by T. K. Rapp
Right when I think she’s going to sit down, she walks over to the fridge and grabs a bottle of ketchup and takes it to the table. I have an idea of what she plans to use the ketchup for, but I hope I’m wrong because the idea of it is disgusting. But I watch in horror as she opens the bottle and squirts an obnoxious amount all over her eggs. I have to look away before I gag.
“What?” she asks, baffled by my reaction.
“Nothing,” I shrug, suppressing another gag. “I didn’t realize people actually do that.”
“This is my favorite thing when I have a hangover,” she admits taking a mouthful and savoring it. She swallows the bite and shrugs. “It doesn’t happen often.”
“What the eggs and ketchup bloodbath or the hung-over part?”
“They kinda go hand in hand, Trey. But yeah, the hung-over part. I don’t get drunk very often, only when I’m really upset. Or in this case, betrayed.”
“But that’s the thing, Faith. I didn’t betray you. I came over yesterday to tell you what I found out about Brad,” I start, but I’m interrupted from revealing anymore because the sound of keys at her front door cut me off. The knob turns and we both turn in that direction, only to see Brad Emerson himself walking through the door.
A duffle bag drops from his hands when he’s gained entrance. “Does someone care to tell me what the hell is going on here?” he demands, looking between the both of us.
“Brad?” Faith appears surprised by his entrance. She surveys the room, glancing from Brad to me and back again. When her eyes remain on him she finds her voice. “What are you doing here?”
“I heard about what happened, and I tried to call you, but when I couldn’t get you, I took the first flight out.” He rushes toward her with his arms outstretched, and she reluctantly stands to accept it. “Baby, I’m so sorry.”
“Please don’t call me that,” she mutters quietly, but I can still hear it. “You came here because of me?”
“Of course. And we’re going to get to the bottom of this.”
“Are you?” I ask him in a low, threatening tone.
“Yes, I am,” he argues, his cold eyes boring into mine. “What are you doing here anyway?”
“I was about to tell Faith what happened.”
“We know what happened, Trey. I think you need to go. Faith needs people around her who support her.”
“You’re right,” I agree with a bemused smile as my body tenses. “And you support her?”
“Yeah,” he scoffs, wrapping an arm around her. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for this woman.”
“Or to her,” I mutter. The words barely get out of my mouth before he lunges at me, but I dodge before he connects. He loses his balance and stumbles forward a couple of steps, but rights himself. “Try that again, and you’ll regret it,” I warn.
He looks at Faith and gives her a faint smile before turning to me again. “Get the hell out of here.”
“Not until Faith tells me she wants me to go,” I say holding my eyes firm to Faith's.
“Trey, you need to go.” Her voice is strong and calm when she looks right into my eyes.
Brad might as well have punched me, at least the wind would have been knocked out of me and it would be expected, but this isn’t. I was going to tell her everything I figured out, that her boyfriend - this asshole, is a snake who’s trying to take her down, but she doesn’t want to listen to me.
“Fine,” I snap at her and point, “but don’t say I didn’t warn you about him.” I turn to leave but face her before I shut the door behind me. “I guess what people say when they’re drunk isn’t necessarily the truth, huh Faith?”
* * *
The radio is turned off as I run through the last day in my head. Brad has gone out of his way to destroy her career, our relation-friendship, and is trying to make himself look like the good guy by flying out to check on her. More like cover his tracks.
Did she ever get around to telling him she wanted out? If she did, there’s no way that he would be here.
Did she tell him about what’s been going on between us?
It suddenly hits me and her words come flooding back.
I don’t get drunk very often, only when I’m really upset. Or in this case, betrayed.
Shit. In her drunken fit, she was talking about seeing me at the bar, and I thought she was talking about Chicago. She’s never mentioned seeing me at that night at the Wired Spirits; she’s only said she was drunk that night. But she knew who I was.
There’s no way she was drunk that night and come to think of it, I don’t recall alcohol on her breath at all. Granted, I was hung-over the next day, but the kiss is burned into my memory as if it happened yesterday.
I know, without a doubt, Faith has known from that moment who I was and where I came from. She wanted the kiss. She wanted me.
I pull into my parking space at work and slam my hand against the steering wheel. Faith belongs with me, it’s what she wants deep down, and more than anything I want her, too.
“You look like crap,” Jett says when I walk into the building wearing the same thing I had on yesterday. “Have you slept at all?”
“Barely,” I admit. “And I’d stay away because I haven’t showered either.”
“Where have you been? Or do I need to ask?”
“Jett, you have no idea how jacked everything is right now. While you were out sick, the bullshit that unfolded around here played like a bad suspense movie.”
“Sounds like I picked a great time to get sick.”
“Yeah, but I have some things to take care of so I’ll tell you about it later.” I walk to my chair to sit and run my hands through my hair as I try to piece together everything that’s been happening. Cave contracts, press releases, and mockups are strewn all over my desk because I left in such a rush yesterday. I’ll be playing catch-up for hours.
Jett takes a seat and reclines with his arms crossed over his chest. “I had all of your meetings moved to this afternoon, so we’ve got time. Fill me in.”
Bits and pieces of the conversations I’ve had with Faith, Grayson, Cal and the email with Brad collide in my head. Where do I start?
“Brad is trying to sabotage Faith’s career.”
“Who’s Brad and why is he out for her?”
“Brad Emerson is the Rock Solid star.” I lean back in my seat, mimicking his position. “We worked together years ago. And he happens to be the guy Faith is dating.”
He leans forward. “Ah, the ‘open’ guy. Go ‘head.”
“You know both Faith and I wanted to win the entire Cave contract,” I sigh and roll my eyes. “You also know we ended up working together. Brad somehow figured it out, he supposedly came to town for the night, and my guess is, he got into her email and saw one of our conversations. Something happened with Cal’s son, and he needed a press release issued, but instead of issuing a release, Rock Solid sent out a private email that contained very personal details.”
Jett’s eyes look like they’re going to pop out of his head. “Why would this guy do that?”
I raise a brow and scoff, “One guess.”
“Faith.”
“Faith,” I repeat. “She was about to talk to him about whatever they have going on. Maybe they did, I don’t know. But I think he found enough email information to back up his suspicions and decided to get me out of the picture and sabotage her career at the same time.”
“What the hell is wrong with this guy? Why would he do that if he supposedly loves the girl?”
“Because he’s an asshole and only cares about his own career. Faith was on track to knock him off his perch as a top seller, and if there’s one thing Brad hates, it’s being shown up.”
“So what are we going to do about it?”
“Funny you ask.” I grin at my brother and laugh. “I have a few ideas and I need your help.”
“Sign me up.”
“The question then is - how do you get dirt on a guy who’s never left a trail?”
“Bait ‘em?”
“Yep. We’re going to catfish an asshole.”
Brad used his position as Faith’s boyfriend to screw her over and now we are going to use the same means to get to him. Someone as cunning as Brad knows how to work the system and there isn’t much he wouldn’t do to protect himself and his interests.
Faith is one of those interests, although I’m certain it has less to do with his loyalty to her and more to do with winning.
Chapter 29
When I left Faith’s yesterday, I knew that there was a chance I wouldn’t hear from her. This time, I welcomed the silence because I spent the rest of the day handling the things I could and spoke with Cavette so we could set up the alcohol awareness PSA.
Jett helped get everything together and then we went to work on our plan that took us well into the night.
I’m dragging ass this morning, but it’s worth it. She’s worth it.
“Alright.” Jett walks in with a stack of papers. “We’re all set.”
“Great, and Hattie?”
“I told you she’d agree to it,” he grins. “In fact, she decided to use their engagement as the perfect situation to approach RS. What’s the first step?”
“I’ve tried to make some calls this morning, and it appears that she might still be working there. In my experience, when the finger was pointed at me, they suspended my accounts pending further investigation. They turned all of my accounts over to Brad because he was in the know about what had been going on with each one.”
“So?”
“I have a feeling that he might be ‘handling’ her accounts until she’s in the clear. So Hattie and Evan need to establish communication with Faith, right away.”
“You don’t think she’ll recognize Hattie’s name?”
“She might, but Brad won’t. Like I said, if he’s handling her accounts, he will be the one responding from Faith’s email, so it’s a non-issue.”
“Why are you so certain Faith won’t be answering emails?”
“Been there,” I answer quickly. “Since I was the one who ‘damaged’ the account with a client, they didn’t want me getting to the others. Within one hour, my email account was suspended, and he was handling all communication with my clients. They knew it wasn’t me, but wanted to keep me quiet. Her bosses aren’t stupid. If they’re buying his line she’s the one who screwed up, there’s no way she has access to her email right now. I’ll write up something for Hattie to send, but she’ll need to do it from her personal account, and she needs to blind carbon copy me on every email that goes out.”
Hattie strolls into my office donning a knowing look. “We’re all set.”
Jett and I watch as she takes a seat. “You set up the dummy email address?”
“Sure did, and Evan is aware of everything that’s going to happen.”
“Alright, first thing, I need you to call Rock Solid and ask for Faith Young because she came highly recommended and you want discuss her handling the press for your wedding. We’ll see what kind of response it gets.”
“When are we going to get started?” Jett rubs his hands together maniacally, which makes me laugh.
“Hattie, I’ll send you the email in a bit. If you could send it right away, that would be great. In the meantime, go ahead and call their office to establish initial communication.”
She stands up to leave and gives me a salute. “On it.”
Jett waits until she’s out of earshot before walking to the door and closing it. He looks at me and crosses his arms. “So what happens if he doesn’t take the bait?”
“I can’t think about it, he has to fall for this.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
“Then I’ll have to figure out a plan b.”
“Do you have a plan b?”
“No,” I answer in a clipped tone.
“Have you figured out how you are going to tell Faith?”
“I’ll know when the time comes. The one thing I know about Brad, he’s underhanded and conniving enough that he’ll cover his tracks well. But he won’t know what we have over him.”
He nods his head and smiles. “Glad to know you have it in you to get your hands dirty.”
“I guess I have to if I want to prove to Faith I had nothing to do with this.” But it has more to do with proving to her I’m not the man she has me painted me to be, I need her to see that. “Alright, get out of here so I can write up this email.”
Before he can open it himself, the door swings open, knocking Jett forward a bit. Hattie is on the other side and lets out a soft giggled apology to him before looking at me. “Made the call. They responded exactly the way you thought they would. They gave me her email address.” She walks over and hands me a slip of paper with Faith’s name and email address. I hold it up and thank her before I hand it back to her and she and my brother walk out together.
There are a few accounts I know Faith worked on because she mentioned them to me over the course of our friendship. The one she enjoyed the most and was a success was Jaysen, the florist I met with Emogen last year. He was an easygoing guy, and I can see why she liked him so much. I open up a document to draft the email that will be sent by Hattie.
Marshall, Hattie
October 16, 2014 8:21 AM
To: Young, Faith
Subject: Recommendation
Ms. Young,
My name is Hattie Marshall and I have recently become engaged to my boyfriend of two years, Evan Baker. He had to fire his publicist and with football season in full swing, he asked me to make some calls to line someone up to handle the news of our recent engagement and upcoming wedding. You came highly recommended by Flowers by Jaysen, so I wanted to check your availability. Thank you in advance for your help.
Sincerely,
Hattie Marshall
I reread the note to make sure there is nothing that will flag, but also to ensure it has enough information to be enticing. I send the document to Hattie with instructions to send it and remind her to blind carbon copy me on it.
My office line rings and Hattie’s voice comes through the phone. “I have Cal on hold and I sent the email. Check to make sure you got it.”
“Thanks, Hattie. I owe you.”
“Remember that when I ask for two weeks off for my honeymoon,” she laughs before disconnecting.
“Good morning, Cal. How’s the fire there?”
“Doused.”
“Well, that’s good to hear.”
“Trey, I want to thank you for your help the other day,” he says. “Joel didn’t deserve to be thrown into the mud like that. Was he irresponsible? Yes. But what Rock Solid almost managed to do to him is unforgivable. Your press release was sent out to the local media outlets and everything has died down, for the most part.”
“That’s good. And we are moving ahead with the third promo in a couple of weeks.”
“Excellent. And how are we coming with charitable giveback thing?”
“I have Trevor and Jett working on it, and they should have something to present next week.”
“Sounds good; keep me posted.”
“Will do, Cal and let me know if I need to do anything else.”
“Thanks for everything, Trey.”
When I hang up the phone, I check my emails to see if anything new has come through and find a forwarded message from Hattie. When I open it, I find ‘Faith’s’ response to the email we sent.
Young, Faith
October 16, 2014 9:03 AM
To: Marshall, Hattie
Subject: Re: Recommendation
Ms. Marshall,
Congratulations on your engagement and upcoming wedding. I apologize that I am unable to talk right now, I’ve been ill and lost my voice. If you would like to personally speak with someone I can refer you to Brad Emerson. He is Rock Solid’s top marketing and PR person; I think he would do a fabulous job for you and Mr. Baker. If you would like, I can give you his information so that you can contact him d
irectly.
Thank you,
Ms. Young
Faith Young
Public Relations Manager
Rock Solid
There are so many things wrong with the email, all of which point to my suspicion that it is not Faith responding. The fact that it is signed, ‘Ms. Young,’ is laughable because she always ends with ‘Faith.’ And doting on Brad, to the point of giving away a golden opportunity for herself; that would never happen. She doesn’t brag to clients about her abilities, but she doesn’t do the fake modesty thing either. I’m more certain than before that this is, in fact, Brad acting as Faith. I open another document and draft a response for Hattie to send.
Marshall, Hattie
October 16, 2014 9:28 AM
To: Young, Faith
Re: Recommendation
Ms. Young,
I’m sorry to hear you aren’t feeling well. I would prefer to wait and talk to you when you are feeling better, as you are the person we would like to work with. I understand that Mr. Emerson has been with Rock Solid for many years, but I hear you are the rising star with new ideas.
Sincerely,
Hattie
* * *
Five o’clock rolls around and Hattie stops by before she heads out for the day. We’ve been at the emailing thing on and off a few times this afternoon, but I still have a company to run, which is still my focus. I’ve managed to stay on task with everything else that needs to be done, but now the day is done, I can focus on Faith.
“You know, I should have given you the login information so you could cut out the middle man,” Hattie points to herself. “Me.”
“Why didn’t you say something sooner?” I ask with a laugh. She shrugs her shoulders and hands me a piece of paper. “What’s this?”
“Username and password for the email address.” She waves goodbye as she turns to leave the office. She stops at the door and turns around. “Lemme know if anything good happens.”
I give her a nod and wait until she’s gone before I open the email account. Jett and I are the only ones left in the office, but I doubt he’ll be here much longer. There are only emails between Hattie and Faith, since it’s a dummy account, so I don’t feel like I’m intruding when I read through them.