Decode (Luke Series, #7) Read online

  “Where’s Daddy? We can’t have tea?”

  I don’t have a watch to check the time so I look into the front of the cab, hoping to see a digital clock somewhere, but all I see is red numbers on the meter, which is still running. I hope I have enough pounds to pay for this cab ride.

  “Excuse me, sir? Do you have the time?”

  The gentleman looks over his shoulder and smiles. “Just got the address, ma’am. Time’s 2:38.”

  Twenty-two minutes until teatime. I don’t know how far I am from the hotel or from the Kema offices.

  “I’m sorry, sir. Can you just take us to Claridge’s?”

  “Oh, absolutely. I know where that is.”

  Great.

  “Thank you. Do you know how long it will take to get there?” I ask as he pulls the cab away from the curb.

  “Oh, should take roundabouts ten minutes, ma’am.”

  Finally, a small sliver of hope.

  Chapter Seven

  Luke

  After sending Ian back to Jubilee Gardens to make sure Brina and Rhianne didn’t return, we leave the Hudson House and arrive at the private hotel entrance on Davies Street a few minutes before three. The doorman nods as he holds the door for us to enter the Causerie—the hotel bar. I carry Lucas in and Violet enters ahead of us. The bar at Claridge’s is known for being one of the best in the world. The great, late Spencer Tracy once said, “Not that I intend to die, but when I do, I don’t want to go to heaven. I want to go to Claridge’s.” It takes a great deal of self-control not to sidle up to the bar with Lucas in my arms and ask for their best bourbon, to wash away the stress of the past thirty minutes.

  “The tearoom is near the lobby, isn’t it?” I ask Violet and she smiles at me over her shoulder.

  “Yes, tea is served in the foyer. I studied the hotel website this morning,” she replies, slowing down so she can walk next to me. “One of the bellman offered to give me a tour of the facilities, but I didn’t think that was appropriate.”

  “Appropriate?”

  “I just meant… because I’m here as your employee. It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to spend my time… elsewhere.”

  I don’t bother responding to this. It seems that any amount of interaction with Violet lately only seems to encourage this juvenile flirtation. I’m beginning to think that asking her to help plan a surprise second honeymoon for Brina and me was a huge mistake. Maybe hiring her was my first mistake.

  When we arrive at the foyer, I set Lucas down, but he holds fast to my hand. The hostess doesn’t bother looking for our reservation. Though we do have a reservation, I’m the kind of man who doesn’t need one, and I’ve stayed in the hotel enough times for the staff to know that.

  They seat us at a table and my nerves are on edge as I lift Lucas into the chair on my left and Violet takes the seat on my right so we’re all seated on the same side of the table. Ian sits across from Lucas where he will pretend to be a friend having lunch with us, but his presence doesn’t make me any less anxious. Brina knows how to hail a cab and find her way back to the hotel, but I don’t feel comfortable being here without her and Rhianne knowing that Rhianne is the only reason we made this reservation.

  “I’m sure they’ll be here soon. Brina knows how much this means to Rhi,” Violet says.

  She’s the only one who calls Rhianne by the nickname “Rhi.” Though Rhianne likes it, I’m beginning to understand why it bothers Brina so much.

  “Please refer to her as Mrs. Maxwell.”

  “Oh, right. Sorry.”

  She shifts in her seat and I get the feeling she’s trying to discreetly move her chair closer to mine.

  “Daddy, I ran after the birds in the park,” Lucas says as he clumsily pushes his hair away from his pink cheeks.

  “Yes, I heard. Next time, I want you to stay close to Mommy and Rhianne. If you want to chase the birds, or play on the toys, you ask Mommy. Understood?”

  His face is serious as he nods. I wrap my arm around his shoulders and pull him in for a hug as I kiss the top of his head. He uses his five-year-old arms to push me away and I laugh as I let him go.

  “You’re growing up too fast, little man.”

  “I’m not a man!” he insists.

  This shouted declaration makes me think of the day my father kicked me out when I was seventeen. I wasn’t a man, but I had to become one very quickly. My father’s last words to me, while lying in the hospital bed, were, “Don’t make the same mistakes I made.”

  I would never cheat on Brina, but I’m beginning to think that Violet took this job in hopes that I’m the type of man who would hurt my family like that. I am not my father and I think that’s the best lesson my father ever taught me.

  “Can we talk about the tickets?” Violet whispers.

  I glance down at Lucas and he looks up at me with a smile in his eyes. “Not here,” I reply.

  Lucas is not the type to keep quiet and I don’t want him ruining the surprise for Brina.

  “But I need to call the theater to arrange for—”

  “I said, not here.”

  “Just tell me whether you want dress circle or stall seating.”

  “Daddy, I want to see The Lion King,” Lucas declares as a waiter arrives to fill our glasses with water and Laurent Perrier champagne.

  “Lucas, we will see Simba later.”

  “I just need to know what show you want to see and which seats you want so they can shuffle the seating arrangements,” Violet insists.

  She’s not going to give up. I lean in to whisper the name of the show and the seating level in her ear, so Lucas can’t hear and spill the beans to Brina. She giggles and reaches for her ear as if my whispering has tickled her. I quickly pull back so she doesn’t get the wrong idea.

  She glances over her shoulder then smiles shyly. “Thank you.”

  Chapter Eight

  Brina

  After an excruciating twelve-minute delay on Brooke Street due to protests at the U.S. Embassy, we arrive at the main entrance to Claridge’s. I don’t bother asking the cabbie to drive us around the corner to the private entrance. I just want out of this cab. I tip him heftily and pray that the doorman recognizes Rhianne and me as I race across the sidewalk toward the hotel entrance. The smile and the tiny nod the doorman casts in my direction as he opens the door fill me with relief.

  I race across the black and white checkered tile in the lobby toward the foyer. I’m ten minutes late for our three o’clock reservation, but that’s amazing considering everything we had to go through to get here. I approach the hostess and she immediately recognizes me.

  She nods toward the dining area. “Mr. Maxwell is waiting.”

  I’ve only taken a few steps into the foyer when I spot Lucas, Luke, and Violet at a table forty feet away. My heart stops.

  Luke is leaning toward Violet, his lips on her ear.

  My hold on Rhianne weakens as my muscles slacken. I set her down on the floor and she immediately reaches toward me to pick her up again. But all I can do is watch as Luke pulls his lips away from Violet’s ear. She glances at me over her shoulder then smiles at Luke with such admiration as she giggles—a tinkling sound that vibrates inside my chest like a cruel, throbbing alarm.

  “Mommy,” Rhianne whines. “Mommy, pleeeease!”

  Tearing my gaze away from Luke, I scoop up my baby girl. I squeeze her in my arms and she grunts from the force of my hug.

  “Mommy!” she complains.

  “Sorry, baby,” I whisper as I loosen my grip.

  I follow the hostess toward the table; my heart pounding harder with each step I take. I feel as if I’m having an out-of-body experience. This is happening to someone else. My husband would never cheat on me. This is someone else’s life.

  We reach the table and the hostess with the perfectly coifed bun motions to the seat next to Ian. Luke immediately stands up. Is that a guilty look on his face? No. Oh, God no.

  “Baby,” he breathes, and the very sound of his vo
ice makes me sick.

  My vision is blurry, the sound of blood rushing through my ears as I clumsily help Rhianne into a chair next to Ian. “I’m going to go work out. I… I have to go.”

  I can’t confront Luke or Violet here. Not in front of Rhianne and Lucas.

  “Brina,” Luke calls to me as I make my way toward the lobby with haste.

  His voice fades as the sound of my heartbeat thrumming in my ears grows too loud to disregard. The cries of the heart are too loud to ignore. I read this somewhere. I didn’t realize until now that this is not a metaphor.

  Chapter Nine

  Luke

  By the time I climb the two flights of stairs to the first floor and arrive at the lift, Brina is gone. I dart down the hallway to the emergency stairwell. There’s a chance I may get to the penthouse level before the 115-year-old elevator.

  Taking the stairs three at a time, I think of what Brina must have seen in the foyer. I whispered the name of the show in Violet’s ear so Lucas wouldn’t blurt it out to Brina before tomorrow night’s surprise. I already chartered a boat and hired a crew to host a romantic midnight dinner as we sail down the Thames. Then we were going to board the jet and take a four-day second honeymoon to Paris. I’ve been fantasizing about all the ways I’m going to have her: on the boat, on the jet, in Paris with the Eifel Tower framed in the window. It’s such a fucking cliché that the very act of keeping this trip a secret would be the very reason it failed. I should have planned this honeymoon with Brina from the beginning.

  Reaching the penthouse level, I burst through the stairwell door into the corridor. Racing across the plush blue carpet, I stop at the door to the penthouse.

  “Don’t open it,” I order the security guard as he reaches for the door handle. “Give me a moment.”

  I take a few deep breaths to slow my heart rate after that epic race through the stairwell. My marriage may very well depend on the next few minutes inside this hotel suite. I need to approach Brina calmly.

  I don’t realize how true this is until the guard opens the door for me and I glimpse Brina through the open glass doors leading out onto the rooftop terrace. A soft breeze sweeps her hair up as she leans over the steel railing.

  Chapter Ten

  Brina

  I close my eyes, my grip on the warm steel rail loosens as I attempt to get closer to the breeze. I can breathe out here.

  My whole body pulses with the aching memory of what I just saw. The memory plays over and over in my mind, torturing me. It’s not even the act of Luke pressing his lips to Violet’s ear that is most shocking and hurtful. It’s the fact that he did it out in the open, in front of Lucas—in front of everyone! Making a fool of me and a mockery of our marriage.

  All this time, all my suspicions about Violet were not as silly as I tried to convince myself they were. Maybe this was their way of telling me. They knew I wouldn’t cause a scene at one of the most dignified afternoon teas in all of London. They’re probably down there enjoying their champagne and tea without me.

  Maybe Violet is pouring Rhianne some tea while Rhianne giggles. Maybe Luke is laughing along or maybe he has his hand on Violet’s thigh as he leans in to whisper something naughty in her ear.

  “Brina.”

  My muscles tense painfully at the sound of his voice and my torso falls forward as I lose my grip on the railing. In the span of half a second, my feet lift away from the slate tiled terrace and my body tips forward to the point of no return. I’m going to die. Just like my brother did.

  Chapter Eleven

  Luke

  My first instinct, as I fly toward her, is to grab a chunk of her T-shirt in my hand to slow her momentum. Then I wrap my other arm around her chest and pull her backwards. I lock my arms around her chest and waist as I pull her tight against my chest.

  “What are you doing?!” I demand.

  “You scared the hell out of me and I slipped! Let go of me!”

  She attempts to wriggle out of my grasp, but I only tighten my arms around her.

  “Get off me! You asshole!”

  “Brina, stop! You don’t know what you saw!”

  “Don’t touch me! I can’t believe you would do this to me!”

  “Stop fighting and listen!

  “You’re hurting me!”

  I let go immediately and she turns around and slaps me. “Fuck!” I growl as I rub my face to lessen the sting.

  “How does it feel?!” she shrieks as she storms off into the living room. “I knew you were doing something behind my back, but this!”

  Following after her, I’m struck by how ridiculous I’ve been to assume that I could keep anything from Brina. She came into my life six years ago as a professional spy and she’s always known me better than any woman ever has. What was I thinking?

  “Baby, what you saw in there was not what you think you saw.”

  “Don’t call me baby or I may vomit.”

  She stops for a moment at the bedroom door and appears to swallow her disgust. I seize the opportunity to grab her hand to keep her from entering the bedroom.

  “Don’t touch me!”

  “Brina, you are making a huge mistake here. What you saw downstairs was Violet and me discussing our plans for tomorrow.”

  She dry heaves again. “Don’t say her name. And, for God’s sake, don’t tell me about your plans with her!”

  “Not my plans with her! My plans with you!” I shout, unable to keep my cool any longer. “We’ve been planning a surprise for you!”

  She closes her eyes and draws in a stuttered breath. “What surprise?”

  “The surprise you didn’t know about because we were trying to keep it a fucking surprise. A second honeymoon.”

  I’m breathing heavily with all the fear and adrenaline coursing through me. I can’t lose Brina. I won’t fucking survive.

  “Baby, please listen to me.” I place my fingers under her chin and slowly tilt her face up. “I’ve been planning this second honeymoon for us for over a month. I just wanted to be alone with you. With no kids. No nannies. No fucking security guards. Just you and me. Please tell me you believe me.” Her eyes are locked on my mouth, as if she can discern the truth there. I tilt her face up a little more. “Look me in the eye. I would never, ever betray you. You’re not just my wife. You’re the air I breathe and the fucking blood in my veins. I can’t live without you. Do you understand me?”

  She nods and I let out a huge sigh as I wipe the tears from the outer corners of her eyes. I take her face in my hands and press my lips to her forehead, drawing in a breath to take in the scent of her shampoo.

  “I hate you for putting me through this,” she says as she pushes me away. “I’ve been going crazy for weeks thinking you were cheating on me.”

  She enters the bedroom and I follow closely behind her.

  “I was wrong to plan this without you. I just wanted you to be surprised. I wanted this honeymoon to begin the way we did six years ago, with a secret that brought us closer together. I never imagined Violet would go to these lengths for a stupid crush. She’s fired. I don’t give a fuck if she’s Jerry’s niece. That girl is dead to me.”

  She stops at the foot of the bed and I stop close enough so that my chest is pressed against her back. She sighs as I sweep her hair over her shoulder to expose the back of her neck.

  “I’m sorry I worried you,” I whisper in her ear. “Let me make it up to you. Let me give you a honeymoon you’ll never forget.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Brina

  Though I know Luke is telling me the truth, and I have nothing more to fear, I can’t stop shaking. As if my body is having trouble catching up with the truth.

  “Why are you shaking?” he whispers as his hand comes to rest on my hip. “Are you okay?”

  He turns me around and his eyes are like a signal flare guiding me back from the depths of my wrecked soul. I wrap my arms around his waist and bury my face in his shoulder. His arms encircle my shoulders as he holds me f
irmly and kisses the top of my head.

  “You owe me,” I say, and the rumble of his laughter is comforting against my cheek. “Where are we going for our honeymoon?”

  “No way. I’ve spent too long planning this and nearly lost you for this secret. I’m not giving it away now. But I will tell you that we’re leaving after the benefit tomorrow and you may want to bring an umbrella.”

  I pull my head back to look at the devilish grin on his face. “Umbrella? It’s not raining tomorrow.”

  “I’ll give you a hint.” He grabs my hand and twirls me around as he hums a very familiar tune.

  “Oh, my God! Singing In the Rain!”

  I throw my arms around his neck and he laughs as he lifts me off the carpet. “I told you the surprise would be worth it.”

  Leaning my head back, I can’t help but sigh as I realize what an idiot I was to even think that Luke could cheat on me.

  “I’m sorry I doubted you.”

  “I’m sorry I gave you reason to doubt me.”

  I softly press my lips to his and allow my mouth to hover there for a moment as I breathe him in. “I trust you,” I whisper, because I know this is what needs to be said more than anything else.

  “I trust you most.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Luke

  The charity dinner for the Give Love Foundation went spectacular. Of course, any time I have Brina speak at a benefit, she always wows the crowd and the donations and partnerships pour in. The show at the Palace Theater was everything I hoped it would be. I haven’t seen Brina laugh and smile like that in weeks.

  By the time we arrive at the marina and board the sixty-foot sailing yacht, my tuxedo and Brina’s red gown have just begun to dry from the soaking we got at the theater.