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Jonah smiles, more of a baring of teeth than a real smile. I miss his smiles. Oh god. I press my lips together.
“Nothing confidential? Are you sure?” His eyes are flat and black, his face is shuttered.
“I’m sure.”
His face hardens. “As it turns out, Ms. Thompson. I’m firing you for fraternization.”
“Fraterni—oh my god.” I whisper the last words, my face heating. Miles and Caitlin are staring at me with distaste, and my breaths are shallow in my chest, until I feel like I’m going to faint. I need to get out of here. Fraternization. Sleeping with Jonah. He’s firing me for sleeping with him. It’s cruelly elegant in its simplicity. I’m an idiot. I fell for him even though he told me not to, and now I’m paying the price.
I scan his face for any hint of softness. Maybe this isn’t real. Maybe I’m dreaming and the man who professed to love me isn’t ripping out my heart. His expression is dark, cruel, and satisfied. I’m going to be sick. This isn’t a joke. This is very real, and Jonah and I are through.
Someone else might fight. Maybe I’m weak, because I don’t want to. I’ve learned you can’t fight people when they really want to do something. It just brings more pain. My mom wanted to leave, and she did. I’ve never tried to get her back. Same with Eric. And now Jonah. Better to hold your head high and move on.
“Give me the paper,” I say dully. “I’ll sign it.” Anything to get out of this room. Who do you think you are? I can feel their eyes on me, witnessing my shame. Just like the last time. My hands shake and I clench them together. The lawyer is looking at me like I’m a crazy person, but he slides me the paper.
I scan it with unseeing eyes. All I see is $18,000 and pages of legal jargon.
“We’ll pay the remainder of the loan,” Jonah explains. “In exchange, you will never disclose anything you learned at Kings Lane. Do you agree?”
“Yes.” My voice comes out flat and emotionless, by some miracle.
Jonah tilts his head. “You’ll never report on me. Do you agree?”
“Yes.” I clench my hands together so he can’t see them shake.
He’s frowning now, but he continues. “You’ll release any claims you have against the company. And you will never, ever, come near my family or speak about them in the press. Understood?”
“Okay.”
Jonah is looking at me with a wrinkled brow, like he expected more resistance. “Nothing to say?”
Does he want me to fight him? I don’t have it in me.
I shake my head. I don’t care. I’m not planning to report on Jonah anymore. I just want to forget him. “I would never report on your family.” I don’t meet his eyes as I sign the paper. I write my name on the dotted line and date my signature. I raise my head to meet his eyes, my own hot with unshed tears. I will myself not to cry as I gather my belongings. Jonah stares at me like I’m dirt on the bottom of his shoe.
“Why?” I whisper. “All from that fight? Because I rejected you?” My face heats as Miles and Caitlin watch this private shame unfold. I guess they already know about us sleeping together. How much worse can it get?
“Rejected you?” Jonah barks a cruel laugh. “Ms. Thompson, you tried to ruin me.”
“What do you mean?” I scan his face, looking for some clue. I feel like everyone in the room has the full, awful picture, and I’m left in the dark.
“This.” He smacks a piece of paper down on the table hard enough to make me jump. “Do you not remember this? Since you published it a mere forty-eight hours ago?”
He slides the paper toward me, and I see the photos printed in black and white. Oh my god. I press a hand to my mouth.
“You think I did this?” I choke out the words. “You think I printed nude photos of you?”
“You deny it?” He raises a brow, affecting calm, but his chest must be cracking like mine is. Oh, Jonah.
“How long were they up?” I ignore his question. I need to know if anyone saw. Poor Jonah. I hate him, but my heart hurts for him. It happened again. “Did anyone see?”
His eyes flare with surprise. “They were quickly removed,” he says tightly. “Don’t play dumb, Ms. Thompson.” Every time he says my last name, it’s like a bullet through my chest. Callie. Oh, Callie. “I don’t know what your game is,” he continues, shaking his head. “But you can stop. These were on your site.”
“I would never.” I gather my bag and my coat. Jonah doesn’t believe me. After everything, he still thinks I’d betray him. I guess I was right to end things. Much good it did me. My heart is in pieces after all.
“Check the byline, Jonah. It reads Callie Thompson. I’ve never signed an article with my real name. And since I became editor-in-chief, I changed my byline. If you don’t believe me, at least believe that. I’m proud of my work.” My lips twist unhappily. “After everything you told me about Annalise, I understand. I guess it never would have worked.” I give him a sad smile, even as his eyes flare.
“Callie. Wait.” He rises in a rush. “If you didn’t print it, who did?”
