7
BECCA
"Late night?"
The too-smooth, bordering on creepy, voice was the last thing I wanted to hear this early in the morning.
I looked up from my desk and tried not to grimace. "Hello, Harvey. Are you lost?" I could point him toward the sewer access, but he might make it his life's work to find dirt on me and humiliate me with it. Not that he'd find much, but what little he found, he'd twist into something ugly.
"Not at all," he said smoothly. "I just thought I'd stop by and see how your date went last night."
I didn't even blink. "I didn't have a date last night. I had a business meeting." I looked back down at my computer and silently hoped he'd go away. No such luck, of course.
"Is that what they're calling them these days?" He chuckled, but it sounded mocking.
"Yes. When that's what they are," I said, my teeth gritted. I glanced back up. "If you have something to say, why don't you just say it?" Then fuck off. Far away. To another country would work for me. Another planet even.
He leaned his arms on the top of my cubicle.
"Are you sleeping with Hawk Florence?"
I snorted. "No." I wouldn't tell him if I was, but the idea was hilarious. Hawk and I were barely civil, much less sexual.
I thought about it, of course; I was only human and had a pulse. Okay, I thought about it alot. He was hot. I expect he knew how to please a woman. On the other hand, I was still angry with him and I had a bet to think about. Sex would complicate that. And just about everything else in my life.
"Like I said, it was work. I'd tell you what we talked about, but you'll have to wait until it's published, like everyone else." I smiled sweetly.
Harvey looked down his nose at me. "Wishy washy sentimental bullshit? Hard pass. No one is interested in that kind of crap. Screw his brains out and write about that. People will eat it up."
He made me sick to my stomach.
"Not everyone likes trash," I said coldly. Seducing someone for a story might be his MO, but it wasn't mine. I couldn't imagine being so desperate I'd sink that low.
Harvey laughed out loud at that, long and derisive.
"Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart," he said finally. "Sex sells. Always has, always will. Think about it. People will talk about you for decades. They might even make a movie. I know a couple of…specific actors who could play you."
He walked the line of sexual harassment so close it was a miracle he didn't topple off. He'd obviously done this many, many times before. Just enough to be rude and raise eyebrows, but not enough to get sued. The list of people, especially celebrities, who were waiting for him to slip up was likely to be long. You can't ruin careers without making some enemies along the way. I was shocked no one had been able to sue him for libel yet.
"I'm sure you could," I said dryly. "You might want to think about the kinds of shows you watch. They seem to be influencing your perception of the world."
"Too much porn turning my brain to mush?" He grinned. "You might want to work on your insults. That one needs some work."
I shrugged. “It’s not an insult, it’s an accurate observation.”
"Too little porn makes you uptight," he said. "I know which one I'd prefer."
"Don't you have somewhere to be?" I asked. The other side of the universe would be perfect. Why was he here, talking to me about porn of all things? I didn’t want to lose my breakfast.
"But the company here is so nice," he said sarcastically. He looked directly at my chest, but clearly knew better than to comment on the view. "You could be a bit friendlier though."
"I'm always friendly," I said. "To people who are respectful."
"So youaresleeping with Hawk Florence," Harvey said, as if he scored a major point.
I hadn't meantthatkind of friendly, and I knew he knew it. He could dig as much as he wanted, he wouldn't find a story here.
"No," I said firmly. "I am not."
