She was, in fact, enjoying this.
I hated it, but what choice did I have?
My irritation grew. This hippie didn’t even know me. She was like everyone else, and only saw what the media put out there, which was my problem. As much as I wanted to tell her our partnership wasn’t going to work, and send her out the door, I understood I was looking at someone who hated me because of my media issue. She was here to fix it, and I didn’t see anyone else lining up to help. If she said cleaning up my image would help, what would it hurt to drive a scooter for a few days? Play her game. Change the media’s perception of me, and then go buy a bigger, more jacked up truck when this is all over. I dug in my pocket, pulling out my pocketknife, lose change and some gum wrappers before I found my keys. I reluctantly laid the fob on the desk, like I was giving up, because I felt like I was.
five
Clover
Backatmyapartment,I stood in the doorway to my living room and zoomed in on the picture I had saved on my phone. A perfect piece of commercial real estate. A friend of mine who worked for the city had alerted me to this precious jewel today, saying it would go to auction by the end of the month. It was a huge step to buy a building but I figured it was the best way forward because I didn’t want to risk renting, and setting up everything, only to lose my lease. I was going to do this, and I was going all in. If I could get funding before the end of the month, the city would make a private sale on their building. Beau’s offer couldn’t have come at a more perfect time. My heart was about to burst with excitement for my sister when I asked her, “What do you think we should name your new center?”
Poppy was sitting in her usual spot on the couch, zoned out on the TV, watching cartoons. She gave me a wrinkled-nose grin, confirming she had heard me, but she didn’t answer my question with any audible sound. That was a typical response for her that I took as a good sign.
A text lit up on my phone from my assistant:
Brooke:“R U watching this?!”
Me:“???”
Brooke:“UR new client is on the news again. It’s bad!”
My eyes popped open like they were spring-loaded as I urgently switched my browser to tune in. It only took me a moment to recognize Beau’s greasy mullet talking to Susie from Channel 5, and my throat knotted like a pine tree. Susie was the sort of reporter who made even the most seasoned speakers nervous. Once she found a weak spot, she didn’t shy away. Instead, she would dig in like a corkscrew, twisting your words until she got you to say something juicy she could sell. I turned the volume on my phone all the way up and heard Susie ask: “What’s your company culture like?”
Beau answered without even so much as a thoughtful pause. “Extremely demanding, competitive, and to be honest, a little vicious.”
What is he thinking?
Why is he even talking to her?
I told him no interviews!
I rubbed my forehead and raced to think about how to stop the interview. I would never be able to contact him in time, and he wouldn’t answer his phone while on camera. I could call in a fire drill or something, but people generally frowned on that. I nervously paced my small living room, waiting for the horror show to unfold.
Susie:‘Do you generally get along with your employees?”
Beau:“Some of them, but some of the others can’t stand me because I make them work too hard. This business isn’t for snowflakes and wussies.”
I lowered my head, slowly shaking it, refusing to watch as listening was hard enough.
Susie:“Are you saying you don’t get along with people?”
Beau:“I get on with most people . . . except maybe stupid people.”
I squeezed my fists together so hard they were shaking.He did not just say that!I wished I had a giant alarm, like the X factor button, that I could pounce on to make him stop. I thought it couldn’t get any worse. I was wrong.
Beau:“Can you be done with these dumb questions? I’m tired from being up all night working.”
Throwing my hands up, I fought real tears. So much for him agreeing to follow my rules! The guy was a certified jerk. If this is how it is on day one, I need to cut my losses before he drags me down with him. Then, like my heart was ahead of my brain, something in me forced my eyes to land back on Poppy, and my heart twisted, like it was being wrung out by Beau’s greasy hands. I couldn’t risk the state stepping in, and moving her to another county when I ran out of money to pay for her care. But could I risk my reputation on a guy who clearly was trying to spite me—test the electric fence to see if I was on it, so to speak? Since he made it obvious, he was testing boundaries, it was time for me to give him a shock to try to right this ship now, or he’d never change.
Cringing, I turned back to the interview.Please stop!I can’t watch anymore. Thankfully, Susie accepted his request and wrapped up her interview. I paced to my kitchen table which doubled as my home office, pulled out my laptop, and immediately opened every news browser I could. While I waited for the bad news ripple to load, I filled my coffee maker to the top with water and turned it on. It was well after work hours, but I’d be pulling an all-nighter by the time I finished my press release, and handled all the social media backlash.
I honestly didn’t know why I cared. Money was money was money. Beau came looking for me. Not the other way around. He could either do what he agreed to do, or find another PR person to dupe. Something niggled at the back of my mind. Maybe he wasn’t doing this to spite me, but to test me and to see how good I really was? Either way, it was going to take me all night to clean up this mess.
My hands shook as I reached for my phone, ready to call Beau. I had no idea what I was going to say to him. The look on his face during the interview was passively relaxed. Almost as if he didn’t have a clue how bad he was messing up. I’d dealt with PR nightmares before, but this wasn’t about what he said. This was more about him blatantly disobeying and not calling me. I was beyond frazzled as I pondered why he would refuse to follow my instructions. There was no way I could be professional with him right now. I set my phone back down and decided to wait until morning, after I had time to cool off.
However, the morning wasn’t any better. If anything, having this simmer all night only made me madder. I stormed into his office, being sure to make as much noise as possible, and planted my feet in the center of the room before I declared, “That was disgusting!”
He raised his head from behind his computer. “Pardon me?”
