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"Hell no," Mel said firmly. "Absolutely not."
"Is there a point to this?" Cord asked. He looked even more irritated than usual. That was saying something.
"One of the hotel staff found a positive pregnancy test in the trash of one of your rooms," Anders said.
Shit.
I'd thrown it away without thinking about it.
Ripley wasn't staring right at me. Eyes wide.
18
Hayley
I managed to snap myself out of it. I shoved my professional mask firmly in place.
"This interview is over," I said crisply. I stepped forward, Roman right behind me and gestured towards the door. "None of this was on the list of approved topics. I don't know where you got this information but we want no part of sensationalizing someone's private life."
"But the interview has just begun," Anders protested. He held up the sheet of paper. "I apologize for overstepping, but you understand. I was just doing my job. Let me finish." He wasn't asking. He was looking at me like I was a fly he needed to brush out of the way. Like because I was a woman, he didn't need to listen.
"You are finished," I snapped. I nodded to the guys. "We're done here."
To their credit, none of them looked at Roman for confirmation, and he didn't step in on my behalf. No doubt Anders would have backed down more quickly when faced with another man, but ultimately that would look like I couldn't do my job.
I did think Strike might argue though. He loved the limelight and seemed to be having a good time teasing Anders and being silly with Cord. If he, or the others refused to leave, then I'd have no chance but to back down. That would also make me look bad, but they were the famous rock band. They held all the power here.
My eyes flicked to Axel, who stood first.
"You heard her," he said. "We're finished here. We have enough time for me to beat you all at ping-pong before we fly out."
"Them's fighting words," Strike said. Evidently, he liked the idea of trying to beat Axel more than frustrating Anders. He hopped up and started towards the door.
Anders gave me a look like he'd happily strangle me, and folded up his sheets of paper. "I look forward to interviewing you all another time."
The look I gave him back said there wouldn't be another time. He'd earned himself a place on my blacklist. Even if the test wasn’t mine, it wasn't an appropriate thing to be asking.
Not to mention how sleazy it was to dig out trash from a source like a hotel employee. Roman or I would have words with the hotel later, so they’d know what one of their members of staff was up to. Whether they lost their job or not was up to the hotel, but most establishments couldn't afford to lose their reputation for discretion when it came to famous guests. Just a whisper of it could cost a fortune in the long run.
"By Andy," Strike said, waving over his shoulder before stepping out the door. "I'm going to whip Axel's ass and…" I couldn't hear the rest of what he said.
"Good work," Roman whispered as he followed the guys out. "You handled that perfectly."
I snorted softly. "I created a situation without thinking." Now everyone on the tour knew someone was pregnant, if not who it was. People weren't going to stop being curious until they found out the truth.
"You weren't to know someone would go through the trash." He scowled.
"I should have known. It's not the first time someone has gone dumpster diving to dig out dirt. I should have been more careful." I should have found a trashcan in the park and left it in there. I hadn't because I don't feel comfortable leaving something like that behind, for exactly this reason. If anyone recognized us and got curious about what I threw away, they could have taken it back out.
It made sense at the time.
Ripley waited until we were out in the sunshine before she hooked an arm through mine. "Did you notice he didn't ask if it was me? How rude." She grinned.
"He would have gotten to you sooner or later," I said. When I saw her give Roman speculative look, I added, "He knows." With the guys only a few feet in front of us, I couldn't say any more than that.
I just walked and tried not to look at Axel too often. Every time I did, he was looking at me. Each time, his brow was lightly creased, like he knew, or at least wondered if the test was mine.
I was grateful that he didn't confront me in front of everyone, but sooner or later he would. And when he did, I didn't know what I'd say.
