Page 21 of Beautiful Betrayal

“Yes, Mia. She was one of them.”

It’s then that I know that Grayson didn’t betray me, but instead, I’ve betrayed him and us.

Chapter fifteen

Grayson

The past, a year ago

“She won’t answer her phone,” I say, standing at the window of Eric’s office, the sun dipping beneath the skyline.

He steps to my side. “You yanked her off her case, Grayson,” he says. “You didn’t warn her. You didn’t even talk to her first.”

“I’m quite aware of what I did, and you know why. The lead counsel on the case was fired because the feds are breathing down our throats over this case and apparently for good reason.”

“I get it. We had a lead counsel playing dirty with a dirty client. You didn’t want Mia anywhere near that shit, but you should have warned her.”

“If I’d have warned her, she’d have looked at me with those beautiful blue eyes and told me why she should stay on the case.”

“Because she’s got a perfect, clean record that represents us well. There’s logic there.” I open my mouth to lay into him and he holds up his hands. “But it’s a danger to Mia. I get it. She’d still be dealing with a mobster,defendinga mobster. She’d still end up with that reputation of aligning herself with that man.”

“Not to mention my father and his damn rule. You lose your first lead case, you’re out. And we’re going to lose this case.”

“The future mother of his grandchildren? Surely not.”

“You’ve known my father since we were both at Harvard. You know his mentality, so yes, even Mia, who he loves, hell, more sobecausehe loves her. He calls it tough love. And let’s face it. If she was made an exception, that would ruin her here at the firm. She’d be my woman and nothing more, and that’s not what she is or what she wants. It’s not whatIwant for her.”

“You gave the case to Becky. She hates Becky. They’re rivals.”

“I handed that decision to Mitch. He’s the lead partner over the associates. I didn’t take that decision from him, nor did I make it for him, but yes, I approved his choice. Becky is cutthroat and disposable. Mia is not.”

“A choice that’s not in your favor with Mia.”

He’s right. I don’t want him to be, but he is. I scrub my jaw, glancing at my watch, and tick off the four hours since Mia left the office furious. It’s seven now and so far the doorman hasn’t seen her at the apartment, which means she has to be at her best friend Courtney’s house or her father’s place. “I need to find her, but I have a conference call with the Lugo Corporation in fifteen minutes.”

“I can handle Lugo,” Eric says. “I got it. You go.”

And because this is Eric, who I trust like a brother, I take his offer. I head for the door and waste no time making my way to my private office. Once I’m inside, I step behind my desk with the intent of gathering my work to take home with me when Becky steps into my office. “I need to talk to you about the caseyou put me on.” She shuts the door and flattens herself against it, her blouse cut low, her red hair free of the clip she normally wears it in and I don’t like it any more than I do her style of sexual manipulation. “I heard you’re the reason I got the lead on the Pitts case.”

“Don’t come into my office and shut the door without my permission. Open it.”

“I need to talk about this case in private.”

“I’m not your supervisor. Mitch Rivers is. Talk to him about who, where, why, and what case. I have someplace to be.”

“This case is tricky.” She races forward and stops in front of my desk. “The client involved is a mobster.”

I do not have time for this woman right now. “If you’re over your head Becky, talk to Mitch.”

“I’m not over my head and I appreciate you believing in me. I can handle this case. I’m not backing out.”

The phone on my desk rings. “Open the fucking door,” I say, and hoping the call is from Mia and that she’s back in her office, I grab the line without even looking at the extension. “Davis says he needs to see you before you leave,” Eric says. “It’s urgent.”

I give Becky my back. “Define urgent.”

“He says the feds want documents you aren’t going to want to give them.”

My jaw sets hard. “What documents?”

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