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"I like to keep my feedback to myself."
I smile. "So, what is going on with you and Charlie Morton?"
"Have you been thinking about the two of us a lot? Does that get you off?"
How did I manage to spend a night with this woman? The more she speaks, the more infuriating she gets. Would it kill her to give me one straight answer? I do not respond this time, hoping it pushes her to say something helpful and it eventually works.
"I've been spending a lot of time with Charlie recently, and yes, I know that is a little manipulative. However, Good Relations pays me to go on business meetings with her which mostly means we go for dinner and drinks."
"So, you are dating her, but she does not know she is being manipulated."
"She's not so naive, Logan. She knows what she's doing. She loves the attention, and Good Relations gets what they want. It's a win-win, and I get promoted in five years to a position that actually matters. And it's kind of fun for me too…"
"You believe that Good Relations is going to pull this off?"
"I do, and I will have you know that the time spent with Charlie is well spent. She is honest with me about what she wants, and I pass that on to my boss. The people at my company are not idiots. What did you think about the TV streaming idea?"
"It is a lot better than three trilogies! Listen, I do not want to worry you, but Good Relations does not have the money to compete. They are banking on you being enough, but they are so far down the pecking order that Charlie Morton cannot even see them. You are right; she is not naive and knows exactly what she is doing. There are far more lucrative offers out there, and she will jump on one of them, no matter how cute you are. When she does, who do you think will get the blame?"
Teal takes a second before saying, "Me? So, what is this? You want to swoop in and save me again because I am some helpless woman? You might have money, but no man in there has what I have with Charlie."
"Yeah, she has taken a liking to you," I admit.
"Because I am so cute and sexy. You said it yourself!"
I sigh. "I do believe she wants to keep the integrity of the work, but no publishing company is going to give her creative control with the money they are throwing around."
"They are not all white knights like you, right?" Teal teases.
"Do you ever give it a rest?" I ask.
"I might if you were not so un-fun to be around."
"Well, be thankful that we do not have to be around each other."
"Oh, I amverythankful for that."
I shake my head. "Fuck!"
"What? Right here? Dare we be so brazen?"
I rub my eyes with my palms. "Charlie Morton has always said she doesn't want to work with the big guys, right?"
"Yeah."
"And that is why she has stuck with Good Relations—they are big, but they are not one of the big guys. Did you take a look around the room when you were in there?"
"No."
"It wasallthe big hitters. None of the indie publishing companies were in there—none of the smaller ones. If Charlie wanted to stick with the small guy, she would have done it by now. No, she wants a big payday for this one. She wants the money, and Good Relations cannot give that."
"Do you think Good Relations is a small company?"
"A small fish compared to the sharks in there."
"But I have a connection with her."
I feel sorry for Teal. "And she enjoys stringing you along. She gets everything. Hell, maybe she thinks the two of you really have something. This is a mess."
