Page 20 of Miles Apart
Her face drops, releasing the smile once plastered across her cheeks. I open my mouth to apologize, but she cuts me off. “It’s okay, Em. I’m”—she takes a deep breath—“fine, or will be. Maybe you were right about marriage being a sham.”
“Jay.” She waves me off when I reach for her. “You don’t believe that.”
“I don’t know what I believe anymore, but I’m tired of being sad,” she whispers.
My heart doesn’t break easily, but watching my best friend stumble to pick herself up will do it. Justice’s marriage, while imperfect and full of its shortcomings, was one of the good ones—a hell of a lot better than the one my parents have. She and Terrence didn’t treat their love like a business transaction, only showing affection when the media is watching. I never understood how anyone could stay comfortably miserable. There isn’t enough money or power for me to sacrifice my happiness.
I take a page from Justice and pull her into a hug. One date is harmless, unless Preston the Mysterious turns out to be Preston the Jerk. I’ll dissolve his body in acid if he disrespects her.
“Who’s theSister, Sisternow?” Justice sniffles and squeezes tighter.
“Hush,” I laugh. “Enjoy your date, but don’t do anything you’re not ready for, okay?”
“Okay. Em?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t hide yourself if you like someone here. Staying in our suite with room service doesn’t work. Trust me, I’ve tried.”
We snicker.
“Be safe tonight and have fun,” I say.
“Love you.”
“Love you back.”
Chapter 9
Miles
“Bro, I fucked up.”
“Sounds like it.”
The BET-level of drama at this retreat deserves an Emmy. T had a front-row seat to Justice on a date with a guy last night. I almost caught a fist for laughing at the irony thatFifty Shades of Greywas the pick for the movie event. Jay is many things, but a clit flick enthusiast? Nah.
She spent the whole movie sharing snacks with some model-looking prick, while Terrence sat rows behind her, seconds from shitting himself. That was until he started tonguing down Madison, who happened to be there too. His lip-sucking caught Jay’s attention, and off Sonic the Good Girl went to get away.
I wasn’t a hundred percent serious when I said he should fuck around with Madison to get over the ex who’s ready to serve him divorce papers. The only person he did fuck was himself last night. I’m not about to rub salt in his wound, but it’s too early for this “Cry for You” Jodeci performance.
Terrence stops pacing. He runs a hand through his hair with a sigh like he’s about to hyperventilate. “Go sit somewhere,” I say.I love him, but I’m not about to do mouth-to-mouth if he passes out.
I spent the last fifteen minutes trying to calm him down and assure him there’s still time to win Justice back. Love makes you do crazy shit—like hack into the hotel’s computer system to figure out who the hell she was with last night.
“Did you find anything else?” Here he goes pacing again.
“Give me a minute to work my magic, man.” Damn. I don’t need him breathing down my neck every two seconds.
Somehow, T got the guy’s name. Preston is both a prick and a ghost. He’s not showing up in any records. “No registration. No room number under his name,” I say. “There’s not even a restaurant bill for him.”
I spend another twenty minutes running through the resort’s database. Terrence finally stays in one place to lean over my shoulder for a closer look at one of my four screens. “Bro, how in the hell do you know how to do all of this?” His face scrunches like he didn’t barge in here and beg me to commit a felony.
I shrug. “The less you know, the better.”
On paper, I’m a data security specialist who helps groups protect their data assets and mitigate risks. Hacking isn’t on my résumé, but it comes into play for the right person and the right price. Vulnerability assessment, incident response, and encryptions are some of the services I provide. It sounds like a mouthful ofWhat the fuck?so I usually tell people I work with computers and leave it at that. My clientele is by referral only, and I don’t advertise.
Terrence has been asking nothing but questions ever since he peeped my setup. Four monitors, two laptops, and a couple of towers might seem like a lot to him, but this is an ordinary day for me. A special courier transports my tech when I need them to.
