Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 79040 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 395(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79040 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 395(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
“Only if you make it all or nothing,” I say, voice icy.
He spreads his palms. “It’s her or us. And don’t think if you do this, I’ll ever sign off on publishing her story. I’ll fight it every step of the way.”
I glare at my friend. I wish I could say I couldn’t see this coming from him, but I knew he’d probably react this way when I decided to have this conversation. This is Nolan at his core. Ruthless. He will push every button and pull every lever at his disposal if he thinks it will lead him towards his goals. He thinks I’m sabotaging the company, and he’s not going to pull any punch in his attempt to stop me.
“Are we done?” I ask.
He holds my eyes, then clicks his tongue and shakes his head. “Looks like we are. But this isn’t over.”
“My part in it certainly is. I’ll tell you when I’ve come up with another plan that doesn’t involve fucking over an innocent woman.”
“Right. Because you’re the one who prefers to fuck the innocent women, right?”
I don’t dignify that with a response. I’m fuming when I leave his office. I’m still fuming when I sit down at my desk. I chuck a paperweight at my wall and watch it explode into a shower of glass.
I need to calm down before I tell Charli what’s happening. I don’t want to scare her. I want her to understand her book is safe, and I don’t want her to sense all this bullshit behind the scenes. I take a deep breath and start mentally preparing for a conversation that might go even worse than the one I just had with Nolan.
19
CHARLI
I do a little spin, smiling and spreading my arms. I know Dani is rolling her eyes without needing to look.
“Are you going to thank me?” she asks.
We’re in my apartment and she’s on the couch. Gemmaline and Roxie are in the kitchen bickering over the best way to cook grilled cheese. Gemmaline thinks less is more when it comes to cheese. Roxie is trying to argue that “inside out” grilled cheese is God’s gift to women. She also says it tastes better if you toast the bread with mayo instead of butter. Gemmaline is making gagging noises at the thought of mayo toasted bread, but they’re both smiling.
“Thank you?” I ask.
“I’m the one who suggested getting over Vaughn by getting under Jameson from the start,” Dani says, pressing on. “You acted like that was crazy. And now look who is doing satisfied orgasm spins in her living room?”
I pull a face and plop down on the couch. “As far as my family is concerned, sex does not exist. I don’t know how many times we need to go over this.”
“Blah blah. We’re all sexual creatures and even my innocent little sister likes a good dicking down from time to time. No need to be so skittish about it.”
I press my palms over my eyes, cringing.
“She’s right,” Roxie calls from the kitchen. “Only I think you both should try swinging both ways before you knock it. Like, sure, I enjoy dick as much as the next girl. But sometimes a little clamshell can be the perfect palate cleanser.”
“Could you all just not?” I ask.
“Leave her alone,” Gemmaline says. “She’s happy. We should just be happy for her. Not trying to get her to thank us or try lesbian sex,” she says, shooting Dani a look and then Roxie. “And ew, I saw that. I’m not going anywhere near your freaking grilled cheese if you try to make me. Mayonnaise is not a substitute for butter. I don’t care what you tell me. That is the stuff of nightmares.”
The smell of cooking bread fills my apartment.
My phone rings and I look down at the number.
“Is it your boy toy?” Dani asks.
“Hm, no. But I’ve been applying for some jobs. I should take this.” I get up and walk to the back of the room. In a shocker to nobody, my measly savings is drying up at an alarming rate ever since the breakup.
“Hello?”
“Hi, is this Charli McBride?” The voice on the other end is unfamiliar. It’s a young woman’s voice.
“Yes?”
“I’m Kiana with Gray Wolfe’s legal team. Mr. Gray just called and asked if I could gather some contact info from you so we can proceed with the takedown notices..”
“Um, wait. What takedown notices?”
There’s a pause.
“For Landmark,” she says slowly, as if she’s explaining something I should already understand. “Mr. Wolfe told me he was going to fill you in on all the details a few days ago.”
“Tell me what?”
“Oh, um. Well, we let him know a few days ago that we would be able to get your book back from Landmark. The app Mr. Vanderlesh used to steal your IP was registered to a completely different business, and that registration expired. We even reached out to see if the owner of the defunct business had any interest in trying to pursue his rights to your IP or any other IP created on his app. Long story short, nobody has the rights to your book but you. We’re as in the clear as we can be.”