Page 97 of Right Man, Right Time
“Does he want free tickets or something? The man is rich. Can’t he afford them himself?”
“No, that wasn’t it. I actually found out that he has a vendetta against your owner. Apparently, Roberts was trying to buy the Agitators, and something fell through. Anyway, he hates your owner and now wants me to use my final assignment as an intern for his company as some sort of exposé to bring down the Agitators brand.”
I hold my breath as his brows draw down. “So he wants you to use me, then?”
“Yes,” I say, then quickly add, “but I’m not going to.”
He looks away and pulls on the back of his neck. I can see the visible change in his demeanor. Once relaxed in his own home, he’s now stiff and defensive. “Did you tell him no?”
I wince. “Um, not at the moment that he asked.”
“So after.”
I fidget. “Not really, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to do it.”
“That means you plan to exploit me,” Silas yells, startling me back.
“Silas, I would never do that to you. That’s why I’m here, talking to you about it.”
“So I can feel bad that you need a story and just give you permission to pass your assignment? Get the fuck out of here, Ollie.”
“That’s not why I’m here,” I say, standing up for myself. “I’m here because I wanted to talk to you about it and be honest.”
“Honest about your intentions of fucking me over?”
“What? No. Why the hell would I do that?”
“I don’t know, Ollie. Why wouldn’t you tell Roberts no?”
“Because . . .” I stumble, trying to find the right words. “I just thought at that moment that I could think of a better solution. He’s my boss, Silas. This internship, it matters to me.”
“I understand that, but you’re never going to get anywhere without integrity.”
“I told you I wasn’t going to write the article. Jesus.” I stand from the couch. “I came here hoping you could help me think of a different angle. But I guess I was wrong.” I move toward his front door and slip my shoes on. He remains seated. “You know, Silas, you can sit there and judge me all you want, but you’re not fucking perfect either.”
“I never said I was.”
“You act like it. You can’t tell me that in my position, you would have told your boss no.”
“I would have told him to fuck off.”
“Bullshit.” I laugh sardonically. “You couldn’t even tell Sarah to fuck off when you saw her at the event. No, you practically ate her with your eyes. You tell me you don’t care about her anymore, but I don’t believe it for one second. So don’t go throwing stones in glass houses. You tell me to stand up for myself, for what’s right. Well, where the fuck are you when it comes to Sarah?”
“That’s different,” he says.
“No, it’s not.”
“The fuck it is.” He stands from the couch now. “I was going to fucking propose to her. Of course there will be feelings. I can’t just shut it off.”
“Yeah, well, Roberts holds my future in his hands, and I can’t just turn off my goals and desires to make something of myself. Out of everyone, you should understand that.” I slip my backpack on and head toward the door. I glance over my shoulder one last time to see if he’s going to say something or stop me, but he doesn’t, so . . . I leave and go right to the elevator, where I press the down button.
My lips tremble, and my throat tightens as I hold back my tears. I will not cry.
Not over something as stupid as this.
Silas was being an ass, and that’s on him. I was coming here to find a solution, and he wouldn’t even listen.
That’s no reason to cry or get emotional.
