Off the Ice: A Breakaway Novel

by Dover, L. P.

  Taken aback, he stood. “What? Where?”

  “Grant, I’m putting you on speakerphone,” I said.

  Grant cleared his throat. “It was right in front of your house, Justin. You were both standing next to a BMW. The online article was talking about your many flings and how much trouble you were in with the TV producers.”

  Justin’s fiery eyes met mine, but then he looked away and growled. “That fucking bitch. She knew I was going to be in town so she had someone waiting on me.”

  “I take it you’re wanting to keep your relationship a secret?” Grant asked.

  Sighing, I took him off speakerphone. “Yes. He’s going through a lot with his ex-fiancée, and I didn’t want to be dragged into it. Not to mention, I don’t want Ellie having to deal with it either.”

  Grant’s voice softened. “I get it, Meghan. When are you coming back home?” I knew he’d understand.

  “Soon. I’ll tell you everything. Just keep all of this to yourself.”

  “I will.” We said our goodbyes, and I set my phone down on the bench. It was a lot to process.

  “Meghan?” I looked up at Justin, his expression torn. “I’m so sorry. What can I do?”

  It wasn’t his fault. We just had to be even more careful. “It’s okay. Grant recognized you and then put two and two together. He wouldn’t have guessed it, otherwise.”

  Justin’s phone rang, and he jerked it out of his pocket. “Yeah,” he answered, running a hand angrily through his hair. “We already know. Meghan’s friend from Wyoming recognized us.” He looked over at me. “No, she’s fine. We’ll just be on guard and make sure no one can see her face.” Fists clenched, he leaned against the rink wall. There was so much fire and anger in his eyes. “I agree. This shit ends tomorrow.” He ended the call and helped me up, pulling me tight into his arms. “Whatever you do, don’t let this scare you away from me. We have two weeks left, and I don’t want that to end because of this. I’m going to get it all handled tomorrow … I promise.”

  Lying my head against his chest, I could hear his heart beat. I was scared of people finding out who I was, but my need to be with him was greater. All I had to do was keep hidden; I could do that. I wasn’t about to give up the next two weeks.

  “I’m not going anywhere,” I whispered. “And tomorrow, make sure you nail Miranda’s ass to the wall. She can’t get away with what she’s done to you.”

  An evil chuckle vibrated in his chest. “Don’t worry, angel. She has no idea what she’s in for.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Justin

  “You ready for this?” Corey asked. The meeting was supposed to be private, but waiting outside the courthouse were camera crews and reporters. Fucking Miranda. Always wanting her face in the spotlight. “David texted and said he’s already inside and so is Tony.”

  David Correll was my attorney, and Tony Romano was the private investigator and former FBI agent who’d found out all the dirty details I needed to bust both Miranda and her father. Miranda and her father pulled up in their limo and started up the stairs, right through the camera crews, smiling as if they already won.

  My phone beeped with a text, and I smiled.

  Meghan: You got this. Good luck!

  “Hell yeah, I’m ready. Let’s go.” We got out and walked right past the cameras. The reporters spat out questions left and right, but I wasn’t about to give away that I was going to win. Miranda was about to get the surprise of her life.

  Once in the courthouse, the officer at the door directed us on where to go. We turned down the long hallway, and standing outside was David and Tony. David held out his hand, and I shook it. He was thirty-three years old, dressed in an expensive Armani suit with his brown hair slicked back. He’d handled a lot of high-profiled cases and won all of them.

  “It’s good to see you again, Justin.” He nodded toward the room. “I’m going to go in and get all my notes together. Do me a favor and let Tony and I do most of the talking. The last thing we want is you losing your cool. There’s no need to, since we have the upper hand.” Miranda was inside, grinning smugly, with her father beside her. He was a prick to everyone around him. There were so many times over the past year that I wanted to punch the shit out of him.

  “Be right there,” I said.

  He disappeared inside, and Tony held out his hand. He was middle-aged, with salt-and-pepper hair, and muscles twice as big as mine. “I am a big fan, Mr. Davis. Hockey’s my favorite sport.”

  I shook his hand. “Thanks, Tony. And I’m a big fan of yours. Without you, I wouldn’t have a case.”

  Tony patted my shoulder and winked. “You should’ve seen the people pissing their pants after I got done with them. You would’ve loved it.”

  “Yes, I would.” Chuckling, we all three entered the room and took the seats across from Miranda and her father. Her lawyer sat on one end of the mahogany desk and David on the other.

  Miranda’s father glared at me with his beady eyes while she still continued to smile. Her perfume filled the air, and she had on a ton of makeup, like usual. The more I stared at her, the more I realized I was a fucking idiot to have chosen her. I should’ve exposed the show for what it was—tell everyone that I had no choice but to choose Miranda because her daddy made it so. All I wanted was to get into show business, but this was a price I never should have been willing to accept.

  Miranda’s lawyer cleared his throat and opened the folder he had in front of him. “We’re still waiting on Tom Branfield to show, but I’m going to go ahead and get started.” Tom was the TV producer for Rich and Single. “For those of you who don’t know, my name’s Harold Forsyth. I’m here on behalf of Miranda and Stan Davenport, and Tom Branfield.” He fiddled through his notes and pulled out a piece of paper. “It appears that Mr. Justin Davis has violated his contracts and caused my client emotional distress. We’re here to collect damages in the amount of five million dollars to Ms. Miranda Davenport, and five million to the producers of Rich and Single for breaking contract.” He passed a stack of papers over to David, who in return showed them to me. It was one of the contracts I signed before the show even started, not the one where it was amended to Miranda being chosen the winner.

  “Nice,” I snapped, doing my best to keep from jumping over the table and punching the smile off of Stan’s face. “Where’s the contract I signed after you paid off the producers to make your daughter the winner?”

  Stan sat up straighter and scoffed. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  His lawyer paused and glanced back and forth at us. “Other contract? Am I missing something?”

  Stan waved a hand dismissively at me. “He’s just angry he got caught cheating on my daughter. We have all the proof we need.”

  “Yes, we do,” David announced, bringing out his own stack of papers. He tossed them over to Stan and handed a set to Harold. “You didn’t honestly think Tom Branfield burned the copies of this like you paid him to, did you? That contract is an amendment to the original one, stating that Miranda was to be the winner. The show was rigged.”

  It was my turn to gloat. Miranda and Stan looked at each other, panic clearly on her face. Stan crinkled up the contracts and threw them across the table at David. “Doesn’t matter. It’s still in the contract that one year after the show, both parties are to remain faithful to the other, no matter if they’re together or not.”

  Harold sighed and focused on me. “I was not aware of this amendment, but he’s correct—even the amendment contains that language. From my records, you have five indiscretions. It’s clearly a violation.” He held up all the different tabloids, showing me with various women. It had to have been pictures taken before I even appeared on the show. Even my hairstyle was different in them.

  David placed a hand on Tony’s shoulder. “Sorry, but there were no violations. I’m going to let Mr. Tony Romano take over.”

  Tony stood and winked at me before turning his evil glare to Miranda and Stan. “Not
that you care, but I’m Tony Romano, former FBI agent and private investigator.” Miranda’s face paled, but she still managed to keep that chin up in the air like she was better than everyone else. Tony slid his file across the table. Neither Miranda or Stan bothered to look inside. “What I have there are copies of the pictures used in the tabloids over the last few weeks. You say that Mr. Davis violated the contracts, but those photos were taken long before he ever met Ms. Davenport. I’ve been in contact with each photographer, and they were able to give me specific dates and times on when they were taken.”

  He nodded for them to look inside, but they refused. Eyes wide, Harold reached for the folder and frantically searched through it all. Tony turned to him. “I’ll continue while you look. You’ll also find bank statements in there as well. There’s a rather large deposit to Tom Branfield from Mr. Davenport.”

  Stan slammed his hands on the table. “You can’t prove that it has anything to do with this matter.”

  Clenching my teeth, it took all I had to keep quiet. It wasn’t in my nature not to defend myself. Unfortunately, we weren’t on the ice. If we were, Stan would be missing a few teeth and have a hockey stick up his ass.

  Tony slung his head back and chuckled. I really liked the guy. “What is it with you rich people? You’re so delusional, always thinking that nothing can touch you.” He placed his hands on the table and leaned over toward Stan. “Do you want to know why Tom Branfield isn’t here? It’s because I got his bank information directly from him. He’s willing to testify against you if this ridiculous case goes to court. The same thing goes for the young ladies who took money from your daughter. I have their bank information as well, with large sums given to them directly from a Miranda Davenport.” Tony turned to Miranda and smiled. “Might want to reconsider pursuing this whole thing. You got dumped. Get over it and move on.”

  Mouth gaping, she jumped out of her seat. “How dare you talk to me like that? This is bullshit. I demand compensation. Justin made me look like an idiot on live TV.”

  Tony scoffed and leaned over to me. “Bet that wasn’t hard,” he mumbled.

  I turned my head to keep from showing my smile. It pissed Miranda off even more. She grabbed up a handful of papers and threw them on the floor. “How could you be so cruel? After all we shared together.”

  “Sit down, Miranda,” Stan snapped. His shoulders sagged, and he looked defeated as he rubbed his forehead.

  “Mr. Davenport?” Harold called out. “We don’t have a case here. Not to mention, it’s hard to represent clients who withhold pertinent information.” He turned to David and nodded. “How would you like to proceed?”

  Clearing his throat, David stood behind me. “First off, there were clearly no violations to the contracts. It will be the responsibility of Miranda Davenport to make a formal statement, clearing Justin Davis from all accusations. If you fail to do so, we’ll sue you for damages of five million dollars.”

  Tears fell down her cheeks, and she shook her head. It was the first real emotion I’d ever seen from her. “That’ll ruin me…my career.”

  “Maybe you should have thought about that sooner,” I snapped angrily.

  David squeezed my shoulders, and I bit my tongue. “Also, if any scandalous or questionable stories of Justin Davis appear in the tabloids, Miranda Davenport will be thoroughly investigated. If proven guilty, you’ll be sued for two million dollars per story.” Silence filled the room, and neither Miranda nor Stan would look at me. Their guilt was written all over their faces.

  Blowing out a triumphant sigh, I stood. “Now that all of that’s over, I hope you all have a great day.” I turned my attention to Harold. “I expect your client to make a formal statement today, clearing my name.” He nodded, and that was it. I took off out the door and breathed a sigh of relief. It was done. My nightmare with Miranda was over.

  “Incoming,” Corey warned behind me.

  I turned around and Miranda stormed over to me. “Who is she?”

  “Who’s who?” I shouted, throwing my arms in the air.

  “The girl at your house.”

  “That’s none of your fucking business. What’d you do, hire someone to stake out my house until I got back into town? Have you no shame at all, woman?”

  The intake of her breath echoed all around us. Everyone walking around the courthouse froze and watched us. She poked a finger against my chest. “You chose me, Justin. How did you expect me to react after you dumped me on live TV? No matter what the contracts said, you chose me.”

  “I did,” I answered truthfully. “And it was the biggest mistake of my life.” I pointed at the reporters, waiting outside of the courthouse. “I look forward to hearing you speak the truth for once.”

  Turning on my heel, I walked out the front door and smiled.

  Chapter Twenty

  Meghan

  All morning, I’d lounged at the pool, swimming and floating around in the inflatable lounger. I checked my phone constantly for updates from Justin, but none came.

  “It’s about time you got a chance to catch up with me,” my sister scolded. “I’ve been dying to ask you about the picture I saw of you and Justin. What’s going on?”

  Groaning, I lied back on the lounge chair, my skin hot from the sun. “You noticed it too?”

  “Only because you were with Justin. Nobody can see your face. What I want to know is what’s going on with Miranda. Have you heard anything?”

  I shook my head. “Nothing. I’m still waiting. Justin assured me he had all the proof he needed.”

  “What happens after his name is cleared, and Miranda’s no longer a threat? Think you’ll go public with your relationship?”

  “Yeah, right,” I laughed incredulously. “In two weeks, he’ll be back to his hockey life, and I’ll be in Wyoming. What kind of relationship works when you can see each other three months a year?”

  “Have you asked him what he thinks about it?”

  I’d wanted to, but always chickened out. There was no other option. “No,” I answered. “Either way, there’s nothing that can be done. I’m going to enjoy my time with him while I have it, and that’s it.”

  “Something tells me you won’t be okay with that when the time comes.”

  I had to be. “Doesn’t matter. It is what it is.”

  “Keep telling yourself that.” I could hear my mother’s voice in the background, calling for her. “Meghan, I have to go. We’re taking the girls back out to the beach.”

  “Tell Ellie I’ll call her tonight.” Words couldn’t even begin to describe how much I missed her.

  “I will.” We hung up, and I jumped back into the pool and onto the inflatable lounger. Closing my eyes, I breathed in deep and let it out slow. My sister was right; I wouldn’t be okay when Justin and I had to part ways. It was going to break my heart. I kept waiting for him to tell me it would all be okay and that we’d figure it out, but he hasn’t. We haven’t even talked about any kind of future beyond two weeks from now. All I knew was that I wasn’t going to be the first one to bring it up. I was terrified at the thought of it.

  “Angel!”

  Gasping, I jerked up, and the lounger rocked beneath me. “Out here!”

  Justin appeared in the back doorway, his button-down shirt open and tie in disarray. He ran down to the pool, his face full of excitement. After ripping off all his clothes, he jumped in the water, butt naked. I squealed when he came up underneath me and tipped me over. His hands grabbed me around the waist, and he pushed me to the side of the pool.

  “Oh my God!” I shrieked. “What are you doing?”

  I wrapped my legs around his waist and held onto him. His lips pressed against mine, and he pushed his body against me. “It’s done. We totally fucked Miranda and her dad in the ass.”

  “So it’s over?” I asked.

  He beamed. “Yep. My name is clear, and she gave a statement to the press saying that I did nothing wrong.”

  “That’s awesome. Do you think she�
��ll leave you alone now?”

  There was doubt on his face, but he played it off. That worried me. From what I could tell on TV, Miranda had a psychotic, jealous streak. “She has to,” he said. “If she doesn’t, I’ll get a restraining order on her. That’ll screw her career up even more.” He kissed me again. “Don’t worry about her. Nobody knows who you are, and we’ll keep it that way.”

  I nodded. “Okay.”

  “Enough about her. Right now, we need to celebrate.” He trailed his lips across my cheek and down my neck. Chills broke out on my skin, and I shivered.

  “What do you have in mind?”

  He backed me up against the pool wall and held onto the edge before lowering his lips to mine. They were so soft and firm. Everything inside of me tightened. Willingly, I opened for him, and he pushed his tongue inside with demand, like he needed me … I loved it. He untied my bikini bottoms and tossed them onto the lounge chair.

  “Does that answer your question?” he teased. Next, he untied my top and lifted me up so he could suck a taut nipple between his lips.

  “Yes,” I breathed. “Yes, yes, and yes.” I wanted him so bad I couldn’t even think straight. I could feel the tip of him at my opening, just slightly pushing in. Squeezing him with my legs, I tried to sit down on him, but he wouldn’t let me.

  Chuckling, he bit my nipple, and I yelped. “I thought you wanted to celebrate. Teasing me doesn’t count.”

  He flicked his tongue across my nipple and smiled. “No, but it’s fun to watch you squirm.” Grabbing his face, I kissed him hard and then lowered a hand between his legs. I slid my hand up and down his cock, earning a strangled moan.

  “Who’s squirming now?”

  Groaning, he pushed inside of me. “You’re killing me, angel. You have no idea how much I love being able to feel you like this.” Slowly and gently, our hips rocked together in perfect rhythm until he stopped and smiled at me.