The office was a hum of silence. Then the hush of a whisper trickled from the back of the room. Another to my right. I let the soft murmurs wash over my ears as everyone continued to stare. I swallowed hard. Bracing myself, I held my breath for the verbal stoning I anticipated.
But then I heard it. An excited squeal. A clap of the hands. The sound of chairs scraping backward as people stood up and walked toward me. Confused, I did a double-take at what was happening before me.
One of the associates slapped me on the back, saying, “Congratulations, Mr. Mason!”
“We are so happy for you,” said another.
“I’d love to host Sadie’s shower,” called out another with a big smile on her face.
My heart did something unusual. Itfeltfor the people of this office.
They had no reason to be this kind when I had been so cruel, yet here they were genuinely happy for me. For Sadie. For the baby. I hadn’t expected this. It was another reminder that Sadie had been right all along. What we had shouldn’t be hidden. It should be celebrated. Maybe I had been so tightly wound up over nothing.
It just made me want to see her more.
I gave a warm thank-you to everyone in the office. For the first time with them, my smile met my eyes as I shook their hands. I left the excited chatter of the office to go find Sadie. I had to talk to her.
As soon as I got outside the building, I pulled out my phone and dialed her number. It rang two times before going to voicemail. She had ignored it. I tried again. And again. And again. I continued walking aimlessly down the sidewalk, not having any real destination in mind. She couldn’t avoid me forever.
I continued to walk and call her at the same time. I knew it was desperate, but I didn’t care. I hung up and was about to dial again, when something stopped me. Across the street at a newsstand was a newspaper with my face splashed on the cover. My stomach did a flip. I didn’t bother checking traffic as I bounded for the newsstand. A cab honked at me loudly as it slammed on the brakes, nearly hitting me. I didn’t care. Thedriver yelled something nasty out his window as I continued for the newsstand.
I yanked the paper from the wire rack and quickly read the headline in its bold block letters above my picture:
Billionaire CEO Jeremiah Mason gets Young Assistant Pregnant, Cheats, and Lies About Past.
Fuck.
I ripped open the paper to the front page, my heart pounding in my chest. Everything I had been keeping a secret, from my rocky past to Sadie’s pregnancy, was typed out in black and white ink for the whole damn world to read. I was seething. How could my lawyer let this get past? We had been working tirelessly to keep my name out of the press, unless it was solely about business.
I couldn’t focus on that now though. The news was out.
I ignored the clerk of the stand who was saying I had to pay for the paper. I waved him off and turned my back to him, my eyes scouring the page. It was bad. Worse even. It was downright scathing. My blood boiled as it read the wordex-con. I had never even gone to prison. This was bullshit. More words floated up at me like balloons popping in front of my face.
Womanizer.
Scandal.
Office affair.
I shut the newspaper, not wanting to read another word. The clerk was now yelling at me. I pulled out my wallet and tossed him a twenty-dollar bill before giving him a vulgar gesture over the shoulder as I walked away.
I could feel people casting glances my way. A few of them holding the paper under their arms. Their judgement was clear on their faces.Thiswas what I had wanted to avoid. What had happened up in the office was an anomaly. A fairytale. What I was experiencing now in the middle of the city was real life.
I had to call Sadie before she read the article. I was sure Anderson was behind it. He wanted to tear everything away from me. I wouldn’t let Sadie be a part of that.
I dialed her number three more times, and was surprised when I heard the click on the other line, but no one said anything. I pulled the phone away from my ear and looked at the screen in disbelief. The call time was still ticking by. She was there.
“Sadie? Are you there?” I asked frantically, not believing I had gotten through.
“Please, if you’re there. Just listen to me, okay?” I pleaded, clutching the paper in my hand as I looked down at my stupid face staring back at me.
“What is it, Jeremiah?” she asked softly. Distantly.
“An article came out.Thearticle. The one I was afraid of.” I looked down at the paper and crumpled it frustratedly in my hand.
“Don’t believe it. Please. Don’t believe a word of it,” I said, choking on my words. “It’s Anderson. He’s up to his old shit. Okay?”
I heard a shaky sigh on the other line before she spoke. “No love story should be this hard.”
