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“You’re not being formally accused of anything at this point, and this isn’t going on your record, but I do want to discuss with you what is and isn’t acceptable in the workplace.”
“I know what sexual harassment is. And I’m telling you, I didn’t do anything.”
I lean forward. “You might feel as if you didn’t, but the fact is that you made this young woman feel uncomfortable.”
“Because I told her she looked nice? And said I thought she was pretty? For fuck’s sake. I didn’t touch her.”
“I appreciate that, but it doesn’t have to involve physical contact to be harassment, Lewis. Look, I’m not saying I don’t understand that many relationships begin in the workplace. It’s natural for people who work long hours together to occasionally be attracted to one another. But it’s our policy to discourage it. It can make for an unpleasant working environment if things go wrong, and even if they don’t, it can make other employees feel uncomfortable or awkward.”
“I didn’t do anything.” He’s getting agitated. “Jesus, I’ve heard of this happening, but I never thought it would happen to me. Come on, you’re a guy, you know how hard it is to talk to women nowadays. I got yelled at in a bar for trying to chat to a woman a few weeks ago. And on Monday I opened the door for a girl, and she said, ‘Do I look as if I can’t open doors myself?’ I mean, Christ. I liked Jessica. All I did was talk to her.”
“Lewis, please, calm down. I’m just saying that you need to keep your work and social life separate. In the office, please keep your conversations professional, and that way nothing you say can be misconstrued.”
“This is fucking ridiculous.” He gets to his feet. “That little bitch.”
I stand as well, my hackles rising. “Please don’t use language like that with me.”
“Well, she is. Telling on me as if we’re in year nine. She should have been doing a fucking dance to think I was interested in her.”
“You’re going the right way for a verbal warning, Lewis. Tone it down and remember who you’re talking to.”
“You’re the same age as me,” he snaps. “Just because you own the fucking company.”
“You’re right, I do, so watch your language.”
He gives a short laugh. “Fuck off.” He opens the door with enough force that it bangs on the wall and walks out.
I close my eyes for a moment. That could have gone better. Rising, I close my laptop, pick it up, and walk out of the office, straight into Jessica.
“Damon!” She’s not as short as Belle, but she’s a lot smaller than me, and she stumbles as I knock into her. I catch her arm, then release her as she gains her footing.
“Sorry,” I tell her. “You okay?”
“Helen said you were talking to Lewis, and I just saw him storm out.” Her brows draw together. “Why did you do that? I didn’t want to make a formal complaint.”
“He acted inappropriately,” I tell her. “He needed to know what he did wrong.”
“I could have handled him. I was sounding off to Helen, that’s all. You’ve just made things worse. Now he’ll know it was me, and he’s going to be really unpleasant.”
I feel a twinge of unease, knowing she’s right. “If you have any further issues with him, come and see me or Helen.”
“I won’t,” she says. “I didn’t need rescuing. I wish you’d just kept your nose out of it.” Turning, she walks off and disappears into the Ladies’.
“Fuck,” I mumble. I walk to Saxon’s office. The door’s open. He’s sitting in one of the armchairs, talking to Kip. I go in and close the door behind me.
“Hey,” Saxon says, “how did it go?”
“I think I fucked up.” I sit opposite them and flop back in the chair.
“Why?” Kip asks, concerned.
I tell them what happened. “Now she says I’ve made things worse, and she’s probably right.” I lean forward and sink my hands into my hair. “Fuck! I’m really angry with myself. But I don’t know how else I could have handled it. Should I have left it? Let her sort it out herself?”
They both frown. “If he’s been doing it to her, though, he might have been making other women feel uncomfortable too,” Kip says. “He had to be told.”
“You did the right thing by talking to him,” Saxon assures me. “It’s not your fault that he reacted badly.”
“I dunno. Maybe I should have taken him out for a beer and a general chat about how difficult it is today to talk to women. Did you know Helen was sexually harassed in her first job?” They both look surprised. “A manager said he’d look after her, then told her to go down on him.”
