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He gave me a nod, starting for the locker area. “Have a good one. I’ll pass the message along.”
I continued down the hall to the elevator, and when I stepped off on the PR floor, the secretary waved me on. “She’s been waiting for you.”
Kim came to the hallway, her eyes set on me, and she wasn’t happy. “Get in here.” She stepped back, closing the door as I sat in the chair in front of her desk. She settled behind her desk and leaned back. “I wanted to update you.”
Right.
“We hired a guy—”
“What?”
She frowned at me and continued, speaking a little slower. “Like I said, we hired a guy, and he found out that Billie’s in contact with a couple, Howard and Vicky Mitchell.” She watched me like a hawk. “We reached out to Howard. He referred us to his wife, and according to them, Willow Harm has officially cleared you of any wrongdoing in the video where it looks as if you’re being aggressive with her.”
I waited. Knowing Kim, she had another shoe to drop.
“Our lawyers sent something over to them. They expect Willow will sign it at her earliest convenience. You’re in the clear. I wanted to let you know.”
“That’s good. Thanks.”
She narrowed her eyes. “That’s all you have to say?”
I leaned back in my seat. “The clip was bullshit.”
“Right.” She paused a moment. “I also wanted to let you know that our guy got ahold of the clip in its entirety, and you were right. It shows you protecting Miss Harm, but you were aggressive to those guys.”
Fuck th—
“I’m sure you’re currently thinking, fuck that, but it’s still a bad look. As soon as we receive Miss Harm’s signature, our legal department will be hitting those kids with the threat of a defamation suit if they continue in their pursuits. You shouldn’t have to worry about this anymore.”
I frowned.
“And I’m sure you never were worried, so I’m doing all of this for no reason, aren’t I?” She sighed, leaning back in her chair.
She’d read me right. “I appreciate it.”
She nodded. “Okay. You can head out.” She waited until I was at the door before adding, “Be smart in your future endeavors with Miss Harm, Brett.”
She knew. I stopped and turned back around.
Yep. She knew. “My personal business is my personal business.”
She pursed her lips, and her eyes got almost mean. “The NFL does not do scandals. Willow Harm is a scandal in herself.”
I opened my mouth.
“I have sympathy for her. Everyone has sympathy for her, but she is the only survivor of the Midwest Butcher, and everyone goes fucking insane about serial killers. Miss Harm keeps a low profile intentionally, and possibly for very sad reasons, so you might want to think about what being linked to a professional football player would do to her. When you get that answer, then think about what it’ll do to her when it comes out that she’s fucking you.”
“You go too far,” I snarled.
Her face showed no emotion. No remorse. No sympathy. Despite her words, just a coldness. “I am very good at my job, and you and Willow Harm being in a relationship, no matter how brief or how long, spells disaster. If you’ve already fucked her, let her go. If you haven’t, let her go. You will bring a spotlight to her life that will not benefit her. At the very least, think of it that way.”
“No one’s cared about who I’m seeing before.”
She made a frustrated sound. “Everyone cares. Blogs and social media care. You’re discreet. You’re very, very discreet, and there have only been two women linked to you over the years. When we won the Lombardi last year, all your perceived anonymity went away. Yes, it was a team effort, and yes, we have other players we wouldn’t have won without, but you helped. I’ve already laid out all the reasons people are intrigued by you, and that interest has gone up since everyone saw you rescue Willow Harm not once, but twice. They like the look of you and her, and they want more. But I’m telling you, don’t give them more.”
I stared at her.
A slow smile spread over her face, not making its way to her eyes. “You risk your own past becoming an issue again. You won’t like the headlines: The Twin of a Rapist with the Survivor of a Killer.”
