Climax: The Publicist, Book Three
Page 9
No, this was not going well at all. “Mac, look, this is a fantastic book. I told her you would be editing it but that you wouldn’t be directly involved with her.”
Mac let out an exaggerated sigh. “I am really surprised.”
Kate felt her chest tighten. This had already been a very long day and it wasn’t even noon yet. She took a deep breath and continued.
“I did what I had to so I could get this book. I told her you would be a part of the project. She’s just playing the protective sister. I mean, I dumped her brother for you; I am not at all surprised she reacted this way. Candidly, we’re lucky she decided to sign with us at all. She was pretty adamant that she wanted nothing to do with me. Her agent called to tell me that the chances were slim to none we’d get it. So when Vivienne asked for a concession, I gave it to her.”
“You threw me over a cliff on this book.”
Now could feel her temper rise. “What the hell are you talking about? You’ll still be involved. And we need this book; you know we need this book.”
Mac spun around to face the window. “Fucking Nick. I can’t believe that man is still in our lives.”
At the sound of Nick’s name, something prickled inside of Kate.
Something not good. Kate walked towards the door. She needed to get out of there and clear her head. She’d gone from being surprised and terrified by a crazy author, to Vivienne showing up, and now this fight with Mac.
She reached for the door handle, turned to Mac and said, “This is not Nick’s fault. I left him for you; she has a problem with that. If I were in her shoes, frankly, I would, too. I admire that she could see past it, and, in the end, she’s doing what is right for her book.”
And with that, Kate left and closed the door behind her.
. . . .
When Kate left Mac’s office, she found Lulu setting a stack of papers on her desk.
“Hey Lu,” Kate said with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
Lulu walked over to her and hugged her. “I am so sorry about what happened. I wish I had been here.”
Kate hugged her back. “It was pretty scary. For a minute there I thought he would actually use that gun.”
Lulu stepped back. “God, Kate, that’s horrible. I’ll call someone in to clean up your office and make sure there isn’t a trace of what happened left in there.”
Kate laughed. Thank God for Lu, always finding a way to help.
“Thanks,” Kate said. “Lu, we got Riley. We need to get her contracts to her today. Can you ask the paralegal to draw them up for us today? But you should know who she is.”
Lulu blinked. Kate could tell even the small moment of anticipation was going to kill her.
“I’ve been dying to figure this out!” Lu smiled.
“Her name,” Kate paused for a moment briefly recalling Mac’s reaction to the news, “Is Vivienne Lavigne.”
Lulu looked at her for a moment, and the name slowly registered on her face. “Wait, a relative of Allan’s?”
Kate nodded, “His niece.” She stopped for a moment and then added, “Nick’s sister.”
A hand flew to Lu’s mouth. “Oh, God, really? Did you know he had a sister who could write like this?”
Kate shook her head and sat down in the chair beside Lulu’s desk. “No idea. I mean, I knew he had a sister, but I never met her. She was either off at school or traveling.”
Lulu followed Kate’s lead and sat down. “Is this okay? I mean for you?”
Kate smiled, “It’s fine, Lu. Nick is fine.” She thought about that statement for a moment and flashed to their sudden meeting. “He’s in New York, by the way. I ran into him the other day.”
Lulu leaned forward. “No! You didn’t even tell me!”
Kate smiled. She loved Lu’s need for innocent gossip. “It was not a big deal. He’s here opening some stores.”
Lulu smiled, “I really liked Nick.”
Kate didn’t respond. She did, too. But that was long ago.
Some days it seemed like yesterday, and other times, like now, it seemed like it was an eternity ago that they were living in his house in Southern California and she was starting up Lavigne House. Nick raced home each day to hear her latest update about publishing his uncle’s book. They’d celebrate the victories together. Nick always insisted on that.
“Celebrate the victories,” he would say, “even the smallest one. Small ones lead to great things.” She suddenly couldn’t recall the last time she’d heard him say that to her.
Yes, it was indeed a long time ago.
Kate shook off the memory and put her attention on her most pressing matter of the day; getting Vivienne her contract.
“So, anyway,” Kate said, intentionally not responding to Lu’s comment about Nick, “We need to get her contract to her today. Can you make that happen? I need it back ASAP so we can get started on this book.”
Lulu stood up. “You bet. Consider it done.”
Kate walked back to her office and then realized she couldn’t work there, at least not today. She stood up and grabbed her purse and her laptop. She stopped at Lulu’s desk on her way out. “I’m going to work from home. Call or text me if you need anything, and confirm when the contract goes out. Please let Vivienne’s agent know it’s coming, would you? I should be back before Rebecca gets here.”
Lu nodded and smiled, “Will do.”
CHAPTER 24
Kate read through Vivienne’s manuscript for almost two hours before she realized she had a missed a text message. She was sitting on the couch in their living room, Vivienne’s book spread out around her. She had sticky notes on several pages and a notepad filled with marketing ideas that totaled nearly three pages.
A nice start.
She finally heard the soft buzzing of the vibrating phone and grabbed it.
Kate, call me. I can’t find a messenger this afternoon.
It was Lulu. She’d sort of assumed it would be Mac, but there wasn’t so much as a call from him. He was either too engrossed in getting caught up with work or he was still pissed at her.
Kate dialed Lu’s cell.
“Kate I’m so sorry,” she said. “Our regular messenger service is on some special conference project and all their guys are booked up until five. I called a few others, but their earliest availability is tomorrow morning.”
“What about Annabelle?”
“She’s off the next few days, remember?”
“Right. Damn. Okay, where does Vivienne live?”
Lulu read off the address. Funny, it was only five blocks over from where she and Mac lived. Convenient.
“Lu, email it to me. I’ll print it off here and drop it off myself.”
“Seriously?” Lulu couldn’t remember the last time she’d known the head of a publishing house to personally drop off a contract.
“We’re in a hurry for this one with the deadlines for editing, promotion, etc. These are going to be hard enough without losing an entire day.” Kate laughed. “I’ll just do it. It’s fine. I’ll drop it by her apartment and then head back to the office.”
Kate waited a few minutes until the contract arrived; she printed off two copies, stuffed them in an envelope, and headed out.
CHAPTER 25
When Kate and Mac had moved in together, he’d given up his apartment and bought one on East Seventy-Fifth with an easy six-block walk to Central Park. Kate loved the tall windows and spacious views, but the apartment was more than they needed, really, with four bedrooms and three bathrooms. The master bedroom was bigger than her old apartment in the Village. Sometimes she missed living in that neighborhood. It was charming in a way that the Upper West Side wasn’t. To say there was a lot of money on the West Side wouldn’t be quite accurate. This was New York, and if you lived in the city, you’d better have money or a roommate—otherwise it was unaffordable. If Vivienne lived in that neighborhood, she’d bet that the girl shared the apartment with a roommate, or maybe even a few of them.
“I’m from Lavigne House,” Kate smiled at the doorman who threw her a faint smile in return. “I need to see Vivienne Lavigne.”
The man checked his screen. “Yes, Lavigne,” he said. “I’ll let them know.” Picking up the phone, he dialed. “I have someone here with a delivery for Miss Vivienne. Sure.” The doorman cradled the phone and looked over at Kate. “Do you mind leaving it?”
Kate hesitated. She’d had more than one delivery delayed or (God forbid) lost by leaving it at the front desk. This was too important. “Can I bring it up? It’s a contract.”
“She’s insisting on coming up. She says it’s a contract. Okay, thanks.” He hung the phone up, seeming slightly annoyed. “First bank of elevators on the right, apartment 1071,” he said and set the phone down. He turned his attention to the next guest, almost dismissing Kate.
“Thank you.” Kate headed towards the elevator. Impatient or rude doormen never bothered her; she had a contract to deliver and a book to publish.
She reached the tenth floor and the doors slid open; there were only three apartments on this floor. Vivienne was in a big unit.
“Definitely a dozen roommates or more,” Kate mumbled to herself. As she started to step off the elevator, the door to Vivienne’s apartment opened and in the doorway stood Nick. He was clearly surprised.
“Kate? What are you doing here?”
When Kate stopped short of getting out of the elevator, the doors started to close on her. She thrust a foot between them. Graceful, she thought.
She stepped into the hallway and towards Nick. She had not at all been expecting this, but she probably should have. Why would Vivienne live with a bunch of roommates when she could just stay with her brother?
“I brought the contract for Vivienne’s book deal.” Kate held the envelope out in front of her as proof and validation of her visit. She tried desperately to steady her voice. She knew she was unsuccessful.
Nick quickly gathered himself and leaned against his door, almost nonchalantly. He was wearing a pair of snug jeans, a crisp white shirt that set off his tan, and that damned blinding smile.
“You’re a messenger now?” he teased.
“No, we, eh, couldn’t find one and I was working at home, so I figured I’d drop it by. I’m just a few blocks over.”
“Convenient,” Nick said, his voice ash and deep, and, damn it, sexy as hell.
Kate handed him the envelope, ignoring his comment. “Can you make sure she gets this? I really need it back as soon as possible. The instructions are inside; she should just sign at the tabs and return one copy to me.”
Nick took the envelope from her and for a moment, it connected them. Their eyes met. It had been ages since she’d looked at him, really looked at him, and as she did she could feel herself shift off her axis. A heat that started in her belly rose to her cheeks. She quickly let go of the envelope.
Had Nick noticed it, too? An odd shadow crossed his face. Want or disgust, Kate wasn’t sure. The year since the breakup seemed to make him a stranger.
Yet not a stranger at all.
“I’ll make sure she gets it. And congratulations. She’s a terrific writer.”
Kate smoothed her skirt and thought for a moment about what to say next. What came out was unexpected. “Thank you, Nick, for encouraging her to sign with us. I will take very good care of her and this book.”
Nick paused for a moment, his hands tracing the edges of the thick envelope. “I know you will.” His voice was soft and void of any emotion other than the love he had for his sister.
“Well, I should go.” Kate turned to leave but was pulled back by Nick’s voice.
“Kate, do you have a minute? Why don’t you come in?”
She turned slowly back to him. He was smiling. A broad, beautiful, stunning smile. The same one she’d seen that day at his uncle’s when they first met. It was the smile she’d fallen in love with—that and many other things.
“Katie, I’m so excited for you to meet my nephew, Nick. He’s out from California. Won’t you stay and meet him?” Allan asked enthusiastically. There had been a slight pleading in his voice. Kate always had a hard time refusing him, although she’d only stopped by Allan’s apartment that morning to drop off groceries and see how he was doing. The “nephew” had seemed to her to be more of an urban legend than anything else. He lived in California, and his visits often happened when she was out of town or buried at work. But that day had been different. Nick arrived as she was getting ready to leave.
He’d walked in, smiling in his cool and easy-going way.
“Hi, I’m Nick.”
She had been immediately taken aback by his kind, sweet nature and his impossible good looks, but she was knee deep in her affair with Mac and was, for lack of a better term, confused.
“Kate?” Nick’s voice brought her back from her memories.
She knew she should just go, but heard herself say, “Sure.” And she stepped past him into his apartment.
CHAPTER 26
“What a lovely place,” Kate said as she walked inside. Like many apartments in this neighborhood, what it lacked in charm it made up for in window space. Tall windows covered the long wall that faced the street. Kate walked over the window, still not sure what she was doing here.
She heard Nick walk up behind her. “Yes, it’ll due for a while at least.”
Kate turned to him. “Nick, it’s odd that you are living here. I mean, not in New York—although that must be a real change for you—but I mean odd that you live in this part of the city. You always seemed more of the Village type.”
Nick nodded and stepped closer. “That was always my first choice,” he began. He was standing next to her now. He smelled faintly of aftershave, that breezy, warm smell that reminded her of the ocean and the beach and sunshine. Yeah, that, too.
“When the investor came through, he offered me this apartment until I could find something else. He owns this whole floor.
Kate nodded and turned her attention back to the street below. “I know it’s always a challenge to find a place in this city. When Mac and I…” Kate caught herself and stopped so abruptly she nearly tripped over her own sentence.
Nick tilted his head and looked at her, his face emotionless. Suddenly, a broad smile emerged. “You know, Kate, I got news for you. The secret is out. It’s okay to mention him.”
“Right.” Kate felt an awkward sense of, What the hell was she even doing here? flood her system. “Anyway, I...” Kate stopped talking and crossed her arms, something she always did when she was nervous. Finally, she said, “Nick, I’m sorry. It’s just been a long day and being here in your apartment is so surreal.”
“For me, too,” he said softly. “Look, why don’t we have a seat?”
Kate nodded and they walked over to a set of couches that clearly came with the apartment. They were somewhat generic and not Nick’s taste at all.
Nick sat down and Kate followed his lead, carefully leaving a respectable amount of space between them. There was a time when they would curl up together on the couch, not leaving an inch of space between them.
But that was then.
“I’m putting in an offer this week on a place in the Village. I’ll need to come back and forth a lot once the stores launch, so I figured it was a good idea to have someplace that was mine, and for Viv, too, of course.” Nick smiled.
“She’s a really special girl,” Kate said.
Nick nodded. “She is and she’s so loyal to me.” His smiled broadened even wider. “She worries about me, especially now that she’s signing with Lavigne House.”
“She is not my biggest fan; I’m actually surprised she did. I’m very grateful to you, Nick.” Kate’s voice was soft and genuine.
Nick felt a tingle of something creep up his spine. A memory perhaps, or a ghost of a feeling of something from long ago.
“You were her best choice, Kate.” Nick’s voice was firm. “It was a good business decision.”
Somehow Nick’s comment deflated her. It was business. Nothing more, and certainly nothing personal.
Nick continued, “So, I felt like, with Viv signing with you, you and I should try to mend fences. For Viv’s sake,” he added quickly.
So this is what this was about, his sister. Of course. Kate should have known. For even the briefest sliver of a moment, she had hoped that they could be friends again. Not like they once were, but friends nonetheless. Selfish though it may be, she really needed his friendship right now. However, she wasn’t sure given whatever was still unresolved between them if it was the best idea.
Nick got up. “I’ll make us some tea. I have your favorite.” He smiled and then caught himself.
Her favorite.
The little details of a life shared, now lost, revealed themselves in a conversation. A favorite tea. An apartment that didn’t quite seem like the right fit. Details that were once part of a bigger picture.
A picture that had once been his whole world. Now it was just a shattered, empty frame with scattered details and memories he tried to shove to the back of his mind.
Kate nodded. “Sure, I’d love that.” She needed tea. A soothing cup of tea with Nick sounded perfect, and then not so much. The air that swirled around them felt awkward and sad, and in that moment Kate realized that whatever fragment of hope she had that she and Nick could be friends again vanished. Sure, they could be friendly, but it was a long drive from friendly to the man who had carried her from that burning building that had once been her life and given her a second chance at happiness.
Nick set the kettle on the stove—still no microwaves for him. He never believed in them. He used to tell her that it encouraged eating processed food so he never had one. Even now when the apartment came equipped with one, he still refused to use it.