Lush (The King Cousins Book 1) (The King Brothers 4)

by K. D. Elizabeth

  “I’ll do nothing of the sort.”

  I cross my arms over my chest, then shrug nonchalantly. “It’s your problem. No longer any concern of mine.”

  “Out with it,” Northwood snarls.”

  “You’re right,” I say. “I did lie to you. And you know one of the things I conveniently forgot to mention? A little conversation I had with Noah King.”

  Northwood’s brows knit in irritation. “Which brother is he?”

  “Oh, you’ve met him. Don’t you remember?”

  “He’s the twin.”

  “Correct,” I say, my smile turning more malicious. “You never checked out Noah King, did you? His other brother, sure, but not Noah. He wasn’t worth your notice, was he? Big mistake on your part. Huge, in fact.”

  Northwood goes absolutely still. “And why is that?”

  I shrug. “I may have forgotten to mention a little chat I had with Noah where he pretended to be Nathan. You see, Noah’s a bit of a mysterious guy. No one else in the family knows the exact details of his job, but he happens to be very, very good about learning a person’s most interesting little secrets.”

  Northwood pales.

  “Oh, yes. Imagine my surprise when I figured out he was impersonating Nathan, and he in turn accused me—wait, no, excuse me, your company—of rather interesting behavior with regard to Blue Hill Brewery.”

  Northwood swears.

  “Indeed, Charles. Indeed. Twisted Fish might have also come up. As well as Pour House, Three Mills IPAs, and even Crafted Beerhaus. What, did you think I just called you about them out of the blue? I called you immediately after he got done accusing me. And just for the sake of saving time, I got the distinct impression that these were just a few of your rather fascinating exploits Noah King happened to mention off the top of his head.

  “You can imagine my shock when he threatened to sue both me and your company if I ever did anything to his brother. And you know, Charles? I really wouldn’t put it past him. He’s a real shark, just like you. Told me he’d get all those companies to testify and everything.

  “So if I were you, I’d think very carefully before pursuing anything against me or Nathan. And I’d really consider taking that announcement down sooner rather than later. You wouldn’t want to make it easier for his team of attorneys, would you? It’s my understanding that Noah’s pockets are very deep.”

  “You’re bluffing.”

  I laugh. “Fine. Don’t believe me. I’m really looking forward to watching you figure out how deadly truthful I am right now.”

  He grabs his phone and starts jabbing buttons. A second later, he snarls, “Come to my office immediately. Jude Shaw needs to be escorted off the premises.”

  We stare each other down as security comes up to his office. His expression grows angrier with each passing second that I smirk at him. I’ve never been more proud of myself in my entire life. A huge weight lifts from my shoulders with each passing minute.

  No longer do I have to kowtow to this asshole. No longer do I have to keep waiting for a job that was never going to grant me autonomy, anyway. I see that now. Northwood always intended to use this promotion as a way to bind me more tightly to him.

  But I was the one who ended up on top in the end.

  “Not so naive now, am I?” I taunt, no longer caring how much I piss him off.

  “I’d tread very carefully until you leave my property, Miss Shaw. You may have won this round but cross my path again, and I will obliterate you.”

  “I’d like to see you try.”

  Security arrives, and with one more defiant look at Northwood, I allow them to lead me out of his office. They take me to my office, people gaping at me as we pass. I gather up my personal belongings in silence, and then we head down the elevator. Before I leave, security demands my work phone, which I give them. It’s all I have left, as my work computer was left in my office.

  They escort me right to the door. After I step through, they close it behind me, then wait, staring at me until I walk away.

  I’ve worked at that company for nearly a decade. And just like that, it’s over. A curious numbness rolls through me. I can’t believe what I just did. I can’t believe I actually beat him.

  What do I do now?

  Call Nathan. He needs to hear what happened from me first before he reads it on the internet. I pull my personal phone out of my purse, then jerk to a halt.

  Nate’s number was stored in my work phone.

  The phone I just surrendered.

  I don’t have his number memorized. Who memorizes numbers these days? Shit. Shit. All I have, the only way I can contact him, is via the email he gave me when I demanded the results of his STD tests.

  But if he hasn’t answered my calls, what’s the likelihood he’s going to check an email? I type one out anyway and send it right there in the middle of the parking lot. It’s not enough, though. I need to be sure he knows the truth. The whole truth this time.

  And there’s only one way to do that.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Nathan

  We stare at Jude, who wisely doesn’t step into the room. Our hostility must roll off us in waves. Or maybe that’s just me, because I sure as shit feel pretty furious right now.

  How dare she show up now? After everything she’s done? What, did she have to come in person to rub it in just like her asshole of a boss? Sticking it to me from across the country wasn’t enough?

  More than anything, I want to tell her to beat it, to run her out of town without a single explanation. I want to be that strong, that indifferent to her standing here in my bar. But I’m not. Even now, a week later and after all she’s done, my eyes drink in the sight of her. Greedily, desperately, as if to prove to myself she’s really real, really standing here before me.

  “You need to learn to use your phone,” she says, stalking into the room.

  My brows raise. That’s how she’s going to do this? She has the gall to be pissed right now?

  Uh uh. No fucking way.

  “Usually, when someone doesn’t answer, it’s because they don’t fucking want to,” I snarl.

  She folds her hands over her chest. “Yeah, well, too bad. I need to say something.”

  I laugh bitterly. “Oh, I bet you do. You always have quite a lot to say, don’t you, Miss Shaw?”

  She flinches at her name on my lips, no longer uttered as the flirtatious endearment it once was. Acid drips from every syllable. I’m not even trying to be pleasant. No more friendly, flirty Nathan King. Nope. I simply no longer have any energy left to mask my true feelings behind humor and lightheartedness.

  Jude glances around the room, her eyes landing on each of my brothers. They all shot to their feet when I did. Noah has softly closed the door behind her. Her eyes narrow as she takes in the fact that she is, for all intents and purposes, trapped.

  “Look,” she says, aggravated, “Can we talk in private?”

  I glare at her.

  She shakes her head. “Right. Of course not. Stupid of me to even ask.”

  “Yep.”

  “I’m going to have to do this in front of all of you, aren’t I?”

  Noah leans against the door. “Pretty much, yeah. I’m sure you understand how interested all of us are to hear your little story.”

  Jude glares at him. “All—or just you, Noah?”

  He shrugs and starts typing something on his phone.

  “You know what?” she snaps. “Fine. Yeah. Great. Let’s let everyone hear it, then. I traipsed all the way across the country to deliver the message, so I might as well give it to an audience, too.”

  “What do you want?” I snap. “Can’t you see we’re busy here? Or did you come here just to gloat?”

  “What would I have to gloat about?”

  “Oh, come on. I don’t know, maybe the fact that you’re running a new subsidiary with a fucking peach bourbon as its flagship product? Congrats on the promotion, by the way. You really earned it.”

&nb
sp; “So you do know,” she sighs, shoulders slumping.

  “Of course,” I growl. She doesn’t need to know I found out only moments ago. “What, did you think I wouldn’t? You must really think I’m stupid.”

  “No, Nathan. I don’t think you’re stupid.”

  I tear at my hair, pulling tightly, wanting to lash out in any way I can to show her how much she’s taken from me, vibrating with the need to hurt her like she’s hurt me. “You know, Jude. I think the worst thing about this is that you always insist you’re such an ethical person. You told me, over and over, that you didn’t work on shady deals. And funnily enough, after all that insisting, I actually believed you.”

  “Because it was true!”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  “Okay, look,” she says, taking a deep breath. “I came here to apologize. Okay? I am so sorry for what happened, Nathan. What Northwood did was not okay. It should never have happened. If I’d known he’d do this, I never would have mentioned your label to him. Do you believe me?”

  I laugh. “Oh, sweetheart, I am so far from believing you, y’all might as well still be in Oregon.”

  She pales. “I meant what I said. I really am sorry, Nathan. If I could go back again and change things, I would. I know you don’t believe me, and you clearly don’t want anything to do with me. But I came here because despite all of that, you deserved to hear the truth. For once. And since you weren’t answering your calls—and I no longer had a way to contact you,” she adds under her breath, “I had to come in person.”

  “Tell me what?” I say. “What could be so important? I think I rather got the message when I checked your website, thanks. No further explanation necessary.”

  “What’s on the website isn’t the whole truth. That’s just what he wanted you to see.”

  I’m not going to let her suck me back in. Not this time. “Just tell me this. Did you plan it from the beginning? Was this your plan all along? Did you and Northwood come up with the brilliant idea of fucking me into complacency, into giving you all of my product knowledge? Just let me know, so I can determine how angry I should be with myself. How ashamed.”

  “No, it wasn’t like that!”

  “Really.”

  Jude’s shoulders slump. “No. You and I … it just happened. Okay, look, yeah, I showed up that first night because I wanted to check out the place. I wanted to see what kind of bar Abernathy’s was, if it was run well, if it seemed like it might be the kind of establishment that could handle creating its own label.

  “But I had no idea who you were, and I had no intention of sleeping with you to get information from you. I never did. We didn’t even exchange names! And you said you were just a bartender. I didn’t think anything of it. I just wanted to … well, I just wanted you.

  “When I realized the following Monday that you were actually the owner, I was pissed. Pissed at you for lying, sure, but even more angry with myself for screwing up a deal before it even began. I didn’t want this complication we created when we slept together. I swear, that’s the truth. It just happened.”

  “So this is all just one crazy coincidence,” I say, throwing my arms out to encompass the whole world. “What a zany scheme, huh? Just the darnedest that it happened, right?

  “I didn’t want this to happen!”

  I wave her off, shaking my head. “I shouldn’t have been so naive. This is my fault. I should have seen this coming.”

  “No, it’s not. It’s not your fault.”

  “Tell me how it isn’t.”

  “Northwood never intended to sign a deal with you.”

  I do a double take. “Wait, what?”

  Jude sighs, motioning toward the Old Abe’s bottle on the poker table. “Can I have some of that? This requires a drink.”

  Avoiding my brothers’ gazes, I hand her my glass, still mostly full from when I originally poured it.

  “Well?” I say once she downs a large gulp.

  Jude takes a deep breath. “Northwood always planned to steal your product. Before I even contacted you. That’s why he brought the lawyers to our meetings, so that you couldn’t later sue him in court. He made me believe he wanted exclusivity from you so that I wouldn’t suspect he was really intending to steal your product. It’s why he made me stay here in the first place, to learn enough about your process so that I could replicate it when I returned to Oregon. When he finally gave me the promotion he’s been promising me for years.”

  “Well, congrats.”

  “But I had no idea he planned any of that, Nate! I never would have done that to you.”

  “Yeah?” I say bitterly. “But it sure did work out for you anyway, didn’t it?

  She rears back. “That’s a nasty thing to say.”

  I shrug. “Sorry, I’m not in a particularly charitable mood at the moment. Losing everything one’s worked for tends to do that to a man.”

  Jude’s grip tightens on the strap of her purse, like she would reach for me but is forcing herself not to. “You don’t really want to hear any of this, do you? You don’t want the full explanation. You just want to stay safe in the convenient little story you’ve convinced yourself that happened.”

  I shrug. That about sums it up, yeah.

  Jude’s jaw clenches. Her gaze drops to the floor and her head shakes slightly. Then she lifts her gaze back to mine, and I read the sorrow in her eyes.

  “I just thought … you should know. You had a right to know. And I managed to stop it. He won’t be stealing your product, Nate. I put an end to it. You might have to find another distributor, but NBI isn’t going to make a peach bourbon. I swear it. Hopefully soon they’ll take it down off the website.”

  “Thanks for telling me, I guess,” I say. Suddenly, I’m so very tired. Every time I think this nightmare is finally turning a corner, something else shitty happens. I just want to be done with it. I have no more energy left to give. “It’s great knowing precisely how you fucked me. You go back to running the new subsidiary now.”

  She stares at me, face pale. “You really think I’d take that job and go on as normal?”

  My mind screams a denial, but I ignore it. This woman has already hurt me once, and just looking at her has me wanting to believe her wholesale. When did I become so fucking weak? When did I start letting this woman walk all over me? Where’s my fucking pride?

  It ends now.

  “I know how hard you’ve worked for that job. And now you have it,” I say.

  “I never wanted to hurt you, Nate,” she says, eyes pleading with me to understand. I harden my heart. “Please believe that. I care for you. I care for what we had. I never wanted to ruin it. My time here with you has come to mean more to me than anything else. Even my job. Can’t you see that? Don’t just write me off. Let me prove to you I actually care. Give us a second chance to figure it out.”

  My heart clenches. It’s everything I want to hear and all I’m afraid to believe is true. I’m scared, terrified that if I trust her again, she’ll hurt me once more. Even if she didn’t help Northwood screw me, she still left. If she did it once, she can definitely do it again. And I truly don’t think I’d survive it yet again.

  Time is fleeting. That’s one lesson I’ve learned from my parents. When you love someone, you take every moment you have with them, because each instant is a gift.

  But gifts can be taken away.

  “I don’t want a second chance for us,” I say quietly, feeling my heart tear in pieces.

  We stare at each other. Electricity zaps through the air. My brothers are frozen behind us, so silent I’m not sure they’re even breathing. But they may as well not even be here, because I can’t stop looking at her.

  Slowly, with utter finality, Jude looks away. Her face turns red. She glances over my shoulder in mortification. We must be quite a sight, all of us standing there with our best intimidating expressions.

  “I see,” she says hoarsely. “I’ll just … go, then.”

  She turns from me. Jude qu
ietly walks to the door; her head held high. Noah still leans against it, focused on his phone. When he senses her before him, he finally looks up. Something like guilt flashes across his face. He opens his mouth to say something, but then closes it as he sees the look on her face. He steps aside. Jude jerks the door open and steps through.

  I watch her go, drinking in that final sight of her, because I know I’ll never see her again.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Nathan

  Jude has barely left the room when they erupt.

  “Dude.”

  “Whoa, my man.”

  “Bro, that was harsh.”

  I collapse back into my seat. “Oh, stuff it.”

  Jackson whacks me upside the head. “You are being a Grade-A jackass. That’s usually reserved for me, you dick.”

  “You heard what she said. They planned from the beginning to steal my product.”

  Griffin shakes his head. “No, she said Northwood planned that. Weren’t you listening?”

  I sigh.

  Axel shrugs. “Seems pretty clear to me. Why wouldn’t you believe her?”

  “Like you can talk. Because you just believed Andrea, didn’t you?” I snap.

  His face darkens. “Yeah, you little shit. That’s right. I didn’t believe her right away. And I was miserable for days until I finally stopped letting my pride stand in the way of us. How long are you going to go before you finally accept the fact that you don’t want to lose her?”

  I look away.

  Griffin points at Axel. “He’s got a point, Nate.”

  Jackson salutes me with the glass he’s just refilled. “Too, true, bro. I think you might be wrong on this one. Rory told me Jude joined them for breakfast at the cafe a while back, and she seemed really upset about something. They all figured it was you. But if she was always planning to screw you over, why would that upset her? You should have listened to Jude just now.”

  “Noah, back me up on this,” I say. “Surely you must agree with me. Jude had something to do with it, didn’t she?”