Broken Justice (Justice Brothers) (39 page)

Marriage and its false promise of commitment were a social convention that he’d vowed never to allow in his life. His parents had taught him the hard way what a charade all that was when he’d been shocked out of his perfect family bubble as a hormonal fourteen-year-old. Having fallen hook, line and sinker for the faultless picture of social, marital, and domestic bliss that defined the St. John family, he’d been duly horrified after happening upon his,
Do as you’re told!
Father, diddling the giggly twit who worked for the family as a quasi kid minder for him and his younger sister.

Dear old Dad had been dismissive of Drae’s shock and cruelly arrogant when the time came to explain his actions to his only son. Hearing that his parent’s marriage had been an arranged affair between two old school, upper-class families had destroyed the image of who he’d thought they were. It had all been a lie.

His mother hadn’t made it any better. Not only did she not care about her husband’s wandering penis, she sarcastically informed him that ‘this was how things were done’ in their world. A cold, intolerant bitch on the best of days, Draegyn had tried more ways than his teenage brain to count to be the son she wanted, only to never feel any warmth or genuine approval from the woman. Now he knew why.

She’d married for social status and prestige and did what was expected of her in the deal, popping out the perfect set of perfect children for their perfect family. Even now, all these years later, the thought made him sick. She made it sound like she’d consented to be bred in order to live an affluent lifestyle.
Who fucking did that?
He’d never trusted any woman’s motives from that moment on.

Wandering to a bench swing beneath strands of tiny white lights strung around the decorated courtyard, Drae flung his half-inebriated ass onto the seat and forced his thoughts back to the present. All around him was evidence of the romantic, country chic wedding that had joined Cam to the blonde-haired lovely who had changed everything with her quiet smile. He liked his new sister-in-law very much. She was unique and absolutely perfect for his old friend and one of the few females Drae hadn’t immediately mistrusted.

Lacey Morrow had been quite the surprise when she’d turned up last autumn in Cam’s company. That the two ended up together hadn’t shocked anyone in the least, except perhaps Cam himself. Drae couldn’t help the half grin each time he thought about the unusual parade of events that had brought his old friend to his knees where Lacey was concerned.

Miraculously surviving the minefield of bullshit surrounding their relationship, once they became an official couple, his friend had become an A-1 besotted, romantic fool. Drae supposed it was probably just an over-reaction to the years of emotional isolation that defined Cam’s life. Once the floodgates of hearts and flowers had been breached, though, the man had gone ape-shit with one over-the-top romantic gesture after another, culminating in the red and white wedding he’d insisted take place on the one day every year when true love was supposed to be celebrated.

Ha
! True love.
What the fuck was that, anyway?
Even so, he was happy for Cam. Truly. Knowing that one of them hadn’t been doomed to an eternity of solitude made the burdens each carried lighter. It sure as shit wasn’t easy dealing with what they’d done and witnessed during their time together in the puke-fest that was Afghanistan.

Swinging absently, Drae tilted his head back and watched a million twinkling stars shining overhead. Stretching his arms wide on the back of the swing, he sat there in his perfectly tailored Tom Ford tuxedo and let his champagne-fueled mind wander.

He’d gotten into Special Forces as an extra special
fuck you
to his parents. He could still remember the way his cold-hearted mother, with her tight-assed need to control him and his little sister, had gone ballistic at his announcement. She’d been apoplectic learning that he’d already enlisted by the time they found out what he’d done. Hidden in the dark memories that haunted him, he remembered the woman freaking out on her husband. “Fix this!” she had screamed. “Arthur, you fix this right away. He’s
your
son after all. Do something about his attitude before he ruins everything I’ve sacrificed for.”

Ah. Yes
. He’d been Arthur St. John’s son. Not hers. She’d made that abundantly clear. Understanding that he and his sister held no emotional importance in her world-view beyond the parts they were expected to play had been the final straw. Of course her
fix him
attitude had landed on his psyche and stuck like fucking fly paper.

His parents tried to fix him to no avail. The military tried to fix his bad attitude too and while he’d certainly adjusted somewhat, he always managed to ride the outer edge of insubordination. He didn’t need fixing, thank you very much. He was just fine as he was, calling the shots, and answering to no one but himself.

He was also a card-carrying, male chauvinist pig with a scornful arrogance about the travesty of marriage. Staying well clear of powerful women, because they all but ate their young and generally came with a shit-ton of issues, hadn’t been all that difficult. He wasn’t the sort they’d be interested in anyway. That left the rest of the female population in the sex toy category. Except for the innocent of course – they were out-of-bounds. He wanted no responsibility,
ever
, and virgins came with a truckload.

Allowing that Cam was an exception to the rule, Drae wished his old friend nothing but happiness. Lacey was one in a million and if the emotional wedding they’d just pulled off was any indication, they’d be wallowing in contentment for all time. He’d been honored to serve as Best Man
and
Maid of Honor while Alex had done his Big Daddy duty by walking the beautiful bride down the flower-strewn aisle. Standing as a second to the bride and groom had touched his heart although he wasn’t going to admit that anytime soon. He played his role as the sarcastic, conceited brother to perfection and made sure to keep the ribald comments flowing.

He’d gotten a good laugh at the devious way Lacey’s mind had worked when she chose an outrageously elegant mermaid style gown that framed her ass because as she’d put it, ‘Cameron was a dog for her backside’. Drae fell over laughing at her admission and the two had giggled like conspiratorial girlfriends plotting his lovesick friend’s downfall. Serves Cam right, he chuckled, because there was nothing guys enjoyed more than laughing at their buddies when a woman turned the tables.

Well, the deed was done and the Justice Brothers had expanded to include a wife. Wonders never ceased. Now that the happy couple had flown off via private jet to an extended honeymoon in Hawaii, some semblance of order and calm would return to the Villa. He hoped.

During the month he’d been gone before the wedding, Alex had finally found an assistant to keep him organized, busy, and out of everyone else’s hair
. Thank fucking god
. Drae had been ready to strangle the man, even from a distance, because Alex without a rudder was like a never-ending shit-storm of angst. He’d gone for months without someone to trot along after him, cleaning up the crap he always seemed to leave in his wake. Luckily, Betty had finally returned too, so the office continued to run once Lacey relinquished her temp duties to focus on the wedding.

After deciding to stay put in Arizona while the newlyweds were gone, he’d been making secret plans to create an addition to the happy couple’s cabin as a wedding present. Taking advantage of Cam’s passion for black and white movies and old-time Hollywood gave Drae the idea to create a small home theater that he knew the couple would enjoy. Starting the very next morning, once his hangover eased, work would begin straight-away as the clock was officially ticking.

Enjoying the post-reception solitude and what was left of his Cristal buzz, Draegyn was startled when movement along the periphery of his vision had him shifting to high-alert. He wasn’t alone anymore although who or what was prowling in the shadows was a mystery since everyone else had long since staggered away to sleep off the over-partied aftermath of the day’s events.

Tori had been quickly scurrying along the outskirts of the courtyard where a family wedding had taken place, on her way from seeing off the caterers to her tiny, functional studio apartment above an old barn that served as meeting space and offices for the Justice Agency.

She was exhausted after a long day of holding down the fort so the entire kit and caboodle of interesting people who made up the Justice family of partners, workers, and friends could join in the wedding festivities.

Having only been at the Villa for little more than a month, she’d been happy to pitch in wherever she could while also managing to stay invisible. She liked these folks, especially Alex, who she’d been hired to assist. With her personal life in shambles, she’d jumped at the job opportunity hidden away in the middle of a desert. Preferring to stay clear of social situations, she’d insisted on taking over on the day of the event so everyone else could enjoy it. Ever since the scandal that rocked her word had exploded in the press, she’d been working overtime to stay off the radar.

She hated being the center of attention, for any reason. There was a reason her dad had lovingly referred to her as his little mouse. Lighting up around his only child, the two had shared a special father - daughter bond. Being something of a tomboy with a serious streak a mile-wide, the times they spent holed up at the library or exploring museums had helped her forget that she was a simple girl. No great beauty like her glamorous mother, as a child Tori had been every inch the quiet, bookish mouse her childhood nickname implied.

When her dear father had passed away, she’d been too young to understand at the time what having cancer meant. After the shock of his death receded, her day-to-day reality became even more introverted. With a mop of bushy brown hair that never,
ever
did what she wanted it to and a slight frame with little in the way of feminine curves to grab a guy’s interest, Tori was content to disappear behind ugly eyeglasses a shade too big for her face and basically hide from the world. That didn’t however make her a pushover by any means. Schoolyard bullies had been the scourges of her childhood and she’d learned early to stand up for herself. With a fierce determination to level the playing field by leaving her peers in the academic dust, she’d mastered the art of the scathing verbal put down and never looked back.

Possessing an astute mind and a brilliant reputation for anything having to do with numbers meant she’d been labeled a financial genius while still in grad school and ended up at a world-class investment firm based out of London. Europe had been an eye-opening experience for the plain twenty-four-year-old that included hob-nobbing with royalty, travel, and an inside view of sophistication and power fueled by the sort of wealth that boggles the mind. That new life had offered exciting challenges and the opportunity to shed some of her natural reserve.

When Tori and her remarkable skills had fallen under the attention of a senior partner who also happened to be an Earl, it seemed like angels had touched her as a new and fascinating world opened up. Before too long, she was working side by side with the Earl, Wallace Evingham, and enjoying one bold success after another.

At his insistence she’d undergone a complete makeover at an exclusive Hyde Park spa and revamped her wardrobe. In the end she got what she deserved for being so naïve, she mused. Wallace had been using her financial skills while distracting her with a rather public interest that led many, including herself, to believe he was grooming her to be his future Countess. God, she’d been such a twit.

It all blew apart in rather spectacular fashion. Just when speculation had peaked that an engagement was just days away, she’d stumbled upon evidence that Wallace was up to no good. He’d been raking in tons of cash in schemes that, while not necessarily illegal, were certainly unethical. And she’d been unwittingly helping him by being so trusting and free with her business acumen. Oh yeah, and he had a string of mistresses to boot. Asshole.

She hadn’t hesitated to alert the authorities to what was going on. The blowback had been dreadful and a major scandal ensued. Wallace had been detained and their relationship paraded through the nightmarish British tabloids with headlines like ‘Billionaire Earl Tricks American Plain Jane’. A particularly vile tabloid reporter had referred to her as a spinster as if being twenty-six and unmarried qualified one for such a loathed status. One minute she’d been the darling of the financial sector and the next a laughingstock.

To make matters worse, it came out that the mistresses knew about each other and were all too happy to join together to cry foul at her betrayal of poor Wallace. The whole thing was embarrassing, sordid, and ugly. She’d been the injured party yet, as the American outsider, she was shunned and ridiculed by everyone. Within weeks, the firm had paid her off handsomely to simply go the hell away. That was three months ago.

And now, here she was tucked away in the Arizona desert with a bunch of ex-Special Forces men. Her mother had some connection to the Justice Agency and through that association had asked for a favor. Discovering that Alexander Marquez was in need of an assistant experienced with technology, it seemed a perfect fit. Tori needed to fly off the radar for a while and losing herself in the desert with some nerdy computer geek seemed like the perfect solution.