Page 38 of All the Right Words
‘I know the one. I’ve always walked past. I’ve been missing out,’ Harper said, slurping away.
‘I think your recent adventures with porcelain might be heightening your taste buds,’ Gina told her. ‘You’ve probably never been this empty in your life.’
‘You might have a point,’ Harper said, spooning more soup into her mouth. She finished it in record time. Then she saw the empty container on the counter. ‘Oh! I should have left some for you!’
‘Don’t worry. I’ve got food at home. Speaking of which, I should probably head there now,’ she said.
‘Oh yes, of course. It was so nice of you to come and help me out like this.’
‘No drama,’ Gina told her. But of course, that was a lie. This was big drama. The biggest. If she let it be. Which she wouldn’t. She would leave, she would forget this, she would carry on. And one day, she’d see Harper with Olivia and feel nothing. But that began with leaving this place and never crossing a boundary into the personal with Harper ever again.
As Harper led her out, Gina told herself moving on was possible. She even believed it. But at the door, the whole thing fell apart when Harper said, ‘Oh, by the way, I’ve got this author having a few problems with his romance novel. I wondered if there was any chance you could meet with him?’
Gina was shocked, pleased, and then horrified. ‘Oh. Well, I don’t know. I mean, once was… I’m busy at work with, you know, everything.’
‘Yes, I realise I can’t keep taking you away from your real job. So I wondered if we could arrange something for a weekend? I would pay for the time.’
‘Money? How much?’ Gina was unable to stop herself from asking.
Harper said a number that was roughly a week’s pay for an afternoon. ‘I see,’ Gina said, trying to sound like it was no big deal.
‘Actually, I was hoping that if it works out, we could make it a regular thing. I’ve got plenty of authors who need a nudge now and again. After the magic you worked on Brenda, I suspect you might have the skill to fix all kinds of problems,’ Harper said hopefully.
Gina was flabbergasted. That Harper thought she was some kind of author-whisperer was enormously flattering. But developing a professional relationship outside of what they already had, wasn’t that precisely what she’d just been telling herself she shouldn’t do? She was trying to stay away from this woman as much as her life would currently allow. She should just say thanks, but no thanks.
‘I guess I could just meet with the guy and see if it helps. But I can’t make any promises,’ Gina said.
Wait,what?!
Harper looked delighted. ‘Fantastic.’
Gina was furious with herself. She supposed her ego had gotten the better of her. How weak she was, how easily bought. Pay her a compliment and a reasonable cash sum, and she was anyone's. Well, Harper’s.
But she had to admit that she liked how happy Harper looked right now. Maybe even more than the money.
‘This guy, he’s not like Brenda. He’s still green, only on his second book,’ Harper said. ‘I don’t want to see him burn out because he gets it into his head that he’s only got one book in him. I’ve seen it happen before.’
‘Me too,’ Gina said dryly.
Harper’s smile dropped. ‘Is that why you don’t write? Because you think there’s only one book in you?’
It had been a throwaway joke, and Gina was not expecting follow up questions. ‘I guess we’ll never know,’ she said vaguely. Gina thought that was sufficient to get the subject dropped but Harper gave her an earnest look with those big eyes, and Gina knew she was far from off the hook. ‘It’s a shame. Your first book was a cracker.’
Gina looked away. ‘Mmm,’ she mumbled. If she blushed right now, she was gonna break shit. ‘Well, not good enough.’
‘You practically got to the finish line. Do you know how many authors get that far? Almost none.’
Gina managed to wrestle her gaze back to meet Harper. It was tough now she had realised how hot she was. Harper was drenched in sweat, and it didn’t take a thing away from her. ‘There are no second prizes in publishing. You get to print, or you don’t.’
‘Look, I don’t know the specifics of what went down, but it wasn’t on the book's strength. I can guarantee that. I think it could still go the distance.’
‘No, it can’t because I quit trying. I’m over it,’ Gina said. ‘Right, you good? Because I have to go,’ she said. She didn’t mean it to sound harsh but there was no denying that it did. Harper didn’t seem to notice. She was probably glad to be rid of her so she could go and rest after what must have been quite a taxing afternoon.
‘Of course. I’ll be in touch about my author.’
‘Great,’ Gina said and turned away, heading down the hall to the lift. She used her time waiting for the lift to list her mistakes in order of occurrence. The first one had been to go to come here at all. The last mistake? Gina had a feeling she’d yet to make it.
Twenty-Four
