Chapter 5When her dressing room door burst open several minutes later, Tess braced herself for the onslaught she predicted would follow. Indeed, she had dreaded this moment, but she knew her actions had precipitated it, and she had already accepted the consequences. She could have locked her door, or fled the studio, but in the past—before Jared Cox—she had never been one to shy away from uncomfortable situations, heated confrontations. As she eyed the stern visages of the framed eight-by-tens of her idols adorning the walls, she knew none of those famous journalist icons would have given up this type of battle—ultimately primitive, though it may be—without a brutal fight. And the notion steadied her for what she imagined would arrive.
From the chair at her make-up table, she turned to vi
