Hard Bastard(123)
“What’s this have to do with my daughter?”
“I’m getting there. Anyway, I turn this girl down, she goes psycho, the date ends. I figure that was all there was to it.”
I paused and sipped my coffee, letting the suspense build. Cliff kept staring at me.
“Yesterday morning, Jess shows some footage to Aubrie. Apparently, in that footage, I’m flirting with this Misty girl. Somehow, Jess cut up the footage to make it look like I was into that nut job.”
Cliff blinked. “Were you?”
“No. That’s not the fucking point, though, is it?”
After a second, he stood and paced across the room, standing at the window.
“Why would Aubrie care about that?” he asked me.
“That’s what I’m trying to figure out,” I lied. “You heard about the incident with the camera guy?”
He looked at me. “Thanks for that.”
“You’re welcome. But I was thinking about what happened. It was pretty weird that he was the only drunk one out of the whole crew. And how they somehow knew to follow him around, trying to get a good shot.”
Cliff narrowed his eyes. “What are you getting at?”
I leaned back in my chair and sipped my coffee, letting it sink in. “The footage and Aubrie. That Brent guy and Aubrie. It all seems a little weird, doesn’t it?”
“Are you accusing me of something?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not. But I am trying to figure out why Jess is trying to fuck with everything.”
“I don’t like your tone.”
“Of course you don’t,” I sneered. “I’m hitting a little close to home, aren’t I?”
He looked out the window and sighed, putting his hands behind his back. I watched as he stood there for a minute in absolute silence, looking out across the lawn at the scrubby trees lining the property’s edge.
I sipped my coffee, content to wait. This was the important part. Depending on how he reacted, I would either be completely fucked and heading back to jail, or I’d have a chance.
“Do you know why I’ve invested in you, Lincoln?” he finally asked.
“Because I’m talented and rich. Also famous.”
He stared at me. “That’s true. But those aren’t the only reasons.”
“Why don’t you tell me, then?”
“You have something magnetic about you. People want to be around you. That’s a huge part of why you’ve been so successful, despite the fact that your sport isn’t exactly popular.”
“Are you flirting with me?”
He smirked. “Don’t be an asshole. You’re a celebrity. That’s all there is.”
“What does this have to do with your producer being a psycho?”
“You lost something, Lincoln.” He stared down at me. “After that crash, whatever made you magnetic was gone. Like it broke more than just your legs.”
I clenched my jaw. “Maybe being confined in a house with a man I despise doing a documentary I hate is what you’re sensing.”
“Maybe. But I think you lost a step. You used to be Based Carter.”
“I’m still Based Carter, asshole,” I growled.
I knew losing my temper wasn’t the best idea. Cliff held all the cards, had all the power. He could send me to jail if he wanted to. But I wanted nothing more than to slam my fist into his smug fucking face.
“That’s better, but still lacking something.”
“What do you want, Cliff? What’s all this about?”
“Money, you idiot,” he said. “It’s always been about money. You think documentaries pay for all this shit?” He gestured around himself.
I snorted. “No. Never thought that.”
“But you, you have a talent for bringing in money, getting sponsorships. I don’t know if you’ve talked to your business manager lately, but your accident only made you more popular.”
I shrugged, playing it off, but I hadn’t known that. Truthfully, I was hiding away from the world until I got my shit together. I wasn’t interested in doing appearances as the crippled athlete. That wasn’t my style. My business manager’s emails have been sitting in my inbox, unopened and unread.
“I thought I lost something.”
He grinned. “You have. But they don’t know that yet.”
Fucking prick. I wasn’t sure how long I was going to be able to keep looking at his face without hurting him.
“Get to the point. I have therapy soon.”
“I told you to stay away from my daughter,” he said. “But you clearly ignored that.” He moved back over and sat down in his chair, leaning forward. “I don’t give a shit, though, so long as you don’t infect her with your stupidity. But I’m starting to think, maybe you’re distracted?”