Page 103 of The Player's Club

“That sucks.” Hannah frowned. “But I do agree with Mac that you should probably let them figure it out themselves. You’re still the outsider, after all.”

“Thanks,” I said dryly.

I was about to press Hannah on her dating life when my phone rang. Roy Fink flashed on the screen. My old boss had called me twice earlier this week already. I’d been dodging his calls because I didn’t want to deal with him. What was there left to say, anyway? I’d quit and moved on. So I didn’t understand why Roy kept trying to get ahold of me.

“Are you going to answer that?” Hannah asked, pointing at my phone.

“No. Why should I?”

“Has he been calling you before now?”

I avoided Hannah’s gaze. “Maybe.”

“Elodie. Come on. Bite the bullet.”

Before I could react, Hannah grabbed my phone and answered the call. “Elodie’s right here,” she said before holding out the phone to me.

I cursed her under my breath and took a deep breath before bringing the cell to my ear. “Hi, Roy.”

“Elodie!” His voice was so loud that I didn’t even need to put my phone on speaker to hear him. “Finally! I thought you were dead in a ditch somewhere.”

Hannah snort-laughed.

“Nope, still alive. Just busy,” I replied.

“Well, you got time for me, or not? I have an offer you can’t refuse.” He chuckled.

“As long as you aren’t going to put a horse head in my bed when I say no,” I joked.

“Why would you say no? This is an amazing chance for you. I want you to come back to The Tea. I’ll pay you double. You’ll get the best assignments. You can interview whoever you want.”

I hadn’t expected that kind of offer. I stared at Hannah. Her eyes widened in surprise as well.

I’d gotten a handful of offers from other tabloids after the Mac interview, but I’d turned them all down. Quitting The Tea had been such a weight off my shoulders. I’d realized that following around celebrities to find dirt on them had been too stressful for me. And it wasn’t what I wanted to write about, anyway.

“That’s very nice of you,” I started to say. “But...”

“Nice? It’s amazing.” Roy grumbled. “I’ve never offered anybody a job like this, not even close.”

“Be that as it may . . . I’m still not interested. I’m sorry, Roy.”

“Why not?” he snapped. “Why the hell not?”

I thought about it for a moment. Was it worth being honest? Hannah gestured at me to speak.

“Roy, I never liked writing for tabloids,” I said, sitting up straighter. “It’s a huge emotional drain. I always felt icky doing it. Sure, these people are rich and famous, but don’t they deserve their privacy, too? I always felt like I was compromising my own morals, and I was tired of it.”

Roy was quiet for a long moment. Eventually, he sighed. “You know, I think that might be the most honest you’ve ever been with me.”

I made a face. “Your tone isn’t making that sound like a good thing...”

“Maybe it is. What the hell do I know? Not much, except it’s fuckin’ annoying being turned down. Though I appreciate your honesty nonetheless. And if this job isn’t what you like, fine. I’d rather hire somebody who wants to hustle.”

“Thank you. I think.”

“But if you change your mind, just give me a call.”

“Okay.”

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