Dear Diary (Love, Daddy)

“I don’t know how to explain it. It just happened. But, she’s the one. I have zero doubt.”

“It just happened?” she snaps. Her hands slap the table, her gold bangles clanging against the wood top. “I can’t believe this. You’re digging a deeper ditch for yourself. This absolutely cannot happen. She’s nineteen, Jackson. Cut all contact. Like, right now.”

I smile as the memory of eating Chastity’s pussy while she slept just hours ago crosses my mind. She woke with me fucking her, trying to figure out if it was a dream, and I told her I’d take her when and how I wanted, conscious or not. No fucking way I’d tell Isabella that because I’m pretty fucking sure it’s illegal as hell.

My baby liked it, she even pretended to go back to sleep while I drilled her damn near through the mattress. We came together like freight trains, then laughed about her playing possum like anyone could really sleep through that kind of fucking.

“No fucking way I’m breaking anything off with her, Bella.”

“I’m not giving you an option. I'm your attorney. I'm fighting you hard on this. You’re drowning in sexual harassment cases. Which you deny, and I believe you. But the evidence seems to be piling up and I don’t know what to say…this morning I saw it had been leaked somehow into the low-level internet news, it’s just a matter of time before it’s a real story.”

“What can I do?” It doesn’t matter what I say or do. I know in my heart that I’m digging myself a deeper legal grave with this. But I don’t give a shit. They probably just want money and I’ve got plenty of that.

Isabella loses the color in her cheeks. “I don’t know how to get this through your skull. I'm worried about you. Our whole defense against this is weak to begin with, and that’s no secret. And now you’re in a relationship with another employee? No, sorry, not an employee, an intern, for God’s sake. An intern who, by the way, is half your age. There’s nothing good about this, Jackson.”

“Too bad,” I mutter, more to myself than to her. My phone starts buzzing, and I take it out, ignoring the look of consternation on Bella’s face. It’s George Claude, but his message doesn’t make much sense but he’s horrible at texting.

George: Urgently need to speak to you. I found something in some court records. Something that could explain some things, but also could be dangerous for you.

I frown but put my phone back in my pocket. He can wait. I’ve got too many balls in the air right now and all I want to do is go find Chastity and start planning our future.

“To make things worse,” Isabella’s voice hardens in her last-ditch attempt to change my mind, “you promoted her, Jackson. You fucked her then promoted her. She has her own office, an office that’s not suited to her position.”

“She isn’t an intern anymore. She’s one of the creative heads on a team.”

“Really? She went from being an intern to creative head real fucking fast.” Isabella rubs her forehead. “You and I both know everything you stand to lose. Just one example, that new women’s shelter you’re funding? The one that you say is so important to you? Well, they’re not going to work with you when all this comes out. It won’t matter whether you are guilty or not. You know that.”

I know what’s she’s saying is true. It’s just Chastity means more to me than any of this other bullshit so it’s time to shut this down.

“If all of this comes out, if the situation with Chastity comes out and you don’t deny it…we’ve lost. You lose your new venture for the micro-loan charity. You lose stock price and your money. Your reputation. And you lose Chastity anyway.”

My jaw clenches tight. “I won’t lose her.”

Isabella tilts her head, her eyes sympathetic. “Does she know three employees are accusing you of sexual harassment?”

I swallow against the sudden lump in my throat. “No. I haven’t told her.”

“She’s not going to think that she's just one in a string of many? It’s going to break her heart.”

“She won’t doubt me. I won’t deny that I'm in a relationship with her. Not here. Not anywhere. Not in court.”

“You need to understand. You’re doing this all wrong. Why did you promote her? It’s all bias and-”

“She was promoted for a reason. I have everything on record. She was the creative force behind us securing some real-world accounts. And she deserved it.”

Isabella prepares to launch into another tirade, and I decide it’s time.

“As for the relationship…” I reach into my jacket pocket and pull out the little red velvet box, placing it in front of her. Isabella eyes it suspiciously, then snaps it open.