Inappropriate Conduct
the VP echoed, “is one word for it. Some of us might say alarmed.”
Julian said nothing. Let the silence stretch until it cracked.
Finally, one of the senior partners cleared his throat. “Julian, your reputation has been spotless. Unimpeachable. You’ve weathered campaigns that would’ve destroyed lesser men. But this—” He gestured vaguely, like the words were too dirty to touch. “This is different.”
“It’s inappropriate conduct,” Marlene added crisply from the corner. She’d been invited as HR’s representative, her pinched smile making Julian’s teeth ache. “It undermines our credibility as a professional organization.”