by Avery Wilde
The older cop sighed. “Look, sir, that may be it,” he said. “But I can tell you right now—there’s no way we can book anyone just because of a familiar perfume. How do you even know for sure that your ex wears the same kind?”
Because I’m not an idiot, I thought angrily. I thought of all the times Hannah had paraded past me, leaving a cloud of sickly-sweet floral musk in her wake. That perfume was her signature scent. It was a blend of two different varieties and she took pride in being the only one in the world who wore the same blend. I’d never wanted to hurt her feelings, but in my opinion, it smelled like a nightmare of a funeral home.
“Because I do,” I snapped. “Look, I was around Hannah for ages.”
The cop sighed. “That may be true,” he replied. “But even if you’re right, it doesn’t matter. Arresting someone because of perfume would make us a laughing stock.”
Kate stepped forward and put her hand on my arm. “It’s okay,” she said softly. “I don’t think anything was taken.”
The cops nodded. “Anything else, ma’am?”
Kate shook her head. “I’m fine,” she said. “Mostly embarrassed for freaking out the way I did. Thank you for coming, officers.”
As Kate and Lizzy showed the cops to the door, I flopped down on their couch with a big sigh.
When Kate returned, she sat next to me, and Lizzy plopped into a chair opposite from us.
“I don’t care what those cops say…I know who was here,” I said, my hands involuntarily clenching into fists. “And let’s just say I’m not happy about it.”
“Your ex-girlfriend,” Kate said. “How do you know? Was it really just her perfume?”
I laughed drily. “Hannah was really proud of that scent,” I said. “She makes it from two different other perfumes. I’d recognize it anywhere. She practically bathes in it before she leaves the house.”
Lizzy wrinkled her nose. “It smells….kinda like a retirement home,” she said.
I laughed, and Kate looked visibly relaxed when she saw that I wasn’t hung up on Hannah.
“She’s an odd one,” I said.
Kate shifted uncomfortably. “What are you going to do?” she asked.
When I saw that she was still scared, some of the anger came roaring back. I could barely believe that Hannah—that bitch—would do something so low. It was bad enough she had to drag Kate into her devious plans to ruin my life, but breaking into her sister’s apartment? That was a new low, even for someone as awful as her.
“We’re going to pay her a little visit,” I snapped. “Come on.”
Kate shrank back. “I’d rather not,” she said. “I mean, do you think she’s dangerous?”
“No, just a nasty person,” I said. “But she’s going to get a very stern talking to. And I want her to see you. I want her to feel shame for what she did. She should feel shame. She should be too fucking embarrassed to speak.”
Lizzy grinned. “I knew you’d know how to deal with this,” she said. She stood up and socked one fist into her other waiting hand. “Kate, you gotta go with him. I wouldn’t want to get on your bad side, Jay.”
Kate still looked reluctant. “I don’t know. What if she tries something else? What if she writes another article?” She pressed her lips firmly together for a second, and I could tell she was thinking about the conversation she’d had with her producer. “I mean, I can’t let her ruin my career, Jay.”
I shook my head. “Rubbish. She’s been trying to ruin mine for years now, and has she succeeded yet?”
Lizzy and Kate both stared at me. “Holy shit,” Lizzy said. “That’s one vindictive little woman.”
“It’s a bloody mess,” I said, raking a hand through my close-cropped hair. “Come on, Kate. Better get on the road.”
Kate stood up, and I saw that she was shaking. “Are we going to her apartment?”
I shook my head. When Kate stepped closer, I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and hugged her close. “No,” I said. “We’re going to where she works. Don’t be afraid, Kate. I promise nothing else bad will happen.”
“Okay,” she finally replied. She and Lizzy hugged and then we were on our way.
I realized that the last time I’d been alone with Kate, we’d been plastered to each other, kissing deeply. I still felt the same animalistic, lustful pull towards her body, but I could tell this whole situation was distracting her, and I didn’t want to make her even more uncomfortable than she already felt. Still, when she walked in front of me, her ass swinging from side to side, it was hard to restrain the powerful desire.
“Are you okay?” I asked as we stood outside Lizzy’s apartment, waiting for a cab to pass so that we could cross the street to my car. “You’re being very quiet.”
She let out a long sigh. “It’s silly,” she said. “It’s just…well, when I came over here, I was hoping to avoid drama, you know?” She looked up at me and tried to smile. “I was trying to get away from a weird situation. I should have known better than to run from my problems.”
I gave her a gentle smile. “I doubt Hannah was stalking you before you came to Manchester,” I said lightly. “After all, she’s only bothering you because we’re spending time together. She’s jealous.”
Kate didn’t say anything. She sat quietly and tried to digest the information as we got in the car, and as I drove towards the offices of the Manchester Evening News, I kept waiting for her to say something. But she stayed silent the whole time, deep in thought. I wondered what she’d meant when she said she was trying to get away from drama. Was it all about that ex-boyfriend she’d mentioned, or was there something else? With a girl as beautiful and well-known as Kate, I imagined she’d probably had to deal with some pretty shady shit over time.
When we arrived, she looked at me. Her face was very pale, almost white. “What are you going to say?”
I set my lips in a thin line. “She’s going to know she can’t fuck with us,” I growled. “And she’s going to apologize to you.”
I thought I saw a hint of a smile on Kate’s face as she climbed out of the car, but by the time she was standing by my side, she looked solemn once again.
“Here we go,” I muttered under my breath. “Hannah, you nasty creature, just wait until I’m through with you...”
Chapter Ten
Kate
I couldn’t help but feel intimidated as Jay led me into a giant complex of buildings. When I’d first seen the Manchester Evening News site, I’d assumed it was kind of a small, local affair, but these offices were gigantic and obviously open all night. There was a stunning redheaded receptionist sitting at the front desk in the lobby, and as she watched us approach, she scowled at me and let her eyes hang all over Jay.
“Hi, Jay,” she said in a chirpy, flirty tone. “I haven’t seen you around here in a while.”
“It’s been too long, love,” Jay said with a roguish grin and a wink. “How have you been doing?”
As we stepped closer, I realized he was using his charms on her. Part of me bristled at that, and I immediately felt a weird mix of guilt and shame rush through my body. Why the hell was I feeling like I had any kind of a claim on Jay? I obviously didn’t—I barely knew him. Even though he’d spilled that information about his past, I didn’t think it meant we were in any sort of relationship. He was obviously used to talking with strange girls, because he was with a different one all the time, and soon that was all I’d be. Just a strange girl who got tangled up in a mess with his ex-girlfriend.
“We’re here to see Hannah Joyce,” Jay said. He leaned over the counter and winked at the receptionist. She was practically drooling, and I had to look away or else I thought I’d be sick.
“I don’t know…” she said slowly. “If you don’t have an appointment, I really shouldn’t let you back there.”
“Come on,” Jay pleaded. “You know me.”
The girl giggled. “Well I don’t really know you,” she said, flushing bright red. “I mean, I know who you are. I
’d be daft if I didn’t!”
Jay leaned a little closer to the girl. “We just need to talk to Hannah for a few minutes. It’s late, so I know she’s probably not working on anything important. I promise we’re not going to stay very long.”
The girl pouted. “Fine,” she said. “But can you sign this?” She held up a Manchester United mug that had been sitting on her desk. As Jay signed his name in a flourish with a permanent marker, I suppressed a smile. Was there anyone his charms didn’t work on?
“Thanks!” the girl said.
“You’re welcome,” Jay replied with a wink. “And thanks again for letting us through.”
I shifted from foot to foot as I waited for Jay to rejoin me, and as soon as he was by my side, he apologized.
“I’m sorry about that,” he said under his breath. “But she wasn’t going to let us back.”
I bit my lip, already nervous about going into the main offices. Even though I normally didn’t feel self-conscious about the way I looked, I wasn’t exactly thrilled at the thought of seeing Jay’s ex-girlfriend. Jay was the hottest guy I’d ever seen in the flesh, so I assumed that Hannah, whoever she was, had to be gorgeous.
Jay led me down a back hallway, and I couldn’t help thinking of all the times he’d walked the passages of the Manchester Evening News by himself, excited about seeing his girlfriend. I shivered. Stop thinking like that, I ordered myself. You know nothing good is going to come from pitting yourself up against some random woman. And besides, isn’t that against everything you preach? Talk about being a hypocrite!
Every time we passed an attractive woman, I tensed and waited for Jay to greet her. But that didn’t happen, and soon we were in front of a door with ‘Hannah Joyce’ printed on the front in pink script. There was a photo of a cute blonde with the whole Manchester United team, grinning on the field after a win.
“Hannah,” Jay said in a sharp voice as he rapped on the door. “I know you’re in there. Find anything interesting at Lizzy Romero’s apartment earlier?”
The door slowly opened and I saw the same blonde from the photo. She was the same height as me, but that was where the similarities ended. Her long hair was pin-straight and flowed over shoulders, and she had sky blue eyes and pouty red lips. When she saw Jay, she broke into a charming smile.
“Jay, so nice to see your cute bum,” she said in a sing-song tone. “What can I do for you today?”
Jay ignored her and strode into her office, and he was so large that he crossed from one side to the other in a mere two paces. The walls were adorned with sports kitsch—lots of Manchester United scarves and banners—and photos of Hannah with various athletes.
“Jay, I’m hurt,” Hannah said. She looked at me and pouted. “And who is this? The flavor of the week? Or should I say, flavor of the hour?”
The comment stung, but I didn’t say anything. Jay narrowed his eyes and rounded on her.
“Apologize,” he said in a low, throaty growl. The sound of his voice sent tremors of lust down my spine. “Apologize to Kate. Right now.”
Hannah turned to me with a sour expression on her face. “Sorry,” she said in a sarcastic tone. Turning back to Jay, she leaned back against her desk and fixed him with a flirtatious grin. “So what can I do for you, Jay?”
“You know why we’re here, Hannah,” Jay said sharply. “You broke into Kate’s sister’s apartment.”
“What? No I didn’t,” Hannah said. “But if you’re trying to get me interested in something juicy, it’s working. You have anything you want to confess?”
Taking a pad and pen from the desk she leaned back and crossed her spray-tanned legs at the ankle. “I’m always ready for a new story.”
“Stop it,” Jay growled. “Trust me, Hannah, you don’t want to deal with me when I get angry. I don’t give a shit if you try to ruin my life, but don’t go dragging other people into your rubbish. Don’t be such a jealous little twat!”
Hannah paled but showed no other sign of surprise. “I don’t know why you’re attacking me like this,” she said in a casual voice. “You know I wouldn’t ever do anything illegal.”
“I think breaking and entering is illegal,” I snapped. “And you put my sister in danger!”
Hannah rolled her eyes. “Your latest one is dramatic, isn’t she?” She looked at Jay for confirmation. “What’s the deal with her, anyway?”
“Her name is Kate,” Jay said through gritted teeth. “And you know who she is, because you wrote a nasty piece about her, and then you managed to track down where she was staying and broke in.”
I couldn’t lie, watching him angry at Hannah was turning me on more than I ever would have expected, and as he crossed the room to stare her down, I felt a shiver of lust trickle down my spine.
“I still have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said, crossing her arms.
“You do, because we all know you did it, and you’re never going to do it again,” Jay continued. “And you’ll treat Kate with the respect she deserves.”
“Or at least stop breaking into my sister’s apartment,” I said. “I don’t care what you do the rest of the time. But leave me alone.”
Hannah laughed. “For the last time, I didn’t do it,” she said. “God, I’m insulted you’d even pin such a petty, stupid crime on me!”
“Cut the shit, Hannah,” Jay said. “I smelled that horrific perfume you love so much. It was still wafting around when the cops showed up.”
“They can’t arrest me based on my perfume,” Hannah said in an airy tone.
“I wish they could, it’s bloody awful,” Jay muttered, and I tried to hold back a snicker, knowing that right now really wasn’t an appropriate moment to laugh.
Hannah narrowed her eyes, finally cutting off her nice act. “Get out. Both of you.”
“Not until you admit what you did,” Jay said, his eyes flashing. “Should we get your boss and ask him or her to weigh in on this situation?”
Hannah rolled her eyes and dropped her shoulders dramatically. “Okay! Fine, I did it, I broke in. I didn’t mean any harm by it.” She eyed me up and down. “I just wanted to see what kind of slut you’ve decided to bang nowadays. After all, you normally have a type—blonde and thin. But she doesn’t really live up to that, does she?”
A hot flush of anger broke out across my cheeks. Just as I was about to get in Hannah’s face and do something I’d likely regret, Jay stepped in front of me and pulled his phone out of his pocket.
“I just recorded this whole conversation, and I’m sure you don’t want anyone hearing it. So you damn well better leave Kate alone,” he hissed. “You’ll leave me alone too. You’ll go about your shady bullshit business and leave the two of us out of it, got that?”
Hannah visibly blanched, but she quickly regained her composure and sniffed. “What makes you think I’m even still interested now that I’ve seen all there is to see of her?” She eyed me again and I felt the same hot flash of anger through my body. “After all, she seems pretty ordinary.”
Jay clenched his teeth. “Just stop it, Hannah. Stop it or I’ll go to the editor right now and give him this recording. Your name will be mud and you’ll never get another job in journalism ever again. Got it?”
Hannah smiled, and she walked behind her desk and sat down with her knees primly pressed together. She was pretty, I couldn’t deny that, but there was such an air of dissatisfaction around her that I couldn’t imagine she got a lot of men to flock around her. She seemed so smug and superior.
“Got that?” Jay’s voice rang out loudly in the small office as he repeated himself.
Hannah nodded, obviously knowing she was defeated. The recording Jay had made could see her out of a job, not to mention in some pretty hot water with the police. “Ten-four, boss,” she said with a smirk on her face. “Anything else?”
Jay turned to me. “Ready to go? Or do you have something to say to Hannah too?”
I bit my lip. “I don’t want to stoop to her level,”
I said, loudly enough for Hannah to hear me. Tossing my hair over my shoulder, I stalked out of the small office.
As soon as we were in the hallway with the door shut behind us, I practically collapsed onto Jay, adrenaline pumping wildly through my body.
“Are you okay?” he asked, looking at me. His eyes were filled with a mixture of anger and concern. “She was really nasty to you.”
I shrugged. “Well, I didn’t expect her to be friendly,” I said with a wry smile. “And god, her perfume! You were right. It’s horrible! It makes me think of mothballs mixed with peach schnapps and bitterness.”
Jay smirked. “Told you so,” he said. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
“Are you sure she’s going to stop?” I looked up at his handsome, rugged face. He was incredibly intimidating when he wanted to be, but Hannah seemed to have a hidden agenda of her own.
“If she knows what’s good for her,” Jay replied. He looked at me with his forehead creased in concern. “I think she just wanted attention. And she got that, didn’t she?”
“I don’t know,” I mused. “You really don’t think she’ll try anything else?”
Jay shook his head. “Her bark is much, much worse than her bite,” he said. “She’s already afraid of losing her job. She used to be a sports columnist but they demoted her to celebrity gossip because she was chasing too many athletes.” He rolled his eyes. “She’s not a great journalist, and she makes shit up all the time. So she’s perfect for celebrity coverage.”
I snorted. “Back home, all the celebrity gossip columnists I knew were pretty smart,” I said. “If they pulled that shit, they’d have gotten fired in an instant.”
Jay laughed. “Well, she’s smart, even though she doesn’t seem like it. But I really think she gets away with anything because men like her.” He raised his eyebrows. “Sorry if that was uncomfortable for you.”
