Andrew’s dark blue eyes were skittish, and Zayn wondered briefly if he was still on drugs.
“I imagine it would be a little intimidating to your usual client list,” Zayn agreed genially, taking Andrew’s hand and pumping it once. It cost him, to behave civilly to the man who had been to bed with his wife, but he managed it.
“Not to you, though?” Andrew asked, indicating for Zayn to take the seat opposite the desk, as he eased himself into his own office chair.
Zayn didn’t comply. “My title rather outranks yours,” he said seriously.
“Of course.” Andrew leaned back in his chair and made a show of straightening his tie. Zayn watched through narrowed eyes. The blonde man was nervous. Zayn was not in the mood to offer comfort. He was going to go straight in for the kill.
“Tell me about these photographs.” Zayn pulled his phone from his breast pocket and handed it to Andrew. The images were on screen, and Zayn watched intently as Andrew flicked through them. His cheeks were pale, his expression suddenly even more unsettled.
“Oh, God.” He squeezed his eyes shut and held the phone aloft.
Zayn took it and then crossed his arms across his chest. “Tell me everything, Andrew. For God’s sake, tell me what happened.”
Andrew forced himself to look at the other man. “Does Jules know?”
Zayn felt the heavy weight of regret getting heavier. “She sent them.”
“No.” Andrew shook his head earnestly, and the mop of hair fell forward once more. “No, she didn’t. I did.” His Adam’s Apple bobbled in his pale throat as he gulped in pained recollection.
Zayn let the words filter through his mind, and slowly, he sat down opposite Andrew. “Explain how you have these photographs of my wife, and why you sent them to me. Explain immediately.”
Andrew nodded. “Of course. Look, mate, I would have told Jules sooner, but there didn’t seem to be any point. You’d obviously moved on, and I thought she would too, one day. I was as shocked as anyone when you guys announced your engagement. But I just thought you’d worked through it all. That it was all in the past.” He raised beseeching eyes to Zayn. “It was stupid. In my defense, I was pretty much permanently high as a kite back then.”
“I know. I had you investigated.”
“You did?” Andrew let out a low whistle.
“Of course. I loved Julia. I might have been furious that she’d slept with another man, but I still wanted to be certain she was safe. What I discovered about you left me unsatisfied.”
“Rightly so,” Andrew concurred with sorrow. “I was a mess. In fact, it’s thanks to Julia that I’ve finally got my life sorted.”
“I’m pleased you feel your life is more balanced, but I came here to find out about the specific circumstances that led to these photographs being taken, and ending up in my inbox.”
“Right, of course.” Andrew took a sip on his coffee then spat it back into the cup. “Stone cold,” he said apologetically.
Zayn nodded impatiently.
“There’s no way to sugarcoat this,” he said with a self-recriminating frown. “I got Julia drunk. Intentionally. She can’t handle more than a sip of liquor, as you must know. I laced her champagne with vodka. And lots of it.”
Zayn’s head snapped as though he’d been punched. “I didn’t expect you to say that.”
“No. I suppose not.” Andrew licked his lips nervously, though he had no idea how close Zayn was to reaching across the table and unleashing a violent punch. “Look, I never intended to do anything to her. She has been one of my best friends for years. But… I wanted… I mean… presumably you’ve guessed that I’m in love with her too?”
Zayn narrowed his eyes. “It had occurred to me.”
“I thought I was getting somewhere. She and I were spending more time together. Then you came out of nowhere and she was lost to me. You were all she ever talked about. I simply thought I might be able to … cause trouble for the two of you. With you off the scene, I hoped she’d come back to me.”
“She didn’t though.”
“No. She never so much as looked at another guy after you. Not only that, she was miserable. Oh, not miserable, like normal people. It’s Julia, after all. She has the temperament of an angel, and she loves life with a passion. But there was always a darkness within her, after you left, and it was all my fault.” He took in a deep breath. “I was so close to telling her, so many times, but I knew she’d never forgive me.”
“Do you think you deserve forgiveness?” Zayn posed the question to Andrew, but he was really asking it of himself.
“No. Not in a million years. Hell, I’ve been waiting for the axe to drop for years. Is she angry?”
“She will be when she learns the full story,” Zayn promised.