Let's Play A Dirty Ass Game, Mr. CEO

Chapter 16: THE SCANDAL

LAURA

The next few seconds happened in a blur. The clickshots stopped abruptly and a small van sped away from the driveway.

"Hey!" Jose immediately sprinted after the vehicle. "Someone stop that car!" But his effort appeared fruitless, because the clickshots had resumed.

I was too disoriented by what just happened to move.

One moment, I was standing inches away from Tristan. And the next, he grabbed me and flung both of us against a black Toyota HiAce, away from view. Then he turned my face into his chest.

I tried to wriggle free, heart pounding hard. But he held me firmly.

"Stay still," he whispered. "Paparazzi in the area."

"Like I don’t know that already!" I spat, frustrated. Because I knew that whatever he was pulling...was medicine after death. The paparazzi already got shots of us, and of course it would be in the most compromising positions together. It was the only plausible explanation for those series of clicks that went off in the driveway only minutes ago.

The parasitic press was onto us. And who knows the rumours they would have circulated around the media already?

It was no surprise because in the world of media, it took seconds to damage reputations.

So what use was this?

I shoved him away and stormed towards my vehicle, where my son was.

"Laura, just think about my offer!" Tristan called after me. "I have a good deal for you!"

Christ! How desperate could he be? If this was a different time and place, I would have gloated about him groveling for an opportunity to work with me. But this was a bad time. A really bad one.

I got into my vehicle and slammed the door shut. Eli, who had been sleeping in the backseat, startled awake.

He frowned when he saw my face. "Mama?"

"Oh, Eli." I reached for him, tears clouding my vision. God, I’d had such a bad day. I couldn’t even return to work in this state. I pulled him into a hug and rocked him back and forth, fighting the tears.

"Mama, I’m sorry I caused trouble at school."

"Shh, it’s not your fault. I’ll find you a better school, okay?"

From the corner of my eye, I saw Tristan cross the street and get into a sleek black vehicle. I watched through the tinted glass until the vehicle vanished, different thoughts clouding my mind.

What was his deal with me exactly? There were so many other fashion brands in New York. Good, solid competitors to my brand. Why did he want to work with me of all people? Was he really looking to start something between us again? What the heck is his problem? He had a fiancée. Even if she was a bitch, he got engaged to her anyway. Should he not be content with his bitch?

I never really got a chance to know Tristan above the intimate level. At some point in time, at a different time and place, I would have believed that intimacy was all the knowledge I needed of him. But I’d quickly discovered how wrong I was. I might have slept with the man, but I did not know him.

And for all I cared, he might just be the devil’s incarnate.

Jose returned minutes later, wearing a dejected expression. "I’m sorry, Ms. Hayes. They got away."

"It’s fine, Jose. Nothing can be done. The damage is done."

"I almost had the bastards. This is purely an invasion of privacy."

"It’s fine, really," I insisted, deeply exhausted to care or give it too much thought. "Just take us home, please. Thank you."

Like I said, the damage was done already. And I could only imagine how deep it would run. For now, all I could do was go home, feed my son, run a warm bath, and sleep it off.

There comes another day for damage control.

°°°

It was the incessant ringing of my phone that roused me from sleep the next morning.

Groaning, I fumbled in the darkness for the phone. I located the power button and silenced the call. But the phone resumed an annoying vibration only seconds later.

"Fuck this," I muttered under my breath, throwing the covers away.

I pulled myself up and snatched the phone from the bedstand. Squinting at the screen, I cursed under my breath.

"Now what the hell could she want at this hour?"

I contemplated ignoring the call and just getting back to sleep—it would not be such a bad idea to stay in bed all day, after all that happened yesterday—but my best friend was not one to give up easily.

So I was forced to take the call anyway. And her terrific voice slammed into the speaker in the next second, knocking out whatever was left of the sleep.

"Laura Hayes, what the hell?!"

I winced and tore my ear away from the phone. "Mara, you do know it’s 6am and a normal human being should still be in bed?"

"Oh there’s no way you’re getting anymore sleep, Sleeping beauty. What the hell were you thinking meeting with Tristan Pierce, and in public of all places?! Did you forget the ordeal he put you through already? I knew those hormones would get you in trouble sooner than later!"

"Whatever are you on about?" I sighed, rubbing my throbbing temples. "I did not meet with him. We just ran into each other."

"Oh, really?" She scoffed. "Well the blogs of New York do not think the same, Laura! Because pictures of the two of you in compromising positions are all over the internet!"

"What?"

I pulled myself from the bed, heart racing. What did I expect?

"Mara...how bad is it?"

She heaved a deep sigh and for once, her voice did not go above a ridiculous level. "It’s bad, Laura. Whoever took those shots is fucking good at their job. People are saying a fucking load of things on the internet. It’s not good, not one bit. You looked so doe-eyed in all those pictures, like you wanted him to fuck you."

Oh, Christ.

The damage was worse than I imagined.

"Why did you not walk away when you ran into him?"

I paused, thinking about the question. Because I couldn’t understand it myself. This could have been avoided. "It’s complicated, Mara."

"Like hell it is."

"Listen, I’ll talk to you later. I’ve gotta run."

"You better not do anything foolish, Laura—"

I dropped the line before she could say anything further. Then I put a call through to Eli’s nanny and hurried into the bathroom.

I had to get to the office as soon as possible, else everything I’d struggled to build in the past five years would come crashing down in just a matter of hours.