you outside.”
“Alright.”
After he went out I went to the washroom and cleaned up myself. I still had my rolled out of bed look. As I was taking a shower the phone rang. I let it ring. It stopped. Then it started again. God, what now?
I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around me. I tiptoed back into the living area and picked it up, still clinging to my towel with one hand.
“Hello?”
“Hayley. It’s me, James.”
“James?” My boss rarely ever called me. “I heard through the grapevine that you are on the island.”
I shook my head. “On the island?”
“Yeah,” he replied.
“How did you know if I never told you?”
“I have my spies.” He let out a laugh. “Anyway I finally landed a big break with the Wayland family. Yeah, seems as though someone at the Waylands’ wants us to do a press piece on their work in turning the islands into eco-friendly vacation spots. I remembered you saying you were down there. I thought what a great opportunity. You could meet up with Max Wayland and do the piece.”
“But… I don’t work for you, James, anymore.”
“Uh yeah, you do.”
“What are you on about?”
“You never signed the form. I told you I wasn’t accepting your resignation. So if it didn’t fall through you could come back.”
“Look. James. I can’t do this now. I’m running a business. I don’t need this.”
The sound of workmen shouting and making jokes could be heard in the background.
“Hayley, I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t think this was important. But you know what… screw it, I’ll give it to Stephanie.”
“What?”
The mention of her name made my skin crawl.
“Yeah, she’s doing well here. I’m sure she’ll make a name for herself.”
Well, that wasn’t happening. Alright, I didn’t need this. But that bitch, excuse me, had it coming to her for quite a while. She had befriended me, made out she was my buddy, and then I find out she was screwing Markus?
“Look, a lot of people were vying for this piece. We managed to land it. It’s going to be the piece that will turn the tide on the way people think about the Enquirer . You always were harping on about how you wanted something you could sink your teeth into. Something important. This is it. You can’t get any more important than the environment. It’s hot right now and we need a piece that can cover it. Of course, we need a bit of a skewed angle but… Anyway… like I said, if you don’t want it. I will give it to Stephanie.”
“What’s involved?” I shot back. I couldn’t believe I was asking. It wasn’t even about keeping my ties with the Enquirer because if this didn’t work out, I could just sell off the cottages and the two that Ethan was going to give me and retire. And anyway, how hard could it be to take a few photos, gather some intel on them, maybe meet Max Wayland, and write up a piece on the work they were doing?
7
HAYLEY
M y boss wanted dirt on them. I wasn’t a fool. I knew that. He wasn’t looking to change the tide. Please. Give me a break. The Enquirer had been digging up dirt on the rich and famous for years. It was what sold magazines. People expected to get gossip. To find out the latest goings-on. Who such and such was dating. Who was cheating on their partner. Who was embezzling money or seeing prostitutes on the side. The whole paper was a joke. It’s what they were known for. But I for one wasn’t going to let that cow Stephanie have this. No way. Maybe I was acting a little bitchy but I had really liked Markus, even if he was a jerk. To think that she came in and wrecked our relationship was beyond frustrating.
He’d told me he would send an itinerary of what he had arranged. I still had all my cameras and well, I gathered Ethan would have other things to do besides hang out with me all day.
I stepped out into the morning sun and breathed in deeply. Things were beginning to look up. No matter how I went at this, I would come out of it
“Alright.”
After he went out I went to the washroom and cleaned up myself. I still had my rolled out of bed look. As I was taking a shower the phone rang. I let it ring. It stopped. Then it started again. God, what now?
I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around me. I tiptoed back into the living area and picked it up, still clinging to my towel with one hand.
“Hello?”
“Hayley. It’s me, James.”
“James?” My boss rarely ever called me. “I heard through the grapevine that you are on the island.”
I shook my head. “On the island?”
“Yeah,” he replied.
“How did you know if I never told you?”
“I have my spies.” He let out a laugh. “Anyway I finally landed a big break with the Wayland family. Yeah, seems as though someone at the Waylands’ wants us to do a press piece on their work in turning the islands into eco-friendly vacation spots. I remembered you saying you were down there. I thought what a great opportunity. You could meet up with Max Wayland and do the piece.”
“But… I don’t work for you, James, anymore.”
“Uh yeah, you do.”
“What are you on about?”
“You never signed the form. I told you I wasn’t accepting your resignation. So if it didn’t fall through you could come back.”
“Look. James. I can’t do this now. I’m running a business. I don’t need this.”
The sound of workmen shouting and making jokes could be heard in the background.
“Hayley, I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t think this was important. But you know what… screw it, I’ll give it to Stephanie.”
“What?”
The mention of her name made my skin crawl.
“Yeah, she’s doing well here. I’m sure she’ll make a name for herself.”
Well, that wasn’t happening. Alright, I didn’t need this. But that bitch, excuse me, had it coming to her for quite a while. She had befriended me, made out she was my buddy, and then I find out she was screwing Markus?
“Look, a lot of people were vying for this piece. We managed to land it. It’s going to be the piece that will turn the tide on the way people think about the Enquirer . You always were harping on about how you wanted something you could sink your teeth into. Something important. This is it. You can’t get any more important than the environment. It’s hot right now and we need a piece that can cover it. Of course, we need a bit of a skewed angle but… Anyway… like I said, if you don’t want it. I will give it to Stephanie.”
“What’s involved?” I shot back. I couldn’t believe I was asking. It wasn’t even about keeping my ties with the Enquirer because if this didn’t work out, I could just sell off the cottages and the two that Ethan was going to give me and retire. And anyway, how hard could it be to take a few photos, gather some intel on them, maybe meet Max Wayland, and write up a piece on the work they were doing?
7
HAYLEY
M y boss wanted dirt on them. I wasn’t a fool. I knew that. He wasn’t looking to change the tide. Please. Give me a break. The Enquirer had been digging up dirt on the rich and famous for years. It was what sold magazines. People expected to get gossip. To find out the latest goings-on. Who such and such was dating. Who was cheating on their partner. Who was embezzling money or seeing prostitutes on the side. The whole paper was a joke. It’s what they were known for. But I for one wasn’t going to let that cow Stephanie have this. No way. Maybe I was acting a little bitchy but I had really liked Markus, even if he was a jerk. To think that she came in and wrecked our relationship was beyond frustrating.
He’d told me he would send an itinerary of what he had arranged. I still had all my cameras and well, I gathered Ethan would have other things to do besides hang out with me all day.
I stepped out into the morning sun and breathed in deeply. Things were beginning to look up. No matter how I went at this, I would come out of it
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