“So, whoever you hired was doomed from the start?”
“Pretty much. You saw how things were the first time you interviewed him. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of any reporter having a good interview from him. Usually, people just talk to his friends and acquaintances and patch together a story from there. He hates the press and gives them a harder time than anyone I’ve ever seen in my whole career.”
“Really?” she asked. Sure, Clive was a pain in the ass at first, but he was so lovely to talk to once you broke past his tough exterior. She knew a lot of tough reporters who never took no for an answer, so it was surprising that no one ever managed to get information out of him.
“I don’t know what you did to him to get him to talk, but it worked. Maybe I should have you tell the rest of the staff your secrets to working with difficult people. Or, do you use methods that are best kept secret?” Constance said, raising an eyebrow.
“I didn’t—” Angela stuttered, getting flustered. The last thing she wanted was her editor to know there was a conflict of interest. She would lose all credibility.
“Oh, God, no,” Constance said. “I didn’t mean it like that. I’m just so surprised that a young reporter with not a lot of experience could manage that feat. That’s all.”
Angela softened in her seat. That was another reason she could never publicly date Clive. Anyone who flipped through her portfolio would know that she didn’t always act professionally. It would be a big mistake, especially before she had the résumé to back her up.
“Enough about Clive Davis,” she said. “Whatever magic you used to break him down will just remain a mystery, I guess. Maybe the guy’s going with a new PR strategy. We’ll never know. Let’s talk about your work.”
Angela nodded.
“After you submitted the first article, I was a little worried that we’d have to scrap the project. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, but apart from the good quotes about his career philosophies, it read like an editorial piece. It was good to see some criticism, but seeing as we’re working with his PR team, and not against them, we couldn’t print five stories like that. But, as the series continued, you began to show the reader the kind of guy he is, instead of telling them. Our readers can tell the difference between what we’re trying to force feed them and evidence that we’re organizing to show them a whole picture. You’re a gifted storyteller, and I’m eager to see what you’ll write in the future.”
“Thank you for the opportunity,” Angela said. “I feel honored being asked to cover this piece.”
“For being placed in a tough situation, you handled it exceedingly well. That should not go unrewarded. If you want it, I’m willing to offer you a full-time position as a staff writer in my department.”
“Seriously?” Angela gushed.
“You earned it.”
Angela rapidly blinked away the moisture that was accumulating in her eyes. Just a few years after moving to the city to find work, she managed to land a huge job. It made all the sleepless nights sending out her résumé and searching for jobs worth it.
“I would love to be a staff writer. When can I start?” she asked eagerly.
Constance laughed. “I had the people at HR start the paperwork first thing this morning. Head over there and sign a few things, and your temporary workspace is yours for good. I’m working on assignments now, but you should expect to get something in a day or two.”
Things were happening so quickly, and Angela could only nod in response. She didn’t know what else to say. She casually chatted with the people in HR like her life hadn’t undergone a major change. She was one of them now. It felt so good to be on the inside.
“All right,” the girl at HR told Angela as she handed back the packet of paperwork. “You’re all set up for direct deposit. You should see your first payment arrive in a couple of days.”
A giant smile appeared on Angela’s face. She would still be poor, but at least she could pay the bills. She was getting dangerously close to having to ask one of her sisters to lend her a little cash until she found a job. That crisis was averted with perfect timing. Her funds would be scant for a couple days until the payment cleared, but she would be fine.
When she was finished going through the process of becoming a full-time employee, Angela sat down at her desk. It was hers now, and no one could take that away from her. She swiveled back and forth in her chair, looking out over the new office—her new home. She imagined her career at the paper, working hard and moving up the ranks until she was breaking front page news. She couldn’t wait to get her next assignment.
Angela looked at her ringing phone and saw that the call was from Clive. She was shocked that he was already calling her after she managed to convince herself that he wouldn’t attempt to contact her for a few days, if at all.
Excited to share her big news with someone, she answered.
“Angela, where are you?” he asked.
“I’m at the office. You’ll never guess what happened today.”
“I know,” he said intensely. “I don’t know why you don’t seem more upset about it.”
She paused. “I don’t think we’re talking about the same thing. What are you talking about?”
“Come to my office as soon as possible. I’ll have security ready to bring you up to my office. Please hurry.”
“What’s going on?” she asked. He sounded worried and it was scaring her. On the other hand, if it were an act to lure her away from work and to his open arms, she would be pretty pissed off.
“Just get over here. We’ll talk then.”
With no other choice than to talk to him, Angela grabbed her bag and snuck out of the office, hoping no one would see her leaving so soon.
Chapter 12
The doorman eyed Angela suspiciously when she gave him her name. She was thinking of a way to explain her business in Clive’s office when he gave her a visitor’s badge and sent her up to the top floor of the building.
When she got to the top floor, she found herself in another reception area with a gorgeous woman sitting at the desk. She flipped through a paper planner as she whispered into her headset.
“Excuse me,” Angela squeaked. “I’m here to see— “
The woman looked up at the sound of her voice and gestured toward the large wooden door to her right. “Go ahead,” she said, before returning to her work.
Cautiously, Angela turned the doorknob and slowly walked inside. It was dark, with only small particles of light filtering in through the gaps in the blinds. The desk was empty. She wondered why Clive would leave his office after he told her to come over immediately.
“Hello,” Clive said in a muffled voice.
Angela gasped and whipped her head toward the far wall. He was sitting on a leather chair, sipping something from a whiskey glass.
“You scared me.”
He ignored her and continued drinking from his glass. When he was finished, he set it on the table with a thud, the large chunk of ice rattling around.
“What’s going on?” she asked nervously. Only hours ago, he was kissing her and declaring his feelings for her. They were so happy in that moment, and now he was drinking at ten in the morning in the dark.
“Come here.”
She apprehensively walked toward him. She had never seen him look so unhappy. He usually looked so put together, but now he was slumped down in his chair with his feet up on the table. She sat down across from him.
“I’m going to ask you some questions now,” he said quietly. “When you found out that you were assigned to write about me, what went through your mind?”
“Well, I wasn’t exactly pleased that I was working on a trivial piece like a personal interview. I didn’t really care for you even before I met you for the interview. But, once I got to know you, I started to enjoy being around you. Whenever we were apart, I would only think about you.”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah. Why?”
He sighed. “You
didn’t think that you could sway your little hips around me and think you could get your big payout?”
“What?” she asked, completely flabbergasted.
“I just want you to tell me if it ever occurred to you that you could stand to gain a lot if you got close to me.”
“If you’re trying to say something, just say it,” she said. “I’m not going to solve your riddles.”
“Fine,” he said curtly. “Did you sleep with me because I have money and you wanted some for yourself?”
Angela’s jaw dropped. “Are you kidding me? Where is all of this coming from? Everything was fine last night.”
“Just answer the question,” he said, rubbing his brow. He glanced up at Angela, looking hurt.
“Of course not,” she said. “I’m not that kind of girl. If it weren’t for the newspaper getting me in contact with you, I wouldn’t have anything to do with you or your social class. I don’t know why, but I fell for you. It just happened.”
He blinked. “How can I be sure of that?”
“I don’t know. Don’t spend money on me, and I guess you’ll know then. I don’t know if I’ve ever been so insulted by someone I really cared about. If you’re this worried, then don’t bother seeing me again.”
Angela began to stand up before Clive told her to sit down. She sulkily plopped back into the seat.
“Why am I still here?” she asked. “You clearly think I’m after your money.”
“No,” he said sadly, “I don’t believe you are.”
“No?”
He shook his head. “I just don’t understand what’s going on.”
“I think I understand even less,” she said. “What put this idea into your head in the first place?”
He walked over to his desk and grabbed a manilla envelope. He slapped it down on the table before pouring himself another drink.
“Have a look.”
Angela nervously opened the envelope and pulled out the thin stack of papers.”
“What is this?” she asked.
“Look closely. Does it seem familiar to you?”
She flipped through the grainy images, each one appearing clearer and clearer.
“What the fuck?” she yelled, dropping the stack onto the table.
“You tell me,” he said calmly.
“How is this possible?” she asked, looking at the pictures. “You covered the elevator camera.”
“I did, but my coat fell off while we were—” he trailed off.
“How did you get these? Where did they come from?” she screeched.
“So, you didn’t send these to me?”
Angela’s eyes nearly bulged out of her head. “What?” she hissed.
“So, it wasn’t you?”
Her face turned bright red. She couldn’t believe that Clive had the nerve to accuse her of seducing him, then setting him up.
“Why didn’t you think about what you’re accusing me of before you had me leave my permanent job to come plead my case?”
“I had to ask. Honestly, this isn’t the first time something like this has happened to me. When you have money, people go out of their way to dig up dirt on you to get it.”
“Oh,” Angela said, trying to calm herself down. She was hurt that she had been accused of doing such an awful thing, yet was a little understanding of why Clive’s mind automatically went there.
“Listen,” she said. “I have a job now; a really good one, too. If anyone found out that I was sleeping with you while writing a story about you, I could get fired. That’s the last thing I want right now.”
“I guess I didn’t really think about that. I’m really sorry I accused you of doing something like this,” he said. “Congrats on the job, by the way.”
She grimaced. “We’ll save the congratulations until we get to the bottom of this. When did it arrive?”
“Right before I called you. A courier dropped it off at the front desk.”
“Does anyone else know about it?”
“Just my secretary. She usually screens mail for me so I know what’s important and what’s not.”
“And there wasn’t a note attached?”
“Nope.”
They sat in silence, both wracking their brains to figure out who would have known about them in the first place and who would go to such great lengths to take them down.
Angela got up and poured herself a drink from the decanter. Clive handed her his empty glass and she poured him a refill.
Clive’s phone started ringing on his desk. He jogged over to answer it.
“Hey, Daniel now’s not a good time,” Clive said moodily.
Angela brought him the drink. She watched as Clive’s face went pale. He held a finger up to his lips and pressed the speaker button.
“What did you say?” Clive asked his older brother.
“I asked you if you received some pictures this morning.”
“Did you do this?”
“Yeah,” Daniel said casually. “You left with that hot reporter girl at the charity gala—your charity gala,” he emphasized. “People were asking me where you were, so I thought I’d find out for myself. I slipped the security guard some cash and investigated the tapes for myself. That’s when I stumbled across the two of you behaving badly. I thought it could be useful.”
“Useful how?”
“I noticed that the CEO of MyHealth was at the event, which seemed strange to me because my company was in talks to purchase them and their app before they suddenly changed their mind. Do you know what that’s about?”
“No clue. I had no idea they came to you. We were going to make the announcement in a few weeks.”
“Do you still think that’s a good idea?” he questioned. “I’ll make you a deal: I’ll scrap the photos if you decline to buy out the company. If you want, you can even direct them over to me. We can forget this ever happened.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Then you’ll probably make a lot more money, but you’ll also have your bare ass plastered on every tabloid in the city.”
“You can’t do that.”
“No? What are you going to do? Tell Mom?” he taunted.
“I can’t even talk to you right now,” Clive snarled.
“I’ll give you a week. If you don’t tell me your decision before Thursday at noon, I’m going to the press.”
Clive started to object, but Daniel hung up. He stood there, reeling.
“What is this deal he’s talking about?” Angela asked as Clive sat down and buried his head in his hands.
“We’re buying a tech company. They’re going to launch an app that helps patients get in contact with their healthcare providers. It was going to be a really good thing for the company and for healthcare in general.”
“This really sucks,” Angela said. “What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know. It’s complicated. Both could ruin me,” he groaned, resting his forehead on the desk.
Angela approached him and placed a hand on his broad shoulder. When she touched him, it was like a jolt of electricity flowed through her body.
He looked up and swiveled around to face her. He took her hands in his and looked her in the eye. “I’m terribly sorry you got caught up in this. I never meant for this to happen.”
She nodded. “Since it has happened, I guess we have no other choice than to deal with it.”
“What do you want to do?”
“I can’t make that decision for you. I think it affects you more than it affects me.”
“That’s not fair to you. There’s got to be a better way.”
Angela’s eyes lit up. “You know I have a background in investigative journalism. I can dig up some dirt on Daniel so he won’t have leverage over you.”
“Daniel’s never done anything wrong in his life, except for being a major asshole every now and again.”
“Still, isn’t it worth a try? We won’t expose anything about him, just convince him to drop the act alt
ogether.”
Clive sighed. “I don’t know. What happens if it doesn’t work?”
“Then we’re no worse for wear,” she said, giving his hands a squeeze. “Give me a week. We can work together to figure this out. Are you in?”
Clive looked into Angela’s eyes. He couldn’t resist her when she looked this excited.
“Fine,” he said. “You have one week. Don’t do anything stupid.”
“Can’t promise that,” she smiled. “Lighten up, we’ll get this sorted.”
She pulled him up from his chair and he wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
“Thank you,” he said, holding her in his embrace. “I’m really glad that you’re the one in this mess with me.”
Angela felt comforted by his warmth but knew that her feelings for Clive wouldn’t be enough to take a blow to her career like this. She would help him for a week, but then she would give him an ultimatum: he could drop the merger and stay with her, or he could keep the company and lose her.
Chapter 13
By Wednesday morning, Angela was getting nervous that she wouldn’t find any dirt on Daniel Davis. Her editor had given her tiny jobs to work on. It was the same sort of stuff she was doing as a freelancer—restaurant openings, charities, and business beat. She had interviewed more people at their hipster food trucks than she cared to. She did this with hopes that her editor would have a real story for her soon.
These jobs kept her busy enough to prevent her from learning everything there was to know about Daniel’s business. She talked to employees and he was well liked. His business was doing well and nothing looked out of the ordinary. What she wanted to find was something illegal going on in his business, or something illicit in his personal life. Either one of those things would be enough to get him to drop it.
Every evening after work, Angela would lurk around Daniel’s office until he left the building. Then she’d hail a cab and have it follow whatever car he was in. Most nights, it went to his brownstone in the city. A few nights, he went straight to a restaurant for drinks.
Because she couldn’t really sneak into his home, she would hide out in the coffee shop across from his apartment and wait for him to leave. Unfortunately, he never did. Around one, she’d trudge home, feeling defeated. He was a jerk, but Angela thought that he might be as squeaky clean as Clive said he was.
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