Elise awoke to the shrill ringing of her cordless phone by her bed. She groggily looked at the clock. It was almost noon. She decided to let the answering machine get it. She was too tired. She had stayed up late the night before writing the second to last chapter of her next romance novel. It was almost finished. There would be proof-reading and editing but it was almost finished. Just in time for Christmas. Her books always sold better on the holidays.
"This is Elise. I'm not home right now, but if you leave your name and number, I'll get back to you. Beep."
"Elise, this is Leslie. Get your ass to the phone now! What in the hell have you done? Why would you make an admission like that? Do you realize you've ruined your career?"
Elise sat up quickly and picked up the phone. Her agent never yelled at her.
"Leslie, what are you talking about? What admission?"
"Francine Carver just released a tape to the public where you explain in graphic detail about the first night you had sex with your father."
"What?!" Elise's heart hammered in her chest. Tears filled her eyes. She knew something had been wrong. God damn Francine! She was going to kill her.
"I don't care what you do in your personal life, but broadcasting something like that is a sure way to ensure that no one buys your books ever again."
"I'm not having sex with my father!" Elise protested. "Francine must have set me up. She told me in explicit detail about a fantasy she had about her father and tearfully begged me to tell her if I'd had one about mine. Every girl does. We've talked about it. But I never had sex with him."
"Elise, that is not what the fucking tape shows. Hold on. I've got recorded it in case you tried to deny it." There was a rustling of the phone and then the click of a tape recorder.
"When was the first time you had sex with your father?" Francine's voice was unmistakable.
"When I was eighteen." She heard herself reply.
Her mother opened in horror.
"Tell me about your first time." Francine's voice encouraged.
She heard herself tell the fantasy Francine had asked her to tell like it had actually happened. Tears spilled down her cheeks. What...why had Francine done this? How could she have done this to her?
"Wow, that sounds intense. He must really be good."
"My father is good."
Elise's stomach churned.
"How often do you have sex?"