RALEIGH - The head of the Smithfield's Chicken 'n Bar-B-Q chain spent a second day on the witness stand Monday denying accusations that he repeatedly fired men who turned down his sexual advances.

Gregory A. Moore, 51, spent the entire day being cross-examined by attorneys for Jason Hallaman, 39, a former personal assistant who is suing Moore in Wake County. Moore and his ex-wife founded Smithfield's, a popular roadside restaurant with 32 locations sprinkled across Eastern North Carolina.

Hallaman, who was hired in July 2002, hopes to ask a jury for at least $10,000 in damages should he win the case.

The brief answers Moore gave Monday contrasted with the long discourses he freely gave on Friday when questions were posed by his own attorneys. On Monday, a weary Moore repeated his assertion that he didn't sexually harass Hallaman.

Moore suggested Monday that Hallaman made up his claims to go after his money.

"If we didn't have any money, we wouldn't be here for the past two weeks and one day," Moore said, referring to the length of the trial being held in front of Wake Superior Court Judge Abraham Jones.

The butler's story

The panel of Wake County jurors has heard contrasting testimony about Hallaman's termination, which came after working for nine weeks as a house manager, or butler, at Moore's 12,000-square-foot home in West Raleigh. Hallaman contends he was fired unjustly because he refused Moore's sexual advances. He said Moore climbed into bed with him and jumped into the shower with him, uninvited, during weekend visits to Moore's vacation homes. Hallaman also said he told Moore on several occasions that he wasn't interested in a sexual relationship.

Hallaman was arrested in November 2002, more than a month after he was fired, on a charge of forgery after Moore told a sheriff's detective that Hallaman forged Moore's name to a $235 check used to pay a company that cleaned Moore's cars. Hallaman said that Moore instructed him to sign the check made out to the Dirty Deeds car detailing company, and he said he now suspects it was part of a plan to have him arrested and fired. The criminal charges against Hallaman were later dropped, and a Wake sheriff's detective testified that he took out arrest warrants after Moore told him he'd never heard of the company Dirty Deeds.

On Monday, Moore said the detective must have been mistaken about their conversation and said that Dirty Deeds frequently cleaned his cars.

Moore also said he didn't previously mention a claim he made on the stand Friday that Hallaman threatened to tell people that Moore was gay if Moore didn't give Hallaman $1 million. Friday's statement appears to be the first time Moore has publicly alleged extortion.

Moore said he never reported the blackmail attempt to police or others because he didn't want the information made public. Moore has testified that he is bisexual.

"It was important to try to maintain peace and harmony," Moore said Monday.

Hallaman's attorneys said Moore's accusations of blackmail are baseless.

In the trial, jurors have also heard from four other men who said Moore hit on them, touched them or propositioned them. All the men were fired shortly after they indicated they weren't interested in starting sexual relationships with Moore.

Moore said he never propositioned any of those men.

The evidence portion of the trial could wrap up today, with jurors expected to deliberate and make a decision later in the week.