Executive Engagement

“Don’t do this.”

Layla

It’s unbelievable. I never would've thought Lori would use her position to do something so underhanded. It’s not about censorship and protecting the people. Family values and all the rest of the holier-than-thou bullshit that she spouted off when she first gave me this assignment.

I had no idea Lori ever wanted to be on A Cunning Linguist. It doesn’t seem to fit her at all. She was so insistent that the show is obscene. Unfit for the public. Yet she wanted to be on it?

I also can’t believe she didn’t tell me. She basically lied by omission, and I can’t help but be a little upset by that. Yeah, we have a boss/employee relationship, but I’ve always respected her, and I considered her my friend. Sure, things have been a bit tense since I started spending time with Jake. But we’re still friends.

When I tell Jake, “Wait,” and he turns to me, he’s so angry.

Not at me, but at Lori and the entire situation. And as much as I’m upset that she wasn’t honest with me, and that she put Jake’s show in real jeopardy, I think I know why she did it. She was embarrassed. I get that now.

Talking to all those women yesterday really enlightened me even more. They were all embarrassed to an extent, but they believed in Jake’s message. I think she really wanted to see what Jake’s show could do for her, but once she was rejected, she became bitter and angry about it.

I’m not defending her. Not at all. Because this could've ended very badly for Jake. But I think I have an idea.

“Don’t do this,” I tell Jake, walking toward him. “You’re angry. I get it. But I think I have a solution.”

His expression changes. “How?”

“Yeah,” Toby chimes in. “Not really sure how this is fixable. Lori has an ulterior motive and I have no doubt she still wants to take us down.”

“Lori needs to be the next guest on A Cunning Linguist.”

Silence.

One beat.

Two.

Three.

I swear a solid thirty seconds passes before either of them says anything. And the looks they’re giving me make it clear that they’re worried about my sanity.

“Just hear me out, okay?”

They exchange weary looks, but nod, sitting down.

“Why would we want to have someone on the show who just wants to make us look even worse?” Toby asks before I can say anything.

“Yeah,” Jake agrees. “I’m not following. Lori’s dangerous to the future of ACL. You do see that, right? If we have her on the show, she’s going to try to tear us apart on national TV. Live TV. There won’t be any coming back from that.”

I nod slowly. “But what if we can flip it on its head?”

“How?” he asks again.

So I explain. When I’m done, the two men exchange glances, neither looking convinced. I sigh in frustration. They aren’t going to go for it.

“I don’t know, Layla,” Toby says. “I still think it’s a bad idea. We’ve put too much into ACL to risk it all like this. It’s too unpredictable.”

I focus my attention on Jake. “Do you trust me?”

He nods reluctantly. “You know I do.”

“Then can you please just trust me on this?” I hold my breath as he considers my words. Another long silence passes.

Finally, he blows out a hard sigh and nods. “Okay. Let’s do it.”