Page 20 of The One I Love

“A lot of guys did stuff like that back then. It was college, Eve.”

His dismissive tone set her teeth on edge. “You recorded me—us—in an intimate act, without my consent. Why?”

“You’d have said no.”

“Let me make sure I have this right.” Eve kept her tone even. “You recorded me without my consent because you knew I’d say no if you asked, and then you put the video on the internet because you were angry that I didn’t want to date you again. Is that correct?”

“Yes, but—”

“Recording someone having sex, without their knowledge, is a criminal act,” Eve reminded him. “If my attorneys haven’t already contacted you—”

“They have. That’s what I wanted to speak with you about.” His voice took on an urgency. “If you could see your way to getting your attorneys to stand down, I’d appreciate it. Hey, it’s not like you haven’t profited from the notoriety. In some ways, I probably did you a favor—”

“You recorded me without my knowledge.” Her voice rose. “You put a sex tape of us on the internet.”

“Think about what this will do to me, Eve, if your attorneys persist. Remember the good times we shared. All I’m asking is that you help me out a little here.”

“I have nothing more to say to you. Any further contact should go through my attorney.” Eve disconnected the call and blocked his number.

* * *

Despite the disturbing phone call from Jason, which she notified the family’s general counsel about immediately, Eve continued to press forward with her life.

She met with her management team via Zoom, did live makeup presentations and posted on social media the same way she had before her world had blown up.

For her cosmetics line, Eve handled the PR herself, but Britt, who had more experience with crisis PR, had helped her come up with a strategy for dealing with the video.

The number of followers and fans on all her social media channels continued to soar. Though she only skimmed the comments, haters were outnumbered by a margin of two to one, for now anyway.

Eve found herself touched by some of the posts her assistants brought to her attention, encouraging posts made by other women who’d gone through something similar. While her heart ached for what they’d gone through, she admired their strength and courage.

Weeks earlier, before the sex tape had surfaced, she’d agreed to be featured onGood Morning Denver, where she would talk about the upcoming launch of her cosmetics line and her success with building an online presence.

Eve had seriously considered canceling her appearance on the popular morning program. But, as each day passed, the support she received from Anson and her family strengthened her.

The night before Eve’s appearance on the show, Britt showed up at her door with a bottle of wine.

“Britt.” Eve opened the door wide. “This is a nice surprise.”

“I figure just because you’re hiding out from the world doesn’t mean you have to hide out alone.”

Eve inclined her head, not sure where Britt was going with this.

“We’ve got Netflix, wine and each other.” Britt flashed a familiar sunny smile. “Sounds to me like a recipe for a perfect evening.”

“Did JR send you down here?”

“I told him I was coming down, but it was my idea, not his.” Surprise mixed with hurt in Britt’s violet eyes. “I thought we were friends.”

“We are.” Eve looped her arm through Britt’s. “I’m glad you’re here.”

Over the course of the evening, she and Britt drank wine and talked about everything except business while bingeing three episodes of a new drama series. Any mention of her morning-show appearance didn’t come up until the third episode had concluded. And it wasn’t Britt who brought it up, but Eve.

“I hope my appearance onGood Morning Denvertomorrow goes well.” Eve had grown up in the media spotlight, but the incident with Jason had left her unsettled.

“You’ll do great.” Britt took a sip of wine. “Who’s going with you?”

“No one. I’m going alone.”

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