Stinger growled. “I can do whatever I want – I’m your editor.” He leaned back in the chair and softened slightly. “But here’s a proposal for you. You give me your story and I’ll leave your personal involvement out of it. You’re about to become my favourite reporter. How would you like to be deputy editor?”
Eleanor unglued her feet, and – on shaking legs – strolled over to stand in front of Stinger. She glanced at Matthew, who was watching with interest.
She threw her hand to her hip. “Are you blackmailing me, Gerald?”
“I’m offering you a deal.”
“You want me to give you my Joseph Quinlan story?”
“Yeah. It pissed me off when I saw you there earlier and realised you’d managed to get close to him. You’re a complete newbie and already you’re getting stories with A-listers.” He glanced at Matthew. “It helps having a boyfriend with good contacts, doesn’t it?”
“She just broke up with me,” Matthew hissed. “So don’t expect anything from me.”
Stinger sniggered. “I think she’s got everything she wanted from you, Matthew. A job from Blair Robertson… access to Joseph Quinlan… I’m hardly surprised she’s ditched you.”
Matthew fumed. “You’re forgetting I’m Joseph’s manager.”
“What’s your offer, Stinger?” Eleanor asked, ignoring her ex.
“You get the full story on this Ivan Quinlan thing… everything – all the details. You credit it to me and I’ll keep your – ahem – personal involvement out of the papers.”
“What personal involvement?” Matthew asked, suddenly realising something had been going on behind his back.
“How can I trust you?” Eleanor asked Stinger.
“How can I trust you?”
She stood tall. “Fine, okay. I’ll get you the story. I’ll dig around into Joseph’s family history and give you all the information you need. I’ll even write it and give it to you fully formed. And – in return – you keep my involvement with Joseph out the papers.”
“Good girl,” Stinger said. “You’re going to be the editor of our paper one day, I can feel it. You just need to keep using your devious feminine charms to seduce information out of stupid men, and you’ll go far.”
Eleanor glanced at Matthew. His irritation suddenly cracked and he stood up. “What the hell does he mean by ‘using your feminine charms to seduce stupid men’?”
Eleanor opened her mouth to deny any seduction, but Stinger pulled out his phone. “Glad you asked that, Matthew. I’ve got a recording of how much Eleanor loves her job. Perhaps you’d like to hear it?”
The walls suddenly closed in on Eleanor – crushing her into a tiny cube. “No! There’s no need for that. Let’s just agree that you won’t play that recording to anyone, and I’ll give you my Joseph Quinlan / Ivan Quinlan story.”
He smirked and pressed ‘play’ on his phone. “Tell me, Matthew,” he said. “Did Eleanor ever make noises like these with you?”
“No, please!” Eleanor shouted.
But it was too late. She heard her own voice – recorded less than an hour ago – streaming out from the tinny phone speaker. She wilted internally as she heard herself groaning… she was climaxing on the recording and calling Joseph’s name. She glanced at Matthew who was standing in front of her, looking ready to kill.
“Do as I tell you,” Stinger said. “Or else the world gets to hear this.”
Eleanor’s heart pounded painfully in her chest with humiliation. But suddenly it wasn’t Stinger she was afraid of. Matthew’s furious stance told her it was time to leave, but the air was as thick as molasses.
She glanced at the door. “I’ll be in touch soon, Gerald… Matthew, I’m sorry.”
“Oh no you don’t!” Matthew lunged at her, grabbing a handful of her hair and making her scream with fear and pain. “I made you the success you are, Eleanor – everything you own is because of me!”
Eleanor struggled as he wrapped his arms around her, gripping her tight. Stinger sat back and watched in amusement. She twisted in Matthew’s strong grip and threw her head back frantically, hoping to head-butt him, but instead she hit the back of her head against his bony shoulder, sending dizziness through her already clashing mind.
He released her from his arms, making her stumble backwards, but before she could dart away he grabbed her shoulder and wheeled her around. He pulled back his fist, and Eleanor tried to dodge, but he swung like a prize fighter, slugging her heavily on the cheek. Her body flew backwards, as if she was on a sudden-braking bus, and she twisted in mid-air, landing on her hands and knees, with a thump. She rested there for a moment, trying to recover, desperate to stop her body from shaking. She realised her nose was trickling with hot blood, but she didn’t have time to recover, because Matthew was now standing over her, looming and pulling back his fist, ready to punch her again.
“No!” Stinger shouted. “Don’t, Matthew. Let her go.”
Eleanor breathed heavily and gazed up at Matthew, suddenly afraid he was going to kill her.
Stinger stood up. “And Matthew won’t be blabbing about any of this either. Not unless he wants the world to know he’s been cuckolded by Joseph Quinlan. You don’t want that, do you Matthew?”
“Get out,” he muttered, not taking his eyes off Eleanor. “Get out before I throw you out.”
She wasn’t sure which of them Matthew was talking to, but her trembling legs scrambled beneath her and she hoisted her frantic body up to standing. With her vision blurring she sped past Matthew before he changed his mind, and fled towards the front door. She panted to get her breath back outside on the doorstep, safe now in the pouring rain, with her cheek stinging with the force of his punch. She heard shouting within, and her heart lurched with the terrifying prospect that Matthew might follow her and beat her to a pulp. She ran to the waiting cab, which was suddenly as appealing as a paradise island.
“You okay, ma’am?” the driver asked as she climbed in.
She whimpered, refusing to cry. “Yes. Can you take me to where you picked me up from?”
“Sure.”
The cab drove away, and Eleanor’s mind raced with confusion. Stinger knew about Ivan, and if she didn’t do something to stop him, he was going to tell the world. Well, if Stinger wanted a front page scoop, that’s what she’d give him. But not by hurting Joseph’s family. No. She was going to do what she’d always dreamed of. She was going to be an investigative journalist and bring down the entire apparatus of News Scape. Hopefully that would wipe the smug grin off of Blair Robertson’s face and land Stinger in jail – right where he belonged. It sounded impossible, but she knew one person could make a difference. And today, that person was going to be her.
Chapter Sixteen
While Joseph was waiting for Ellie to return, he showered then dressed in his leather trousers and designer shirt. As he gazed into the bedroom mirror, he ran his fingers through his blond hair, and decided he looked smart enough for a family dinner, so he grabbed his acoustic guitar and sat in the living room strumming distractedly, until her knock made him grin again.
He forced himself to act casual as he grabbed the door handle, set his smile to supercool, pulled open the door, and –
“Ellie, oh my god! What did he do to you?”
A shot of fury zig-zagged through his chest, as he saw the red mark on her cheek. He vowed to seek revenge on Matthew for this. Why the hell hadn’t he gone with her? Every cell in his body was poised to go round there now and rip off Matthew’s nuts – then pummel his stupid face into the ground. He reined in his anger – Eleanor needed him to comfort her right now – she didn’t need another thug to throw his weight around. Matthew could wait. He gazed at Ellie and saw that she was fighting back the tears and trying to speak, but no words were coming out, so he put his arms around her and led her into the living room.
She sat down on the couch, trying to stop her hands from shaking. “He scared me.”
“I’ll kill him,” he said, kn
eeling at her feet. “I honestly will.”
Her emotion cracked and she started to whimper, so he pulled her close, which made her cries gush out in a sob. He held her tight as she allowed her sobs to purge, nuzzling her face into his neck, and making his skin wet with her tears. Eventually, she cried it all out, and rested her head on his shoulder, breathing softly in the aftermath.
Her weary body shuddered and she sat up. “Something terrible’s happened. I’m so sorry.”
He gently ran his fingers over the red mark on her cheek. “Worse than what Matthew did?”
She nodded sadly and opened her mouth to explain, but then she suddenly gasped. “Oh shit!” She scrambled to her feet and strode towards the bedroom, so he followed and watched as she searched frantically behind closets and under the bed.
“Ellie, what’s–”
She spun to face him and put her finger to her lips. “Shh!”
The tension bounced around the room between them like an unstable nuclear reactor. He planted his feet firmly on the carpet, waiting to find out what the fuck was going on. Then he saw it. A matchbox-sized plastic device, with a flashing light on the top, stuck to the wall behind the headboard. Joseph frowned… what the fuck?
Ellie yanked the device off the wall, glaring at it as if it was the source of all evil. She dropped it to the carpet and stamped on it hard, impaling it with her stiletto heel and smashing it to smithereens.
She composed herself and focused on Joseph. “Gone.”
“What was it?” he asked, dreading the answer.
“A bug.”
“Holy shit…”
“Yep. A bugging device. Stinger knows everything about Ivan, and–”
Joseph’s brain howled like a bomb alert. “What!”
“–and about us. I can’t believe I’m now involved in one of the biggest celebrity scandals of the year. I can imagine the headlines already.”
Joseph’s mind swam with worry. “He can’t hear us anymore?”
“No.”
“So what happened? After you found out about the bug?”
“I had to think of something fast, so I told him I’m using you to get more information about Ivan’s story – and if he gives me more time I’ll give him the best scoop ever. He’s basically stealing it from me. I’ve bought us some time to figure out how to protect Ivan… but I don’t know how long.”
Joseph’s muscles tensed. “It was Stinger who hit you?”
“No, it was Matthew. Stinger played him the recording of you and me making love.”
Laughter burst out of Joseph before he could stop it. “Oh shit! That must’ve been awkward.”
She suppressed a smile. “It wasn’t my favourite moment.”
Joseph held up his fists. “Next time I see Matthew, he’s gonna regret doing that to you, Ellie. Seriously...”
“Well, if it makes you feel any better, Matthew’s being blackmailed too – Stinger told him not to tell anyone about any of this, or he’ll make him a cuckold to the world.”
“Jesus… Wait, does Matthew know about Ivan?”
“Not really – Stinger didn’t reveal any details.” She drifted over to him. “I’m so sorry this has happened.”
He wrapped her in his arms. “It’s not your fault, sweetheart. I should’ve kept my mouth shut. I guess you never know who’s listening.”
“You needed to tell someone. You can’t live your life not trusting anyone.”
He kissed her on the head. “I know. And I’m glad I told you. Ivan might not be too happy, though.”
She winced “Shall we get ready to leave?”
“Yeah. I’m ready.”
“Well, I still don’t have my make-up bag.”
“Don’t worry, Ellie. You look beautiful. Perfect, in fact.”
“Thanks. I guess I’d better clean up my face, or your family will think I’m a prize-fighter!”
Eleanor washed her face, then they left in Joseph’s car for Dylan and Sarah’s apartment across town. Joseph parked and started to climb out, but Eleanor didn’t seem to be moving.
“Maybe I should wait in the car,” she said.
“Don’t be silly, babe. My brothers are good people, and I’ll take all the flack.”
“Did you even tell them I was coming tonight?”
He shrugged. “They don’t mind. Sarah will have cooked tons of food. Come on.”
“I’ll wait here. You fill them in, then I’ll join you. I need a moment to gather my thoughts.”
He kissed her. “Alright. Lock the doors and keep your phone to hand.”
He put his shades on, always feeling safer behind them, then he climbed out into the cold and made his way to Dylan’s apartment building, where he pressed the buzzer. Dylan buzzed him in from upstairs, so he made his way up, feeling as if he was heading for the gallows.
Dylan opened the door to his apartment dressed in his usual expensive suit over a crisp white shirt. Joseph’s older brothers always looked so smooth and well-groomed, and he felt underdressed. But Dylan didn’t seem worried. He pulled him close and hugged him boisterously, allowing his cool businessman persona to drop. “Hey, kiddo. Where have you been? We were about to start without you. You okay?”
“Yeah, shall we go through? Is everyone here?”
“Yeah. Ivan’s on Skype.”
Joseph followed Dylan through to the dining room. He loved this spacious apartment with its modern furnishings and hardwood floor. The traditional old roaring fire was welcome on this freezing November evening, as were the smiles that greeted him around the table from Sarah, Adam, and Amy. He saw that Ivan was there on the laptop screen, which had been set up at the end of the table. They’d already started eating and he felt guilty about arriving so late.
“Hey, everyone,” Joseph said.
“I’ll get your dinner, Joseph,” Sarah said, standing. “You look like you could use a hot meal inside you.”
Joseph sat down and opened his mouth to thank her, but Dylan waved at her to sit. “Wait, Sarah, we need to finish this conversation first.” He turned to face Joseph. “Ivan’s got something to tell you.”
Joseph rested his elbows on the table. He’d obviously interrupted an important conversation, but he had a feeling his announcement was going to trump anything anyone else said. “Oh. Well, I’ve got something to tell you all myself actually.” He looked into their expectant eyes. How could he just blurt it out like that? He stalled. “Er… Firstly, I’m deferring college indefinitely.”
Adam smiled kindly. “Well, I think we all expected that, kid. No one would blame you.”
“The other thing…” he couldn’t help but grin as his heart surged with thoughts of Ellie… “I’ve met a woman – she’s amazing.”
Sarah clapped her hands excitedly. “That’s great news, Joseph! I knew there was something going on.”
Joseph’s smile faded as he gazed at Ivan on the laptop. “Thanks. But I’ve really fucked up – Ellie’s not what she seems. The papers are about to reveal the truth about Ivan – everything about Ivan. And there’s nothing I can do to stop them…”
Silence encompassed the room. Joseph listened as the ticking clock on the wall carved up the seconds.
Ivan sounded baffled. “What? What the fuck are you talking about?”
Joseph rubbed his forehead. How was he going to explain this? “Ellie’s a journalist. I confided in her…”
“And she betrayed you?” Adam asked. “Jesus, Joseph, I thought your judge of character was better than –”
“No, she didn’t. This other reporter bugged my apartment. Gerald Stinger – he writes for a gossip column. Remember I said someone was hacking my phone, Adam? I think that must’ve been him. He’s blackmailing her to get the story. She’s playing along until we can figure out how to stop him.”
The others exchanged glances of shock.
Sarah leaned forward and smiled tenderly. “Where’s Ellie now Joseph?”
“She’s waiting in the car. I told her s
he should come in, but she was afraid you’d be upset.”
“She’d be fucking right we’re upset!” Ivan said, fuming on the screen. “I was about to tell you my plans to come home next year.”
“It’s freezing out there Joseph,” Dylan said, ignoring Ivan’s fury. “Go tell her to come in.”
Joseph held out his hands to placate his oldest brother. “This is my fault, okay? So don’t any of you blame her. Alright.”
This was met with silence. Dylan gazed at his dinner. Adam coughed.
“Ivan?” Joseph said. “Promise me you’ll be nice.”
Ivan nodded imperceptibly. “Sure, whatever. You’d better go get her, then hadn’t you?”
Chapter Seventeen
Eleanor reclined in the comfortable passenger seat of Joseph’s car and enjoyed the soothing sensation of the heat as it blew directly onto her face. The reason she’d wanted to stay here was because she felt as if she was going to cry again and she didn’t want to break down in front of Joseph’s family. It was going to be strained enough once they found out what was going on. Her stomach churned with a graveyard eeriness, causing her confidence to collapse and implode. She’d been so excited about breaking up with Matthew and starting a new life – she’d never expected any of this.
She knew she shouldn’t blame herself, because Stinger probably would’ve planted the bug and got something on Joseph whether she’d gotten involved with him or not. But it was her profession that was corrupt, and it was her editor who was now blackmailing them both.
She sighed. What a mess. Her thoughts raced with ideas of how she could use this situation to try to expose Stinger. Was it illegal to eavesdrop? It was certainly against the law to break into someone else’s home. Surely you couldn’t plant a bugging device unless you were the police? She tried to remember what underhand techniques the rogue reporter Bob Crowe had used, prior to him being sent to jail – and then coming back for revenge on Blair Robertson the other day.
The Billionaire's Revenge: Billionaire Brothers Billionaire Bachelors (Tycoon Billionaires Book 3) Page 12
