Chapter 24
Chester
“Tell me why we are awake at seven a.m. in Las Vegas?” asked Will groggily as we rode in the back of a blacked-out town car to the airport.
He held his head in his hand as he leaned his elbow against the windowsill, the Vegas strip flashing by in a blur of color and neon lights.
He wore the same jeans and black tee as the night before, while I wore a fresh suit straight from the shower.
I had barely slept last night, tossing and turning in the California king of my hotel suite.
I kept looking at the text message. Staring at the photo of Juliet and me.
Waiting for another message to come through.
I was exhausted, but I was in better shape than Will.
After he played his gig, he had an open tab at the bar, courtesy of the venue.
He drank his way into the early morning with the main band.
I could still smell the liquor on his breath, oozing from his pores.
“Emergency at work,” I said, thinking again about the text I had received the night before. The picture burned in my memory. The threatening message etched in my brain. The meeting tomorrow morning in red on my phone’s calendar.
“Is that why you left another one of my shows early?” he asked, raising a brow as he looked out at me from under the crook of his arm.
He really did look miserable. I would remind him that he’s not twenty-one years old anymore, but he was hurting enough. I didn’t need to rub it in that he was getting old.
“I’m sorry.” I sighed. Leaving his first show had been a hell of a lot more fun because it was with Juliet. Last night it was in a red, angry haze.
“It could be your last one of a while too…” I murmured regretfully.
“What the hell is going on?” he asked, struggling to sit up straight against the black leather seat.
“I’m being blackmailed. At least, I think so.”
“By who?”
“I don’t know,” I shrugged.
“Okay…” he said hesitantly. “But you’ve gone through this before and it was all bullshit. They had nothing to hold over your head.”
“They do this time,” I said sheepishly.
“What exactly do they have on you, Chester?”
“Remember how you told me to be careful with Juliet being my assistant?”
“Oh shit.”
“Yeah…”
“You didn’t let her go, did you?” he asked, more of a statement than a question.
“Not exactly.”
Will put his fingertips to his temples and closed his eyes. I probably wasn’t making his hangover any better.
“What the hell happened?” he asked after several moments.
“We may have crossed the line again. In my office. Twice.”
“Christ, Chester!” he exclaimed. “Please, tell me it wasn’t during office hours. Did one of the employees see you? Tell me you aren’t that stupid.”
“It wasn’t. Calm down.”
“Good.” He breathed a sigh of relief that I knew would be short-lived.
“But someone has photos of us. Possible video. They sent me a photo taken from security footage from the building across the street. I don’t know how they got the angle they did.
I don’t know why the camera was pointing that way anyway.
I don’t know who is doing this,” I said, a slight panic in my voice.
I never panicked.
But this felt like cause for it.
“Calm down,” said Will, grabbing my forearm firmly before reaching up to run his hand through his hair. A sign he was stressed. If Will played with his hair, he was either stressed or completely laid back. There was no in between.
I, too, felt stressed. I didn’t see how I could be calm right now.
I was still on the West Coast, when someone was threatening my everything thousands of miles away.
I just wanted to be back in New York right now.
Being closer to the mess felt like it was more fixable.
Who knew what else they had from that security footage?
I hated that Juliet was roped into this mess too and it was all because of me.
No one would bat an eye if it was some nobody they caught on camera, but since it was me, they had leverage.
I was always careful because of that, knowing I had eyes on me, waiting to see me trip up or make a mistake.
Whether it was the press or a competing company, people waited and watched for anything they could use against me.
I had just gotten so wrapped up in Juliet that I let my inhibitions go.
I was a fool to forget that I didn’t have that luxury.
I took a deep breath. “Whoever it is, they texted me last night during your gig.”
“That’s why you took off,” he said thoughtfully.
“Yep.”
“And you have no idea who it is?”
“I tried searching the number, but it wasn’t tied to anyone. No name. Nothing.”
“And you’re sure it’s you in the photo?” asked Will, tilting his head as he tried coming up with any silver lining.
“It’s clear as day,” I said. “Juliet’s face. My face. There’s no denying it’s us…or what we were doing.”
“What do they want?”
“I don’t know. I figure they will tell me when we meet in person.”
“Which is?”
“Tomorrow morning at seven. At my office.”
“This person has balls to show up on your turf, making demands,” said Will with a shake of his head.
“This person is a pain in my ass,” I muttered.
Will looked out the window, deep in thought. After several moments, he looked back at me. “Do you think…” he started.
“What?” I asked.
“Do you think it could be Juliet doing this?”
“No,” I said sharply. “There’s no way.”
Will put his hands up in defense. “I was just asking. Just trying to figure this all out.”
It had never even crossed my mind that Juliet could be the one behind this because it was completely absurd. She wouldn’t do that. I didn’t know her that well, but I knew she was a good person. What we had, whatever it was, was real. Was being the key word, since I pushed her away.
“I’m going to lose everything,” I said, letting out a breath and leaning my head back to look up at the roof of the car. I wasn’t sure if I was talking about my business or Juliet when I said it.
“You’re not,” said Will firmly.
“If all goes to hell…” I started, not wanting to finish the sentence.
“I’ll take the reins,” said Will with a nod.
“But your music…”
“It can wait,” he said with a shrug.
Guilt creeped its way into my bones, thinking about how I had royally fucked everything up because I couldn’t keep it in my pants. I was being blackmailed, probably on the verge of losing my company, Juliet had to hate me, and Will was giving up his dream to fix the dumpster fire I started.
“Thanks,” I said. “I’m going to try to fix this, Will. Really.”
“I know.”
The town car pulled into the airport and slowly made its way to the tarmac where my private jet was waiting.
Thankfully, my pilot was able to get us out early morning.
I would be back in New York in five hours, giving me the evening to sort through everything before meeting this person who was determined to ruin me.
The driver of the town car parked and got out of the car to talk to the flight crew who was busying themselves around and on the plane. We were a few minutes early, so Will and I sat in the back waiting for my signal to board.
“What do I do?” I asked, feeling like a child asking for help.
“You need to face it head-on,” said Will.
I nodded.
“The blackmailer…and Juliet.”
Her face popped in my head, her icy blue eyes and her full-lipped smile. I missed her. I really missed her.
“I don’t want to break her heart…” I said, nearly a whisper.
Will looked taken aback, but didn’t say anything as he watched me carefully.
“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but…” I hesitated, struggling to get the words out. Words I had never said before. Never felt before. “I’ve fallen for her. I can’t get her out of my mind. She is all I think about. It’s driving me crazy.”
I leaned forward, putting my head in my hands, thinking about what I just said.
I was finally being honest with myself about this thing with Juliet.
I didn’t want it to be over. I never had.
I just thought that was how it was supposed to end for us.
I thought I was protecting her from whoever sent the email and the photo.
Selfishly, I was protecting myself and the empire I had built.
Will patted my back and chuckled beside me. I peered up at him, wondering what the hell could be so funny at a time like this.
“What?” I asked gruffly.
“I just never thought I would see the day,” he said with a grin. “Chester Brandfield in love?”
“Shut up,” I muttered, putting my face back in my hands.
The world love echoed in my head. It wasn’t a concept I was used to. The feeling foreign, but now… Now it didn’t seem so far off.
“I might not have a lot of experience, but I think I know love when it’s described. At least, I hope I do. I write enough love songs,” said Will with an easy smile.
“This isn’t a love song…it’s my life,” I reminded him. “My business. My livelihood. Your livelihood.”
Will waved me off. “Fuck the money.”
I looked at him in surprise. As my silent partner in business, that was the last thing I expected him to say.
“I mean it. What do you want, Chester?” he asked, his gaze intent. “You need to sit your ass down and think about what is really important to you.”
I had never really heard Will talk like this. Maybe once in college when we were both high as kites, sitting on the rooftop of our dorm and looking up at the stars. He had gone all philosophical then. It felt like I was having déjà vu, except it was twenty years later.
“Oh, come on, Will.” I rolled my eyes.
“I mean it. Which is it? The business or happiness? What’s really important?”
There he went, running a hand through his unwashed, unruly hair.
“Aren’t they the same thing?” I asked, raising a brow.
“Hell no, man.” Will slapped his knee and looked at me like I had just said the craziest string of words he had ever heard. He looked out the window at the plane deep in thought. “I used to think they were the same thing…” he murmured before turning to look at me.
“But then I discovered this possible career in music. It made being in the corporate world seem so small. You know, music has always made me happy, but now, playing in front of crowds. Sharing my sound. Seeing people actually sing the lyrics. There’s no other feeling like it.
It’s not about the money. It’s about the feeling. ”
I nodded as I absorbed his words, feeling a touch of envy. I had never had a passion like that for anything other than business. Anything other than money. But I knew how happy music made Will, so I understood.
“I’ve had money,” he said. “Hell, I have money. But it’s not what makes me happy. The career I had before wasn’t fulfilling for me. Not that it isn’t for you. I see how driven you are. I see how much being CEO makes you happy. It’s your thing. But I also see the way you talk about Juliet…”
I smiled slightly at the mention of her name.
“See?” he pointed at my face. “It looks like she makes you happy, man,” he said.
“She does,” I said softly, looking down at my freshly shined shoes.
“Maybe even more than Brandfield Enterprises?” suggested Will carefully.
It was a crazy thought. I had only known Juliet for a handful of weeks now. It seemed ludicrous to think that she could be more important to me than my business I had spent years building. But something Will said resonated in me, like he had planted a seed, and it only just began to grow.
There was a tap on the passenger window, breaking us both out of our deep conversation. I rolled down the window and looked up at the driver of the town car.
“Plane is ready, sir,” he said.
“Thank you.”
I opened the passenger door and slid out of the car, looking back at Will to say goodbye.
I gave him a curious glance when I saw him also exiting the car and rounding back toward the trunk the driver was opening to retrieve my luggage.
I noticed him pull a leather duffel bag that wasn’t mine from the back.
Will picked it up and slung it over his shoulder.
“What are you doing?” I asked curiously.
“Coming with you,” he said.
“But—”
“No buts. I know when my best friend needs me.” He started for the plane and I grinned to myself. This was why he was my best friend. We always were there to save each other’s asses.