by Kyra Lennon
He hadn’t heard me come in, and my entrance almost caused him to slide off the treadmill and smash his face on the floor. He caught himself just in time and deftly jumped off before he was thrown.
“What the hell, Leah?”
“You need to listen to me, and listen carefully because if I have to bring this up again, it’ll be in front of Richard.”
He picked up his towel from the floor and wiped the sweat from his face. “What’s got your panties in a bunch?”
“I’m not playing around, McCoy. I talked to Taylor.”
I watched as his face clouded over. There was something very satisfying about seeing his confidence turn to uncertainty. “What's she been saying?”
“Guilty conscience?”
“What's she been saying?” he repeated, a little more forcefully.
“She says you've been hassling her.”
He rolled his eyes, making me want to jam my fingers into his ice blue orbs and scratch them right out of his head.
“That’s crap.”
“Is that it? That’s your whole defence?
“What do you want me to say? I don’t have time to defend myself against little girls who make up stories about me. And I'd expect after being warned about treating me unfairly, you would do your job properly for once and treat me with a little respect.”
His words stung. I’d done nothing but work damn hard since I'd taken the job in spite of him belittling me at every turn. Somehow he always succeeded in turning every conversation into a threat or a come-on, and it was getting old.
“Respect is a two way street, and you’ve shown me none. Now, I'm asking you nicely to leave Taylor alone. She's thinking of going to Richard.”
I meant to make a sweeping exit after I'd delivered that information to him, but I couldn't resist waiting to witness his reaction. It was worth sticking around to watch the colour slowly draining from his cheeks.
“What exactly am I being accused of?”
“Wow. Do you force yourself on so many women that you can’t keep track?”
Confusion, then clarity crossed his face. “Force myself on … Leah, she’s only saying this because I turned her down.”
“Oh please, when have you ever turned a woman down? I’ve seen the way you look at her.”
“I'm serious. She threw herself at me, I told her it was never gonna happen, and now I guess she's out for revenge. I’m telling you, I’ve done nothing wrong here.”
“I don't believe you,” I said, watching him closely. “I saw the state she was in. You don't think that kissing someone after they've told you they're not interested is wrong?”
“I've never kissed anyone who wasn't into me.”
I shivered involuntarily under his gaze. “Don't even start. Whatever happened between us has nothing to do with this.”
“Sure it does,” he said, the smirk returning to his face. “The idea that I would hit on somebody else has made you crazy with jealousy. Admit it.”
The fact that that thought had already crossed my mind made me more uncomfortable than the way he was staring at me. I refused to turn away, even though his grin was tormenting me.
“You need to take this seriously,” I said. “If she makes this official, you'll probably be fired.”
He shook his head. “She has no case against me. She has no proof, no witnesses, nothing that says I've even been near her.”
Only because you made sure of it.
“Well you'd better hope she doesn't find any because if she does, you can say goodbye to your career.”
“What would it take to get you on my side?” Radleigh asked, stepping towards me. “Maybe the possibility of Miguel finding out you kissed me?”
I should have seen that coming.
“You’re doing nothing to convince me of your innocence.”
“Leah, come on, this is bullshit! It’s all in her head!”
The level of agitation in his voice stopped me in my tracks.
Is he telling the truth?
No, of course not. Taylor was a mess. But if I kept looking into Radleigh’s eyes, I felt sure he’d somehow hypnotise me into believing his version of events.
“For someone who didn’t do anything wrong, you look extremely guilty.”
“Screw you!” he snapped, throwing his towel on the floor. After shooting a final glare in my direction, he stormed out of the gym, the door slamming hard behind him.
For the rest of the day, I couldn't force him out of my mind. The things he'd said, and the things Taylor had told me played in a continuous loop until I thought my brain might melt from working overtime. The worst part about the whole situation was that I wanted to believe him. I’d found McCoy to be pushy, persistent and infuriating, but not once did it cross my mind that he’d force himself on someone. Why would he need to? For every woman who turned him down, there were probably ten more who were willing to get on their backs – or whatever the preferred position was – for him.
Taylor’s distress made it real, and Radleigh’s defence was pathetic. If she had thrown herself at him, he wouldn’t have hesitated for a second. I’d seen the ‘I wanna get in your pants’ glint in his eyes on more than one occasion.
He did it.
And I was the idiot who let him kiss me.
Chapter 9: We’ll Be Announcing Our Engagement Any Day Now
It wasn’t a huge surprise when I received a phone call from Richard, summoning me to work early the next morning. I’d expected that Radleigh would instantly figure out some kind of counter-attack to help him wriggle out of Taylor’s accusations. Throwing something at me to deflect from what he did was definitely his style.
To say I was nervous was an understatement. Freya drove me to meet my fate, sacrificing an extra hour in bed to ensure I arrived on time. I gave her the key to my office so she could nap on my couch if she wanted, then went to find Richard.
“Don't look so worried,” he said with an amused grin. “It's nothing you've done wrong.”
“Oh, good. The last time you called me here it was because of McCoy.”
He tapped his pen against the edge of his desk. “Well …”
“Really? What now?”
Richard put his pen down and looked at me closely. “When McCoy made the complaint about you, you said he’d been suggestive towards you. I wondered if you wanted to elaborate on that.”
My stomach dropped. This had to be about Taylor. It was too much of a coincidence to be anything else. I’d barely slept the night before because every time I’d drifted off, my dreams flashed with images of McCoy and Taylor. Of him touching her, and her fighting to get away.
“Does this have anything to do with a certain young blonde who happens to be dating Jesse Shaw?”
Richard's brow furrowed. “You know?
“Yes. I know.”
Cheers for that, Taylor. I risked my already unstable work relationship with McCoy to confront him and you reported him anyway! Oh well. At least she’d done the right thing eventually. Richard was far better equipped to handle this kind of thing than me.
“Why didn't you tell me?” Richard asked.
“Because Taylor didn’t want me to.”
“Well, she changed her mind. She was in a really bad way, Leah. You should have come straight to me.”
I hated that I’d disappointed him but when Taylor made me swear I would do as she asked, I couldn’t betray her trust, especially after what McCoy did to her. She needed someone on her side, not stabbing her in the back.
“I'm sorry,” I said. “I wasn't prepared to go against what she wanted. What would have been the point in telling you if she wasn't planning to follow through with the complaint?”
“I thought you of all people would know why. I thought you had the measure of McCoy.”
“Oh, I do. But I couldn’t drag an eighteen-year-old girl through the drama of a sexual harassment case when she wasn’t sure about making a complaint in the first place.”
Richard waved a dismissive hand
in the air to let me know we’d have to agree to disagree. “The reason I wanted to talk to you was to ask if he ever did anything like this to you,” he said. “Has he ever tried to touch you in an inappropriate way, or made you afraid to come to work?”
The question made me feel sick. Yes, he’d tried to kiss me but I’d let him, and he’d tried to make me dance with him at the club and pushed me up against the doors at my apartment. It was never fear that I felt though.
You are sick.
I shook my head. “I’ve never been scared around him, but I’m not a teenager who doesn’t know how to handle idiots. I can see how he might seem intimidating to her. It doesn’t matter about me though, does it? It’s what he did to her that’s important.”
“Yes. But if there was someone else, someone who could give a bit more weight to the allegation, it would make my job easier.”
“What’s the procedure in situations like this? For one thing, he totally denies it. It won’t be easy to prove.”
“Not unless a witness appears,” Richard agreed. “First of all, I need to talk to him.”
“And if he continues to say he didn’t do anything?”
“It’s all in Taylor’s hands to decide what to do next.”
“You believe her, don't you?”
“What I believe isn't important. Until I have proof one way or the other, my main concern is keeping this quiet. If it gets out, it’ll ruin McCoy. If he did it, that’s what he deserves. If he didn’t … I’m not risking my best player’s reputation.”
“I know you're right,” I said with a sigh. “But I believe her.”
My shoulders are still wet from her tears.
Richard nodded. “She was very upset, and I doubt anyone would fake that level of fear, but these things happen. I need to be sure before I do anything else.”
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
“If you can send McCoy here to see me it would help a lot. I’ve got some work to do before training starts, and I don’t want to draw attention by hauling him in here in front of everyone. I’ve already tried calling him but it goes straight to voicemail.”
“I can do that,” I said, even though I’d hoped I wouldn’t have to talk to him.
“Thanks,” Richard answered with a smile. “I really appreciate your help with this.”
I gave him a half-hearted salute, then left his office and went back to my own.
Freya was sitting in my desk chair, holding a cup of coffee. There was another steaming mug beside her which she handed to me.
“I thought you might need this.”
“I need a double vodka, but coffee will do for now.”
I smiled gratefully as I took it from her, and she said, “What happened?”
“What always happens when Richard calls me to his office? McCoy.”
Her eyebrows nearly disappeared off the top of her head. “He hasn't-”
“Not another complaint against me. A complaint against him.”
“What did he do?”
I knew Richard wanted to keep the whole thing a secret, but Freya was the most trustworthy person I knew, and if I didn’t talk to someone I was in serious danger of going round the bend.
“Wow,” she said, after I’d given her a brief rundown of the situation. “He really can't take no for an answer, huh?”
“Apparently not. Freya, why is he such a pig? I'm so sick of him!”
“Hey,” Freya said gently, standing up and resting her hands on my shoulders. “Don’t let him get to you. This is not your problem.”
I wanted tell her the real reason I was so freaked out. That my relationship with Miguel was potentially in jeopardy because of one kiss with Radleigh. But how could I possibly admit to anyone that I’d fallen into the trap so many other women had slipped into?
'You haven't fallen into anything,' I told myself sternly. 'A kiss is a kiss. You haven't fallen in love with him, be grateful for that!'
That, at least, was a calming thought. Though at that moment, I couldn't imagine why anyone would fall in love with him. Apart from having an incredible body, there wasn't much more to him other than a raging ego and wandering hands.
“You're right,” I said, more calmly. “This is his fault. I need to chill out. Now I’d best go and find him. Maybe it won’t be as bad as I think.”
Freya gave me an encouraging smile and I stepped out of the office and made my way towards the locker room.
I wasn't sure if Radleigh had even arrived yet, but if he had, that’s where he’d be. As I approached I spotted Bryce walking down the stairs from the restaurant, coffee in hand, and heading in the same direction as me. He hadn’t changed into his training clothes yet, and his close fitting blue t-shirt hugged his muscles.
Lucky t-shirt.
“Hey, Leah. What's up?”
“I'm looking for Radleigh. Is he here yet?”
Bryce nodded. “Yeah, he's in there.” He jerked his head towards the locker room. “Want me to get him for you?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
He chuckled. “I see you two are still getting on well.”
“Fabulously. We'll be announcing our engagement any day now.”
Bryce gave in to a fit of laughter and I smiled. “I'm sorry, I'm a little stressed today and it’s way too early to deal with McCoy.”
As if the mention of his name had summoned him, Radleigh walked out of the door. His eyes narrowed when he saw me and Bryce laughing, but he didn’t say anything. The tension was palpable as Bryce winked at me before leaving me alone with McCoy.
Alone with McCoy was the last place I wanted to be.
“Richard wants to see you in his office,” I told him. “Now.”
“You told him about Taylor.”
“No. Taylor told him. I only found out a little while ago.”
Everything about him, from the way he’d squared his shoulders to the look in his eye told me he didn’t believe me.
“I have nothing to say. I'm not going.”
“Fine,” I said. “If you want to make this worse for yourself, that's up to you. I'll tell Richard you can't be bothered to give your side of things.”
I began to walk away from him, wishing with every fibre of my being that he’d be fired over this incident so I wouldn't have to spend every hour of my working day being so completely pissed off.
His footsteps followed mine and I walked faster, hoping to dive into my office before he could say anything else.
“Why did you trust what she told you?” he asked, catching me up before I could escape.
The stupidity of the question nearly floored me.
“Why? Because you left her in a quivering mess! It's about time you understood that when a woman says no, they're not playing hard to get, they just don't want anything to do with you!”
“Oh, like you didn’t want anything to do with me?”
I looked around, hoping to hell that nobody was nearby to hear what he’d said. The words echoed around us.
“Get over yourself,” I hissed. “I didn't ask for that kiss, you-”
“You responded! So before you start pretending you're innocent-”
“I'm not pretending to be innocent, I'm saying that forcing yourself on women isn't something you'd be above doing!”
“You're gonna bring that up in front of Richard, are you?” he taunted. “To prove Taylor's telling the truth? You're gonna tell him I ‘forced myself’ on you? I'm sure he'd be interested to hear how you handled it!”
My insides burned with anger at the way he kept bringing the kiss up every time I challenged him. Was this how my life was going to be now? Forced to remember my mistake, waiting for McCoy to spill it to Miguel if I pushed him far enough?
“If you weren't guilty of throwing yourself at Taylor, you wouldn't be going to so much trouble to try and unsettle me,” I said. “If you want to tell Richard what happened between you and I, go right ahead. Even if I lost my job, I’d be happy if it meant you got what you d
eserve!”
Instead of waiting for him to respond, I slipped back into my office, slamming the door behind me, and almost jumped out of my skin when I saw that Freya was gone and Miguel was sitting on my desk.
He smiled, so he couldn’t have heard the argument I’d had with McCoy. When he took in the expression on my face he said, “It’s too early in the morning for you to be this mad.”
Like a small child seeking comfort after a nightmare, I slunk towards Miguel and let him wrap me in his arms.
“What’s wrong, angel?”
“Really bad day,” I mumbled into his shoulder.
“What happened?”
I took a deep breath and informed him of the situation with McCoy. Again, even though I wasn't supposed to divulge any of the information, I needed to tell him. Since we'd been dating, I'd softened. Whenever things started to fall apart, I wanted to cuddle up to him and talk about it instead of pretending everything was fine. It was something I always had in me, I'd just never been with anyone who allowed me to be so openly honest and soppy.
“What a way to start the morning,” Miguel said.
“Yep,” I sighed. “I could really do without anymore run-ins with McCoy, but now this has come up …”
“You don't have to fight with him,” Miguel pointed out. “Why don’t you try walking away from it.”
Raising an eyebrow, I said, “Don't you know me at all?”
Miguel began to laugh. “Leah, you're not an argumentative person. You could do it if you tried.”
I shook my head. “McCoy is different. He's so smug and so arrogant, and so-”
“Okay,” Miguel interrupted, probably sensing the rant that was threatening to explode from me. “I know. But you'll have to find some way to control it. Think of something calming. What relaxes you?”
“You.”
“So think about me,” he replied, leaning in to kiss me.
'I always think about you when I fight with him,' I thought, guiltily, but shrugged it off as I returned Miguel's kiss.
“I hate to leave you so soon,” he said, “but work is calling me.”
“I know, for me too.”
“Cheer up! Isn’t it next weekend you’re going back to Boston?”
My mood instantly lifted at the thought of it. Before I’d accepted my job in L.A, I’d accepted an invitation to my friend’s wedding reception. Alison was one of the first people I met when I moved to Boston. She was a physiotherapist at the hospital I worked at and she introduced me to Stacey, who wound up being my roommate. Alison’s wedding to her long-term boyfriend Michael was an event I’d been looking forward to, and even though the wedding ceremony was family only, I didn’t want to miss the evening celebrations. Richard approved my days off because it was planned before I moved to Westberg, so I had three full days, most of which would be spent with my Boston buddies.
