Page 75 of Rich and Bossy

“How would you be a hypocrite?”

“Look, I married a suit. Same kind of guy as Paxton. Successful and ambitious. We were going head-to-head in a similar way and it was a huge risk. You can’t help who you fall for.”

“I don’t know that I’vefallen.” I look away like it’s ridiculous.

Yeah, you pretty much have.

Still, words can’t express the relief of hearing her say that. “As long as you don’t hate me.”

“You don’t have to worry about that.” Her smile fades fast. “Still, I need to make sure you’re okay with going forward with all of this.”

“Absolutely.”

She lowers her brow, giving me the sort of look I’d give somebody who was refusing to acknowledge reality.

“I mean it. I care more about this than whatever might be happening out there.” I point out toward the front yard. “He really believes I gave up. I think it’s why he came. He feels bad about it.”

“This can get way more ugly. Especially now that there’s a personal element involved. Even if he wants to take your side on things, he won’t be able to. You need to be able to deal with and handle that.”

I don’t think I could shake my head hard enough. “This isn’t about me. This is about the people I work with, and the people I’ll never even meet. Their families, their kids. I’m doing this for them. It has nothing to do with me and I don’t give a damn if they fire me, drag my name through the mud, whatever. I’m doing it so nobody else has to.”

“I believe you, Hazel.” That doesn’t do anything to ease the concern etched on her forehead or at the corners of her eyes. “But what will those people think? If they find out about what happened out there? They might not be as understanding as I am. I have nothing at risk. They do.”

I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of that. I doubt they’d understand. They’d probably feel betrayed. I have to cancel that date.

Campbell moves on, like she knows how bad I’m already kicking myself. “You really need to manage your expectations too.”

“What do you mean?”

She presses her lips together in a thin line before answering. “It’s one thing for him to come here and beg you to go out with him when he doesn’t know what’s about to happen, when he thinks you dropped everything. That’s going to change soon. His feelings might change as well.”

Something icy brushes against my heart. “Yeah, I know.”

“I’m not a mind reader. I’ve just helped people in your shoes many times.” She pauses for a breath. “I know humans, deep down, always root for the best outcome. It’s like we try to will it to happen and we imagine it all happening neat and easily. Like once we drop all this information on him—all the complaints,the documented infractions, the photos we’ve gathered to prove how poor the working conditions are—everyone will see things the way the workers do. And maybe you’re thinking you can change him, the way he sees things. Maybe that’s true.”

It takes deliberate effort to keep a straight face.

“I hope it happens that way.” She wears a sad little smile that practically reads that it’s way more likely to happen the other way. “When we launch this, he might feel very betrayed. Very hurt. We obviously can’t tell him what we’re going to do, so it’s going to feel to him like you lied this whole time, when you two are flirting or whatever. You know him better than I do, so maybe he’s capable of empathizing about it. But a lot of rich, wealthy men are really used to being told they’re always right, no matter what.”

I don’t have to like it, but I know I needed to hear this. “I get it. And I don’t know how he’ll react. I’m sure he’ll be pissed at first, and where it goes from there is a mystery to me.”

“I just want to make sure you’re mentally prepared for anything. Because I can’t have you falling apart when we need to do this media run. There won’t be time for a broken heart. It’s going to be sunrise to sundown, twenty-four seven work and preparation. If we want to succeed. I need you sharp at all times.”

I sit up straighter, giving her a firm nod. “You can count on me. If he doesn’t like it, if he wants to make this uglier than it needs to get, then I’m not the one for him.”

I really don’t want that to be true, but it probably is. Look how upset he got at the break area the other night, the mean things he said. Sure, we were both mad. But what if he brings those kind of outbursts into the public? Before he thinks about it to make a wiser decision?

You can’t control what he’ll do.

“Okay, then.” Campbell starts getting her things together. “We start the blitz on Monday morning. Lawyers are making preparations, doing filings. There’s no going back.” She stops and smiles. “It’ll be fine. I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere. Okay?”

I nod a few times. Even though I know I’m all in on this, I know it’s what’s best for my friends and all their families, it’s still just a lot to take in. I don’t even know if I can truly wrap my head all the way around it.

Monday. Two days.

Everything is going to change, forever.

I wish I could enjoy it with my whole heart. Sure, there would always have been apprehension, there would have always been nerves and doubts. This would be a big enough deal even without knowing what it’s like to sleep with Paxton Briggs.

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