Who: Dani and Ian What: Chaos at the courthouse and random first meetings Where: New York City Courthouse When: Friday morning Rating: PG-13ish?
Dani wasn’t exactly sure what prompted her decision, but it was more than likely heavily influenced by the strange circumstances of her life as of late. When she sat down and had a moment to herself to really think about it, maybe things weren’t so completely out of whack - Tony had always been one to call her randomly, at least once a week since the last time they officially ended. Emmy was, at times, an impulsive creature. Dani also wasn’t a stranger to being hit on by random men, but Reed’s flip-floppy nature had raised a red flag or two. The real strange thing had been reconnecting with Jordan - God knew she still hadn’t settled her own feelings on the subject.
Maybe that’s why she took Friday morning off to run to the courthouse. She’d gone to meet with her attorney and go over Opal’s custody papers again, and maybe put orders in for Grey’s official documents as well. She wasn’t sure why, but her instinct was to have everything in order. Just in case.
Unfortunately, errands to the courthouse on Friday morning seemed to be on half the city’s to-do list. The place was incredibly crowded, and Dani had to wait for her lawyer to be done with her current hearing before she could do anything. Dressed for an afternoon at work, she had her headphones plugged in, flooding her mind with a particular favorite song, while leaning one elbow on the little work-island in the middle of the second floor hallway among at least a hundred other people. The song drowned them all out, including the apparent argument brewing between a man and his parole officer going on just outside her field of vision. The argument grew more heated, grabbing the attention of most everyone else in the hallway. It finally grabbed Dani’s when the parole officer was caught off guard by a sudden right hook, and he stumbled back, knocking her forward with a momentum she was not ready for.
She would’ve gone down to her knees if it wasn’t for a sudden grip on both her arms, plus the distinct hint of a very expensive cologne.
----
There were times when being in his position was absolutely annoying. Lawsuits happened every day, sometimes more than once a day, or at the very least it seemed like it. Though, the company was more than capable of getting rid of them before anything got too far along. Unfortunately, this wasn’t one of those times, and he actually had to show up at a court house to talk to a judge. Not that it was going to matter in the long run, as the judge was going to dismiss this case as he had all the others, or a settlement would be reached.
Wrongful death his ass, there had been nothing wrong with those weapons, and it was just a show being put on that would be tossed out soon enough. And of course, the court visit couldn’t have come at a worse time. His wife on drugs, and having nice little break downs, no Ian was rather distracted. Not that it showed in the courtroom, as he was the consummate professional when he had to be, but this was the last place he wanted to be on a good day, much less that day.
His attention was drawn to her, as he let his eyes looked her over. The outfit fit rather well, and she had some nice curves. She might make a nice distraction from his current annoyances, even if only for a moment. A nice shiny to toss away after he got to play. But, before he could say anything, there was that sudden fight, that had been in the corner of his eye and she got pushed back toward him. He easily caught her before she crashed down, and pulled her back away from the fight that was sure to have security on them any moment.
“Careful there..” He said as he pulled her back enough so that he could stand just in front of her, but between her and the angry people.
----
The widened eyes of a startled doe shot up at him through the piece of hair that fell across them before she had herself uprighted; they shot to the stranger’s lips when he spoke, but only because they moved and she couldn’t hear his words, thanks to the earbuds. Dani hooked a fingertip under the wire snaking out from under her hair and pulled them free. Only then did she hear the ruckus, and see it over the man’s shoulder.
“Christ--sorry’bout that,” she hastily breathed, trying to push her heart back down into her chest cavity for being so jostled. After spending most of her twenties looking over her shoulder in bad neighborhoods in Chicago, Dani was usually more aware of her surroundings, but her instincts also were sometimes a little too-quick, and hard to push back down.
Dani smoothed the front of her jacket with both palms, standing a bit straighter to watch security haul the upstart away. The rest of the crowd seemed to find normalcy pretty quickly. “What a zoo.”
----
He hadn’t spent any of his life in bad neighborhoods, though he had learned a thing or two after he had started in his business. Usually he had security guards with him for such things, but it was a courthouse, and had a police station right next door, so there was little chance of him being in any danger whatsoever. But he liked watching people, especially when trouble was about, and that was the only reason he had spotted this himself.
“The day I object to saving a cute damsel is the day I die.” Ian said with a chuckle and a shake of his head as he considered her for a moment. The way she reacted was so normal for a moment he was tossed, but then he was far too used to Brenna, who would’ve hit back and then complained about a broken nail afterwards. “Should pay more attention though, especially in a court house. Never know when someone will flag you down.”
He shook his head as she straightened herself up and got back to normal. “Welcome to New York. Everywhere in this state is a zoo. You should see what traffic court looks like.”
----
The smirk that’d appeared on Dani’s lips melted into a short, slightly colorless chuckle. Great; two years a resident and she was being ‘greeted’ by a local. It happened at least once a month.
“I can imagine,” she replied, shaking her head a bit before turning her attention to him more fully. He was... well, very nice to look at, but who wasn’t in a suit that probably cost more than her first car? Dani’s immediate thought was mafia related. Funny what the Windy City did to it’s people. “I’m actually from Chicago - not much different.” In different ways, maybe. “But you’re right, I should probably open the eyes in the back of my head.”
----
It would have honestly happened no matter what else was going on. It was just a comment, to be certain. Welcome to New York whenever anyone muttered about a typical occurrence, though for him it was usually traffic. Though, she would likely be more accurate than she’d suspect about the Mafia. While, he wouldn’t arm them directly, sometimes a few extra weapons get made than marked and those disappear easily off a truck on the docks.
“Chicago is a beautiful city, especially when the snows hit and the lake is glistening.” He didn’t live in New York, but he had offices there, and clients. Vermont still had his preference for where to live, though it was too far from work and too close to his and Brenna’s parents. “Though I hate flying through O’Hare. Too damn busy, terminals get too crowded. That place needs an overhaul bad.” Another soft chuckle as he tilted his head. “Definitely need the eyes in the back of your head, but I’d be careful, hair like yours.. you’d be poking yourself in the eye constantly, it wouldn’t be pretty.”
----
Dani wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or not, but it had the tone of one. She rewarded the man with a polite smile, as was to be expected of the small chit-chat flirtations that often accompanied random meetings in busy public places. He’d kept up his end on small-talk about Chicago, anyway. And he’d kept her from bruised knees with quick reflexes, so what was the harm?
“I’ll keep that in mind, too,” she chuckled lightly through her words, and subconsciously ran a few fingers through her hair, as if it’d been jostled in the fray. It really hadn’t, but she didn’t exactly have a mirror.
“So what’re you in for?” she asked mildly, sending a pointed gaze around their surroundings, which had gone back to normal and busy. Her lawyer’s hearing wasn’t over yet, so she might as well be occupied.
----
He watched her for the moment and he just smiled in return. He had seen enough fake smiles or polite looks to recognize them when they happened. Not that he cared, he was wasting time. She wouldn’t ever be in his life again, even if she had some nice curves and he wouldn’t mind a conquest. It might even work to bring his wife out of her fugue. Competitiveness and one-upmanship in conquests was what made their relationship work, after all.
“Lawsuit. Moron’s suiting my company for damages. Won’t go far, he doesn’t have a case.” And he sounded so confident about that, as if it was already a done deal. Though, he was the courthouse, and that left a little bit to be desired. He shook his head after a moment before he offered his hand, “Ian Ward.” He said in an easy voice.
“And what brings you to our lovely courthouse on this lovely day?”
----
Owned his own company - well, that explained the suit. It also didn’t dispel the thoughts of an organized crime syndicate. Dani shook his hand anyway, noting the man’s firm grip but relatively soft skin. It screamed Old Money; a man with power who had not gotten there through physical toil.
She already thought he was dangerous.
“Dani,” she offered her name, but not all of it - force of habit more than anything else. She tipped a nod toward a nearby courtroom door before looking back at him. “Just meeting with my attorney over a few things, though it doesn’t look like she’ll be out for a while. I, uh--promise I’m not suing your company,” she joked very faintly, not even knowing what his company was. She knew enough that she didn’t want any part of legally going against someone like him - Dani wasn’t naive.
----
Two questions dodged and a joke, alert and careful. Ian continued to smile at her before he dropped his hand back to his side. “Oh, if you were I would know who you are. You know, that whole face your accuser part of the legal system.” It always made life that little bit easier when you knew who was coming after you. Made them easier to deal with.
“Looks like you got time then.” He considered her again, letting his eyes roam hers for an instant before he made a hand motion down the hall, where there was a little snack area. “Care to join me for a drink, coffee or whatever you want. My lawyer’s going to be in there for at least 20 or 30 minutes as well, and it’s going to get boring just standing around here doing nothing, I think. I wouldn’t mind pleasant company.”
----
There was a predator behind Ian Ward’s eyes, and he didn’t even bother to hide it; a bit of subtlety masked it, like silk covering a blade, but the point was made. Don’t cross him. Dani was willing to take that one step further, and keep herself out of his sights entirely. Of course, it was after she made that decision that he invited her in. Figures.
Decision time. He had made a good point - she would likely be standing there, doing nothing but wait for however long it took; so did she suck it up and push aside her paranoia, or turn him down and risk the possible fallout? Dani’s lips rolled with her decision, then pursed a bit at the air, glancing down the hall.
“Thanks, but...” Her eyes flicked back to Ian’s, making sure they had a good line of contact. Best to be forward with some people; muddled messages could be twisted, and he seemed the type to be an expert at it. “I’m actually good here.”
----
Of course she was thinking organized crime, when in truth, he was a simple businessman. Well, maybe not so simple, but still nothing more than a businessman. Though, he was a predator when it came to getting what he wanted, and she was proving that she would at least elevate the boredom that he was going to have waiting for his legal team to finish. Her turning down his offer made things just a little more complex.
Though, in the end, not too complex. After all, she couldn’t go anywhere. Which tied her to a spot that he could easily find her again. He simply nodded his head. “Suit yourself.” And with that, he turned and walked down the hall, slipping around people with a practiced ease as he went to go and get himself a cup of coffee.
Five, perhaps even as long as ten minutes later, however, he would once again appear near her, his courtroom was, after all, right next to hers. As he took a sip from his coffee, he just grinned in her direction and tilted his head. “Still here?” he asked with an amused sound.
----
She returned the tilted, shark-like grin with one that wrapped itself in cynicism, but remained civil. He was right - she was cornered. Simply walking away would seem like retreat, and there were staunch Irish roots twisted around her pride that wouldn’t allow that - not until she was desperate. Dani was cautious about Mr. Ian Ward, but she wasn’t strung out. Not yet, anyway.
“Very observant,” she commented back in a tone that was both joking and challenging. She didn’t intend for the second.
----
He arched an eyebrow at her as he took another sip from his drink and shook his head. “Is the case that bad, or is it just my presence that annoys you so much?” Ian leaned back against the wall, not really caring about the answer as he watched her. After all, he hadn’t actually done anything to earn any reactions other than friendly so far. As far as he knew that was. He just watched her for her reaction, wondering just which it might be. For all he knew, she hated all men and it was just his luck of the draw.
----
Alarm bells of paranoia went off in Dani’s mind, all ringing a sharp discord that blared ‘trick question’. She watched him like a rabbit might watch a wolf on the other side of a fence, with a stillness and poise that bordered on rigidity. He was watching in the same manner, gauging for a reaction, planning for anything, and enjoying it - that’s what stuck out. It wasn’t a case of the nice rich man trying to be friendly with a pretty woman. This was a game.
A game where the rules changed with every player, and Dani would’ve bet her entire bank account that he’d been playing it since he could speak. And now she was playing it, whether she wanted to or not. That’s just how it worked.
“Y’know, I think I am a bit hungry,” she said quietly, though in a certain undeniable tone. Hopefully undeniable, anyway. There was obviously no effort to answer his double-edged question. After flashing him a small nose-scrunch, Dani pushed off the work-island and walked past him, toward the vending machines.
----
Of course that could’ve been the game too. Bored rich man striking up a conversation with a cute girl. In truth, that was the game. Even so, he had pictured the cute girl stretched across the bed of some hotel room nearby without half of what she was currently wearing, but that was all part of the conversation. A bedroom was just a logical conclusion.
When she made her statement, he just arched a brow at her as she moved off and he just shook his head. Stupid women. he muttered to himself as he watched her until the crowds swallowed her. Oh, she would’ve made a nice little notch. And he decided right then and there she shouldn’t find herself in a compromising position around him anywhere outside of the courthouse. He didn’t like it when his prey escaped. Nope, not one little bit.