork. I’m hoping it moves through the court proceedings before we graduate, so I can experience the entire process and see how it all plays out.”

“I can’t believe you landed that internship. It’s competitive.”

“I can’t either,” Andrew said. Though he had worked his ass off on his application and, luckily, had really hit it off with the attorney he’d interviewed with. He hoped to secure a position at the District Attorney’s office after he graduated, but even if they didn’t have an open spot, the networking opportunities the internship created would no doubt get him a nice offer elsewhere.

It was a bittersweet feeling, to be succeeding in his chosen career path. On one hand, there was nothing he’d rather be doing, and it felt good to know he’d spend his last year of law school training under some of the best prosecutors in the state. But with every good thing that happened, his mind conjured up an image of his father and the look of disappointment on his face when Andrew had told him he wouldn’t follow in his footsteps to manage the family farm.

His dad had put up a good fight, to be sure. Andrew had actually thought that his dad would have made a good attorney, but he didn’t dare say that. His dad had offered strong arguments about family values and carrying on the farming legacy that was three generations strong, but Andrew wasn’t swayed.

Things had never been the same.

“Didn’t you shadow a criminal defense attorney last year?” Dan asked, bringing Andrew back from his musings.

“Yeah, I wanted to see both sides of the coin.”

“Isn’t that sort of frowned upon?”

Andrew shrugged. “It was on my resume, and they asked about it during my interview. I explained that I thought the entire criminal justice system was worth learning about, and that I thought I’d be a better attorney if I knew how both sides worked. I also wanted to make sure I was making the right decision, pursuing a career down the path of prosecution. I think they appreciated my honesty.”

“Probably so,” Dan said. “Most people just spout shit they think the boss wants to hear.”

“I can do that, too,” Andrew said with a grin. “Gotta know when to do which.”

“Nah, that’s why I’m doing patent law,” Dan said. “Cut-and-dry, no ass-kissing necessary.”