If I don’t ask about this now, the moment will pass and I’ll fall hopelessly under his spell again. It’s now or never.
“So, one of the lawsuits on the printout caught my eye, in particular.” I take a deep breath. “One you settled. The case was filed by a woman named Stephanie Moreland. She said you sexually harassed and wrongfully terminated her.”
Boom.
Reed’s demeanor changes. His jaw sets. His posture stiffens. And I know, without a doubt, I’ve stumbled upon something Reed doesn’t want to talk about.
Chapter 17
Georgina
“What happened with Stephanie Moreland?” I ask. “You settled it. So, that means there was some truth to her claims... or you thought a jury would believe her... right?”
Reed drags his palm down his face. He takes a long sip of his beer. Puts down his bottle. And exhales. “If I tell you about this, Georgina, you have to promise me this conversation will be off the record. I know what you said about me being able to nix anything I don’t like in your article. But this particular thing...” He shakes his head. “It’s the most humiliating thing that’s ever happened to me, besides my father’s arrest and conviction. And I don’t want to have to read about it, or think about it, or see it reflected back to me through your eyes. I’ll talk about it with you, to ease whatever doubts I’m assuming you’re now having about me. But I’m only going to tell the woman I’m sleeping with this story. Not the reporter who’s trying to get herself a permanent position at Dig a Little Deeper.”
I feel short of breath. Sick to my stomach. What choice do I have?
I exhale. “Okay.”
“Off the record?”
I nod. “Yes.”
Reed takes another long swig of beer. Takes another deep breath. “Stephanie was my first full-time hire at River Records. A marketing manager I hired right after RCR’s debut rocketed up the charts. Early on, I could tell we had chemistry. But I never made a move on her because I was her boss. But then one night, Stephanie comes into my office and closes the door. This was right before RCR’s second album was set to come out, and I was totally stressed out. Sophomore albums are notoriously dicey, and I was determined to catch lightning in a bottle again. So, I was working round the clock. Sleeping on a couch in my office. Doing way too much coke.”
My eyebrows ride up.
“I don’t do that anymore. Ever. But I was a big fan back then, especially in times of extreme stress. So, anyway, Stephanie comes in and says she knows I’ve been stressed out, and she wants to help me relax.”
I cringe.
“Yeah, it’s what you’re thinking. I was sitting in my desk chair at the time, and she kneels in front of me and gets busy. I hadn’t come on to her in the slightest before then, so it was totally out of the blue. And I was shocked. I knew I should say, ‘No, Stephanie. Bad idea.’ But I didn’t. She was hot, and I was high as a kite. And I thought, ‘Fuck it. She’s the one coming on to me. What could go wrong?’” He rolls his eyes at himself. “Well, from that moment on, she owned my ass, although I didn’t know it at the time.” He shakes his head, rolling his eyes at himself. “For the next few months after that first BJ in my office, we’d fucked around at the office. I never saw her outside of work. Never took her on a date. Never took her to my place or went to hers. But we had some fun, now and again, after everyone else had gone home. But then things got out of control. Every time I turned around, even during normal working hours, she was unzipping my pants, or begging me to fuck her over the copy machine. It was like she wanted us to get caught. Like she wanted everyone to know she was fucking the boss. And then, boom. RCR’s second album comes out and it’s a global smash. I mean, holy shit, Georgie. I’d thought their first album was big, but that sophomore album took things to another level. And then came the debut of Danger Doctor Jones, which hit top ten. And then 2Real hit number one with ‘Crash.’ And I swear to God, I thought I must have made a deal with the devil, without remembering it. Which, it turns out, I