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Placing the sticker over my chest, I thanked her and made my way to the elevators, passing the security guard on my way. When I arrived on the seventh floor, I had no idea what to expect. I’d never given thePostmuch thought, couldn’t have cared less when they printed lies about me or used my name to sell papers. But this—bringing Sutton into things—was unacceptable.
“Mr. Martin,” a tall brunette woman greeted me as soon as I stepped out. “I’m surprised to see you here.” She gave me a flirtatious grin. “Kind of.”
“I take it, you’re Miss Darling?” I said the name like it tasted as ridiculous as it sounded.
“I am.”
“Do you have somewhere we can speak privately?” I made sure that my tone wasn’t threatening. I wanted her to feel comfortable, to believe that I wasn’t angry. I planned on saving my anger and threats for when we were alone.
“There’s a conference room we can use,” she said as she turned her back and navigated through a maze of cubicles.
My mere presence was enough to get tongues wagging and eyes bulging. It seemed like everyone stopped what they were doing to watch my every move.
Daisy paused in front of an oversize mahogany door and held it with one arm. “Here,” she said.
As I stepped inside the room, I was thankful that no one else was waiting for us. It’d occurred to me for a split second that I might be walking into some sort of press ambush I wasn’t prepared for. I really hadn’t thought this through.
She closed the door behind us and sat across from the seat I’d chosen at the table. “How can I help you?”
“It was pretty fucked up, what you printed today.” I jumped right in, and she leaned forward, that stupid grin still on her face.
“And why’s that? What was so fucked up about it?” she asked, clearly assuming that she had the upper hand.
“Do you get off on writing about other people’s pain? Does exploiting an accident to sell papers make you feel good? Really warm your heart?”
“First of all, it’s my job to write things that make money. But in case you didn’t actually read the article—” she started, and I cut her off.
“I read it. I read every word.”
“Then, you know that I didn’t write a single lie. I wrote the truth. They just happened to be things that no one else knew yet.”
She looked impressed with herself. Like she deserved some kind of award fornotexaggerating or sensationalizing Sutton’s situation.
“Those are things that no one has a right to know.” I was getting pissed again. That uncontrollable anger I felt when things were out of my control and I knew it.
Daisy cleared her throat and threw her head back. “The public has a very personal interest in you. You sell a lot of papers. You get a lot of hits online. She is now a part of you, so yes, they might not have arightto know those things, but theywantto know them.”
I snapped my mouth shut and breathed in and out through my nose. I wanted to threaten her, to tell her not to ever write about Sutton again or she wouldn’t like the outcome of her actions. But I knew that I couldn’t do that. Anything I said in here could be used against me. She’d write about it the second I left this office.
“Why did you come here today?” she asked, breaking me from my thoughts.
“I don’t want you to write about her scars again. It’s rude. It’s mean. It’s a shitty thing to do. She doesn’t deserve the public knowing that kind of stuff about her.”
I watched as the sly grin faded and her expression turned.
“I have pictures,” she said. “After the article came out, I got an anonymous email that had pictures attached.”
“How do you know it’s Sutton?”
“Her face is in them.”
“What do you want?” I asked, and she looked confused for only a second. “To not print them. Ever. What do you want?”
Daisy sat silent for a moment, measuring me with her eyes that had on way too much makeup. She looked like she was ready for a night out, not a workday.
“Exclusives,” she said simply, and I nodded.
“I’ll give you pictures of us before we even arrive at any of the Social Month events. I’ll get you behind-the-scenes photos. Us getting ready. In our homes. Things like that,” I offered as I pulled out my phone and started typing up a quick email to Kayla. I needed her to get something ready for me and send it over as soon as possible.
