Page 102 of I'm Looking for a Man in Finance
Hallie:
This isn’t what it looks like. They changed my article. They changed nearly everything I wrote. Please call me back so I can explain.
All the pressure building behind the dam in my heart finally broke, pouring despair and sadness out of the hole that was left in its place. My finger hovered over the send button, the text feeling like a futile attempt to reach him. But I still pressed down on my screen and watched the message appear in a blue bubble in our chat.
The seconds felt like hours as I anxiously waited for a response from James. Each passing moment only intensified my fear that he would never understand the truth. My mind raced with countless scenarios, all ending in disappointment and rejection.
I waited for the status under the text message to change from “Delivered” to “Read”, but my hopes washed away on a river of grief as the seconds turned to minutes with no reply from James. I felt completely useless, a sense of helplessness washing over me as everything good in my life disappeared.
“He hasn’t even opened it.” I held my phone up hopelessly to Roxie before I tossed it to the side. “I think that says everything about what he thinks of the article.”
“But you didn’t write it!” Roxie exclaimed. “You said it yourself; almost everything was altered.”
“It’s still a betrayal. His family was relying on this article as the first of many for their restaurant. They had been so excited about the attention it could bring to the pizzeria. James cares more than anything about his family. This probably felt like an attack on that.”
“But the article took out the pizzeria’s name, right?”
I nodded. “Thankfully, or I don’t even know what I’d do. If they’d left it in, not only would it have sent my relationship with James up in flames but it could have takendown a generations-old restaurant that had nothing to do with this, as well.”
“Maybe he just needs a bit to cool down?” Roxie suggested. “That man is head over heels for you. And the two of you are dating, right? He’ll call you back. I’m sure at the very least he’d want an explanation of what happened.”
“He’s not the only one who wants to know what happened,” I told her. If it weren’t nearly nine at night, I would have been on the first train headed toward Midtown, hoping Anthea would still be there. But I knew that, despite Anthea’s workaholic personality, she would be long gone from the office. “But if we’re being honest here, I’m not sure what exactly me and James are.”
“Didn’t he say that he wanted to date you?” Roxie asked me.
“Yes, kind of, but we never had the exclusivity conversation.” It was a topic that had weighed heavily on my mind since I left James’s brownstone Saturday evening. Things felt like they were heating up between the two of us. Yet I was in the dark on where any of it was heading.
“Well, we know one thing for certain,” Roxie said as she reached over to take my hands in hers. She was a master at switching the conversation when she realized I was uncomfortable. “We need to figure out what happened with this article. We need a game plan for you when you go into the office and talk to Anthea.”
“I’m going to need more than just a plan when I talk to Anthea,” I mumbled.
“What do you mean?” Roxie asked.
“Well, when we consider who my editor is and who gets the last say on the article, all roads lead to her.” Therewas no other way around the situation I was in. My boss had gone behind my back and changed an article with no discussion or input.
Realization dawned once more on Roxie’s face. “Oh, no,” she whispered.
“My thoughts exactly,” I agreed.
“What are you going to do?” Roxie asked, her eyes widening with concern. I took a deep breath, considering the options before me. Confronting Anthea directly seemed like the obvious choice, but I knew it wouldn’t be that simple. Anthea was known for her stubbornness and superiority complex. If I approached her with accusations, it could only lead to more conflict.
“This is the final straw,” I said, my voice filled with finality. “I’ve been putting up with everything Anthea has thrown at me to get this food critic position, but she went too far with this. She’s never changed anything I’ve done before. I do not know why she has now. I’m not sure any of this is worth it anymore.”
Roxie wrapped me in a hug. “Just say the word and we’ll start the blog and we’ll do this together. I’m ready whenever you are.”
I was ready, this was it for me. But first, I had business to take care of. If there was any chance of saving whatever was left of my relationship with James, I had to confront Anthea.
