38. Brooks
38
brOOKS
“Charges are dropped. Case dismissed.”
Brooks’s lawyer, Christine Lewis, looked pleased. An immaculately dressed, elegant Black woman, she was one of the top lawyers in the country—and she was a killer in the courtroom.
“You’re the best. As always,” Brooks said with the hint of a smile. He didn’t bother looking at Mike, who groused loudly at his lawyer. “What now?”
Christine’s dark eyes lit with pleasure at his compliment. “Well, he can still try to sue you civilly, but I don’t think that will happen, considering the judge wouldn’t entertain the charges. But it’s Mike. He’s unpredictable.”
That’s putting it mildly. But today, at least, he’d been neutralized.
“You’re not kidding. What about the contract with the label?”
“I’ll call you when I get back to my office, and we can talk about the next steps. In the meantime, I think we’ve made some good progress on your contract with the label. And Ava is more open to negotiations now that she’s cooled down a bit. We’ll have you releasing music soon, I’m sure.”
Mike, slimy prick that he was, continued to complain as his lawyer led him out of the room. Brooks’s eyes darted back to Christine. “Sounds good. Look over the international label contract, too. I might be ready to enter my indie era.”
“Anything you want.”
Brooks shook her hand, loosened his tie, then headed out of the courtroom with his bodyguard in tow.
Well, this was a complete fucking waste of my time. But at least he’d gotten to see the judge wipe the smug smile off that asshole’s face. And he’d see it again if Mike kept up with his plans to sue Kayla.
He started down the hall, then headed to the restroom before the long drive back to Brandywood. All he wanted was to get back to the lake house and pull Maddie into his arms.
He walked over to the urinal and had just started to piss when the toilet in the stall flushed.
Mike came out of the stall. He stopped with a scowl, then his face darkened. “Think you’re a pretty tough piece of shit, do ya, Brooks?”
If he hadn’t been in the middle of going to the bathroom, he would have walked out. Brooks clenched his jaw.
Mike, taking advantage of the situation, came closer. “Want to see something interesting that came my way recently?” He pulled out his cell phone, scrolling through it.
“I have no interest in the dick pics that get you off, Valders.” He flushed and started toward the sink.
“Funny. Real funny.” Mike held up his phone. “What about video footage of you crashing into a storefront? What happened, Brooks? Have a bit too much to drink that night?”
Brooks froze, his unwilling eyes darting to the screen of Mike’s phone.
Fuck.
How the hell had he gotten hold of the video from Fred Strickland’s store?
“How much do you think the tabloids are offering for this one?”
A few tense beats of silence passed, and Brooks struggled for calm. He’d just gotten the case dismissed for punching this asshole in the face—he wasn’t about to get arrested again today for the same damn thing.
Brooks straightened, his eyes narrowing. Sure, maybe he didn’t want the video to get out. But the press already said whatever it wanted about him. Now that the case was dropped, he had less to worry about with public perception.
He held his hands under the automatic faucet. “Fuck off, Mike. I don’t give a shit who sees that video. If they look closely, they’ll be able to tell that I was dodging a deer. And I worked out arrangements with the owner of the shop to pay for the damages. She’ll back me up.”
“Yeah? How many more fucks do you owe her until your debt is paid off?”
Now Mike’s words truly sent a chill down his spine. Brooks held his breath, his pulse pounding. Calm the fuck down.
But how the hell did Mike know so much about this?
He could see himself grabbing Mike by the throat, slamming that spineless, brainless moron’s body into the wall and beating him to a pulp.
Because he’s clearly been digging.
The thought of him even knowing about Maddie was excruciating.
But he couldn’t let Mike know he’d gotten to him. That was even more dangerous.
“I said fuck off.” Brooks grabbed a sheet of paper towel and headed toward the exit.
“You’ll change your mind about cooperating with me, Brooks. I have more videos. Better ones.”
Brooks slammed the bathroom door open and walked out, never more relieved to see the bodyguard waiting for him. He was going to have to ask them to follow him into the bathroom at this point. He’d had to do that before and hated it, but this was getting out of control.
More videos. Better ones.
What the fuck had Mike been referring to?
He didn’t want to know.
But he had a feeling Mike would show his face again soon enough.
And even though he’d only just beaten the son of a bitch, he had a feeling that had only made Mike more dangerous. And I have no idea how to fight that.