Breach of Honor by Naomi Porter

50 Will

MUSIC BLARED, LIGHTS blinded me, and Cori had her A-game on. She’d pulled me out to dance twice, hugged me a few times to whisper into my ear to “perk the fuck up,” and she pecked me on the lips a few times.

I hated every second of being in Club R. But I didn’t have a fucking choice. Axel needed the time to get inside Jason’s condo. That wasn’t going to be easy.

How could I have mentioned the wok? As if I’d given a shit about it. Like an idiot, I’d backpedaled after nearly begging Miranda to not be upset and declaring my love for the umpteenth time. But Axel had walked into my office with a stern gaze. I should have known he’d be watching my office and listening in on my calls.

And did he ever bitch about me being weak. “You’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe. Do you hear me?” he had said. “Even break her heart.”

I didn’t understand how Axel could be so emotionless. The black depths of his eyes had shown he didn’t have a soul. Beyond what I observed, I knew nothing else about Axel Pérez, and that was apparently the way it would remain.

The thought of breaking Miranda’s heart gutted me, but if she got hurt because of me, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. By the sound in her voice, my stupid comment set her off and she was furious.

“Jason looks like he’ll be leaving soon with Tabitha,” Cori said, elbowing me. “Go ask him about Vegas. He’s on his fifth scotch.”

I did as commanded.

“Thanks for the invite tonight. I needed it.” Lies… I hated them.

“Anytime, buddy. How’s your girl over there?” He jerked his chin toward Cori who was talking to Tabitha. “I’m glad our girls get along.”

“Yeah, it’s fantastic. What’s the latest about Vegas? I gotta say, I’m looking forward to it.” I eyed Jason’s skinny neck and my hands burned to squeeze the life out of him.

“Still working it.”

“Okay, cool. Miranda is pressuring me to take her to Arizona to see her parents.” I forced an exaggerated eye roll.

“Keep Labor Day weekend free.” Jason winked. He said it so fast, he probably didn’t even realize it. Stupid son of a bitch.

“Hell yeah!” I threw my hand up for a high five, which he returned, grinning like he’d scored the winning touchdown. “Now I have something to look forward to. August has been dragging on.”

“That’s because you haven’t been partying with me.” Jason drained his glass and rubbed his nose. When he’d disappeared into the bathroom not long ago, I suspected it was to snort some shit. He’d always craved the high coke and other drugs gave him but hadn’t been able to afford the hard stuff so he stuck with weed.

Was drugs the reason Jason was stealing from SJI?

“True. I’m changing that right now. What are you doing tomorrow night?”

“What’d ya have in mind?”

“I scored four tickets for Maroon 5. Cori’s been begging to see them. Think Tabitha would want to go?”

“Ask her yourself.”

Tabitha appeared between us. “Hey, Tab. Would you like to see Maroon 5 tomorrow night?”

“Are you kidding? YES!” She squealed and wrapped her arms around me, bouncing on her tiptoes, and kissed me on the lips. Multiple flashes caught my attention from the crowd. The kind from a cell phone. Shit. I couldn’t see anyone looking in my direction. This was bad. So fucking bad, I nearly puked all over Tabitha.

“Then it’s a date.” Jason pulled Tabitha into his arms. “We’re heading out.”

“All right. We’ll pick you up for dinner at five. The concert is at eight.”

“Perfect.” The devil and his victim slinked away. I hated him with a passion.

“What did you find out?”

“Where were you?”

“The bathroom. Why?”

“Because I think someone or multiple people took pictures when Tabitha kissed me.”

“And is that surprising? You’re one of the richest bachelors in L.A.” She shrugged. “What did you find out?”

I took in a breath, trying to stay calm. “He said to keep Labor Day weekend free.”

Cori clapped her hands excitedly, then whipped out her phone. “Let me call Abe real quick.”

I nodded, turning back toward the bar, and pulled out my phone to text Axel.

Will: Jason just left.

Axel: K

Club R hadn’t died down; the party crowd could go all night. I must have checked the time half a dozen times, thinking of Miranda at home alone, raging with the fire I’d lit in her.

“Abe is thrilled with this bit of news. Let’s go.”

“Great. Glad Abe is happy.” I was beginning to think Cori was the person keeping tabs on Jason to make sure he stuck with Abe’s plan. Hopefully Axel found what he needed so this charade could end and we can get the stolen money back and I could get on with my life with Miranda.

“Aww, don’t be a mood killer. The end could be in sight.”

I nodded, my hand on her lower back guiding her out. The end, what the fuck was the end?

The late morning sun reflecting off the ocean usually made me smile. The sight was like a promise the day would be pure and delightful. Maybe it was the lack of caffeine in my system, but today, the glimmering waters gave off an ominous vibe.

I stayed in a hotel after dropping Cori off at her place. When Axel had told me to push Miranda away to keep her safe, I knew not going home would make her pull back.

To maximize impact, I went straight into the office in yesterday’s clothes, tie loose around my neck and hair disheveled. My plan worked. Looks flew my way, jaws hit the floor, and whispers ensued.

I looked and felt like shit after a crappy night’s sleep, too worried about Miranda and how staying out all night would affect her. I shouldn’t have been surprised when she didn’t text last night or this morning. But I was.

Miranda would be in the building for a final meeting with my mother about the end-of-summer client picnic in an hour. Part of me hoped I wouldn’t see her yet. We both probably needed a little more time before seeing each other. The other part was dying to hold her and kiss away her pain. I was fucking weak when it came to her, ready to beg for forgiveness and promise to never hurt her again.

I couldn’t do any of it.

Draining my second cup of coffee, I nearly choked when Simone barreled into my office, hell on wheels, a white piece of paper flapping in her hand. She stormed toward me and slapped it on my desk.

“What the fuck is this?” she yelled. “Speak before I rip your head off your body!”

“Give me a damn minute to see what you’re talking about.” I lifted the paper. On it was a picture of Tabitha and me, her lips on mine in Club R. I knew it. Someone had taken a picture of us.

“Fuck! Where did you get this?” I stood from my desk, heart hammering against my chest for what this all meant, for what this would do to Miranda if she saw it. My stomach did somersaults, sloshing around the coffee I’d drank. I wanted to empty my guts and then crawl into a hole like a goddamned pussy; I’d never felt so low in all my life.

“It’s all over the fucking place, Will! Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. I haven’t even checked the tabloids. How could you do this to Miranda?”

I was hit with a moral dilemma. Then Axel’s words surfaced again; I couldn’t be weak.

“It’s not like I posted the picture myself,” I said sarcastically. “I guess I had too much to drink.”

Simone gaped, tears pooling in her eyes. When we were kids I used to call her sweet, sensitive Simi because she’d cry easily. As she grew older and learned to deal with friends using her because of her money, she’d hardened. Even so, her soft side would come out for those she cared about, and I knew she loved Miranda.

It had never occurred to me what my fake affair would do to my sweet, sensitive Simi.

“You asshole! Have you lost your damn mind? This is abominable, Will.” She studied me, then plopped into the chair as if ready to faint. “You didn’t go home last night, did you?” Her eyes raked up and down my length.

I ran my fingers through my hair, inhaling deeply. “No.”

Simone leaned forward, elbows on her knees covering her face. Her head shook, and I knew she was in disbelief. I reached for a Kleenex in my lower desk drawer, then dragged myself to her, feeling weighed down by the guilt I carried. I placed my hand on her shoulder as she plucked the tissue from my fingers.

The door opened again before I could say anything. Axel.

“Why doesn’t anyone knock anymore?” I threw a hand up.

“I need to talk to you,” he said in a gruff voice.

“Can’t you see he’s busy?” Simone bit back. “Come back in an hour!”

Axel narrowed his eyes at me. “It won’t take long.” His jaw was tight.

“Why don’t you go freshen up, sweetheart? We just need a few minutes.”

“You know what?” She leaped from the chair with a floored expression. “This is obviously not important to you. And that big oaf doesn’t give a shit either.” She pointed at Axel. “You both make me sick. Go about your business and”—she got up in my face—“go ahead and ruin the best thing that ever happened to you.”

My tornado of a sister was gone in the blink of an eye. If her reaction was half of what I could expect from Miranda, I might not survive the day.

Axel sat down in the chair Simone had been sitting in. “Miranda is in the building.”

“That’s what you came here for? I know she’s in the building. She had an eleven thirty appointment with my mom.” I went back to my chair.

“I know. I’m keeping track of everything.” He shook his head. “I was worried you might unravel. Seems I was right by the way you were about to comfort Simone.”

“She’s my sister!” I threw my hands up.

“Doesn’t matter. You’re going to catch a helluva lot of heat for that picture.” He jerked his chin to the evidence on my desk. “Good job upping the ante.”

I pressed the back of my head against the chair. “It’s what you told me to do.”

“Glad to know you can follow orders.”

“Did you dig up anything at Jason’s? Please tell me all this shit isn’t for nothing.”

“I did. I found his laptop and hacked into it, but I haven’t gone through all the USB drives yet.”

I exhaled a relieved breath. “Well, get on it and stop all this bullshitting. My life is about to implode.”

“I’m on it. Just hold it together.”

I waved him off.

Hold it together. I was doing the best I could.

The real test would be when I saw Miranda.