by Ward, Alice
James rose from the couch and we walked to the door. We stepped into the hallway and I looped my arm through his. He looked down at me, his eyes full of pleasant surprise. He raised an eyebrow and I smiled back at him.
“You’re my escort for the weekend, right? I just want to relax and enjoy ourselves, like we did in Kentucky.”
James stood up a little straighter and a broad smile spread across his face. “That sounds like a fantastic plan,” he agreed.
The elevator doors opened and we stepped into the car. “We have a few free hours this afternoon between the stable tour and the formal dinner. Maybe we can sneak away for a while, take a walk on the beach,” I suggested.
“Your ideas keep getting better and better. I should make sure you sleep through the night more often,” James teased.
The elevator slowed to a stop, the doors opened, and we stepped out into the lobby. I heard Bradley’s voice before I saw his face.
“Fancy finding the two of you together.”
This can’t be happening. I’m imagining it. He can’t really be here.
I turned to my left and saw Bradley leaning against a marble pillar. I felt the color drain from my face as panic squeezed my chest. James untangled his arm from mine and stepped in front of me as Bradley approached us.
“What are you doing here, Bradley?” James asked, his voice a low growl.
“I came to see by best girl, of course,” Bradley replied. He maneuvered around James and kissed me on the cheek. I shrank away from him and he let out an amused chuckle.
“You didn’t think I’d miss your big weekend, did you?” he asked.
“This wasn’t a part of our deal,” I said softly. My eyes darted around the lobby. To my relief, no one seemed to be paying us any attention.
“The deal is subject to change, at my discretion,” Bradley replied. His voice was calm, his body relaxed. “You’re going to have lots of cameras on you this weekend, Willow,” he continued. “My story wouldn’t hold much weight back home if I’m not in any of the pictures.”
“You’re crossing the line, Miller,” James warned. He stepped between us again and put a hand on Bradley’s chest. “I’m not going to let you ruin this weekend. Willow’s worked hard for this. She deserves to enjoy it.”
Bradley scowled down at James’s hand and then stared up at him, rage smoldering in his eyes. “If I were you, I’d take your fucking hand off of me,” Bradley hissed softly. “Unless of course, you want me to ruin more than the weekend.”
“Stop James, please,” I begged. I stepped between them and covered James’s hand with mine. His nostrils flared with anger, but he dropped his hand and took a few steps back.
“You can’t keep giving in to him, Willow,” James insisted. “This will never end.”
I turned back to him and saw Matt and Lucas step out of the elevator. Matt looked from me to Bradley, his eyes wide with confusion. I shook my head and mouthed “Not now.” Matt nodded, took Lucas by the arm, and led him to the other side of the lobby.
I looked at James with desperate eyes. “You know what he’ll do if we don’t play along. I can’t afford a scandal this weekend, James.”
“I’d listen to her if I were you,” Bradley taunted.
James clenched his jaw and balled up his fists. “Fine,” he finally agreed. “But I’m doing this for Willow, not because I’m afraid of you,” he growled at Bradley.
Bradley shrugged. “Whatever makes you feel better about it,” he sneered. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, Willow has a bunch of people to introduce me to… as her boyfriend, of course. We don’t need a third wheel if it’s all the same to you.”
Bradley wrapped an arm around my waist and James took two steps towards him. He towered over Bradley and leaned into his shoulder. “You’re safe today, but mark my words, you pompous ass. The time will come that you don’t have power over us anymore. And when it does, I’m going to make you wish you’d never been born.”
Bradley puffed up his chest and turned to me, ignoring James’s threat. “I believe we’re late for breakfast,” he said firmly.
I looked over my shoulder and mouthed “I’m sorry” to James as Bradley led me away.
***
Bradley hadn’t been able to get a room at the Excelsior so after fourteen miserable hours, I was able to escape his company and retreat to my suite. I was surprised to find Matt, Lucas, and James in the living area, huddled around a laptop. When I walked into the room, Matt jumped up and faced me, his hands on his hips.
“Willow Rose, I can’t believe you’ve been lying to me!” he exclaimed.
I groaned and turned to James. He blushed and looked to the floor. “You told them everything?” I asked, my shoulders low with defeat.
“Of course he told us everything,” Matt continued. “The question is, why did he have to? I knew something fishy was going on when you had dinner with Bradley the other day. Why didn’t you tell me that the bastard was blackmailing you?” He stared at me, demanding an answer. James’s eyes darted back and forth between us while Lucas’s remained fixed on the computer screen.
I tossed my purse onto the coffee table, kicked off my heels, and collapsed into a club chair. “I’m sorry, Matt,” I sighed. “I didn’t want to bother you with my problems.”
He narrowed his eyes, obviously unsatisfied. “You didn’t tell me because you knew I’d agree with James,” he argued. “And I do. You were so determined to convince James that the two of you could be together. I wondered why you suddenly changed your mind. I can’t believe you let Bradley bully you into giving him up!”
My day with Bradley had left me exhausted and frustrated. Arguing with Matt was the last thing I felt like doing, but I felt compelled to defend myself.
“It’s not just Bradley,” I insisted. “It’s everyone like him. I met some of his friends at that dinner, I can tell they all think the same way. They might accept James and me eventually, but only after the initial scandal dies down. I can’t let Bradley release those pictures. Not when all of my hard work is about to pay off. Surely you understand that.”
Matt frowned, but let his hands fall to his sides. “I know, James explained all of that too. I just wish you’d come to me after Bradley took the pictures.”
“I’m sorry,” I said again. “I knew you’d be frustrated with me. And there’s really nothing you can do to fix it.”
Lucas cleared his throat but didn’t look up from the computer. “Actually, that’s not true.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, my voice cautiously optimistic.
Matt gave me a triumphant smile. “It just so happens that my boyfriend is quite the hacker. He’s taking care of your little problem right now.”
My mouth dropped open in shock as I stared at Lucas. “You can do that?” I gasped.
He nodded and gave me a smile. “I spent a lot of time alone as a kid. I taught myself how to hack, played some pretty nasty pranks on some of the more intolerant families in town. I gave it up before I got into any real trouble. But I’m always happy to dust off my skills for a good cause.”
“But how is this even possible?” I asked. I was hesitant to get my hopes up.
“After James told us what was going on, I created a ghost account and sent Bradley an email. I posed as a reporter interested in interviewing him for a story about the best new agricultural minds in the country, so I’m sure he’ll open it. There’s a link in there that will take him to a page of interview questions. The link also contains a virus. As soon as he clicks on it, I’ll have total access to whichever device he’s using.”
“But that won’t work,” I frowned. “I’m sure he’ll open it on his phone and I’ve already deleted the pictures from it.”
Lucas was undeterred. “I’m willing to bet that all of Bradley’s devices are linked. If I have access to one, I can get access to them all. We just have to wait for him to open the message.”
We sat in silence for the next ten minutes. Finally, Lucas’s l
aptop chimed and a look of satisfaction spread across his face.
“I’m in,” he announced, tapping rapidly on the screen. The rest of us breathed a collective sigh of relief.
“He opened the email from his phone. And… yes, it’s linked to a laptop and a desktop, both of which seem to be turned on. I’ll delete the photos from his cloud storage first and then go through the other devices,” he explained.
“Will he know that you’ve been in his stuff?” I asked.
Lucas shook his head. “He won’t know that anything is missing until he goes looking for it.”
“This is really over, just like that?” I asked, afraid to hope.
“It will be in a few hours,” Lucas assured me, his hands still moving a mile a minute. “Unless he’s printed hard copies and tucked them away somewhere.”
I shook my head. “He thinks he’s invincible. And the pictures didn’t turn him on, they disgusted him. I don’t think he’d have printed hard copies... so I don’t have to go to the race with him tomorrow. I don’t have to spend another second with him.”
“Let this be a lesson, Willow,” Matt said, his tone half scolding. “You should always tell us what you’re going through. You never know how we may be able to help.”
I jumped up, crossed the room, and wrapped Matt in a hug. “I’ll never keep anything from you again. Lucas, you’re in for one hell of a hug when you’re finished with that laptop. I can never thank you enough for this.”
“Bradley Miller is an arrogant ass,” Lucas replied. “Taking him down a few pegs is thanks enough.”
“You have to let us be there when you tell him to fuck off,” Matt added. “I can’t wait to see his face.”
“I’m supposed to meet him in the lobby tomorrow morning for breakfast,” I told him. “We can all go down together.”
“Let’s go down early and meet him in the parking lot,” James suggested. “It will save me the trouble of dragging his ass outside.”
Lucas looked up from the computer. “This is going to take some time. And no offence, Willow, but you look exhausted. Why don’t you go to bed? You have a big day tomorrow.”
“That’s a good idea,” James agreed. He stood up and crossed the room to offer me his hand. “Come on, I’ll tuck you in.”
I wanted to stay up until I was certain the pictures were gone, but I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open. I took James’s hand and he helped me to my feet.
“We’re going to celebrate like crazy tomorrow night, no matter whose horse wins the race,” I promised as we walked to the bedroom.
“You bet your ass we are,” Matt called after me.
“Sleep well, Willow,” Lucas added.
James and I stepped into the bedroom and he closed the door behind us. I fell into his arms. “I can’t believe this is finally over,” I sighed.
“How bad was it today?” he whispered. “When Bradley led you away from me, it was all I could do not to rip his arm off.”
“It was miserable,” I admitted, frowning at the memory. “He made me introduce him to everyone as my boyfriend and he took over every conversation I tried to have.”
James pulled away and stared into my eyes. “Did he put his hands on you?”
I shook my head. “No more than what you saw in the lobby. But it doesn’t matter now, James. We don’t have to worry about him anymore.”
“You’re still worried about Bradley and everyone like him,” James reminded me softly. “Otherwise, we’d still be together.”
I stood on my tip toes and planted a soft kiss on his lips. “I meant what I said last night. I love you, James. We just have to keep this quiet until after Belmont. Then, we’ll figure out how to tell everyone.”
James shook his head and backed away from me. “I’ll wait until after Belmont, I’ve already promised you that. But that means everything waits until after Belmont. I’m not going to sneak around with you, Willow. The next time you kiss me, you’d better be ready to kiss me in public.”
I thought he’d be happy. What the hell’s gotten in to him?
“What’s wrong, James? I thought we were going to relax and enjoy our weekend. We can do that, now that we’re free from Bradley.” I took his hands in mine and stared up at him with pleading eyes. He wrapped me in his arms and stared down at me, his chocolate eyes filled with pain.
“I just had the least relaxing day of my life,” he told me. “All I could think about was what that bastard might be putting you through. I was ready to hunt you down, tell everyone the truth, and drag you away from him. I was going crazy, Matt and Lucas had to talk me down.”
“I see,” I sighed. I pulled away from him as I started to realize what had happened. “I take it one of them suggested you give me the all or nothing ultimatum?”
“It’s not all or nothing and it’s not an ultimatum,” he patiently replied. He sat down on the bed and pulled me into his lap. “I want to be with you. I’ve made that clear. I don’t care what our parents or anyone else thinks about it. You convinced me that we’re worth whatever it takes to be together. But if you really believed that, Bradley would never have been a threat. Every time you walk away, it hurts more than the last time. So until you’re sure this is what you want, I don’t think we should make love.”
I’ve put this man through so much. And he’s still here. If anyone else had pulled half of what I have, he’d have walked away without a second thought.
I squeezed James’s hand. “I’m sorry. I know this has been hard for you. And I haven’t exactly been fair.”
“Let’s be honest, Willow. We’ve both made our share of mistakes,” he corrected me. “I’m just trying to keep us from making any more of them. I still intend to make sure you have a blast tomorrow,” he added with a smile. “I just don’t think we should confuse things with sex.”
I sighed. There was no doubt in my mind that James was what I wanted. But I knew that the timing wasn’t right. The entire future of my barn was riding on Mondo’s performance in the next two races. I was convinced that he had what it took to win the Triple Crown. If I was right, he’d go down in history as only the twelfth horse to earn the title. I didn’t want his reputation or his legacy tarnished by my scandal.
I looked longingly into James’s eyes. “I love you. And I want to be with you. But…”
“It’s not the right time,” he finished with a nod. “I know.”
“Belmont’s only three weeks away,” I reminded him. “Then life will get back to normal and we’ll figure out how to break this to our parents. In the meantime, we can still cuddle, right?” I asked with a smile and a raised eyebrow.
James shook his head and let out a soft laugh. “You’re impossible, Willow. Yes, we can still cuddle. I’m going to check in with the guys and see if they’ve made any progress. I’ll be in later.”
He kissed the top of my head and I wiggled off of his lap. James went back to the living room and I changed into my pajamas and crawled between the sheets.
James’s insistence that we not have sex was frustrating, but I understood it. He had no reason to trust that I wouldn’t change my mind and run away again. I’d have to prove it to him by telling the truth.
And I will do exactly that… as soon as the time is right.
***
The elevator doors opened and Matt, Lucas, James, and I stepped out into the lobby. We made our way outside just as Bradley got out of a taxi. He had on a white suit, a blue and white pinstriped shirt with a pretentious white collar, and a smug grin that made what was about to happen all the more enjoyable for me.
“I hope you all don’t think you’re tagging along to breakfast,” Bradley said to the guys. “I really don’t enjoy any of your company.” He moved to take my arm and James stepped between us.
“This again?” Bradley asked impatiently. “I have to tell you, your little body block move is pretty cave man. It’s also completely pointless. Willow wants to come with me, don’t you, sweetheart?” he asked with a w
ink.
“Actually no, I don’t,” I replied firmly. I stepped up next to James and looked Bradley in the eye.
He curled his lip up in a snarl. “You’re bluffing. You don’t think I’ll follow through. It isn’t wise to push me, Willow. You won’t like what happens.”
“You’re the one who’s not going to like what happens,” James snarled at him. He towered over Bradley, poking him firmly in the chest as he spoke.
“If I were you, I’d make sure all of my evidence was intact before I threatened someone bigger than me,” I warned.
A look of indignant shock spread across Bradley’s face. “That’s impossible. There’s no way you could have deleted the pictures. You didn’t have access to anything.”
“That’s true,” I agreed with a nod. “But a little birdie told me that there was a glitch in your system last night. I’m not so sure you have anything to blackmail us with anymore.”
Bradley took turns staring at each of us. “It had to have been you,” he growled at Lucas. “I have some of the most expensive security software money can buy. And I know for a fact that these three aren’t smart enough to get around it.”
Lucas lifted his arms and shook his head. “Dude, I don’t even know what you’re talking about. I’m just here for the race and all of the free food.”
“I don’t buy your innocent act for one second,” Bradley said, pointing a finger at him. “I don’t know how you did this, but I’ll figure it out. And when I do, I’ll have you thrown in jail.”
Bradley turned back to me. “You’ve just screwed yourself, Willow. Even without the pictures, plenty of people will be thrilled to listen to what I have to say. Why don’t I start by calling your father?” He pulled out his phone and Lucas cleared his throat.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Lucas warned.
Bradley stuck his nose up in the air. “Oh yeah, why’s that?” he huffed.
Lucas pulled a small manila envelope from the breast pocket of his khaki blazer. “The little birdie that told us about the glitch in your system also left us a present,” he explained.
