AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"No, and you cannot either. I made a promise to protect her, and I have already told you too much already. You cannot ever tell anyone what I told you. You must promise me."
"Yes, of course," I say quickly. "But what about the rights?"
"There are some things in life that are more important than the rights to a book. I am not going to jeopardize her life because of my sentimental childhood. I am sorry that it has come to this, but it is something I have to do."
"It is somethingwehave to do. We are in this together now, and I stand by you, Logan."
Logan takes another deep breath. "Thank you. Well, shall we face the firing squad?"
"Yes, together."
"Together," repeats Logan.
He holds out his hand, and I take it. We go into the building together and hold hands all the way up in the elevator. It feels a little weird, but it is good too. We are not a couple, but we are now intertwined in many ways. When the elevator door opens, we let go of each other. We walk the short distance to the office door and knock.
A moment later, a suit answers, and we are shepherded inside. We take our seats opposite Charlie who has three suits with her this time. Last time, it was only one, and I know that is bad news for us.
"Teal, Logan, thank you for coming on such short notice. I am sure you know why I called the two of you in here today."
"You read the article," says Logan.
"Yes, I did. Now, I love what the two of you have done. You are offering me everything I have ever wanted for this book. The money is fair, and there is no one I love working with more than Teal, especially now that she is working with you and not for your rival. However, you must understand that I cannot have my name associated with such a thing."
"But—" I start.
Logan takes a hold of my arm and stops me. "I understand. Is there anything we can say or do to make you reconsider?"
"You can tell me that you did not force a woman to get an abortion."
"I cannot tell you that," Logan says.
"It is complicated," I say. "I have read the article, but I know the man Logan is, and I know we can work out a deal."
"I do not doubt any of that, but it does not matter what I think. It only matters what the public thinks. If I work with you with this article out there, it will not look good for me."
"It is a sound business decision," Logan admits. "Even if we did work together, it would not end well with the publicity I have gotten."
"It was Good Relations who leaked the article!" I snapped. "They hate that I left, and we were close to a deal which is why they wanted to sabotage that."
"Do you have proof that they did?" Charlie asks.
"No, but—"
"We do not," interrupts Logan.
"Please don't work with them," I counter. "I know it sounds like a parting shot, but if they leaked a story about Logan, they can't be trusted."
"I do not take any decision lightly. I will work with the company that is best for my book. I am sorry that it did not work out between us. I really was looking forward to working with the two of you. If there is anything you can say to change my mind, please say it now."
I look at Logan. He has something to say… I just know he does.
"I am sorry too," Logan says.
I am speechless. I know we have done the right thing, but there must be a way to salvage the deal. I am in a daze as we stand up. I remember shaking Charlie's hand, but it feels like I am in a dream. Logan places a hand on my back, and I am led out of the room and back to the elevator.
I want to cry, but I am too dumbfounded to do so.
"We did not get this book, but there will be others," Logan says. "I still want you to lead this company, and I expect us to get to work tomorrow."
