The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

She froze. Her stomach sank and twisted, her feet cemented
to the ground. “It’s not true,” she whispered.
“No? You think it’s not true that scientists in the field want
to impress the great Adam Carlsen enough to kiss the ass of
whoever he’s fucking at the moment? I certainly did when I
told his very mediocre girlfriend that she could come work for
me. But maybe you’re right,” he said, all mocking affability.
“Maybe you know STEM academia better than I do.”
“I’m going to tell Adam about this. I’m going to—”
“By all means.” Tom widened his arms. “Go ahead. Be my
guest. Do you need to borrow my phone?”
“No.” Her nostrils flared. A wave of icy anger swept over
her. “No.” She turned around and marched to the entrance,
fighting the nausea and bile climbing up her throat. She was
going to find Adam. She was going to find the conference
organizers and report Tom. She was never going to see his face
again.
“Quick question. Who do you think Adam will believe,
Olive?”
She halted abruptly, just a few feet from the door.
“Some bitch he’s been fucking for about two weeks, or
someone who’s been a close friend for years? Someone who
helped him get the most important grant of his career?
Someone who’s had his back since he was younger than you
are? Someone who’s actually a good scientist?”
She spun around, shaking with rage. “Why are you doing
this?”
“Because I can.” Tom shrugged again. “Because as
advantageous as my collaboration with Adam has been,
sometimes it’s a bit annoying how he needs to be best at
everything, and I like the idea of taking something away from
him for once. Because you are very pretty, and I look forward