Page 106 of Wishing for La Luna
“I’m all ears.” I’m not going to make this easy for him. He put me in an impossible situation by assigning Thierry to me, knowing the history.
“When we hired you, we knew that you had some celebrity status and connections, but we never expected that would interfere with your ability to perform your job duties.”
Riiiight. That’s why you assigned me to that fuckhead.
“I don’t think it does. I’ve done my job to the best of my ability.”
“You have done a good job thus far. But the way I see it, there’s a clear conflict of interest that impedes you from serving our client, and that’s a real problem because the people we represent pay top dollar for our services, and you are not?—”
His phone rings. He looks at the screen, and his eyebrows shoot up. He holds a finger up as he swipes to answer.
I blow out a quick breath I didn’t realize I was holding.
He nods a few times and shrugs. Then he says, “Got it.”
When he looks up at me, his skin reddens, and his facial features tighten. His hard glare sets off alarm bells, even though I already know the worst is coming.
“I need you to figure out your priorities, Luna. Your personal life cannot interfere with the work we do. It’s not professional, and it’s not fair to our clients. I’m not telling you what to do, but if you want to continue growing with Elevate and reaching your full potential, I suggest you take control of your personal relationships so they don’t bleed into this. In the meantime, I have approved the communications to go out. Take care of it. We’re done here.”
If I want to continue? I’m not fired?
My heart is pounding in my ears, and I’m stunned but not stupid enough to question it. “I will. I do have a request.”
He raises a brow and scoffs. “Youhave a request?”
I’m pushing my luck, but I’m going for broke. “Can you communicate to Thierry, through the official agency channels, that it is not appropriate for him to make comments of a personal or sexual nature about me? I honestly thought that would be part of this conversation.”
He seems taken aback. A couple of seconds tick by, then he nods. “Draft the talking points and send them to me. I will have an in-person conversation with him and follow up in writing. In the meantime, you will continue to represent him.”
I stand and leave. When I get to my office, I close the door and collapse into my chair.
I shoot a text to Maeven.
Me
I don’t know how you did it, but I know you saved my job. Thank you.
Her reply is quick.
Maeven
Don’t do that again. We’ll talk more later.
My hands do not stop shaking as I start sending out replies to the different media outlets. I jump on a couple of phone interviews. As I grab my bag to go, my phone rings.
It’s Bethany Belmont.
I should’ve blocked her number long ago. Everything in me tells me to let it go to voicemail, but I answer anyway.
“Everyone gets a freebie, Luna. That one was yours. I don’t know how you managed to stay employed today, but the next time you bring up that concert business, I’m going to destroy you and your mom. I hope she remembers the NDA she signed.”
All that says to me is that she did her best, but I’m still here. So I lean on that and vent my frustration on her.
“I’m not afraid of you, Bethany,” I say, using her name for the first time. She doesn’t deserve my respect. “I think we both know you have a lot more to lose than we do. An NDA won’t save you once all the dirty shit you do is out and accessible to the world. My mom knows better than anyone but I don’t need her to talk. I can talk about how I was mysteriously drugged after Adina ordered me a drink. I suspect she knows more than she lets on about that. I wonder if Thierry will keep quiet to save her. Also, don’t call me. Thierry is my client. You and your daughter don’t need to communicate with me.”
I hang up and walk out. As I’m in the elevator, I scroll through my text messages. There are several from Mami, Sel, Thierry, and Rio.
Seeing his name makes my stomach burn.
