THE PUBLICIST

PENELOPE

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“Here is where you’ll be free to bring your staff to the property for onsite staff meetings whenever necessary.” Leo Dalton showed me into a massive meeting space that was at least three times the size of our entire firm. “If you follow me across the hall, I’ll show you our world class spa and fitness facility that you’ll be free to use whenever you’re here as well.”

I smiled and tried my best to look like I was giving him my full attention, but all I could think about was Ryan. How when I first stepped into his office, I had to completely resist the urge to tell him to take me against his desk and fuck me again. How my panties were instantly wet the second his dimples gave way with his smile.

How his jaw clenched when he realized I was going to reject his offer ...

Despite the fact that the man was practically walking sex, his contract was nothing but red flags from the very first page. I knew the moment I read over it last night that there was no way I could agree to it. Three million on the line or not.

“Do you have any questions for me, Miss Lauren?” Leo led me onto the elevator.

“Not at the moment,” I said. “I really appreciate the tour.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” He took off his reading glasses and let out a breath. “I have to be honest with you for a minute, Miss Lauren. I didn’t have much faith in a small firm handling Ryan well, and I figured you’d be out the door within minutes of meeting him. But before I walked in on you two, I’d called around this city to get references from both your current and former clients. They all had nothing but great things to say, and a couple of your former ones even admitted that they regretted leaving you.” He paused. “That said, I’m assuming you’re looking to become a larger, full service firm in the future?”

“Yes, definitely.”

“Good.” He led me off the elevator and into the glittering lobby. Then he glanced at his phone. “I tell you what, Miss Lauren. I’ll draw up exactly what me and the board are going to need to see from Ryan over the next ninety days, and then I’ll send a temporary contract to you tonight. You can email and call me with your concerns at any time, but I’ll need an answer about the job in a week. Fair?”

“Almost,” I said honestly. “If you’re going to insist on a temporary contract, we need to renegotiate the financial terms for tax purposes. He already paid us for the year, which I’ll happily refund. I just don’t want to keep more than what you’re willing to pay for a shorter time.”

“How much has he paid you?”

“Three million.”

“That’s it?” He looked offended. “We’ve spent more than that killing negative press. I’ll double that for the ninety days.”

“What?” I was certain I misheard him.

“I’ll double it.” He smiled. “I’ll be sure to get the first draft of the contract to you tonight. My apologies for not being able to sit down with you anymore. I have to go put out another fire.”

“I understand.” I shook his hand. “Thank you for the tour, Mr. Dalton.”

“I’ll accept your ‘thank you’ after you accept my offer.” He laughed and returned to the elevator.

When the doors opened, Ryan stepped off and immediately stopped walking when his beautiful eyes met mine. I tried to turn away from him and rush out of the building, but I couldn’t will my feet to move.

He made his way over to me, giving me a look that made me wet all over again. “I would say that I look forward to potentially working with you, Miss Lauren,” he said, “but that would be a goddamn lie.”

“I feel the same, Mr. Dalton.” I ignored my frantic heartbeat. “I can admit that it was a pleasure seeing you again, though.”

“It was a pleasure seeing you underneath me two nights ago,” he said, his voice low. “It’ll only be a ‘pleasure’ for me if that happens again.”

“I can promise it won’t.”

“Then that’s too bad,” he said. “Because once again, I think you’re lying to me. This time it’s about not receiving my note.” He leaned forward and whispered in my ear. “I’d be more than happy to leave you another one ...”

I stepped back once I realized I was on the verge of giving in to him again. “I hope you find whatever person you keep talking about, Mr. Dalton. Have a great day.” I turned away and rushed out of the lobby before he could respond, realizing that new terms or not, the tension between us was going to make this job more than impossible.

***

Later that night, I sat on my couch with a glass of wine in hand—reading over the new terms for the umpteenth time.

The board of Dalton International Estates & Realty only want me to complete three main things over the next ninety days: 1) A successful press tour for Ryan without incident, “since he’s the face of our company and everyone loves a ‘changed man’ story.” 2) A strategic and public reveal about his private charity donations as, “Behavior aside, Mr. Dalton has donated over three hundred million dollars to various charities he holds dear over the past few years.” 3) An “atonement style interview” with one of the anchors at RMC-TV for “an incident that was thankfully never seen or revealed to the public, but an incident that has caused a huge strain between our company and one of our lead suppliers.”

I was certain I could get Ryan through a successful press tour, even more certain that I could make sure every person in this city swooned over his impressive charity record, but I was confused about the “atonement style interview.”

I’d asked every person on my team to see if they could find out more about the “incident,” but they’d all come back to me with nothing but confusion.

Curious, I sent Leo an email.

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Subject: Atonement Interview

Good evening, Mr. Dalton,

I’ve read over the contract thoroughly and am close to making a decision, but would you mind giving me a bit more information on the incident you want Ryan to be forgiven for? I was unable to find any information on this.

—Penelope

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His response was immediate.

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Subject: Re: Atonement Interview

Penelope,

See the attached video and promptly delete it after viewing.

—Leo Dalton

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I clicked on the video and saw a grainy image of Ryan standing in a green room. He was attaching a wired mic to his suit jacket, smiling as a female producer handed him a stack of notecards.

For three straight minutes, he simply nodded his head as the producer went over a few facts with him.

I was about to ask Leo if he’d sent me the wrong video, but in the final thirty seconds of the clip, a man in a blue suit entered the room. He extended his hand for a handshake, but Ryan simply stared at him.

Then he punched him in the face.

The tape ended as the man in the blue suit fell to the ground, and Leo sent me another email.

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Subject: Re: Re: Atonement Interview

Penelope,

The man Ryan assaulted (i.e. the TV host who was supposed to interview him that day) is the son of AJ Aguirre, the CEO of Aguirre Bedding. They supply all our linens at every international property, and we begin negotiations for a renewal term soon. So, surely you can understand why Ryan apologizing for what he did is key to defrosting our relationship with Aguirre.

Let me know if you need anything else,

—Leo

I watched the video a few more times and did a quick info search on AJ Aguirre and his son. Then I looked over the final clauses in the contract once more, confirming that most of the terms were in my firm’s favor.

“I don’t understand why this is such a hard decision for you, Pen.” Sean plopped down on the chair across from me. “They’re offering to pay you double for half the work in half the time, all for one client. What part do you really need to think about?”

“The part where I’ve previously slept with this one client and there’s an automatic termination clause in the contract for any fraternization.”

“You only have to worry about that if you plan on sleeping with him again, and your first time together doesn’t count.” He set his beer on the table. “You don’t want to sleep with him again, right?”

“Right.” The lie rushed out of my mouth.

“Well, problem solved. Besides, I highly doubt Ryan Dalton would continue to bring up the fact that you’ve had sex while you’re working for him. Hell, given the fact that he really needs good PR right now, I’m willing to bet he’ll be a complete professional.”

I poured myself another glass of wine and steered clear of that line of conversation. “You know, the terms of this contract are more than amazing, and six million is more than enough to keep my firm afloat for a long time. And with the money, I can even hire a few part time assistants and outsource some much-needed research help for any incoming clients.”

“Six million will also allow you to buy me a much-deserved Tesla for Christmas, so thank you in advance.” He joked, but then his tone changed completely. “It would also help you get rid of a certain someone sooner rather than later.”

“Huh? A certain someone?” I shrugged. “Who are you talking about?”

“Did the two of you wipe off the bottom of your shoes before coming into the living room today?” Sarah stared at Sean with a panicked look on her face, wielding a tube of wipes.

“Yes.” Sean uncapped another beer. “I’m pretty sure I did that, Sarah. I also sanitized my hands before grabbing my beers from the fridge and wiped down every surface I touched in the kitchen. Would you like me to start taking showers in your guest bathroom before sitting on the furniture as well?”

“Would you really do that?” She smiled. “That’s amazing and so very thoughtful of you.”

Sean shot me a “What the hell?” look and I immediately emailed Leo.

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Subject: Client Representation Offer

Mr. Dalton,

I happily accept the terms of your offer and I can start ASAP.

Penelope Lauren