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“Bryce, honey?” My voice was calm and soothing, courtesy of the intense orgasmic experience he’d just given me. I must be flooded with feel-good, peaced-out hormones. “We can listen for a minute. Can’t we?”
Bryce took a step back and smoothed his jacket.
Olivia’s expression softened. “I know what I’ve asked you to do might seem unconventional. It is. But I promise you, there’s a method to my madness.”
“Making it look like I’m having an affair with someone—that’s helping my father avoid federal prison? Really? There’s some methodology there that I just can’t fathom?” Bryce scrubbed a hand across his face. “I can’t believe I’ve let you take the reins like this, Olivia. You’re running us into the ground. And I’ve been following your lead, just waiting for it to make sense. But I’m done.”
He reached for my hand, tugging me to his side. “We’redone. My shareholders are probably all ready to have heart attacks. I can’t believe I signed up for this circus, let alone participated in it.”
“Don’t quit before we get to the good part,” Olivia said quietly. “Because what I’m about to unveil is the redemption arc, where Americareallyfalls in love with you.”
Bryce sighed. “I don’t care anymore. My father’s probably going to prison, and no amount of PR can undo that. I’m going to be running what’s left of the company. I’d prefer to do that honestly.”
“And you will—trust me, although I know that’s hard to do right now.” Olivia straightened her shoulders and put her hands on her hips. “The thing is, Bryce? I do actually earn my fee. I know what I’m doing, even if it seems ugly. The public is going nuts, and I’ve accomplished that inone week. Every day people recognize you now. A week ago, the only Windsor people knew about was your father, and that was because he was being investigated. He was just another greedy rich guy. Now your family has a face. Your stock—emotional and actual stock—is on the rise.”
“It’s a parlor trick,” Bryce said. “People will have moved on to the next drama in a week.”
“Not necessarily. That was just the first phase. The next part is where we show you and Chloe reuniting, stronger than ever, and put those rumors to rest. Which is why I still need you to do that talk show, Chloe. People would love to hear from you after all this.”
“She’s not agreeing to anything right now—”
“We don’t need to make a commitment today,” Olivia interrupted. “But I want you to know where I’m going with this.”
“I’m still listening,” Bryce said, “but only because Chloe is making me.”
“Hold on a minute.” Olivia snapped her fingers and pointed at the boutique owner. “She needs to be NDA’d.”
“What?” The woman asked, looking concerned. “I need to be what?”
“You need a non-disclosure agreement. Here.” Olivia started tapping out something on her phone, then handed it to the woman. “Please review this and then sign. Daphne, can you take her out back and explain it to her? And let her know about the fee we pay. Also, we’ll feature the boutique in our press release--and buy those dresses Chloe was just, uh, trying on.”
At that, the owner perked up. Daphne steered her toward the back room, talking to her in low tones.
“Here’s the thing,” Olivia said once they were out of earshot. “I have some news I didn’t tell you yet, Bryce. I wanted to keep the focus this morning on you and Chloe. I wanted to get a picture of you two reuniting—it’s important for our next steps.”
Bryce tensed beside me. “What’s the news?”
“It’s not great,” Olivia sighed. “The settlement negotiations have stalled out. Legal has informed me that the government is playing hardball on this—they’ve decided to make an example of Gene. Apparently, the SEC has direct evidence your father participated in insider trading. Some sort of a recording or a document, hard evidence. No amount of PR can fixthat, I’m afraid. I’m so sorry.”
Bryce rocked back on his heels. I squeezed his hand.
“The SEC has decided to fast-track the case. I believe the next step is that he will be formally charged,” Olivia continued. “As a result, the board has asked me to shift my focus.”
We waited for her to go on. “They want me to start highlighting your strengths, Bryce. Your father has been adamant that we stick to the drama; I’m not going to lie, it’s been effective. It was my idea to start with. But I’ve noticed that he’s particularly devoted to the Felicia-Jones angle. Again, that was my idea, and it was a good one. The public has been eating it up. But polling still indicates that Chloe is the most relatable person in the Windsor family. You’re second, Bryce. Your father hasn’t wanted to share that information with the board, but as of this morning, I had to. Ultimately, my client is the business. I have a fiduciary duty to represent its best interests.”
“Which means what?” Bryce arched an eyebrow. “Taking a picture of my wife and me after we have sex in a dressing room?”
“Well…yes.” Olivia smiled. “Because of how I’m going to frame it. We’ll say that the rumors about Felicia are fabrications cooked up by the tabloids and that you two are basically drunk-in-love with each other. America’s Sweethearts, that’s where we’re going with this. That’s why I need Chloe to do the talk show, and I need you both at your cousin’s wedding with your hands all over each other. Doesn’t really seem likethatshould be a problem.” She laughed.
“Once it’s established that you two are solid, the news about Gene’s indictment won’t hit so hard. You’ll seem like what you are—a reliable candidate to become interim CEO. Your company’s forecast should stay on an even keel. At least, that’s the hope. Gene isn’t going to be happy, but then again, Gene’s probably going to prison. So he doesn’t get much say anymore.”
“Are you sure about that?” Bryce asked. “Why didn’t anyone from legal call me this morning?”
“Because they’re scrambling. I finally marched into their office and demanded an update, that’s the only reason I know anything. I had to meet with the board and decide on a strategy,” Olivia said. “Gene isn’t taking the news well. I’m sure he’s very upset about all of this.”
“He should be.” Bryce scowled and looked out the window. “I can’t believe the SEC just dropped this bomb on us. If they’ve come out and said they have direct evidence, that changes things. That changes everything.”
“Legal was blindsided by this, let me tell you. We have to move quickly—very quickly.” Olivia watched him closely. “Bryce, I know we’ve gotten off to a rocky start. I’m sorry I put that pressure on you and Chloe, but like I said, there was a reason.”
