My Best Friend's Brother(30)

     



 


I shivered at the thought of it all as I threw open the studio doors.


"Hey there, lover girl," the security guard said.


"He-hi?" I asked.


"Way to go, Sarah!" someone called out.


"Thanks?"


"Here comes the hottie train, pulling into the station!"


I looked down at my clothes and wondered what the fuck was going on.  Everyone in the studio was giving me these looks. Raking their eyes up  and down my body while some people slapped me with high fives. I wasn't  wearing anything outstanding. If anything, I'd slept in too late and had  to bring my outfit with me. I put my sunglasses on top of my head and  walked around, seeing everyone eyeing me and gossiping with other  people.


Maybe someone had taken pictures of the three of us out Wednesday night.


I didn't know how that would spark some of the comments being thrown my way, but it was the only thing I could think of.


I walked into my dressing room and dumped everything onto the couch. I  tossed my sunglasses down onto the coffee table before I took a good  look at myself in the mirror. I looked refreshed, especially after the  wonderful fuck I had a couple days ago. I planned on having many more  this weekend before I came back to work on Monday.


It seemed that Mason Baker was good for my skin.


A rapid-fire knock came at the door, and I opened it up. My boss was  smiling at me, his cheeks reddened from the exertion as he leaned up  against my door.


"Took my advice, I see," he said.


"What are you talking about?" I asked.


"The advice about Mason. That's why your dressing room smelled the way  it did after the two of you left here last week, wasn't it?"


I felt myself grow weak in my knees. My eyes rose to a bunch of people  huddled around a computer, and I ran toward all of them. I pushed them  out of the way, earning comments and grumbles as I pushed some of them  to the floor. Then, as my eyes settled on the screen, my heart fell to  my toes.


There was that damn picture of Mason and I almost kissing at his fucking car after lunch that day.


"How the hell did that man still have that picture?" I asked breathlessly.


"Way to go, Sarah. You snagged a good one. People are going to be tuning in for fucking weeks," my boss said.


"Get it, Sarah. Only you could snag that type of playboy and put him in his place," someone said.


"No, no, no, no. You don't get it. This is bad. Very, very bad," I said.


"Probably not the best publicity, no. People on Twitter are already  ripping you to shreds, calling you a hypocrite and mess. But, you've  grown your followers by five-hundred thousand since this picture landed  this morning."


"This morning?" I asked.


"I can't wait to see the ratings after this interview today," my boss said.


"Do you care about anything else?" I asked. "I worked my ass off to gain  the reputation I had, and now it's all been shot to shit, and all you  care about is how many people tune in?"


"Sarah, people tuning in is why you have a job. Scandal always draws in  more viewers. If you want, you can make a formal statement, get all over  your social media and spin it the way you spun your ex-boyfriend shit a  month ago. It'll be fine. You'll bounce back. You always do," my boss  said.


I had no idea what to do. If this picture dropped this morning, Emma had  already seen it. She may not tune into the show, but she was a pop  culture junkie. This was going to be everywhere, and it was going to  anger her in ways I'd never seen before.


Holy fuck, I was going to kill Mason.


"Hey, listen. I gotta get back to my office," my boss said. "The media  frenzy is stifling. Prepare a formal statement if you want to, but start  getting ready for your interview. I have a feeling the person's gonna  want to interview early and get out of here. Paparazzi and news stations  are gathering outside."


"Are you fucking kidding me?" I asked, groaning.


I went back into my office and immediately called Mason. He picked up  before the first ring was even through, and I didn't even give him a  chance to speak.


"This is exactly why I didn't want to do this bullshit with you," I said.


"How the fuck did that guy still have that photo?" he asked.


"I don't know. You tell me."


"What the hell does that mean?" he asked.


"It's been painfully obvious that you wanted to leak this to the media. I  saw your face when we destroyed that SIM card. You didn't want to do  it. I knew that look. You wanted to be seen with a powerful woman like  me, so you could rehabilitate your image or look like a bigger playboy  for bringing down the girl with morals or some shit."         

     



 


"I don't know what the hell kind of shit you're talking, but that's not  the case. And anyway, if I wanted to date a woman with influence, I'd  pick one who was known outside of her own fucking home state."


"We're not dating, Mason. We never were!" I exclaimed.


"Listen, I'm dealing with a media frenzy right now-"


"Oh, and I'm not? Look at me, I'm Mason Baker, I have a dick, so the media only wants me?"


"Sarah, take a deep breath-"


"I'm done taking deep breaths with you," I said. "This is what I was  talking about. They're slaughtering me all over social media for  abandoning my morals and sinking to the low of dating you, and I  guarantee you they'll do nothing but pump up your image. And it'll be  because I'm the one in that picture. Let's get that straight right  fucking now."


"Why the hell are you so mad at me?" he asked. "I'm not the one who leaked the photo."


"I don't fucking believe you, but even if I did, you're the one who  wouldn't stop, who wouldn't take no for an answer. You were the one who  got my assistant fired by lying to her to get my information. You were  the one who sent my boss shit, so you could get into this studio. You  used your influence and your money and your power and your name to get  close to me when I told you no time and time again. This is all on you!"


"Then take responsibility for finally caving on your morals and saying  yes, Sarah Williams. You didn't have to say yes. You could've blocked my  number and had me escorted off the premises of your studio, but you  didn't. You could've kicked me out of your dressing room, but instead,  you spread those beautiful thighs for me and allowed me to do what we  both wanted."


"You're a disgusting pig," I said.


"And you're a misguided little girl."


"I have to go," I said.


"Why?" he asked.


"Because I hate you, and I have to call Emma."


"Sarah, wait."


"What? You gonna call me a scared little bitch for listening to what you have to say?" I asked.


"I like spending time with you."


"Shut the fuck up."


"I like seeing you, Sarah."


"I'm hanging up now, Mason."


"I enjoy every second we spend together, and I need you to understand  that. I didn't leak this photo, and you're right. My reputation will  skyrocket because it's you, and yours will drop because it's me. I get  that."


"I can't handle you anymore. Please go away."


I hung up the phone as tears poured down my face. My life was falling  apart. One stupid little word and my entire reputation was tarnished.  Emma was going to hate me, and I had no idea how I was going to fix that  friendship. My boss was all over us dating, and I had no idea how I was  going to get it through to him that we were never dating. I sniffled,  wiping the tears from my cheeks as a knock came at my door.


And when I opened it up, my boss was standing there with a smile on his face.


"Can I come in?"


"No. And for once, you better listen."


"Fine, but we do need to talk," he said.


"About what?" I asked.


"Our interview today does want to go early, so we had the station  announce it. They've pushed the lunchtime talk show back an hour, and  they're filling it with your interview."


"What?" I asked.


"You need to get ready. You're live during the most high-traffic hour of  the day. And it's all thanks to that strategically-leaked photo of you  and Mason."


"Not because of my hard work, my dedication, and my purpose?" I asked.


"Sarah, get over it. You're a talk show host in Dallas, Texas. And a  woman. This is how women rise the ranks. Scandal. Get over it, get  ready, and get out there. Get us the ratings we need to put this show  where we all know it needs to be."


Any little string of hope I clung to snapped at that moment. He was  right. I was never going to climb to where I wanted to be without  linking myself with powerful men. I had elevated myself as far as I was  going to go on my own, and it was going to take a man on my arm that the  public wanted to digest fully for me to go any further.


"I'm not happy about this," I said.