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He gets up from his chair, shuffling his feet and leaning on the edge of the desk in front of me. "Nothing, I'd just hate to see you end up attached to someone who has no intention of being with you. Someone like you deserves a man who's going to hold you in the highest regard."
I bite my tongue just so I don't curse him the hell out. Who the hell does he think he is? Quietly, I stand making sure to clutch my article in my hand. "You know what, I think I might need to add a few more things to the article. Then I'll get it right back to you."
His body goes rigid and he blinks a few times, "Ella I hope you're not taking this to heart. I'm only looking out for your wellbeing."
My wellbeing my ass. All Sam cares about is the bottom line which is why I know right now he's trying to find a way to get me to commit this piece to his paper. I don't want to toot my own horn, but this article could be worth loads of money. It could put this dingy tabloid on the map. All in all an article like this is a game changer. I don't think I want to help the likes of him into becoming a bigger success than he is at the moment. I want to be a renowned journalist, but not via the likes of a man like Sam.
"Of course I know. I just want to make sure it's absolutely perfect before I submit. You understand." I nod my head and so does Sam.
"Yeah, well go on. Get back in the pit and finish it up." Sam dismisses me and I quickly turn on my heel, walking out the door. My heart hammers away in my chest and I grind my teeth together as I make my way back to my area.
I can't believe Sam would have the nerve to try and push his nose in my love life. So what if I'm falling for a man who clearly isn't part of my world. Hell, I'm not even in the same solar system as Percy Snow. The time we’d spent at the charity event showed me just that. Camile might be a bitch, but it's not like she's completely wrong about things. It does seem like a bit of a charity for Percy to even be sharing parts of his life with me.
"No! Percy's not like that." I admonish myself as I walk over to my desk and drop my bag on the table top. I wish I could say for sure that Percy isn't embarrassed by the likes of me at all, but I had heard what was going on at his parents house. I know who he's expected to be with and I'm not it.
The smell of sugar and dough wafts through the air smacking me out of my pity party.
That's exactly what I need right now, a donut. Nothing beats back the blues like sugar and butter.
Following my nose towards the break room I walk in on Larry and another woman I don't think I've ever met talking near the water cooler. LArry's eyes light up when he sees me.
"Ella! What are you doing here? I feel like I haven't seen you in ages.” He outstretches his arms and pulls me into a hug. Not like he hasn't hugged me before, but this seems a bit forced. Were they talking about me before I walked in? Did everyone know about Percy and I's relationship? I know we haven't made it official in the eyes of the world. Though if we go out to charity events and such, of course people would start to assume.
"Uh, I just came to show Sam what I'd been working on, but I don't think it's ready." I shrug and peel myself out of his grip.
"Oh yeah? What have you been working on? Is it juicy?" He asks, completely ignoring the woman standing in the room with us. Instead he focuses on me licking his lips and waiting for me to spill about what I'm writing.
"Not really." Red flags start flying in my mind as I look into the man’s slightly crazed eyes. My attention jumps to the woman behind him and I see her staring at him as if she's concerned as well. At least it's not just me who thinks Larry is being creepy as fuck. "Hey, sorry. I'm so rude." I push my way by Larry and walk over to the woman. Hopefully he catches the hint and cools down.
"No worries, seems like you had some things to catch up on. I'm Ursula Winthrop."
"Winthrop?" The name sounds incredibly familiar. Like a lightbulb switching on, I remember where I've seen that name before.
"Oh my God! You're not the same Ursula Winthrop who broke that story in Florida are you? The one about the politicians manipulating the power grid in lower income neighborhoods?" When she nods my eyes nearly pop out of my head.
"Yeah, that's me." She smirks, but she doesn't seem very happy about being known.
"Wow, it's nice to meet you. I'm Ella."
"Nice to meet you. I'm happy to see more women here." She huffs out a soft sigh before she turns back to her coffee and picks up the cup.
"Yeah, it's a nice mix here. Ursula, I'm not trying to pry ... well hell, I'm a reporter of course I'm trying to pry. But what are you doing here? I'd think with a story as large as that one you'd be at a much better paper or even on televised news reports."
"Humph." She rolls her eyes and flexes her fingers around her coffee cup. "Absolutely not. The thing most people don't tell you after you drop a world stopping article in everyone's lap is that not everyone wants to hear the truth. After I released that article nobody wanted to work with me. I'm pretty sure it was the politicians that had me blackballed back home, but even here I had a hard time getting in the door. One story can destroy a career no matter how good it is. I'm actually glad I get to work here pushing out the drivel for this tabloid. No pressure." She takes a sip and I squeeze the folder with my article in my hand.
Well, ain't that awesome to hear right now.
I'd never actually thought about the opposite happening if I released this article. I figured once I showed the world all my talent the doors would fly open and I'd have my pick when it came to where I wanted to work. I'd be on my way to becoming one of the greatest journalists of our time. What the hell do I do if this one article gets me kicked out on my ass and no one wants to work with me?
"Hey, are you okay? You look a little pale." Ursula says breaking me out of my daydream.
"Yeah, I'm perfect! It really is nice to meet you. I'm so glad to have you on the team." I give her a tight smile before I turn back completely forgoing the donut and walk towards my desk.
My ears heat up as I get to my desk and see Larry hunched over and shuffling through my personal belongings. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
He jumps and turns around to face me. "Shit, sorry Ella. I was looking for a marker."
I squint my eyes at him and take another step forward. "You dirty liar." I sneer at him loud enough that a few of the reporters poke their heads up from their cubicles. "There's dozens of people sitting at their desks that could have given you a marker. You're looking for something. You're looking for my article aren't you?" I wave the folder I still have in my hand in front of his face. He doesn't admit it, but the way his eyes zero in on the folder lets me know I'm on the right track. I've heard of people getting really cutthroat and stealing other people’s work, but I never thought Larry would be the kind of person to do it.
